Chapter 48
[ This is heartbreaking .
So Elysia was the one being bullied all along .
But why do all the online search results say she was the ringleader ? And those claiming to have â seen her hitting classmates â ? Care to explain ? ]
[ Itâs simple .
Rowena cries and twists the truth .
Even little kids can be fooled , let alone Torin and Fenwick , whoâve been completely duped .
]
[ Spreading rumors costs nothing , but disproving them is an uphill battle .
I just checked Elysiaâs Twitter , and her comment section is horrifying- nothing but curses and abuse .
]
[ I tracked down the origin of the rumors .
Rowena subtly hinted during a Best Actress award ceremony that Elysia â has a bad temper â and that â a lot of people at school are scared of her .
â Thatâs where all the bullying stories started .
]
Stellan forced himself to look away from the screen .
He had known Elysia was bullied at school , but he had never imagined it was this bloody and violent .
The irony was almost unbearable : the Drayton family had no idea this was happening .
Worse , they actually believed Elysia was the aggressor , while Rowena â unscathed and unmarked â was seen as the poor , helpless victim .
â Torin , Fenwick , are your hearts so biased that your eyes canât see straight ? Canât you tell whoâs bullying whom ? â
Torin shook his head silently , his mind spinning .
â Why ? Why would Rowena do this to Elysia ? â
Elysia had done everything Rowena demanded â finished her homework , drawn her chalkboard art , and even helped execute her schemes .
Elysia was already ostracized and abandoned by everyone .
Torin thought , â So why did Rowena keep her around to suffer further abuse ? â
Fenwick , gritting his teeth , snapped , â Whatâs that supposed to mean ? â
Unlike Torin , Fenwick lacked composure .
Stellanâs pointed remarks stung like provocation , and he retorted impulsively , â Whenever we saw Elysia , she seemed fine ! If she had just shown us her injuries earlier or told us about the bullying , we wouldâve helped her fix it ! â
[ Unfollowing .
Goodbye , Fenwick .
]
[ Are you serious ? You think Elysia didnât tell you because she forgot ? What about that time she had a deep cut on her hand , and you all said she deserved it ? Short memory much ? ]
Stellan smirked faintly , his expression almost amused .
See ? No need for me to speak â others will do it for me .
Fenwickâs career faced its largest â ever backlash .
Fans accused him of poor acting compared to Rowenaâs theatrics , with rumors and criticism snowballing as his image crumbled .
Meanwhile , a tech worker approached Stellan and whispered , â Sir , that user ID ⦠it appeared out of nowhere .
Once the image disappeared , the ID vanished too .
We canât find any records of it in our system .
â
Stellan sighed , rubbing his temples .
This was no coincidence .
Whoever was behind this wasnât even trying to hide
The Memory Viewer couldnât have developed its own consciousness .
Someone must have infiltrated their system .
But strangely , their actions seemed entirely focused on helping Elysia â¦
The screen continued to play , giving viewers little time to process .
This time , the setting was a police station .
The sight made everyone tense .
Was Elysia reporting the abuse ? Or had she done something wrong ?
anymore .
Onscreen , Elysia was still in her school uniform , and judging by the daylight , it was morning â meaning she had skipped class .
Yet her face remained calm as she walked inside .
[ Everyone relax .
Elysia went in voluntarily .
Sheâs probably reporting those bullies , right ? ]
[ Unlikely .
Rowenaâs never been in custody , and judging by how biased the Drayton family is , thatâs not happening .
]
Inside the station , a middle â aged officer sat on a bench , his demeanor commanding respect .
When Elysia entered , he immediately stood , his face lighting up with genuine joy .
The police said , â Thank goodness youâre here .
On behalf of the Stoneford Police Department , I want to thank you for your contribution to the community .
â
He took a deep breath before continuing , â Thanks to you , Lyra and Dorian , those two notorious traffickers , have finally been caught .
Weâve been
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Chapter 48
pursuing them for years , and today , justice has finally been served
â But ⦠â He sighed heavily , his expression darkening .
