Reborn To Ruin Her Rivals - Chapter 68: Chapter 68

Emily knew Georgie's true nature. 'This time, there's no escape,' she thought, dread settling in.
Emily shot Meredith a pleading look.
As Meredith looked her way, Meredith immediately averted her gaze to Gavin, deliberately ignoring everything around her.
All that remained was Emily's gaze, filled with despair, resentment, and burning indignation.
In less than an hour, a video of the Cloud Nine gambling match went viral online.
Soon, Arielle's name flooded every social feed.
To everyone's shock, she even defeated Georgie, the Gambling God of Konis.
Back at school, the campus was buzzing about the Cloud Nine incident, completely transforming everyone's perception of Arielle.
Reactions were mixed, some cheered, others fumed.
There was a whole spectrum of reactions.
Mya and her clique were so enraged they started hurling things around.
The Peterborough Four from Class 1 were also rocked by the news, with only one thought consuming their minds.
"No way! Is she even human?" one of the Peterborough Four gasped.
Meredith was seething with rage. She fumed, 'Because of that competition, Gavin won't even reply to my messages anymore!
'30 million dollars! That's a lot!
'That shameless Arielle actually dared to ask Gavin for 30 million dollars!'
'How dare she!'
During the midday break, students gathered again in small clusters to discuss the incident.
The students kept replaying the thrilling and intense gambling match video, totally hooked by the excitement. Everyone regretted not being there to witness it live.
Homer nudged Lance and said, "Hey, James' deskmate is really something. Who would've thought Arielle had such sick card skills?"
Homer, totally hooked on the video, nudged his buddy beside him.
Lance, eyes glued to his phone, exclaimed, "Holy cow, I saw it! Does she have some kind of superpower or what? She can fight, she can gamble, what else can she do? She's a total badass." He had always admired skilled gamblers.
Lance's view of Arielle had completely transformed, from initial disdain and dislike to admiration.
Homer nodded in agreement. "Honestly, I never expected her to be this badass. So, who'd win if she went up against James in a fight?"
"Come on, need we even say? James's a legend, he's never lost, not once!"
Noon, in Class 1's classroom, Unfazed by all the stares, Arielle quietly immersed herself in her book.
Justin suddenly turned to Arielle and blurted out, "Hey, Arielle, got time to show me the ropes sometime?"
After saying that, he quickly turned away, looking nervous.
To an outsider, it looked like he'd said something bad and turned away so fast because he was afraid of getting punched.
Arielle was momentarily stunned but quickly caught on.
She lowered her head and went back to her book.
There was a two-hour lunch break.
After lunch, most students remained in the classroom.
Just then, a strikingly tall and beautiful girl made her entrance in Class 1's classroom, immediately drawing everyone's attention.
Her appearance caused quite a stir.
Some of the boys let out wolf whistles.
The news spread like wildfire.
Students flooded in from every floor to see what was happening.
Because this girl was Patricia Hudson, the campus belle of Peterborough.
Patricia was something of an enigma. She never ate or lingered around at school, only showing up for class.
She exuded an air of mystery.
Patricia strode up to Arielle's desk, chin slightly raised as she looked down at her with disdain. "So, you're Arielle?" she sneered.
Arielle looked up to see a strikingly beautiful face, brimming with haughty disdain.
Following closely behind her were Perla, Mya, Samantha, and Meredith, who looked visibly anxious.
"Yes," Arielle replied coolly.
"I want to challenge you. Do you accept?" Patricia held her head high, her eyes brimming with disdain and mockery.
In her eyes, Arielle was infamous.
Patricia scoffed to herself, 'All she ever does is pick fights and gamble.
'With a pathetic 150 points, ranking dead last in the entire school, she really has nothing impressive to show for herself.
'We're students, after all. Academics should be our top priority.
'What good are all those other skills, anyway?'
