Chapter 5 Chapter Five

• The room went dead silent. My voice lingered in the air like smoke after a gunshot.
• "How much?" I said with my eye locked on everyone in the seat. They all looked at me and wondered how a boy of my age could say that with boldness.
• Some of them actually think I was bluffing. They knew my mother worked a double shift and could not pay a cent. I had gotten in on scholarship so how could I have said that without attaching much to it.
• Mr. Hudson blinked slowly, like he wasn't sure he'd heard me right.
• "Excuse me?" he said adjusting his big round glasses.
• "I said, how much?" I leaned forward, ignoring the way my bruised ribs protested. "You want money? Fine. Name your price."
• The woman with the pointy nose shifted in her seat. The others exchanged glances. That wasn't the reaction they expected. I wasn't supposed to speak like this. I wasn't supposed to sit upright in my broken state, or sound like I could afford anything more than pity.
• "I-I believe you should take time to think clearly, Mr. Pontius," the Dean said, his fingers tightening around his pen. "This is a very delicate situation
• "You made it delicate when you accused me without proof," I interrupted. "You called me here to strip me of my dignity. You thought I'd crawl." I looked at each of their faces, daring them to challenge me. "But now that money's the only thing between me and expulsion... let's make it simple. How much?"
• The old man cleared his throat and adjusted his spectacles. "Full tuition, living costs, and a donor f*e. Fifty thousand dollars."
• I didn't blink. "You'll have it by the end of the day."
• Gasps echoed around the room.
• "Young man-”
• I stood slowly, deliberately. "Also," I said, pausing at the door, "when you check that CCTV footage... make sure you play the audio too. So everyone hears who threw the first punch."
• I didn't wait for a response. The heavy door shut behind me with a finality that made my heart race. My legs trembled slightly, but not from fear. I was burning. Alive with something fierce and new.
• Power.
• The school halls were still. As I walked, students moved aside, parting like water around me. Their whispers were louder now, sharper.
• As I walked, I could hear what they had to say. The disbelief in their voice and the doubt but I didn't care. I know what I need to do to shut them up.
• "Did he really say he'd pay fifty grand?"
• "No way. Where would a loser like him get that kind of money?"
• "He's bluffing."
• "He's crazy."
• "He's finished."
• "I am sure he just wants to bluff and show that he is not some charity case the school is trying to help."
• But let them talk. I was going to show them I was no longer the poor, beaten down kid anymore.
• They didn't know about the app.
• They didn't know I'd just transferred double that amount into a secure school account.
• They didn't know I was coming back stronger.
• And they had no idea what I had planned for Jeremiah.
• At home, I locked my room and opened the app. The interface glowed with a new update. A message popped up:
• [Congratulations, Player. You've unlocked Level 4: Domination.]
• [New features: Influence Boost Campus Edition.]
• [Challenge Incoming: Humiliate the Oppressor Bonus Reward: Rare Item. ]
• I stared at the screen, breath caught in my throat. I wonder what the new item I gained was. Well, I was expecting more money but if the system was giving rare items, I wonder what it was going to be.
• This wasn't just a game anymore. It was war and I am definitely going to do everything I had to, to come out on top. I am going to stay beaten to the ground anymore.
• I stood up, grabbed the bag I'd hidden under my bed-the one with designer clothes I hadn't dared to wear yet-and threw it open. I had bought some fancy clothes earlier but I didn't see the news to wear them. But not anymore
• if I was going to go against Jeremiah then I need to start showing how much of a power I had myself.
• If they wanted a show, I was going to give them one.
• They thought I didn't belong in their world.
• They were wrong.
• [The Next Morning - Campus]
• The sound of screeching tires cut through the morning buzz. Heads turned as the sleek, matte-black sports car pulled into the school's parking lot. The driver's door opened slowly... and I stepped out. Designer shades. Leather jacket. Black jeans. A calm, collected smirk.
• Silence.
• Until I heard someone whisper:
• "Is that... Pontius?"
• I didn't answer. I walked past them like they didn't exist. Straight into the front office. Past the stunned receptionist. Into the bursary.
• I dropped the receipt for the payment on the table.
• "All covered," I said.
• The woman blinked at the numbers, her hands trembling slightly as she read the statement.
• "But... where did this come from?" she whispered.
• I leaned closer, voice low.
• "Tell your Dean," I said, "that the next time he tries to shame me, he should check the size of his own pocket first."
• I turned around and walked out without looking back.
• Only to stop dead at the entrance.
• Because standing there, in the hallway, dressed in a red silk blouse and wearing that same condescending smile, was Layla.
• And right behind her... was Jeremiah.
• My blood went cold as Layla walked up to me, dragging a finger slowly across my chest.
• "Well, well," she said, her voice like poison. "Looks like our little charity case just got interesting."
• And then she leaned in, her lips brushing my ear. I could feel her icy cold breath against my ear.