Chapter 69: Who Sent the Other Gifts?
Daisy pointed at the small yellow package that had already been torn open by her young miss. "No? The gift the young master handed to me is that one."
Aisha frowned. "And the rest?"
Daisy shook her head. "They were already here when I brought in his gift, Miss. I assumed you brought... didn’t you receive them from friends?"
Aisha said nothing for a moment. "No."
Daisy’s brows drew together. She looked at the gifts scattered across the bed, the choker already unwrapped, the dress now draped over Aisha’s arms, and one last box still sealed shut in its wrapping.
Aisha laid the dress down carefully and studied all four gifts laid out before her.
She already knew the incense was from Zenick. But who had sent the rest?
She racked her memory but came up empty. She didn’t know anyone generous enough — or foolish enough — to send her something like this. Not with her reputation currently sitting somewhere below the mud on the street. No one wanted to be seen anywhere near her right now, let alone gift her jewelry and a custom-made dress.
And there wasn’t a single name or note attached to any of the three unexplained gifts.
A small knot of unease settled in her chest.
"Leave them for now," Aisha said, stepping back from the bed.
"What do you mean, leave them? What are you going to do with them?"
"I need to find out who sent them first."
"And if you can’t find out?" Daisy asked concernedly. "Are you going to throw them away?"
Aisha didn’t answer immediately, but she was already thinking of doing that.
"No! Don’t throw them away!" Daisy grabbed her arm before Aisha could even move toward the gifts. "Miss, we don’t have a seamstress, and it would take weeks to have something new made. This dress is already here, and it’s beautiful. Why not just wear it?"
"What if there’s a bad intention behind sending it?"
Daisy found the words to defend the gifts from her young miss, quickly saying, "They’ve already given it to you. If they meant you harm, why send you something this fine and rare? Miss, I’ll check everything before you wear them. Just trust me!"
Aisha considered that. Daisy had a point — the dress alone must have cost a fortune. And it was too beautiful to be thrown away. Whoever chose it had picked carefully, as if they wanted her to accept it even if she hesitated.
"Please, miss." Daisy’s voice softened, pleading now. "You said you trust my judgment."
Aisha exhaled. "Alright, I got it."
She still didn’t fully understand why Daisy was so insistent on the color red specifically.
The next morning, Aisha arrived at the academy earlier than usual.
She noticed the change the moment she stepped through the gates. Students who passed her stopped mid-conversation, turning their heads to stare openly, whispering behind cupped hands as she walked by.
"That’s her, right?"
"The prince made the right call. Why would he suffer being tied to someone like that for the rest of his life?"
"She actually came to school after everything that’s happened. Does she have no shame at all?"
Some pulled out their terminals as she passed, angling them toward her and capturing photos or short clips as she continued walking without breaking stride.
Aisha didn’t stop any of them. She kept walking with her chin raised high and an expression that didn’t reveal anything to them. She let them whisper and record her all they want.
One girl broke away from a crowd of students near the fountain and hurried toward her, camera already raised, clearly hoping to get a close-up shot for whatever purpose she had doing it.
Aisha stopped walking.
The girl closed the distance quickly, camera angled upward toward Aisha’s face, and just as the lens found its focus, Aisha smiled. A soft, almost pleasant and disarming smile.
Then she reached out.
Her fingers closed around the terminal in one smooth motion, and before the girl could start to take close-up photos of Aisha, the device cracked audibly in her grip, and Aisha let the broken pieces drop to the ground without ceremony.
The girl’s mouth fell open, staring first at the shattered remains of her camera scattered across the stone path, then up at Aisha in disbelief. "Wh— why would you... that was my camera!"
"I thought a fly had landed near my face," Aisha said calmly, her tone perfectly pleasant. "I only meant to swat it away. I didn’t expect it to break so easily under my hand."
The girl’s face went red with fury, her hands curling into fists at her sides, clearly biting back a string of curses she didn’t quite dare say aloud in front of the gathering crowd.
Aisha recognized her now. Perrie was it? She was one of the girls who used to trail behind Aisha when she still sat comfortably at the top of the academy, competing for scraps of her attention and favor.
The moment Aisha fell from grace, Perrie had been among the first to scatter, quick to latch onto whichever new group offered better standing.
"I’ll compensate you for the camera," Aisha said evenly, already turning to continue on her way. "Send me the cost later and I’ll transfer it."
"You don’t need to."
The voice came from directly behind her, close enough that she felt the warmth of their breath against the shell of her ear.
Aisha turned, and nearly ended up with her nose pressed against someone’s chest. She lifted her gaze, brows raised slightly in surprise to find Zeke standing there, close enough that she hadn’t even heard him approach across the courtyard.
She wondered briefly just how long he’d been standing there watching.
Zeke’s attention shifted past her, sweeping over the gathered students, several of whom still had their cameras raised mid-recording, caught off guard by his sudden appearance.
"Recording or photographing other students without consent inside academy grounds violates conduct rules," he said, his tone flat but carrying enough quiet authority that the crowd immediately began lowering their devices, some fumbling to hide them entirely.
"Anyone caught doing so going forward will have points deducted from their record, and repeated violations will be reported to the disciplinary office."