Iâm sorry for the year you endured because of us .
If your family had been willing to support you in court , last yearâs trial might have ended differently .
And if weâd believed you sooner , we might have apprehended them earlier .
â
At this , Elysiaâs lips curled into a bittersweet smile .
Shaking her head gently , she replied , â Itâs not their fault .
They had no obligation to help me .
â
Her words cut through Torinâs heart , reopening wounds that had yet to heal .
Torin thought .
No obligation ? They were her family .
How could they have no obligation ?
Because they didnât see any visible injuries , they dismissed her claims as lies .
Even worse , Torin â the second adult in the family â had refused to accompany her to court .
[ So it wasnât even a loss in court .
Elysia , as a minor without family support , wasnât even allowed to testify .
The Drayton family is truly something else .
]
[ She was only 15 at the time , right ? Her life was already this hard .
No wonder she later sought revenge .
]
[ Hold up .
Her family raised her , fed her , sent her to school â all that costs money ! And didnât she have an abortion later ? Who paid for that ? The Drayton family , I bet .
]
[ Right ? Kids these days are so entitled .
Always seeking revenge , ungrateful brats .
At least dogs wag their tails when you feed them .
]
Torinâs pupils contracted sharply at the mention of â abortion .
â
He couldnât believe the kind â hearted Elysia would willingly engage in such behavior , let alone ⦠terminate a pregnancy .
Someone must have forced her .
Scenes of the bullying replayed in his mind , each flash of male faces fueling his fury .
His heart pounded wildly , and a storm of guilt and rage overtook him .
Finally , he broke , shouting in agony as he collapsed to his knees and pounded the ground .
Torin finally couldnât hold back anymore .
With a heart â wrenching scream , he collapsed to his knees , pounding the ground in anguish .
This was his sister â his real sister .
And yet , in places he couldnât see , she had endured such inhumane abuse for so long .
Instead of helping her when she first began to suffer , Torin had joined the rest of the family in ignoring her , treating her with cold indifference .
â What the hell have I been doing all these years ? â Torin roared , his fists slamming into the floor again in frustration and self â loathing .
Even Fenwick , usually unshaken , was startled by the sight .
Quickly , he reached out to help Torin up .
â Torin ? Why are you suddenly on the floor ? Elysiaâs still alive and fine , isnât she ? Get up .
Sheâs not worth it .
â
Before Fenwick could finish .
Torinâs reddened eyes snapped toward him .
Grabbing Fenwickâs arm with a vice â like grip , Torin shouted , â Elysia ⦠she must have been forced into this ! We have to find the person who did this to her .
We have to avenge her ! â
Fenwick , unable to break free , instinctively pinned Torin to the floor instead .
For once , he played the role of the older sibling , speaking to him in a measured , almost paternal tone .
â Torin , calm down .
We donât know the truth yet .
How can you jump to conclusions like this ? â
Fenwick hesitated , then added , â It could ⦠it could even be that Elysia is dating someone .
Maybe itâs just that ⦠â
â Torin , what are you doing ? Donât push me ! â Fenwick protested as Torin angrily shoved him away .
â Iâm just saying itâs possible .
Possible ! â
Fenwick slumped to the ground , glaring at Torin in irritation .
In his mind , he hadnât said anything wrong .
The brothers stood in stark contrast at that moment â one trapped in spiraling guilt and punishment , imagining the worst , while the other stubbornly clung to alternative explanations , seeking solace in denial .
[ Are these two really brothers ? How are they even from the same family ? Fenwick is so heartless .
]
[ Poor Elysia , having two clueless idiots for brothers .
Do they realize this is a live broadcast ? Shouldnât they be working to bury this story instead of arguing over whether she was forced or willing ? ]
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Torin suddenly froze , as if jolted awake .
His eyes slowly shifted toward the camera in the distance .
His voice , hollow and broken , murmured , â Iâm sorry , Elysia ⦠Iâve failed you again ⦠â
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