PANDORA'S BOX UNLEASHED
CHAPTER 9: THE SLAP LONG DUE (PAID WITH INTEREST)
QUINTIN'S POV
We were just getting to the next class and we're already late because Damien was hungry and had to stop for a burger on the way and Angus refused to run because it was undignified.
That's what you get if you hung out with a young alpha and a crown prince.
It wasn't the worst of it though. I had lost count of the times girls would stop us to ask for directions or accidentally drop a personal item in passing.
They were trolling us, I was sure of it, but Angus would always pick up and return the item. And I would always have to hold down Damien from chewing anyone out for making us their fetching dogs.
This was my fault. I must have been cursed at birth. I was bullied almost all my life at my hometown. And now even my friends were suffering.
The heavens was truly cruel.
Yet even though I had admitted as much to my new friends, they had loyally stuck with me.
"I don't think they were trolling us, Quintin." Angus had naively said, "The ladies are simply dropping a sign of their affection."
"By treating us as their fetching dogs?" Damien growled, "They should pick up their own handkerchiefs!"
Bastien had just smirked, "The three of you are dumbasses."
He hadn't waited for Damien to get his burger either.
"Why should I be late for class? I'm not the hungry wolf."
It was while cutting across grass lawn to the next building when I saw them.
My old hometown nightmare — Mike, the mayor's spoiled son, posing like he owned the world. And Mabel, still wearing that smug, untouchable look while stuck on his arm.
Did she always look so cheap? Perhaps the girls at PAU were more sophisticated, but after giving directions and picking up personal items for at least 20 ladies this week, it suddenly looked obvious that this girl I used to admire was rather...
Well, it made me understand how complete strangers could guess I was from the countryside.
I looked down at my outfit and felt self conscious. Maybe I should clock a few extra hours at my new part time job to buy new clothes.
Then again, Mike was covered with branded apparel, but he also looked obviously from the countryside.
His usual entourage flanked him. Their guffawing laughter was still just as unpleasant. These were the guys who made my life hell growing up.
Angus adjusted his perfectly tailored blazer, golden hair catching the sunlight. "What is it? Do you know them?"
I realized belatedly that I had stopped walking.
Damien, dark and brooding at my other side, let out a low hum of irritation. His black hair fell over sharp eyes, muscles coiled and ready under his leather jacket.
Maybe that's what I needed. A leather jacket. Aloud, I said while shaking my head, "It's nothing. Nobody worth our time."
But I spoke too loudly.
Mike's jaw tightened and he led his goons over. "Did you just call me a nobody?" he spat. "You—" He jabbed a finger at me, "did you think you're all that just because you're at PAU—you were NOBODY back home and you are still NOBODY now!"
All at once, silence fell. Students passing by froze, textbooks halfway to their faces. Phones were raised like weapons. Whispers snaked through the crowd. Even the birds seemed to hesitate mid-flight.
I tilted my head, letting a slow, cold smile curl on my lips. I might not have bought that leather jacket yet, but I wasn't the simple farm boy from before anymore either.
"I never forget favors or insults," I said, letting the words hang like a guillotine. "I am a man who will pay back kindness tenfold, and evil a hundredfold."
Damien's lips curved into a half-smile, dark and amused. "You mean a thousandfold."
Angus's glare could have cut diamonds. "Idiot. Don't interrupt your friend when he's making his signature speech."
"But his flame of vengeance needs him to feel at least that much!"
That was true. I was an awakened now, but I guess Mike didn't know that.
Mike's face darkened. "Take care of him!" He motioned to his goons.
The two flanking goons surged forward but they were like loosed dogs. Terrifying to my past self, but now, they looked sorely clumsy.
I raised an eyebrow.
I had meant to stay low key and not cause my new friends trouble, but maybe it was time to put trouble in it's place.
I snapped my fingers and a sudden purple flame erupted around me, licking the air with cold, radiant fury. It spread in a wide circle, not burning, but cutting a path of absolute deterrence. The goons froze mid-step, wide-eyed, their confidence evaporating.
"Wha—what the—?!" one of them stammered, stumbling backward.
The crowd gasped. Phones shook. Someone whispered, eyes wide:
"It's that guy… the new freshman! The one with the S-tier awakening power — the flame of vengeance!"
Another voice, hushed but awestruck, replied:
"He placed first at the cadet rankings… and the ones with him… they're the Yin and Yang Princes — the dark alpha prince and the golden crown prince."
I let a slow, deliberate breath out, the purple flames swirling like living shadows around me. Perfect. Let them admire the show. Let them know what I'm capable of.
"Seems there are some mosquitos making noise," I said, my voice calm, amused, almost playful.
Then Mike lunged.
It only took me one slap. So I made sure it landed hard.
He hit the ground with a thud so satisfying, I almost savored the echo. His goons froze completely, Mabel gasped from where she stood, and the nearby students murmured in shock. Phones were everywhere, capturing every second.
I looked down at him without a shred of sympathy. "Enjoy the floor," I said. And let that be a lesson to anyone who dares look down on me.
Angus's voice rang sharp with outrage. "You can't do that! That's barbaric!"
He pulled out a pair of gloves — pristine, gleaming, regal. "You should use this and not dirty your hands."
"But soap would be cheaper though?" I said, and then I remembered, "I'm not the poor farm boy anymore."
Well, technically, I was still poor.
But since my rich friend was offering it to me, I accepted the gloves and threw them on Mike's other cheek like a whip.
The crowd was buzzing. Phones out, whispers racing, girls stealing glances at Damien and Angus like they were celestial beings descended to campus. I noticed a few glances sliding toward me, the purple flames curling around me like a halo of vengeance. Yes, let them watch. Let them all watch.
Mike scrambled to his feet, sputtering, goons at his side shaking in disbelief. Pathetic. So fragile. So predictable.
I straightened my shoulders, walking past the stunned crowd, purple flames dwindling into a soft, threatening glow.
Damien laughed and slapped me on my back, "You should've just shut them up from the start."
"They were just mosquitoes." I waved it off as we walked away.
"Since you know they were mosquitoes, you should have silenced them before they bit you." Angus said.
I smirked. A prince would never understand the underdog, "Sometimes, it's more satisfying to let them try."
---
WTH.
Her three MLs were a menace. Jennifer smirked at her screen.
Well, at least they weren't a broody young alpha running the streets and picking fights with rogues. Or a lovesick prince constantly being rejected by the FL. Or… well, Quintin was very much still in character. But he wasn't alone anymore. None of them were. And maybe… maybe that was all they needed. Someone to walk away with.