The Mercenary Queen Strikes Back (Lily Hastings) novel Chapter 24

Chapter 24

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At that moment, Nova leaned lazily against the door, her tone relaxed and casual.

‘Since I’ve already escaped from Devil’s Isle, why would I wait for them to catch me?‘ she thought, her lips curving in quiet amusement. ‘What a bunch of idiots.‘

She couldn’t have cared less about the news report; it meant nothing to her.

But everyone else had clearly heard what she said.

The faces around her–Maxwell, Hannah, Laura, Julian, and Caleb–all went stiff.

“Those guys talked big?” Maxwell, standing at the front, repeated blankly, feeling his blood turn cold.

‘Those guys?‘ he wondered. ‘She means the people from Devil’s Isle? The ones who said they’d hunt down the escapee?‘

That was the only thing that made sense to him. To Maxwell and the rest of the Free Combat Club, Nova’s words just sounded bizarre–out of nowhere and impossible to interpret.

They glanced at each other, confused, eyes wide with disbelief.

After all, they were just ordinary college students.

Even Maxwell, for all his composure, could only feel puzzled.

As for Hannah, Julian, and the others, they were simply stunned.

But Nova’s words had sounded too deliberate–almost as if she were directly responding to the Devil’s Isle officials in the broadcast.

Of course, none of them could possibly imagine that the girl standing before them was the escapee the world was hunting–the first person in history to ever break out of Devil’s Isle.

And even if Nova had admitted it right then and there, no one would have believed her.

They were just students at Saint Laurel Royal Academy–a few people who happened to know some self- defense.

Escaping from a prison built to contain the world’s most dangerous criminals was beyond their wildest imagination.

Still, Nova’s casual remark left them all frozen in place, stunned and silent.

Under their wary stares, Nova brushed a strand of hair off her shoulder and arched a brow.

“Relax. It was a joke,” she said lightly, her tone playful. “You guys didn’t actually take that seriously, did you?”

Her lie was smooth–effortless, almost believable.

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Chapter 24

“Nova?” Hannah snapped, her voice rising. Nova’s nonchalant teasing tone only made her feel mocked.

“You think this is funny?” Hannah shouted, glaring at her with burning hatred. “Who the hell do you think you’re fooling? You think we don’t know what kind of person you are?

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She continued, “You’re hopeless. You act all pitiful in front of Mom and Dad, but you’re dressed head to toe in designer brands.

“Now you’re here pretending to be mysterious, claiming you’ll replace Max and defeat Zane? The one who talks big here is you.

“You selfish, lying fraud–I’ll never forgive you. And I’ll never admit that someone like you is my sister.”

When she finished screaming, Hannah kicked the door with all her strength.

BANG.

The door rattled violently under the impact, echoing through the corridor.

Then she turned and bolted down the hall.

“Hannie?” Julian and Caleb both called out after her.

They shot Nova an apologetic glance before hurrying after Hannah.

Maxwell’s thoughts were clear from his expression–he was thinking the same thing as Julian.

They both believed that after years away from home, Nova had simply developed a bad habit of saying reckless things or making jokes without thinking.

But unlike Hannah, neither of them harbored real hostility toward her,

“I’ll go check on Hannie,” Maxwell said quietly, then followed the others downstairs.

“Hannie’s our club’s little princess,” Laura said with an awkward scratch of her head. “She’s not great with jokes, you know?

“But she’s actually really kind. Don’t take it to heart. You’re her sister–family fights don’t last long. She’ll cool down soon enough. Just wait–soon enough, you two will be back to being close like always.”

Nova seemed utterly unfazed.

Maybe Nova found Laura’s straightforward warmth refreshing. She tilted her chin slightly and said, almost with a hint of amusement, “Maybe.”

*****

Good times always seemed to pass in the blink of an eye.

Over the next week, nothing particularly eventful happened.

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Chapter 24

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Nova’s daily routine shifted slightly–no longer limited to school and Blake Villa. Now, there was a third stop on her map–the Free Combat Club.

Her life had settled into a neat little triangle.

Since Nova joined the club, Sophia had also become a frequent visitor. She often brought homemade treats for Nova–cookies, mango crepe cakes, rainbow layer cakes, and the like.

It was worth noting that Sophia was a proud member of the Dessert Club.

Every time her club held an activity, she would go completely overboard with her baking.

Now, inside Freshman Year Class A, Nova sat by the window, indulging in Sophia’s latest creation—a strawberry crepe cake.

After one small bite, she arched a brow slightly. “Too much sugar,” she remarked.

“Ah–too sweet?” Sophia quickly scooped up a forkful to taste for herself. The moment it touched her tongue, her brows furrowed. “You’re right. It’s way too sweet. I must’ve added sugar twice again.”

Flustered, Sophia lifted the whole slice of cake. “I’ll just throw it away. I’ll make you a better one next time.”

Before she could take a step toward the trash can, a slender, graceful hand reached out, stopping her.

“Nova?” Sophia looked at her in surprise.

Nova calmly took back the cake from her hands. “It’s sweet,” she said, “but it’s good.” Then, she resumed eating calmly.

Like most of the academy’s upper–class students, Sophia had been pampered since birth. She couldn’t understand why Nova would insist on finishing something so obviously imperfect.

Sophia stood frozen for a moment, confused.

“Nova?” she asked softly, baffled.

She didn’t know that Nova came from a world of mercenaries–a world where she’d walked through countless war–torn countries and seen children with missing limbs dying of starvation on the streets.

She didn’t know that as a child, Nova had nearly been beaten to death over moldy bread fished out of a filthy

ditch.

It was a darkness that girls like Sophia–born into comfort and luxury–could never comprehend.

“Other than being a little too sweet,” Nova said evenly, swallowing the last bite, “it tastes fine.”

Sophia, of course, thought Nova was only eating it to spare her feelings.

Her eyes grew misty with gratitude. “Nova-”

Before Sophia could say more, the class bell rang, cutting through her emotion.

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Students hurried back to their seats, and Sophia reluctantly returned to hers.

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A few moments later, the classroom door swung open. Their academic advisor, Zoey Cole, walked in, her sharp heels clicking against the floor. Zoey’s hips swayed slightly as she moved toward the podium.

Today’s class was supposed to be Literature, so her presence–being the Aurevian language instructor–meant something was off.

That left only two possibilities

Either the Literature teacher had taken the day off, or Zoey had something important to announce.

Sure enough, when she reached the front, she cleared her throat and said crisply, “Your Literature teacher is absent today, so we’ll be having Aurevian instead.”

Zoey adjusted the gold–rimmed glasses on her nose. She was young, beautiful, and carried herself with quiet authority.

Then her expression turned serious.

“The school held an emergency staff meeting earlier,” she began. “This year’s freshman training will begin in ten days.

“But unlike previous years, this time the sophomores, juniors, and seniors will all participate together. And the format has changed. Instead of the usual boring drills and posture training-”

Zoey paused for emphasis, letting the suspense build. “This year’s training will involve a full–scale wilderness survival challenge–and you’ll be working alongside your upperclassmen.”

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