bChapter /bb188 /b

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    13

    The distance from the stadium to the school infirmary was considerable, requiring about twenty minutes to walk.

    Given their current condition, Beatrice and Leni would be unable to make the trip. Therefore, the observer

    called for a campus shuttle cart, the school’s transport service for students.

    “Briar, could you please help me take them to the infirmary? Thank you so much,” the observer said gratefully

    when Briar offered to help. He needed to be present at the sports event at all times, and he was concerned that his

    partner might feel overwhelmed. Now that Briar was willing to assist, it was a tremendous relief.

    “I’m happy to help! You can return to your work—I’ll take care of things here,” Briar said with a smile as she gently

    encouraged the observer to leave. Then, with Beatrice and Leni watching in fear, she climbed into the cart,

    grinning.

    Briar patted the shoulder of the driver up front. “Let’s go,n.”

    Leni had no idea whon was, but Beatrice, who had once explored the international dark web, knew a thing or

    two about the world’s top mercenaries. She had seenn’s name on the international mercenary rankings before;

    he was an exceptional mercenary.

    Beatrice’s entire body went stiff. When she finally caught a clear glimpse ofn, her face turned ghostly pale. “Briar,

    h–how do you even know him?”

    Briar lounged back in her seat, arms crossed and grinning at Beatrice, who was trembling with fear. “What’s wrong? Don’t you recognize him? You should have seen what he was like before–back when you hired a hitman to

    take me out, remember?”

    Beatrice fell silent, her face ashen. She frantically pulled at the shuttle cart’s door handle, but it was locked tight-pletely useless. “Please let me out! Briar, I want to get off! Please!” she cried, her voice quaking with panic.

    Beatrice mmed her fists against the window, desperately hoping someone outside would notice her distress. However,n had taken the most deserted route to the infirmary–there wasn’t a single soul in sight. Beatrice’s frantic outburst took Leni aback. “Beatrice, what’s wrong? You’re scaring me!”

    b‘/bDid I hear something I wasn’t supposed ito/ii? /iA hitman? Who’s the target?‘ Leni’s mind raced with confusion.

    “Beatrice hired a hitman to kill Briar?

    ‘Damn, is Beatrice really this ruthless? Isn’t Briar her sister? Why would she want to harm her?‘ Leni’s heart raced wildly.

    Beatrice was so terrified that she no longer cared what Leni thought. All she focused on was the fear ofn getting his hands on her–if that happened, she knew she would be doomed; she might even die here. She didn’t want to die.

    “Briar, I’m so sorry! I was wrong! Please, let me go; I messed up…” Beatrice pleaded, gripping Briar’s hand in desperation. If there had been enough space in the cart, she likely would have dropped to her knees right then and there–anything to stay alive.

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    Briar shook Beatrice’s hand away. “What are you so afraid of? I’m not some heartless maniac like you, treating other people’s lives as if they mean nothing.” Just then, they arrived at the infirmary. Briar smiled and gently patted Beatrice’s cheek. “Rx, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m a good,w–abiding citizen, remember?”

    Then Briar grabbed Leni–who was so terrified that she couldn’t utter a word–and hurried out of the cart. Beatrice, on the other hand, was left behind as the shuttle sped off to who knows where. Briar turned to Leni, who was trembling. “What did you just see?” she asked, her eyes cold and unreadable.

    “I… I didn’t see anything! I don’t know a thing!” Leni eximed, shaking her head frantically as her survival instincts kicked into high gear. She was so close to pledging an oath to Briar to prove her ignorance.

    Briar wasn’t concerned about Leni spilling any secrets; she had plenty of ways to ensure her silence. “Let’s go, I’ll take you to the infirmary,” Briar said, with her hands shoved in her pockets as she walked toward the entrance, not bothering to look back.

    Leni didn’t dare to run. She quietly followed Briar into the infirmary, not making a sound. The infirmary was bustling today, filled with students who had sprained, fallen, or suffered bruises. When another patient arrived, those who had already been treated automatically stepped aside to clear a path for them.

    Briar led Leni over to Sawyer’s desk, pointed toward the back, and stated bluntly, “Fell. Needs disinfecting.”

    Sawyer was so busy that he didn’t even look up. Instead, he pointed behind him at the medicine cab and said, “Second shelf, thirdpartment–the disinfectant is in there. Please take care of it yourself for now.”

    Briar remained motionless. Sawyer finished bandaging the patient in front of him and then looked up. Upon seeing Briar, he froze for a moment, his expression briefly contorting before heposed himself and gave her a quick once–over. He noticed that she had no visible injuries.

    He turned to Leni next to Briar, whose knee was still bleeding. “Go sit over there; I’ll take care of your wound right away.” Leni nodded vigorously and quickly, made her way to a chair, eager to distance herself from Briar.

    Sawyer approached the imedicine /icab, retrieved some disinfectant and bandages, and calmly walked over to Leni, treating her wound as if it were just another routine case. However, Briar’s expression turned frosty when she noticed a familiar logo on one of the medicine bottles in the cab–a logo that was seared into her memory.

    It was the same logo as the medicine her mother had taken before she was admitted to the mental hospital. Not long ago, when Edgar returned some of her mother’s belongings, she had seen that very bottle in an old photo.

    Taking advantage of Sawyer’s turn, Briar quickly took a photo of the row of medicine bottles with her phone, intending to check if the logos were the same when she returned.

    “Hey, campus belle, weren’t you supposed to be running the girls‘ two–mile race? What are you doing in the infirmary?” A few of Briar’s fangirls in the infirmary noticed her and quickly gathered around, excitedly greeting her and crowding in close.

    Briar suppressed her shock and exined, “We were in adjacentnes. She got hurt, so I dropped out too.”

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    One of the fangirls nodded. “Oh, so that’s what happened! What a shame! You definitely would have crushed that

    race.”

    She had heard that Briar went for morning runs every day, so a two–mile race should be easy for her. However, it was pretty standard for someone in the nextne to have an ident, causing dys ifor /iothers, which made the fangirl feel sorry for Briar.

    Briar didn’t mind at all. “I was just there to fill the numbers anyway. Since she got hurt, I chose not to run. I can

    always sign up again next time.”

    “Exactly!” the fangirl eximed with a broad smile, pulling out her phone. “Hey, campus belle, can I add you on

    WhatsApp?”

    Briar was still holding a bottle of medicine in her other hand, which bore the same logo as before. Her eyes grew cold for a moment, but she took out her phone anyway. “Sure, I’ll add you.”

    The fangirl,pletely unaware, was ecstatic. She joyfully added Briar on WhatsApp, and as soon as the friend

    request was epted, she sent a big smiley face. Briar texted: [Let’s stay in touch.], returning the gesture with a smiley face.

    The fangirl was absolutely over the moon. [Yes, yes! For sure!]

    Leni’s wound was now neatly bandaged, with Sawyer having tied two charming bows to her hand. “B–Briar, should we go now?” she asked nervously, her voice barely a whisper.

    “Let’s go,” Briar said, casting onest nce at the medicine cab before guiding Leni out.

    Once the two of them left, Sawyer, who had been preupied the entire time, cast a nce at the second shelf of

    the medicine cab, a cold glimmer flickering in his eyes.

    AD