Chapter 32: Anonymous Bounty

Instructor Victoria tapped her iPad one final time, and the list of assigned groups disappeared from the projection board.

"That concludes today’s introduction. You have until this weekend to complete your entertainment challenge. Today is Monday, which gives you six days to organise everything. Your events will take place on Saturday, and the evaluation will be conducted immediately afterward."

A wave of murmurs swept through the classroom.

"Six days?"

"That’s barely enough time to organise something decent."

"Do they seriously expect us to attract Imperial Class students in less than a week?"

Victoria raised a hand, bringing the noise down. "I suggest you use your time wisely. You are free to begin planning immediately. I’ll be evaluating your preparation, teamwork, and final execution. Good luck."

She collected her iPad and walked out. The moment the door closed, the classroom erupted into conversations.

Some students were already discussing themes and possible venues, while others were exchanging contact information. A few had started complaining about their assigned teammates.

Morales, however, wasn’t particularly interested in any of it. He knew exactly why some students were whispering, it was because of him.

As far as most of them were concerned, he was the poorest student in Aurelius Academy, not just in the Prestige Class but perhaps in the entire university, well they didn’t know how much he had in his account and why the fuck would he prove them wrong, that he wasn’t poor well he didn’t care.

His background was practically a joke to some of them, and the fact that someone like him had managed to enter the Prestige Class seemed to offend their sense of superiority. Most especially his new obsessed rival Jayden.

Well, they were fucking wrong.

He might have come from a poor background, but that didn’t mean he was still poor. His actual wealth was something none of these people could even imagine.

He reached for his bag, preparing to leave, when someone stepped in front of him. "Hello."

Morales looked up, a girl stood before his desk. She had a slim waist, generously curved hips, and a noticeably feminine figure. Her long brown hair framed a pretty face, while a pair of glasses rested neatly on her nose.

Her appearance gave her a somewhat studious impression, but there was nothing ordinary about her beauty.

She looked like the sort of girl people might initially mistake for a quiet academic, only to discover that she was far more interesting than they expected.

"I’m Amelie Wade," she introduced herself with a small smile.

"Morales Brown."

"I know."

"Can I call you Brown? Feels more simple."

"Sure. What do you want?"

"Nothing serious. I just wanted to meet the new celebrity of the school."

Morales gave her a questioning look. "Celebrity?"

"Well, you’re certainly getting attention. You’re the first person I’ve heard of with a bounty on his head."

His expression changed slightly. "A bounty? What do you mean?"

Amelie’s eyes widened, for a brief moment, she seemed to realise she had said something she shouldn’t have. "Oh! Sorry. That slipped out."

Morales continued looking at her. "Sorry, sorry," she repeated, raising both hands. "I meant that I can’t wait to start our group project. You know, the entertainment challenge and all that." She gave him an awkward smile before looking away. "Anyway, I’ll see you later, Brown."

Without waiting for his response, she hurried away. Morales watched her leave. ’What the hell was that about?’

He had barely introduced himself to the girl, yet she was already talking about a bounty. He picked up his bag and stood. Across the classroom, Jayden was surrounded by several students. One of them was the bulky guy Morales had nearly choked during the examination.

The moment their eyes met, the bulky student gave him a scornful look. Jayden’s expression wasn’t much different. They looked at Morales like he was some helpless animal wandering into the territory of predators.

Morales almost laughed. ’Keep looking. It won’t fucking change anything.’

He slung his bag over his shoulder and walked out without giving them another glance.

The university dormitories were located in a separate section of the campus. Unlike ordinary student accommodation fir the Foundation class, the buildings resembled luxury residential apartments, with glass balconies, polished entrances, and security personnel stationed around the premises.

Morales had already arranged for someone to furnish his room before arriving. He had hired a service through the academy’s accommodation portal, providing them with a list of clothes, furniture, and other necessities he wanted.

He was looking forward to seeing whether they had done a decent job. He was halfway across the courtyard when he heard someone calling him.

