Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest novel Chapter 911

Chapter 911 209.1 - Caught ?

Seraphina sat at her desk, her silver eyes cold as she scrolled through the academy's news channels, student forums, and the private networks where rumors thrived. The pictures she had so meticulously leaked were everywhere now. Her plan had worked—at least in terms of exposure.

And yet…

She clenched her jaw as she read through the comments, her fingers tightening against the edges of her smartwatch.

"Damn, Irina and Astron look good together."

"I didn't know they were that close. Kinda jealous."

"Irina seems so happy. When was the last time we saw her like this?"

"Matriarch Emberheart hasn't even said anything yet. If this was a problem, it would've been dealt with already."

Seraphina's grip on her smartwatch nearly cracked the device.

This wasn't how it was supposed to go.

She had imagined the fallout vividly. Irina shaken, unsure, forced to reconsider the relationship in the face of scrutiny. Astron finally forced into a position where he couldn't just walk away from consequences. And the Matriarch—surely the Matriarch would step in, wouldn't she?

After all, Irina wasn't just anyone. She was the Emberheart heir, bound by lineage, by expectation. The idea that someone of Astron's status—a nobody, an orphan—could walk into that space and remain unchallenged was unthinkable.

But the academy's reaction was the exact opposite of what she had predicted.

People weren't whispering in fear or disgust. They were celebrating. Irina wasn't cornered—she was glowing.

Seraphina had never seen her so visibly happy before.

The most infuriating part? The one thing she had counted on—the Matriarch's intervention—never came.

She had waited, checked every major news outlet and private network connected to the Emberheart name, anticipating an official statement, a reprimand, something.

And yet, the silence from the Emberheart family was deafening.

It wasn't the silence of avoidance or impending punishment. It was the silence of acceptance.

Seraphina's fingers curled into a fist against her desk, her breath slow and measured, trying to suppress the wave of irritation threatening to spill over.

'Why?'

Why hadn't the Matriarch done anything?

A woman known for her control, for her calculated authority—was she really going to sit back and allow this? Allow her heir to openly flaunt a connection to someone with no lineage to speak of?

Seraphina leaned back in her chair, exhaling sharply through her nose. Her silver eyes narrowed as she stared at the pictures now plastered all over the academy's networks.

Irina and Astron—standing side by side, that infuriatingly genuine smile on Irina's face. The way her hand rested so easily against his. The way she leaned in as if there was no one else in the world but him.

And worse…

The way Astron, despite his usual unreadable expression, didn't push her away.

Seraphina had expected chaos.

Instead, she had given them an announcement.

A confirmation of what everyone had already suspected but never had proof of. And now, thanks to her, the entire academy knew.

Seraphina exhaled slowly, her breath steadying as the chaos in her mind settled into something more focused. If the Matriarch hadn't acted, that meant she already knew about Astron.

And if that was the case…

Seraphina's silver eyes darkened as realization dawned. The fact that he still stepped into this academy meant that he was already acknowledged by her. Even if only partially.

That single fact shifted everything.

The Matriarch was not a woman who tolerated uncertainty. She ruled her house with absolute authority, controlling everything from the Emberheart family's finances to its alliances. And yet, she had not crushed Astron.

Which meant she saw value in him.

Seraphina tapped a single finger against the desk, her mind racing.

'That makes him dangerous. If he's someone worthy of the Matriarch's recognition, then others will covet him too.'

She clenched her jaw. Coveting someone like him would have been easier if he were an unknown—an orphan with talent but no backing. But now? Now he had something far worse.

Recognition.

His lack of lineage didn't matter anymore if powerful people started to look at him as a prospect rather than an anomaly.