CHAPTER 43: CHAPTER 43: CAUSE CHAOS

Aiden was speechless for a long moment, staring at Miss Flecine as her words sank in. His chest tightened with frustration until he couldn’t hold it in any longer.

"How can you all be so despicable?" he snapped, his voice louder than he intended. "It’s not like I have anything left to give you. It’s not like having one less student will ruin your school! So why won’t you just let me go?"

Ryker shifted uncomfortably beside him, but Miss Flecine didn’t flinch at his outburst. Her expression remained calm, even sympathetic, as though she had been expecting this reaction.

"Aiden," she said softly, "you’re not just any student. We are planning to make you our legacy fulfilled. Since the day you entered Skyline Academy, you became someone special to us. When you go out into the world in the future, we want people to say, ’Skyline Academy is where this powerful person was raised.’ That’s the kind of pride you represent for us. So how could we ever let you go?"

Her tone grew more serious as she leaned forward. "You don’t seem to understand how important you are to Skyline Academy. So I will tell you now—listen carefully to every word. We could let hundred other students go if it meant keeping you here. That is how valuable you are to this school."

Aiden stood frozen, her words hitting him like a weight on his shoulders. He didn’t know whether to feel flattered or trapped. Frustration bubbled inside him, threatening to spill over again. He had come to this school of his own free will, thinking he could leave whenever he wanted. And now, when he wanted to withdraw, he was being told he had no choice in the matter.

It suddenly made sense why Ryker had stopped trying to convince him earlier when they were walking to the staff building. Ryker must have known there was no way Aiden would be allowed to leave.

Miss Flecine must have seen the storm brewing in Aiden’s eyes because her tone softened again. She seemed to realize that pushing him too hard might only drive him to resent the school. And resentment was the last thing she wanted. If he hated Skyline Academy, it could be dangerous for both him and the school’s reputation.

So she changed tactics. "How about this," she said, smiling gently. "Stay here for just one year. One year is all I’m asking. If after that we still can’t find a solution to your problem, I promise we will let you leave. No more forcing you to stay."

Aiden blinked, startled by the offer. "Really?" he asked, almost afraid to believe it.

"Really," Miss Flecine replied with a reassuring nod. "I wouldn’t lie to you. If it comes to that, I will personally handle your withdrawal procedure myself."

It felt like a weight had lifted off Aiden’s chest. He nodded slowly. It wasn’t total freedom, but at least it was a deal.

"Good," Miss Flecine said, smiling as though relieved they had reached some middle ground. "Now, while we’re here, I want you to give me the names of the students who have been bullying you or threatening you. I can assure you the school will deal with them. Ryker was right—this will serve as a warning to everyone else that you are not someone they can treat carelessly."

For a moment, Aiden felt a strange sense of satisfaction. It would be so easy to give her those names and watch the school punish them. But then he remembered something he had read on an online forum before coming to Skyline.

It was a post from a student in another boarding school who had been bullied relentlessly. When he reported his bullies to the teachers, they had been punished just as promised. But instead of learning from it, the bullies grew worse. They became crueler, more creative in their torment. They started threatening him if he ever reported them again.

He didn’t listen—he reported them anyway. The school punished them a second time, but this time they waited until no one was around, cornered him, and beat him so badly they nearly killed him. A teacher found him barely conscious and rushed him to the hospital.

After that, the student stopped reporting anything. He endured everything they did to him without crying or telling anyone. And strangely, after some time, the bullies stopped. He realized they only found him entertaining when he reacted. Once he stopped giving them the reaction they wanted, they lost interest.

Aiden let that story settle in his mind and decided not to tell Miss Flecine anything.

"It’s okay," he said finally. "You don’t have to do anything. Those students already hate me enough. I don’t want to give them another reason to hate me more."

Miss Flecine frowned, clearly displeased with his answer. Even Ryker looked annoyed.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Ryker said sharply. "Who cares if they hate you more? The important thing is that you stay safe."

Aiden rolled his eyes. "Easy for you to say. You’re loved by everyone. You don’t know what it feels like to be completely alone."

Ryker’s face darkened with anger. "You still have strangulation marks on your neck," he snapped. "Someone tried to kill you, Aiden. And you think you can just let them go? Don’t you understand that if they don’t face consequences, they will keep doing this?"

Aiden smiled then, but there was nothing soft about that smile. It was sharp, almost sinister. The boy from the forum might have chosen to stay quiet and endure, but Aiden was not that boy. He might look soft and pretty on the outside, but he was not weak-minded, yes when this happened at first, he was first of all afraid, but now that he learnt that he can’t leave this school then there’s no way he would just stay there and let himself get bullied. His pride would never allow him to keep getting bullied without fighting back. Retaliation was his style.

"Don’t worry about that," he told Ryker coolly. "I’ll handle it."

Then he turned to Miss Flecine. "Miss Flecine, if I’m bullied, do I have permission to retaliate?"

Miss Flecine hesitated before nodding. "Of course you can," she said. "But I would advise against it. It would be safer if you just gave me the names of the people involved, that way no one would dare lay their hands on you ever again."

"I’m fine," Aiden said with a shrug. "I can protect myself."

Miss Flecine’s frown deepened. "And how exactly are you planning to do that? You don’t have your powers. Everyone in this school is stronger than you. What you’re saying is reckless."

Aiden just shook his head and smiled. "You don’t have to worry about that. I just need your permission to create chaos in Skyline Academy without getting punished for it."

Miss Flecine sighed. "This school can barely bring itself to raise its voice at you, let alone punish you. As long as you don’t go too far—" She cut herself off as she realized she was practically giving him permission to do something dangerous. "But don’t do anything stupid, Aiden. You’re fragile. One punch from a wolf could kill you. I’m not exaggerating."

Aiden smirked and glanced at Ryker. "Ryker will protect me," he said simply. Then he turned to Ryker and asked, "Won’t you?"

Ryker straightened, clearly ready to play along because he will indeed protect aiden. "Of course I will protect you."

Miss Flecine finally gave up pressing him for names. "Fine," she said with a sigh. "You can go back now."

Aiden nodded and turned to leave but paused at the door. "Do I really have your permission to cause mayhem in this school?" he asked with a small grin.

"Yes, yes," Miss Flecine said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Do whatever you want."

She agreed easily, thinking that Aiden was too weak to truly cause any trouble. Even if he somehow managed to get himself into trouble, she was sure Ryker would save him before things got too serious.

But Miss Flecine would soon learn that underestimating Aiden was a mistake. He might not have powers, but his mind was sharp and his pride unyielding. If he said he was going to turn Skyline Academy upside down, he meant it. And he had just been given permission to do so.