Chapter 87: Rank One Chaos [II]

"Ughhh..." Starlight let out a frustrated groan. Why couldn’t anything just be normal for once? Would heaven fall if a single day went by without one of those damn royals getting on her case? Why did every single day at this academy feel like somebody had lifted her, thrown her into a blender, and pressed the highest setting?

"I swear, these royals are going to drive me completely insane," she muttered, throwing the phone back at Elle, who frantically caught it.

Starlight turned sharply toward the bathroom. She had literally just come back from swimming, trying to wash away the tension she had accumulated over the past week. Why couldn’t she get a single moment of peace? The sheer volume of unwanted attention she had received since arriving at this academy was suffocating, a tightening vice around her chest.

Elle trotted right behind her like a persistent shadow, peering over her shoulder. "Wait, Star! Was the pool thing actually true? Were you really with Prince Kage this morning?!"

"Grrr... Elle..." Starlight spun around on her heel, her face contorted with pure, unadulterated frustration.

"As your manager, I believe I have every right to know what’s going on!" Elle declared, placing a hand dramatically against her chest. "You can’t just spend a quality morning with the Apogee prince and expect me not to ask questions!"

"Please, Elle, don’t!" Starlight snapped, her patience stretched to its limit. "I’m really not in the mood for this right now, so just leave me the fuck alone!" With that, she turned and slammed the bathroom door so hard the frame rattled.

The entire room fell silent.

Elle blinked at the closed door, her mouth falling slightly open. "What did I do wrong?" she asked, glancing back at the other two girls in the room.

Chloe snorted from her top bunk. "You mean apart from being a complete nuisance? The problem is that you really don’t know when to stop. You’re literally piling onto her frustration when she clearly wants to be left alone."

"I think Chloe’s right, Elle," Ariel sighed. "Starlight needs some space to process everything." She paused, then shook her head with a small smile. "But honestly, I think she actually has some kind of royal heir and heiress magnet attached to her. First, it was the Imperial Crown Princes, then Princess Beatrice and Princess Sera, and now Prince Kage? Seriously, how can one person be that lucky?"

"Right?" Chloe agreed. "It’s like powerful werewolves just keep gravitating toward her."

"That’s why we should stick close to her like glue, so some of that luck can rub off on us," Elle said with a shameless grin.

"Aren’t you even a tiny bit concerned or curious about how she keeps getting these people drawn to her?" Chloe asked, raising an eyebrow.

Elle shrugged, completely unbothered as she moved toward her bed. "Why should I stress my brain over unnecessary things? As long as she keeps bringing in those lovely Apex points that will eventually turn into money, I’m happy!"

Chloe scoffed, a faint smirk tugging at her lips. "Listen to her, talking as if those ranking rewards will eventually be handed over to her."

"Well, no, obviously they aren’t going to be mine," Elle replied smoothly, taking a seat on her bed. "But I am one hundred percent sure I’m going to benefit from them. Our Star Queen is nice. Don’t mind her grumpiness. Once she realizes how many credit points she actually has now and how much money they’re worth, she’ll definitely treat us to something nice from the campus market."

Ariel shook her head with a weary laugh. "You are completely insufferable, Elle. Completely impossible, honestly. But you are forgetting the most important thing that comes with being ranked in the top three on the Apex Board."

"And what would that be?" Elle asked, tilting her head with a frown.

Ariel leaned forward, a knowing smile tugging at her lips. "You do know that students ranked in the top three are given exclusive private suites, right?" Elle’s eyebrows shot up immediately.

"That’s the reason the Imperial Twins have a their own private suite, not because they’re imperial royals. They simply chose to share one suite instead of staying separately. With Starlight sitting at number one now, Elle, she automatically qualifies for her own private suite. Starlight is definitely leaving our dorm, and even if you want to stick to her like glue or enjoy her newfound wealth, she’s going to be moving into the high-tier dorm, spending most of her time there, making high-ranking friends, and probably even finding herself a more suitable manager."

Ariel added the last part with a deliberately cruel smirk, fully aware of how seriously Elle took her self-appointed role as Starlight’s manager.

Elle’s jaw dropped. Her eyes widened in absolute horror as the realization began to sink in. "Oh my God... Oh my God... I completely forgot about that!"

Chloe immediately burst into a sudden, loud fit of laughter from the top bunk. She threw her head back so hard she nearly rolled over, clapping her hands repeatedly as she laughed.

"Oh my goodness, this is hilarious!" she wheezed. "This is literally the first time I have ever seen that much panic on your face, Elle!"

"This is a serious matter, Chloe!" Elle protested, looking genuinely horrified. "What are we going to do now? We need to stay close to her! I am her one and only manager!"

That only made Chloe laugh harder.

"If we’re being honest with ourselves, Starlight already qualified for a private suite before today’s rankings," she said between laughs. "Did you forget that the DawnBreakers had already pushed her into the top three? It was only a matter of time before she moved out. Today’s ranking will just make it happen sooner."

"Okay... okay, wait. Nobody should panic. I do not need to panic." Elle took a quick, sharp breath, trying to steady herself as a sudden spark of hope lit up her eyes. "Even if you two cannot come with her, I am one hundred and ten percent sure that I am going with her! I am her manager, after all! A manager needs to live close to her client, right? It only makes sense!"

Ariel simply shook her head with a weary sigh, turning her face away as she fought back a laugh. Elle could be completely ridiculous sometimes.

Chloe continued laughing from the top bunk.

Elle glared at both of them in annoyance. "You two are impossible," she grumbled. Then she waved them off. "Well, whatever. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Right now, I really need to check out what Songbird posted about our Star Queen. Someone in Princess Sera’s comments said her thread is already on fire."