"Morales!" He turned.

Sophia was hurrying towards him, her long hair moving behind her as she approached. She looked unusually serious. "What’s wrong?" he asked.

She stopped in front of him, catching her breath.

"Have you checked the students’ private groups?"

"No. Why? I don’t think they even added me there."

"Your name is everywhere."

Morales frowned. "What for?"

"Someone wants you expelled or broken so badly that they’ve posted an open bounty," Sophia said, her eyes wide. "One hundred million credits ($AC) straight to whoever manages to take you out of the academy."

Morales let out a low, dark chuckle. "I think I can guess why. Being pegged as the lowest-ranked student in the Prestige Class makes a lot of fragile egos nervous. Either some coward is terrified my failure will drag them down, or my old friend Jayden decided to pull another pathetic stunt."

Chloe Sterling jogged up to join them just in time to catch the last sentence. "Jayden? Is that bastard back on campus?"

Sophia nodded grimly. "He arrived today. He’s the prime suspect for setting up this hit squad maybe."

"If it isn’t him, why else target a freshman on day one?" Chloe asked, biting her lip. "We’re the highest-profile freshmen in this tier making you a target. You’ve made more enemies in twenty-four hours than most do in a year."

’One reason he never wanted to get to imperial class, that might be worse, maybe they’ll plan his funeral before he enters the class, but well thinking of entering that class is fir another day.’ Morales thought.

"Let them come," Morales said, his electric-blue eyes flashing with ruthless amusement. "This year is going to be exceptionally entertaining."

The elevator doors closed behind them. Morales stood between Sophia and Chloe, watching the floor numbers increase.

The two women were still discussing the bounty, neither looking particularly comfortable with the situation. "Do you think the academy knows about it?" Chloe asked.

"If the messages are already circulating, they’ll probably hear about it soon."

"Then shouldn’t you report it?"

"I’ll consider it." He replied.

Sophia gave him a suspicious look. "That’s not a yes."

"It’s not a no either."

He glanced at the elevator’s security camera.

A small smile appeared on his face.

System, can you access this building’s security network?

[Affirmative, Host.]

’Good. I want a temporary private recording loop for this elevator. Make sure the actual security system doesn’t register any unusual activity.’

[Understood.]

Morales returned his attention to the two women.

"Since we’re all here, why don’t we spend a little time together before heading to our rooms?"

Sophia gave him a knowing look.

"Is that why you stopped paying attention to our conversation?"

"Maybe."

Chloe laughed. "You’re unbelievable, but what if...."

"Taken care of it, trust me." Well they always did, and he moved closer, but didn’t force either of them to do anything. Sophia took his face, and Chloe dropped to her knees unbuckling belt.

Their conversation gradually turned into pleasure and affectionate exchanges, with loud moans of ecstasy filling the walls of the elevator. By the time the elevator reached their floor, both women were smiling and arranging thier clothes, while the clothes veiled the seed that he used to mark them as his.

The doors opened. Morales stepped out with them, and the elevator continued its normal operation, while they bid each other goodnight and dispersed to thier following rooms.

His room was located on the eighteenth floor. He stopped in front of the door and entered the access code, before he could push it open, the door opposite his apartment opened.

A familiar face appeared. "Brown?"

He turned.

Amelie Wade stood in the doorway opposite him. She had changed out of her academy outfit into a fitted T-shirt and tight jeans that accentuated her figure.

Her glasses rested on her nose, and her hair fell loosely around her shoulders. The casual outfit suited her surprisingly well, giving her an effortless attractiveness that contrasted with the studious impression she had made earlier.

She smiled.

"We meet again."

Morales stared at her for a second before returning a slightly awkward smile. "Yeah. Small world."

"You’re my neighbour, apparently."

"Looks like it."

"See you around, Brown."

"Sure."

He opened his door and stepped inside. ’What are the chances?’

