Chapter 450
Chapter 450 Keep Out of My Stuff
Chapter 450 Keep Out of My Stuff
“I’ve been thinking about this. Didn’t I already hook Lenora up with an auditing pass for Astoria University? I’ve donated there, know some people, and learn the ropes. I can also arrange for you to receive a backdated auditing pass from a couple of years ago and officially register you as an Astoria University auditing student.
“Just say you’re helping out in the lab as an auditing student. You’re not core staff or anything serious. Mostly just running errands, taking notes. You can have Prof. Clocke keep the story consistent p>
Anneliese cut him off before he finished. Her voice was flat. “I don’t need you meddling in my stuff p>
He’s got his own mess to deal with. And he actually thinks I’m the same?
She sidestepped Zacharias and walked out alongside Jonathan.
Zacharias lunged forward, desperation in his voice. “Anne! This is the best way. Wait, hey p>
But the hand he reached out with was grabbed in a vice-like grip by Jonathan and twisted upward in an instant.
Zacharias met Jonathan’s eyes, which were cold, disdainful, and mocking. “Unbelievable. You’ve had no clue about her until now p>
“What are you talking about?” Zacharias furrowed his brow, a nagging sense that he was missing something gnawing at him.
Jonathan yanked his hand free and snorted. “Check your phone, idiot p>
“Jonathan! Who are you calling an idiot? If you hadn’t shoved Anne into whatever lab, she wouldn’t be getting dragged across the internet like this p>
Zacharias seethed, but neither Jonathan nor Anneliese glanced back.
He just watched helplessly as they walked side by side, vanishing from sight.
He closed his eyes. A sharp, tearing pain ran through his hand. After looking down, he saw that his palm, cut by the shattered ceramic, had turned into a raw, mangled mess from his unconscious clenching. Drops of blood fell to the floor, pooling into a small stain on the ground.
He stared numbly as the red dripped through his fingers, feeling hollow inside. For
some
reason, he kept seeing Jonathan gently wipe the water off Anneliese’s hand. The memory of Jonathan’s careful, tender touch on Anneliese stayed with him.
Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Jonathan cared for her in a way Zacharias could never match.
“Heh, too late for regrets now. Mr. Fullbuster treats Ms. Claude like she’s his whole world. I would have chosen Mr. Fullb-ah!” Coral’s sarcastic, teasing voice cut through.
Zacharias spun around, cutting her off before she could finish. Fury boiled over as he grabbed Coral by the neck. “Shut up p>
Honestly realizing it himself was one thing. Being called out by someone else, especially Coral, was a whole other level. He felt humiliated, furious, and completely undone.
Coral’s cheek flushed. Her glare was sharp, almost venomous, eyes bulging with anger as she stared at Zacharias. It was like her look was saying, Jonathan’s better than him, and Zacharias clearly wasn’t ready to swallow that insult.
He shrugged her off like she was nothing more than trash. Coldly, he snapped, “What do even know? Jonathan’s no different from me. If he didn’t have a problem with Anne, why would he shove her into that lab, trying to ‘polish’ her like she was some project p>
you
Just like back then, even though Zacharias never let it show, he’d secretly resented that Anneliese didn’t have a fancy degree. The things had probably gotten messy between them physically that night.
“Cough! Cough… hahahaha!” Coral collapsed onto the couch, coughing violently. When she caught her breath, she started laughing like she’d completely lost her mind, clutching her stomach as tears ran down her cheeks.
Zacharias grabbed her by the collar. “What’s so funny? Shut up p>
Only then did Coral stop and toss her still-lit phone at him with a smirk. “See for yourself p>
Zacharias frowned, snatched the phone, and scanned it. His expression froze. “This… this can’t be. Anne… how could she p>
In just a short while, the entire online narrative had flipped.
It all started about half an hour ago when Astoria University officially responded. They posted proof showing Anneliese had been enrolled there eight years ago. Every semester, she’d earned university-level scholarships and repeatedly represented her department in competitions, racking up awards along the way. Two minutes later, Alexander’s personal account chimed in with a response of his own. It was a recorded video.
Zacharias clicked play. Alexander’s calm, slightly aged voice filled the room. “Anneliese was my student during undergrad. She was allowed to join my multi– sensor fusion research project ahead of schedule and made significant contributions to it.
“She’s talented and hardworking. By her junior year, she led the creation of a specialized drone for fire surveillance and rescue missions. She even donated that drone to the country for free p>