Samantha tugged at Patricia's sleeve with a grin and said, "Patricia, come on, I've already told you, she's practically unstoppable now, having just beaten the Gambling God of Konis. Why go looking for trouble?"
Meredith tried to smooth things over, putting on a show of concern. "Guys, don't be like this. My sister is actually amazing, she's not someone you can just..." Her voice trailed off as she lowered her head, a hint of worry and helplessness on her face.
Her feigned helplessness and anxious demeanor were on full display for everyone to see.
Meredith feigned concern, putting on a show of being torn between her sister's predicament and her friends' safety.
Her "kind-hearted" act was flawlessly executed.
Her unfinished sentence made it seem like none of them could hold a candle to Arielle.
Seeing that Arielle remained silent, Patricia glared at her with open defiance, clearly annoyed by her silence and unwilling to back down.
Patricia shot Arielle a mocking look. "Scared? I'm here today to make a bet with you."
Arielle shot them a cold, dismissive look. She had no time for their petty games, it was obvious Patricia and Meredith were in this together.
She had far more important matters to attend to right now.
Patricia smirked at Arielle. "Arielle, do you dare accept my challenge?"
Patricia's words snapped Arielle out of her thoughts.
Arielle's eyes flickered. Playing along, she asked, "What challenge?"
Seeing her finally give in, Patricia exchanged a knowing glance with Mya and Perla.
Patricia sneered, "There's a monthly exam at the end of this month. Since we're students, let's compete on grades, there's nothing else we can really compare. If you win, we'll acknowledge your superiority for good. And... I'll throw in my entire pocket money, 300,000. How about that?"
Mya cut in with a mocking smirk.
"Comparing grades? That's just rubbing salt in her wounds! Like she'd ever dare!" Mya raised her voice mockingly, turning to the crowd. "But hey, if anyone's into fighting or gambling, she's your girl!"
She deliberately raised her voice, addressing both her classmates in Class 1 and the spectators crowding outside the classroom.
Mya made sure her voice carried, loud enough for everyone to hear.
The whole scene was a masterclass in acting, each of them played their part to perfection.
They thought, 'No matter how badass she is in a fight, she's still just a straight-F student.
'What do schools really value?
'It's grades.
'Getting into fights would only cement her bad reputation, putting her in the same category as troublemakers like James.
'Being both a violent delinquent and a straight-F student, she'll only earn more contempt from everyone.
'If she agreed, there'd be no suspense at all, everyone knew exactly how it would end.
'Arielle is ranked dead last with a pathetic 150 points. How dare she thinks she can beat them?'
They had it all figured out. That was the only reason they dared to challenge her.
The classroom was jam-packed, with students crammed inside and spilling out into the hallway.
Arielle arched an eyebrow, not interested in wasting her time on a bet with them in the first place.
However, she had suddenly changed her mind.
A cunning idea flashed through Arielle's mind.
She said, "An academic showdown? Not the brightest idea, but I'll play along."
"Arielle, don't be impulsive! You mustn't accept their challenge," Meredith pleaded, feigning concern.
Arielle looked at Meredith's phony act and thought, 'Just seeing her pretend like that makes me sick."
Patricia shot the others a knowing glance.
'She took the bait!' Patricia gloated inwardly.
Arielle nodded slightly. "300 thousand dollars? What's the fun in that? Why don't we raise the stakes?"
"Name your terms," Patricia retorted, tilting her chin up with an air of superiority.
"As long as even one of you scores higher than me, you win. But what I want in return, I question whether you can afford it."
"What do you want? Isn't 300 thousand dollars enough for you?" Mya shot back.
Patricia and the others exchanged mocking smirks.
She thought, 'She actually thinks this trick would scare us? How naive.
'We don't take Arielle seriously at all.'
Before Arielle showed up, Patricia had been the undisputed campus belle of Peterborough High.
Ever since Arielle showed up, her reign as campus queen was slipping through her fingers.
She thought, 'This time, I'll crush her beneath my heel. She won't stand a chance.'