Love System Redemption

Chapter 537: You Keep Looking at That Girl Arthur's voice, cold but steady, from the car that morning.

"I'm your sensei.

You don't have to be nervous." Nnenna's spine straightened.

"That's right," she whispered under her breath. "I can do this." Her nwas called, alongside Nicholas's.

Cheers rippled through the audience.

"She made it this far? I didn't think she would survive the top six." "Nicholas will finish it here." "Don't be so sure. Did you see what she did to Adam?" "She's like a cute assassin. You never see it coming." As she turned toward the stage, Nnenna's gaze briefly flicked to the judges' platform, and froze.

Arthur's eyes were already on her. They softened, not with surprise, not with confusion, but with something reassuring.

Belief.

He didn't nod or smile, but he didn't need to. Nnenna understood him now.

She was about to turn away when the sound of shifting feet and surprised gasps swept across the arena. Heads turned toward the entrance.

More figures were entering.

Somto. Carl. And several high ranking officials.

Their presence was magnetic. Conversations paused. The energy in the room changed.

"Is that...?" "It's General Somto!" "And Prince Carl too?! Why are they here??" "Princess Ava's isn't in year three martial art right? So why are they here??" From the stage, Nnenna looked to them with wide eyes.

Somto's gaze found hers, calm and warm. A quiet promise in his presence alone.

Carl grinned outright, both hands in his pockets, and mouthed "You've got this" like it was a private code between them.

Her heart swelled. They kept their promise.

With renewed courage blooming in her chest, she stepped onto the stage.

From the judges' seat, Arthur remained composed. But his attention was fixed solely on her. The tip of his pen hovered, unmoving. His chin rested on his hand, but his jaw had subtly tensed. His eyes did not follow Nicholas, did not wander. Just her.

Elder Onyedika noticed this from the beginning of the exam. At first he was not certain, but now he was. He turned slightly toward Arthur, brow raised.

"You keep looking at that girl," he said, voice low and amused. "She's promising, no doubt. Third place out of all the year three students is impressive... but this might be the end of the road for her. She can't be that good." Arthur didn't respond at first.

Then, without looking his way, he said quietly, "She'll win." The words were simple. Cold, clipped, just like always.

But something about them felt heavier, like they weren't just words, but a statement wrapped in quiet certainty. Elder Onyedika blinked, taken off guard for a moment.

That wasn't like Arthur. Not exactly.

He studied the younger man's face again, still unreadable. Still distant.

But the trace of something else lingered there.

Confidence. And maybe... pride? "Well then," Elder Onyedika murmured, sitting back thoughtfully. "We'll see." Stephanie, sitting off to the side, watched all of it.

Arthur's silence. His focus. The subtle softness in his gaze.

For her? Her eyes narrowed. Jealousy curled cold and sharp in her chest.

She crossed her arms and scoffed under her breath.

"She can have his attention now. She won't have his approval after Nicholas finishes with her." She turned to Nicholas, who was already tightening his gloves.

"No mercy," she said under her breath, just loud enough for him to hear.

She had waited years, years, just to get a flicker of Arthur's attention. But no matter what she did, it always cback to that person. That dead person. A shadow standing between them, untouchable and unbleachable. Yet now, Arthur was showing expressions, actual expressions, for Nnenna? That girl who cout of nowhere?? If he truly wanted to move on... shouldn't it be with her? Stephanie. The one who had stayed. The one who had waited. Not srandom girl who just dropped into their world like it was hers to own.

And then, to make things worse, she saw Carl walk in.

He was smiling, smiling, at Nnenna with that soft, warm expression that used to be reserved for those he considered family.

That expression used to be reserved for only Arthur, Ava and Somto.

Even they as colleagues, maybe friends had never gotten that smile before.

It was infuriating.

Ever since the day Carl kicked her and Nicholas out of his office, m everything had changed. He He hadn't just pushed them away, he cut them off. Removed them from the circle groups. Ghosted them completely. And no one, not one person, stood up for them.

Even their mutual friends stayed quiet. Like they had all silently agreed it was over.

She remembered calling one of them, desperate. Asking him to please talk to Carl.

All he said was, "Carl doesn't have many rules. You must've done m something really bad for him to cut you off. Sorry, I can't help you." That was it. No explanations. No sides taken.

The others didn't even bother replying. Her messages were left on read. Her calls ignored.

A few still spoke to her, but it was different. Cold. Careful. Like even friendship with her had becrisky.

But the one who disappointed her the most... was Arthur.

She had thought, just maybe, that after everything, he would still have a soft spot for her. That he would at least notice her.

But he didn't.

Not once.

He didn't say a single word to her after she and Nicholas were kicked out of the circle.

Not one.

Arthur, of all people, had watched it happen and didn't even blink.

And for what? What exactly had she done wrong?

She hadn't insulted anyone. Hadn't broken any rules. All she did wash that new girl, point out the obvious was and suddenly, she was the villain? Yes, she had been angry. But not at them. Never at Carl or Somto or Arthur.

It was Nnenna.

Always Nnenna.

Everything had been perfectly fine before she showed up. Their lives, their structure, their status, it had all made sense.

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