Chapter 133
Sharon pulled out her phone and put in a tiny earpiece. “Where’s that information I asked for?” she said quietly.
“For this assessment, nearly every family has sent their best descendants,” Cameron explained. “Since they switched from invitation–only to voluntary participation, the numbers are much higher than usual.”
David said, “Pretty much every branch of the Vance family sent their kids here. Not a single one missing. People have been making fun of it behind their backs, saying the Vance branches are trying to pull some stunt.
“But I think it’s because Roxanne used to block them from getting invitations, and now they’re trying to take advantage of the situation.
After all, Sharon had just taken over and hadn’t had time to deal with the branch families yet.
“Sharon,” Jannie chimed in, “according to our information, there’s a Vance girl in your dorm. Her name is Elise Vance, and she’s considered the most promising girl of her generation from the branch families.”
Sharon glanced at her phone where a photo had just been sent. She took a quick look. ‘So that’s the girl,’ she thought.
No wonder Sharon had felt that strange look when she walked into the dorm earlier. It was from a Vance family girl.
“What about the other two?” Sharon asked.
“The other two are from minor families. Basically, this old dorm building you’re staying in is filled with kids from families without much status or influence,” Jannie said.
It was ridiculous that someone of Sharon’s status had ended up here by some weird twist of fate.
No one would even believe that the head of the Vance family living in a shabby old dorm. The whole thing reeked of some kind of conspiracy.
Without another word, Sharon headed back to her dorm.
The once–chatty dorm room fell completely silent. The three girls were clearly intimidated by Sharon, who was now the head of the Vance family.
This was something small declining families couldn’t even dream of achieving.
Sharon walked in and noticed a sky–blue uniform on the table that looked particularly youthful.
“That’s the uniform the academy just issued,” someone explained. “We’re supposed to wear it during the testing period. Only those who make the final cut get to wear the official academy uniform.”
Sharon turned to look at the speaker. The girl’s eyes flickered nervously, her tone conveying a mix of uncertainty and eagerness to please.
Sharon knew exactly who this girl was–Elise, from a branch family.
“Thanks,” Sharon replied with a slight nod. She was well aware of the branch family’s attempts to test her, but she couldn’t be bothered to stop them from trying to enter the academy. No matter how talented they might be, they’d never match her abilities.
Soon after, everyone’s phones pinged with a notification: [All new students: Report to the main hall for assembly. Arrive within 30 minutes and find your seats. Latecomers will face consequences.]
After reading this message, nearly everyone rushed to change into their uniforms before racing downstairs.
Soon, an upperclassman posted a reminder on the forum: [Space in the auditorium is limited. First come, first served.]
The dorm quickly emptied until only Sharon remained. She calmly changed into her uniform without rushing, then leisurely made her way out of the dormitory building.
1/3
Chapter 133
Just as she stepped outside, she ran into Elise, who was leading a group of young girls of various ages. Some of the little ones were crying and trying to comfort them while guiding everyone downstairs.
Sharon hung back, quietly observing the scene. ‘This Elise is actually pretty good with kids, she thought.
Most people would have just rushed off after seeing that announcement, but here was Elise taking care of other Vance family children.
Sharon had assumed everyone in the Vance family was just like Roxanne, but clearly that wasn’t entirely true.
As they exited the building, Elise joined another group with a similar makeup–several older kids shepherding younger ones.
“What about the boys in the Vance family? What’s their situation?” Sharon asked quietly.
“There’s someone named Merrick Vance who’s about Elise’s age,” came the reply. “The extended family only has these two who are worth mentioning
“Looks like they’ve brought a bunch of little kids with them. I bet there won’t be many seats left in the auditorium by the time they arrive.
“Shari, aren’t you in a hurry?” Jannie asked.
Sharon remained calm. ‘Why would I need to rush?‘ she thought.
Cameron gave her an exasperated look. Sharon had the headmaster’s special invitation, which was completely different from everyone else’s. She just needed to attend the training session with them, that was all.
Sharon took a different route and arrived at the entrance to the great hall at the same time as members of the Vance family’s extended branch.
Both parties froze, neither saying a word.
Sharon pushed the doors open and walked in. The noisy hall immediately grew quieter.
“Look, that’s the young lady of the Vance family!” someone whispered.
“Now that I see her up close, she’s not even that pretty,” a girl remarked with an unmistakably jealous tone. “How did she end up as Nicholas‘ fiancée?
Hmph.”
The girls were being catty, their comments dripping with envy.
The guys, however, kept their mouths shut. Many of their social media accounts had already been blocked just for discussing Sharon.
Nicholas wasn’t someone they could afford to mess with. No one would dare to set their sights on a powerful man’s woman.
There weren’t many empty seats left in the hall.
Sharon walked slowly. Elise and Merrick exchanged glances before hurriedly leading the family children toward the back. But they ran into a small
problem.
Despite obvious empty seats, people kept saying, “These seats are taken.”
With the event about to start, this was clearly deliberate. Out of more than 10 empty seats, only three or four were available.
Merrick got angry and wanted to confront them, but Elise held him back. “Don’t make a scene,” she warned.
They couldn’t afford to mess this up. If they got in trouble, their entire family branch would never recover.
The other children were being sensible about it. “Elise, Merrick, you guys should sit down,” they said. “We’re just here to watch anyway, it’s fine.
They’d ended up in this situation because they’d walked too slowly.
Sharon approached just then, and almost immediately, several people turned to look at her. Most of their stares weren’t friendly.
2/3
15:00 Thu, 5 Jun
Chapter 133
Elise forced a smile. “There’s an empty seat here,” she offered.
After all, Sharon was the head of the Vance family, no matter what.
“I’ll sit over here,” Sharon replied, She didn’t join them, instead taking an empty seat nearby.
But the guy who’d been saving seats got aggressive. “I already told you this whole row is taken,” he snapped. “Are you deaf? Or are you looking to get smacked?”
That guy had claimed seven seats alone. Sharon’s eyes turned cold in an instant. She walked over, grabbed the guy by his collar, and threw him into the aisle. “Get lost,” she said, her voice like ice.
A
