Chapter 659 S-Class Badge
After further consideration, Elise added another sentence. ‘Put out the bait to catch the big fish.’
Julius immediately understood. ‘Understood.’
Two days later, Elise returned to the dormitory to pick up her things after class. Mica was practicing calligraphy. After they greeted each other, Mica immediately began to sigh.
“What’s wrong?” Elise asked in concern.
“When will I finally receive guidance from QH of the Calligraphy Association if I continue practicing like this?” Mica asked dejectedly.
Elise leaned over to take a look. Mica’s words were not distinct, but they were clean and graceful. They gave off a delicate and exquisite vibe.
“I think they look great,” Elise commented objectively.
“Thank you, Elise. I know you’re just trying to cheer me up.” Mica put down her brush and sat back in her chair. Then, she looked up at the ceiling in despair and said, “I know my own abilities. But, with these chicken-scrawl-like words, it will be difficult for me to even join the school’s calligraphy club, let alone Tissote’s Calligraphy Association.”
Elise mulled over those words for a bit. Then, she turned around and returned to her desk. Taking out a gilded badge from the accessories in her bag, she handed the badge to Mica. “Here. Take this.”
Mica was stunned for a moment. Her eyes lit up immediately after taking a good look at the badge. She got up excitedly and took the badge. “Isn’t this a badge from Tissote’s Calligraphy Association? So, you’re a member of the Calligraphy Association, Elise! But why is your badge golden? I’ve seen the badges of other members. They are usually blue or silver…”
“Uh… This is the color for prospective members.” Elise came up with a random excuse. “In any case, you have the badge now. Then, when the Calligraphy Association holds an exchange meeting, you will be able to join in and learn some tips from the members there.”
“Is this okay?” Mica asked cautiously.
“What’s wrong with that? The Calligraphy Association is just a gathering of people who love calligraphy. And, you really love calligraphy. So, just take it as though you’re attending an open class. It’ll be fine,” Elise said lightly. “This badge was given to me by a friend. So, I’m sure there won’t be a problem since she gave it to me. But, it’s a waste not to use this badge.”
“Alright then! Thank you, Elise!” Mica happily accepted the badge.
The badge was so ingeniously and exquisitely designed that Mica even wore the badge when she went out on her date with Sebastian. It was not for showing off. She simply felt that it was very beautiful. More importantly, it matched well with her outfit today.
Unfortunately, it was clear that Sebastian failed to notice the bright little spot on her outfit. He was acting like a stereotypical straight guy as usual. Not only did he keep a distance that was neither too far nor too near from her, but he was also too embarrassed to be too direct even though he tried to hold her hand.
At a specific corner in the school garden, Sebastian moved even further away from Mica when they bumped into Tiana, who was walking toward them. Nevertheless, Tiana immediately saw through their relationship at a glance. She swept a deep and meaningful glance over Mica. Sebastian sure isn’t picky.
“Sebastian, your girlfriend sure is adorable.” When Tiana uttered those words, she deliberately smiled without showing her teeth. Her smile made her eyes curve and become as beautiful as crescents. Compared to Mica, she stood tall and looked down on the other party.
Mica was immersed in the sweet feelings of love and being praised. Therefore, she overlooked the deeper meaning behind those words.
On the other hand, Sebastian felt a subtle change in his heart. He loved Mica for her naivete and cuteness. Even so, no man could resist being tempted by a woman like Tiana. A sense of humiliation struck his self-esteem, and he suddenly did not want to admit that he and Mica were dating for some inexplicable reason.
“I’m showing Mica around our school,” Sebastian said, pretending to remain calm.
“Okay.” Tiana nodded knowingly. It was just that her face all but wrote her mocking thoughts on the subject. Suddenly, her expression changed when she saw the gilded badge on Mica’s clothes. Isn’t that a badge from Tissote’s Calligraphy Association? Ordinary members and senior members have blue and silver badges, respectively. This golden badge… is an identification only for S-rank members! Mica is an S-rank member of Tissote’s Calligraphy Association!?
She was a Calligraphy Association member, but she was only an ordinary member. Even her teacher was only an A-rank member. I’ve only ever seen the president of the Calligraphy Association wearing an S-rank badge before. Just who is Mica?
She put on a calm expression and pretended to be surprised as she asked, “Miss Lynch, are you also a member of Tissote’s Calligraphy Association?”
“Huh? Oh! You must be referring to this badge.” Mica immediately understood the situation. She quickly waved her hands in denial and explained. “No. This is something one of my friends lent to me. She told me that this is the badge for prospective members of the Calligraphy Association. With this, I can enter the Calligraphy Association and ask the masters there to teach me calligraphy.”
“Oh. I see.” Tiana raised her chin slightly. It looks like this chubby girl doesn’t know the origin of this badge.
“Um. Well, we still have other things to do and will be leaving now.” But, Sebastian did not want to continue playing the role of Mica’s lover in front of Tiana. So, he randomly created an excuse and quickly took Mica away.
Tiana remained standing there, watching the backs of those two departing figures with a deep gaze. Then, all of a sudden, a good idea popped into her head.
If I can pretend to be SQ’s student and not be exposed, then it might not be difficult to pretend to be the apprentice of one of the S-level members of the Calligraphy Association. Besides, so many years have passed since those masters vanished out of sight. They probably died a long time ago. So there’s no way for them to jump out of their coffins to expose my lies. As long as I have a token to prove my identity, I won’t need to worry about outsiders not believing the lie.
She secretly affirmed the idea as she nodded to herself. Then, she quickly came back to her senses a moment later. There was work to do. Thus, she hurriedly increased her speed and walked out of the school.
According to the address she gave to the seller, she arrived at the area where the safety deposit boxes of Tissote Bank were located. She confirmed that there was nobody in the surrounding area before she used the password to open the safety deposit box and took out a scroll from within.
Once she unfurled the scroll, she confirmed that the words belonged to QH before she rolled the scroll up again. Afterward, she closed the safe and took a cab home. It was not until she placed those scrolls in the safety deposit box at home that she breathed a sigh of relief.
On the roof of a residential building near the villa, Julius monitored Tiana’s every move through a pair of binoculars. At the same time, he dialed Elise’s number.
“Boss, the buyer is Tiana, the person who pretended to be your student last time. But, unfortunately, she went straight home after retrieving the scrolls and did not meet anybody else, so I don’t know her purpose.”
“Got it. Follow her closely during this time,” Elise said.
“Don’t worry. There’s nobody I cannot follow.”
——
…
That night, Tiana invited Sebastian to the school’s small lake. This was a holy place for couples at Mayweather Polytechnic University. There would be couples cuddling together and kissing each other every two or three meters apart in summer.
Similarly, a certain level of relationship would be established through an unspoken consensus when a boy and a girl appeared here at the same time. This was precisely the illusion that Tiana wanted to give Sebastian.
When Sebastian arrived, Tiana was already sitting on the bench. It looked like she had been waiting for a while.
“Tiana,” Sebastian called out nervously.
Tiana stood up when she heard his voice, revealing a pure and sweet smile. “We’re already so familiar with each other. You can just call me Ana in the future.”
He pursed his lips in excitement and swallowed nervously before mustering the courage to call out her name, “Ana.”
He might have excellent grades, but his appearance was mediocre. He could never have imagined that he would be favored by the school idol, not even in his dreams. Therefore, his heart was beating as loudly as a drum.
