Alyssa's eyes filled with tears—crocodile tears that she could conjure without any issues.
Almost everybody watching believed her and sympathized with her.
"I believed in you when nobody did," she said, her voice breaking perfectly.
"When everyone else looked down on you, I gave you a chance. Even when I found out your father is a criminal stuck in prison for stealing, I didn't judge you!"
The cafeteria went completely silent at the barrage of revelations that Alyssa was exposing about Ethan.
Ethan's face drained of all color.
"Even when you had to work three part-time jobs to support your sick sister, I stayed by your side! I gave you everything—my trust, my body, my heart! And this is how you repay me?!" Alyssa continued, her voice rising with emotion.
Gasps rippled through the surrounding tables.
"His father's in prison?"
"Wait, Ethan has a sick sister?"
"He never mentioned any of that…"
"Oh my god, and he slept with Alyssa? That bastard managed to sleep with my dream girl, then threw her away!? What a scumbag!"
Isabelle's face had gone pale.
"But what do I expect from somebody like you?" Alyssa's voice turned bitter.
"You're just like your father—a liar and a thief."
She stood up dramatically, tears streaming down her face now.
"You used me! You made me think we had something real, and the moment someone prettier comes along…" she gestured at Isabelle, "you throw me away like garbage!"
More students were gathering now, forming a crowd around their table.
"This is insane…"
"Poor Alyssa…"
"I always thought Ethan was suspicious…"
"Didn't he use to be a total loser? Now suddenly he's got money and confidence?"
Isabelle finally spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. "Is that true?"
She was staring at Ethan, shock written across her face. "Your father… is he really in prison? And you have a sick sister? Why didn't you tell me any of this? I thought we were getting close?"
Ethan's mouth opened and closed, but no words came out.
He couldn't deny it. Those were facts—twisted and weaponized, but facts nonetheless.
"I… I can explain—" Ethan started.
"Explain what?! That you're a liar? That you pretended to be someone you're not?!" Alyssa shrieked.
Ethan's hands balled into fists. His face contorted with rage and humiliation.
His hand shot up, trembling in the air, stopping just inches from Alyssa's face.
The entire cafeteria gasped in shock.
"He was about to slap her… in front of everyone," one student muttered, shock etched into their face.
"Go on then!" Alyssa cried, her voice breaking. "Slap me! Show everyone what kind of person you really are! Hit a girl in front of the whole school! Just like your criminal father, right?!"
She was sobbing now, drawing sympathy from everyone watching.
"Violence must run in your family! First your father steals and gets thrown in prison, now you're raising your hand to hit women!"
"I wasn't going to—" Ethan's voice cracked. He lowered his hand, shaking.
"Everyone saw it!" Alyssa turned to the crowd. "You all saw him try to hit me, didn't you?!"
Murmurs of agreement rippled through the students.
"Yeah, he totally raised his hand…"
"That's messed up…"
"Poor Alyssa, she's crying so hard…"
Isabelle stood up abruptly, her chair scraping loudly against the floor.
She looked at Ethan with an expression he'd never seen before, disappointment mixed with disgust at his earlier reaction of violence.
"Isabelle, please—" Ethan reached for her.
She stepped back, avoiding his touch like it was contaminated.
"Don't. Just… don't."
She grabbed her bag and walked away quickly, pushing through the crowd of students.
Ethan stood there, frozen, watching her leave.
Alyssa was still crying dramatically, being comforted by her friends.
"It's okay, honey…"
"He's not worth it…"
"You deserve so much better…"
Students were whispering, pointing, judging.
Ethan's carefully constructed image, the underdog rising up, the poor but noble student, the worthy rival to Sebastian, was crumbling in real time.
From across the cafeteria, near the entrance, Sebastian stood leaning against the wall. He'd watched the entire scene unfold.
His expression was calm, but his eyes were cold and satisfied.
He turned and walked away, leaving the wreckage behind.
[Ding! Major Social Destruction Achieved!]
[You have successfully destroyed the protagonist's reputation and credibility. The heroine now views him with suspicion and disgust. Multiple opportunities have been closed off for the protagonist.]
[Reward: 400 Villain Points, +25 Villain Halo]
[Bonus: Protagonist's "Hidden Background Reveal" quest has been corrupted. Instead of gaining sympathy, he has been publicly humiliated.]
[Bonus Reward: Trash-Tier Body Strengthening Serum]
[Trash-Tier Body Strengthening Serum: One of the worst body strengthening serums in existence. Despite its poor quality, it still provides benefits. Increases Combat Power by 15 points.]
Sebastian's phone buzzed in his pocket. A message from Alyssa.
Alyssa: Did I do good? 🥺
Sebastian typed back quickly while walking down the empty hallway.
Sebastian: Perfect. I will text you later today. I'll keep my promise.
Alyssa: Hehe, oki!
He opened his system interface as he walked.
===Status===
Host: Sebastian Fairfax
Combat Power: 67 (Average human: 100)
Villain Points: 1,400
Villain Halo: 175
Luck: E
Charm: E+
→ Skills: None
→ Inventory: Trash-Tier Body Strengthening Serum (x1)
====
Sebastian couldn't help the smile that crossed his face.
175 Villain Halo. He was getting closer to unlocking the Exchange Mall at 300.
And now he had a way to increase his pathetically low combat power, even if the increment wasn't substantial to deal with Ethan.
For the rest of the day, Sebastian remained lowkey. Simply living his life as a normal student, he didn't even try to get closer to Isabelle.
As for the Ethan, he was angry, upset and worried about Isabelle's reaction. He had tried multiple times to find Sebastian alone by himself, but he always latched to Isabelle or others.
Making it virtually impossible for Ethan to have a word with him without appearing to be violent once again infeont of Isabelle.
As for Alyssa she kept her same act, althought at a much lower standard. She sobbed from time to time, asked for bathroom breaks and so on.
Once the school day ended, Ethan was already at Isabelle's table.
"Isabelle, we need to talk. Please…Let me try to explain. Listen to both sides first before making a judgemental decision." Ethan said softly, a pleading look on his face.
After a moment of thinking, Isabelle decided to listen to him, realising that he does have a point. Despite that, she no longer looked at him the same.
"Fine, but make it quick. I need to visit my father after,"
Ethan nodded his head. "Yes, of course."
Isabelle turned towards Sebastian then said. "See you later," she waved her hand then left.
Sebastian gave her a wave and left too.
In an empty part of the school, Ethan began explaining his family's situation to Isabelle with passion.
Isabelle listened with an open mind, trying to understand where he was coming from until eventually, she sighed.
"Alright, whilst I understand everything you said, and I sympathise with you deeply. I'm still hurt from the fact that I had to learn about this the hard way, I thought we were closer.
Secondly, the way you almost hit Alyssa…even if you are not lying and she is. You still shouldn't hit a woman, she is half your size. You could hurt her badly!"
Ethan shook his head regretfully. "I know, you're right. I just imagined Sebastian…and-"
"Stop. Don't speak about Sebastian like that, he would never do such a thing. Anyways, I'm going to head to the hospital now."
Ethan didn't argue about Sebastian, he knew it was pointless at the time being. "Want me to drop you off?"
Isabelle contemplated for a moment before nodding her head. "Sure, thanks."