Chapter 329: Chapter 329: Magical Cream

Lana watched the professor walk away, his figure disappearing beyond the classroom door as the faint echo of his footsteps dissolved into the long corridor.

She calmly completed the gesture of grace, her movements unhurried and almost indifferent, as though nothing unusual had happened.

At that very moment, seeing Lana so nonchalant, every classmate in the room felt as if someone were pouring scalding water directly onto their hearts.

They truly could not bear the arrogance they believed they saw on Lana’s face.

To them, she was unbearably provoking, someone whose mere presence stirred irritation that clawed at their nerves.

Rim, the girl who had earlier insulted Lana, leaned closer to her best friend, Shelley, and whispered,

“Why are you so silent? Don’t tell me you’re just going to let this go.”

Shelley did not answer immediately. She continued staring at Lana with an intrigued glint in her eyes, as though observing a rare creature placed before her for amusement.

’Interesting… very interesting,’ she thought. ’How is she able to stand there as if nothing in this classroom can touch her?’

Shelley and Tan were the main mystic cultivators of the class, the unspoken leaders whose authority needed no announcement.

It could be said that without their permission, nothing truly happened in the entire classroom.

Because of that, everyone instinctively followed Shelley’s lead, like reeds bending toward the direction of the wind.

Shelley’s lips slowly curved into a smile as she murmured, “This exchange student is truly arrogant. She needs to be taught a lesson.”

She turned to Rim, her gaze sharp. “What about arranging a match between Lana and me?”

Rim frowned immediately. “That won’t work. There’s a level disparity between you and her. The application would never be approved.”

Shelley’s smile deepened, carrying a hint of mockery. “Do I really need to teach you such a simple thing?”

Rim blinked, confusion spreading across her face.

Shelley tilted her head back slightly and glanced at the ceiling, as if she could not believe she was dealing with someone so slow.

Then she looked back at Rim and spoke slowly, each word deliberate.

“All you need to do is provoke her enough so that she accepts the challenge herself. Offer her an idea, bait her pride, and let her agree to the duel willingly.”

Rim’s eyes widened as realization dawned.

Shelley continued, her tone almost lazy.

“The rules state that a stronger mystic cultivator cannot challenge a weaker one… but they never said a weaker cultivator cannot challenge someone stronger.”

Rim’s eyes sparkled. She nodded eagerly, excitement flickering across her face as her gaze shifted toward Lana.

“What a nuisance,” Shelley murmured. “She had to arrive at the worst possible time.”

Rim, who was seated nearby, glanced toward Shelley in silent inquiry, but Shelley merely smiled and shook her head, signaling that everything was already in motion.

……………….

The next day, during the lunch break, Lana walked into the quiet restroom.

She entered one of the cubicles, intending to leave quickly, but the sound of several girls chatting nearby reached her ears.

At first, she paid them no attention.

After stepping out of the cubicle, she moved toward the sink and began washing her hands under the stream of cool water.

One of the girls, while applying a cream to her face, said excitedly, “This serum is truly magical. It’s only been two months, and the results are already so obvious.”

Another girl nodded enthusiastically. “I’ve noticed it too. Students all around the university are starting to glow. Some of them have even become prettier.”

A third voice added, “They say this cream can directly fix imperfect facial features. Like… it can actually perfect asymmetry.”

The moment Lana heard those words, her hands froze beneath the running water.

A memory surfaced.

She suddenly recalled what she had observed around Spineridge University.

Many of the students were indeed unusually attractive.

In fact, so many people looked extraordinarily beautiful and handsome that, for a fleeting second, Lana had almost believed she had wandered into a manhwa world.

’So it wasn’t natural…’

Now, hearing their conversation, she realized that the transformation was not a coincidence. It was this cream that was making them look so flawless.

At first, she might have dismissed the matter. After all, miraculous beauty products appeared every now and then.

However, when she thought more carefully, none of those products had ever claimed to correct structural asymmetry. That was no longer cosmetics. That was alteration.

Curiosity stirred within her. She turned her head slightly toward the group of girls.

And the moment she truly looked at them, she froze.

A faint black aura clung to their bodies like smoke that refused to disperse.

Her eyes darkened. ’This cream is connected to the deaths.’

With that realization, she stepped closer and spoke in a gentle voice,

“I couldn’t help overhearing your conversation. I’m quite interested in that glowing serum. Would you be kind enough to let me have one?”

The girl who had been speaking looked Lana up and down, her gaze pausing on Lana’s uniform. She rolled her eyes and muttered,

“Honestly, students from Shadowridge University are just beggars.”

Perched quietly on Lana’s shoulder, Mr. Crow narrowed his eyes.

Recently, he had learned to suppress his presence, allowing most people to overlook him entirely.

However, being unnoticed did not stop the ridicule. Some students constantly mocked Lana for carrying a crow, calling her strange.

Others sneered that Mr. Crow must be her mystical companion, or worse, just a pet.

They even claimed that with such a creature, Lana was destined to remain a low-ranked mystic cultivator forever.

Yet Lana had never shown even the slightest fear or embarrassment in the face of those taunts. She always stood tall.

Now, hearing these girls mock her again, Mr. Crow felt irritation rise like sparks beneath ash.

Even if their insult was not directed at him, he found their attitude intolerable.

He was just about to open his beak when Lana smiled softly and spoke first.

“I’m not a beggar,” she said calmly. “If you’re willing to sell it, I’m ready to pay.”

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