Chapter 90: Hiding from Fate

Off to the side, Natasha glared at Victoria with a face twisted in intense jealousy and hatred.

It’s that exact same woman again!

Why on earth did this terrifyingly attractive woman keep showing up wherever Julian was?

Leo Vance was equally stunned. Isn’t this the exact same woman who tried to disrupt the engagement party and snatched Julian away that day?

Julian frowned deeply, staring at Victoria. Why in the world is Victoria here at the university?

In the original web novel he had transmigrated into, Victoria Sterling never once made a personal appearance on the Capital University campus. Lately, Julian had increasingly felt that ever since he stepped foot into this fictional world, numerous events had violently deviated from the original plot points.

He sometimes genuinely wondered to himself: Did I somehow transmigrate into the completely wrong novel?!

Upon catching sight of Victoria Sterling entering the room, Ethan Mercer panicked. He instantly thrust his hand into his jacket pocket, pulled out a spare medical face mask, and slapped it over his nose and mouth.

Ever since he had been brutally beaten up by Mark outside a few days ago, the bruises on his face had almost completely healed. But under no circumstances could he allow Victoria Sterling to notice him here!

If Victoria laid eyes on him, she would inevitably fall into her obsessive fixation at first sight—exactly like she had done in her past life—and instantly drag him back to Rose Manor to lock him away in a cage.

The university campus was massive, yet Victoria just had to choose his exact lecture hall to inspect today! And on top of that, she had even set up a grand scholarship fund specifically for the first-place winner. In his previous life, he had been the one who took first place in this exam.

It was glaringly obvious that fate was stubbornly determined to shove him right into Victoria Sterling’s path. What fate hadn’t anticipated was that he had been reborn with future memories and would actively dodge her traps!

Ethan felt a fresh wave of profound relief wash over him: thank goodness he hadn’t won first place this time around.

"Ethan, what’s wrong with you? Why are you suddenly wearing a mask in class?" one of Ethan’s close friends asked, looking at him in utter confusion.

"It’s nothing," Ethan muttered through the fabric, his voice muffled. "There’s a bit of a seasonal flu going around lately, so I figured I’d wear a mask just in case I get infected."

"Oh... I see," the friend nodded slowly.

Even so, he continued staring at Ethan with a deeply puzzled expression. Wait a minute... Ethan wasn’t wearing a mask just a minute ago when the class started. Why did he pull one out and put it on the exact second those leaders walked in?

And more importantly... why did Ethan suddenly look like he was desperately trying to hide from someone?

The people who had just entered the room were the university principal, that breathtakingly ethereal woman, and a handful of senior school administrators.

Could it be... is Ethan trying to avoid that woman who looks like an angel descending from heaven?

As soon as that bizarre thought crossed his mind, the student violently shook his head. Nah, that’s completely impossible.

That mysterious woman looked outrageously noble, wealthy, and regal; she was clearly a figure of staggering social prominence. Meanwhile, Ethan was just an ordinary student from an impoverished background. What on earth could Ethan possibly have to do with someone of that caliber?

Even if Ethan was offered to that woman as a menial household servant, she probably wouldn’t even deign to look at him twice.

"That woman is genuinely drop-dead gorgeous," Ethan’s friend couldn’t help whispering in awe. "Her visual aura and presence would actually be a remarkably good match for Julian Vance."

"Hmph."

Ethan let out a cold, muffled sneer from behind his mask. "She’s not obsessed with superficial looks. Just because someone has a pretty face doesn’t mean you can win her heart."

In Ethan’s mind, Victoria Sterling would always and forever love him and only him. His own physical appearance might be ordinary, but even someone as devastatingly handsome as Julian Vance certainly didn’t possess the qualifications to stand beside a woman like Victoria.

Meanwhile, standing near the front, the Head of Academic Affairs Lock was equally mesmerized by Victoria Sterling’s ethereal beauty.

Coming back to his senses with a jolt, he quickly turned to the principal and reported respectfully, "Principal Smith, we have a confirmed case of a student cheating to secure the first-place rank, and we are currently preparing to officially discipline him."