His apartment was considerably better than he had expected. The living room was spacious, with a large sofa facing a wall-mounted television. The kitchen was fitted with modern appliances, while the bedroom had a king-sized bed, a wardrobe, and a separate bathroom.

His clothes had been arranged neatly, and the furniture he had requested was already in place.

"Not bad."

He dropped his bag on the sofa and took a quick shower. After changing into comfortable clothes, he sat on the edge of his bed and opened the system interface.

System, I need a laptop.

[Host wishes to purchase a laptop?]

’Yes. Something powerful enough to handle advanced programming and cybersecurity operations.’

[Searching available products...]

A moment later, a selection of laptops appeared.

Morales chose one with high-end specifications and purchased it using his system balance.

[Purchase successful.]

[Your laptop has been delivered to your inventory. $200,000,000 deducted from your account]

"Well that’s expensive." He retrieved it and placed it on the desk. Once it was set up, he connected to the academy’s network and began examining the messages circulating about him.

The bounty had already spread through several private student groups.

TARGET: MORALES BROWN

REWARD: 100,000,000 CREDITS

CONDITION: REMOVE HIM FROM AURELIUS ACADEMY.

He clicked through the available discussions. Some students were treating it like a joke. Others were genuinely interested in the reward. A few were already discussing ways to approach him without attracting attention.

Morales’s expression gradually hardened. ’Someone is seriously trying to get me removed.’

He began tracing the original message, examining the accounts that had shared it and the channels through which it had travelled.

Unfortunately, the person behind it had taken precautions. The message had been distributed through several anonymous accounts, and the original source was buried behind layers of security. Every time he found a possible lead, it ended somewhere else.

He leaned back. "Who the fuck is this person?"

He tried another route, but the result was the same.

The system’s voice sounded in his mind.

[Host, would you like assistance?]

’Obviously. Help me identify the person who started this.’

[Host’s current cybersecurity proficiency is insufficient to bypass the security measures protecting the original source.]

Morales frowned. ’Then do something about it.’

[The System can provide assistance within the limits of the Host’s current skill level. However, the opposing security measures exceed those limits.]

He stared at the screen. ’You’re telling me you can’t help?’

[The System is not an omnipotent entity. Host must forget about all these and think of expanding his harem and make fortunes.]

Morales rubbed his forehead. ’Fantastic. Just fantastic. Forgot this stupid thing was a perverted system."

He wasn’t pleased, but there was little point arguing. He returned to the messages and scrolled through the comments. One particular discussion caught his attention.

A student claimed the bounty had been circulating before the end of the previous examination. Another suggested the sponsor had a personal grudge against Morales.

That made him pause. ’Was the bounty already there before Jayden returned?’

If so, Jayden might be the person behind it. Then again, the timing could have been deliberate. He thought about the bulky student who had stared at him in the classroom.

Was that why the guy had attacked him before class started? Had he recognised Morales as the person responsible for getting his boss temporarily removed from Aurelius? And still part of the bounty hunting.

Or had it simply been an ordinary grudge? There were too many possibilities, Morales closed the discussion and looked at the original bounty message again.

Whoever had arranged this had clearly invested time and money into keeping their identity hidden.

He wasn’t going to find the answer by randomly clicking through anonymous accounts.

A knock interrupted his thoughts, he looked towards the door. ’Who now?’

Morales stood up, walking across the polished floor to pull the door open. Standing right on his threshold was none other than Amelie Wade.

She leaned casually against the doorframe, wearing a tight, ribbed white crop top paired with ultra-form-fitting low-rise jeans that hugged every dramatic curve of her lower body.

Her thick-rimmed glasses rested slightly low on her nose, giving her an intoxicating blend of innocent intellectualism and brazen provocation. Because she wasn’t wearing a bra, the soft, distinct outlines of her perky nipples visibly pressed and pushed against the thin fabric of her shirt with every slow breath she took.

Morales stared down at her, a dark, knowing glint in his eye. Is she deliberately trying to tempt me? Coming to my door dressed like this... she isn’t leaving anytime soon.