She Outshines Them All (Athena and Matthew) novel Chapter 171

Chapter 171
Two hours later, lan trudged back to the dorm, slumping in his chair with a defeated expression that showed he had taken a heavy blow.
The room was packed with young men eagerly waiting for his news.
Seeing his demeanor, they sensed something was off. “What happened, lan? Did you find nothing on Joy?”
“Is she really all style and no substance, hiding a scandalous past?
“Did you hear some shocking rumors about her that left you in shock?”
If that were the c it wouldn’t be surprising. After all, no one was perfect.
Ian stared up at tiling, sighing deeply. “She’s out of our reach.”
The guys shook his shoulders excitedly. “Come on, Ian! You have to tell us. We can’t understand if you don’t share.”
With a defeated tone, Ian replied, “Her file is with the international student office and hasn’t been transferred yet.
“I saw she was born in Aeloria, her mother is from Osceiton, but she attended high school in Uroterin and received acceptance letters from two top universities months ago, scoring perfect on the SAT and earning full scholarships. Just imagine how exceptional she is. How can we ever catch up to her?”
The lively dorm fell silent.
The young men were stunned into speechlessness.
Getting into Kitmore University was already an achievement, and while they could potentially aim for the top schools with enough effort, they couldn’t even imagine a perfect score.
But Ian wasn’t finished. “That’s not all. She has multiple patents for her inventions that are being commercially produced.
“Her oil paintings, photography, and piano performances have all won international awards.
“The novel she wrote was selected as one of the top ten books of the year by the news, hit the bestseller list, and was nominated for a prestigious literary award.”
The boys listened in disbelief, feeling like they were hearing a fantasy tale.
“The scariest part is she just turned eighteen last month.” Ian, lacking his usual pride and confidence, looked reflective. “That means she achieved all this before reaching adulthood.
“Do you think someone like her could ever be accessible to us?”
Hearing this, the young men felt deflated. All their excitement evaporated.
They could only look at her in admiration.
They all sighed deeply, finding places to sit, some even on the floor, unsure how to continue the conversation.
Someone muttered, “She seems to surpass us in every way. I think our anti-beauty alliance can be disbanded.”
Another said, “Hey, looking on the bright side. Even if they are out of our reach, at least they’re from our school. We get to see them every day and even have the chance to be their classmates and friends. That’s not too shabby, Other young men from different schools don’t have that chance.”
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Chapter 171
A young man said, “Exactly. Anyway, if we can’t have them, neither can the other guys, so it’s a fair balance.”
After all, they were elite students and had sharp minds, so they didn’t get too bogged down and began to feel enlightened.
“You’re right.” lan perked up, sitting up straight and rubbing his hands. “If we can’t reach the excellent ladies, no one else will either. Let’s all resign ourselves to it.”
The boys applauded. “That’s right.”
As one of the campus network administrators, Ian had many virtual accounts at his disposal.
He immediately posted using one of them: How perfect is Joy? A high school classmate revealed that she got perfect scores and full scholarships from two top universities but chose Kitmore University.]
He wrote in the post: [A friend of my friend’s, a really exceptional guy, attended Swereo for high school, where he and Joy were at the same school but different classes. He said Joy is very low-key but excels academically. She applied to one of the top schools last year and passed the interview.]
Ian slightly ex.
ed the details of Joy’s achievements from her student file.
As soon as the post went live, it blew up and became a top sticky post.
Students flooded the comments.
“Perfect scores? That’s incredible! She seems even more impressive than Athena.”
“Why would someone so talented come to Kitmore University? I didn’t mean that Kitmore is bad, but what’s the benefit for her to study history here?”
“Her beauty is on par with Athena’s, but her talent and accomplishments surpass Athena’s. Joy should be the top beauty at Kitmore University.”
Others agreed.
The second most popular post was the one titled [Who’s More Beautiful, Athena or Joy?]
By nightfall, over five thousand students had voted, and Joy’s numbers were steadily climbing, now several hundred votes ahead of Athena.
Of course, this was thanks to Zoe and others manipulating the results behind the scenes.
Meanwhile, Zoe sat in front of her computer, staring in shock at the top post, murmuring, “Not only is Joy as beautiful as Athena, but she’s even more accomplished and versatile?”
In that moment, despair washed over her.
She had always wanted to be the most outstanding girl, yet she had never once outshone Athena, and now there was someone even better. This was pushing her over the edge.
She closed her eyes, lost in thought.
But soon, she opened them again, shaking off her earlier gloom and revealing a sly smile.
Zoe said, “Athena, used to being number one, will now constantly be overshadowed by Joy. How can she not feel upset? How long can she stand it?
“Soon, she’ll taste the bitter reality of always being second, grappling with self-doubt and struggles while putting on a facade of calm and confidence to deceive others.
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Chapter 171
“Then I’ll be sure to kick her while she’s down and watch her cry.
“Also, I’ll find a way to get close to Joy and befriend her, stirring up her rivalry with Athena.”
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She chuckled slyly. “If I can’t outsmart Athena, Joy can. With our combined efforts, how could Athena possibly rise to the top?”
But Zoe’s plan didn’t stop there.
After laughing enough, she picked up her phone and looked for Lucas’s contact, sending him Joy’s photo along with the gossip. [Athena has finally been outshined. Look at Joy’s profile. Every aspect of her surpasses Athena’s. She’s already being recognized as Kitmore University’s top beauty.]
Lucas, sitting in a bar with a small starlet, nearly dropped his drink upon seeing Joy’s photo, captivated.
Lucas said, “So b
ful and elegant. She must come from an extraordinary background.”
The drink in his glass lost its appeal.
The beauty in his arms paled in comparison.
His mind was entirely on this new target. This was the woman he wanted.
He made up his mind. He would get Joy at all costs.
He replied to Zoe: [The enemy of my enemy is my friend. We need to work on getting close to her to use her against Athena.]
Zoe was thrilled by his reaction: [Okay.]
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