"Are you referring to Julian Vance?" Principal Smith asked, his brows furrowing as he recalled that he had already heard about Julian taking first place from one of the departmental professors earlier. He had even personally inspected Julian’s exam paper and privately concluded that the boy’s intellectual potential was limitless.

"That’s correct, sir—it is indeed Julian Vance who cheated," the Head of Academic Affairs stated coldly.

"Wait... isn’t there a possibility of a mistake here?" Principal Smith frowned, glancing toward Julian.

In truth, Principal Smith genuinely hoped that Julian hadn’t cheated. If Julian had won legitimately, it would mean Capital University had just unmasked an absolute generational genius—something that would reflect wonderfully during President Sterling’s campus visit.

"It is mathematically and practically impossible for him not to have cheated," the Head of Academic Affairs asserted with absolute, arrogant confidence. "Principal Smith, you aren’t familiar with Julian Vance’s academic track record."

"He has permanently lingered at the absolute bottom of the department grade lists since freshman year. Even if he crammed over the summer break, it is fundamentally impossible for a perpetual underachiever to leap straight to first place in such a short span of time!"

Principal Smith:"..."

Is that really the case?

Principal Smith’s brows knitted tightly together into a deep frown. If that really was the objective reality, then Julian Vance might indeed have engaged in academic fraud—unless he was a freakish, one-in-a-billion genius possessing instantaneous photographic memory.

But if he truly was that powerful... why did he purposefully score at the bottom of every past exam?

Principal Smith turned his gaze directly toward Julian. "Julian Vance, what do you have to say for yourself regarding these accusations?"

Julian replied calmly, meeting the principal’s gaze without a shred of fear: "Principal Smith, I did not cheat."

The Head of Academic Affairs scoffed derisively. "Hah! Who on earth who actually cheated would ever voluntarily admit to it on the spot?"

At that moment, Siana Vance stepped forward as well, her expression cold as she added, "Principal Smith, as his older sister, I can assure you... Julian definitely cheated."

"You are..." Principal Smith frowned, looking at her with irritation.

Siana Vance replied smoothly, "Principal Smith, I am Julian’s older sister, Siana Vance."

"His own biological older sister?" Principal Smith asked, his voice laced with heavy skepticism. "Since you are his own sister, shouldn’t you be the very first person to stand up, defend him, and trust his integrity when your younger brother is facing false accusations?"

Her cold, condemning attitude bore zero resemblance to how an affectionate older sister should act in a crisis.

Siana :"..."

"By the way, Miss Vance," Principal Smith added, his eyes narrowing in sudden realization. "If I recall correctly, when you visited our campus administrative office previously, you only introduced Leo Vance as your younger brother, and you never once mentioned Julian Vance. What is the meaning of that?"

"I... I..."

Siana Vance froze on the spot, her face flushing crimson as she had zero idea how to explain her years of blatant neglect and favoritism in front of the university leadership.

Suddenly, a male student in the back rows slapped his forehead and called out loudly:

"Holy shit! I get it now!"

"Could this entire messy situation be the exact plotline of a web novel come to life?! The trope of the Real and Fake Young Masters?!"

"Let’s trace it out: Leo Vance is the fake young master who enjoyed all the luxury, while Julian Vance is the abused real young master! After the real young master Julian was finally brought back to the wealthy household, due to the fake young master’s constant framing and manipulation, the Vance family utterly favored the pampered fake son they raised since childhood while continuously sidelining and abusing the real son!"

"Look at the evidence: this Leo Vance acts like a textbook green tea b*tch, living a lavish, pampered life while Julian was forced to live in absolute poverty, reportedly working multiple part-time jobs just to survive every day! I always wondered why Julian was treated like an outcast. If a legitimate biological young master is forced to live in conditions like that, it’s obvious he was deeply resented and ostracized by his own family!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... reality is genuinely stranger than fiction. A wealthy family drama playing out right here in our lecture hall!"