The principal’s heels clicked sharply across the courtyard tiles as she approached Mark—Ariel’s mother, a woman whose presence alone could silence an entire assembly hall. Her expression was cold, but beneath it lingered something sharper… concern.

“Mark,” she said, stopping before him, “why were you fighting my daughter?”

Mark met her eyes, calm and unreadable. In the next second, his mind dipped into hers. Memories flashed—Ariel hadn’t snitched. The principal had received an anonymous video of the fight. Someone wanted him in trouble.

“I was framed,” Mark replied simply.

Her eyes narrowed. “That’s not all. Several students have filed complaints about you. Some say you are unfit as Headboy. That you should be deprived of your position.”

Mark didn’t flinch. “Those opinions are fake.”

“We’ll see,” she replied. “You will be tried in five days. Prepare to defend not only your title as Headboy… but your place in this school.”

She turned and left, her coat sweeping behind her like a closing verdict.

Later, Mark met his three brothers—Zack, Richard, and Daniel— lounging behind the school gym. They wore smirks that told him they already knew.

“So,” Zack began, “heard you’re getting expelled.”

Richard laughed. “About time someone humbled you.”

Daniel folded his arms. “Guess power finally caught up to you.”

Mark sighed, almost bored. “I’m not getting expelled… but you are.”

The laughter died instantly.

“As if,” Zack snapped. “We didn’t even do anything.”

Their faces tightened with anger. A moment later, their powers surged—Zack’s shockwaves, Richard’s heat bursts, Daniel’s telekinetic strikes—all crashing into Mark.

He didn’t fight back. Not once.

When they finally stormed off, satisfied, Mark stood up as if he had merely brushed off dust. Not a bruise remained.

Five days later. Courtroom.

The judge, a stern man with silver glasses, peered down. “Mark. Why did you attack Ariel?”

“It wasn’t me,” Mark replied. “It was my brothers.”

Murmurs rippled across the hall.

“Play the video,” Mark requested.

The screen lit up. The footage showed the fight… but the editing was sloppy—cuts mismatched, lighting inconsistent, impact angles wrong. A child could have noticed.

“This was edited,” Mark said. “Edited to make it look aggressive—edited to make me look like a threat.”

Gasps filled the room.

“And this,” he continued, “is the real evidence.”

He played a second video—Daniel sneaking into the principal’s office, planting fake complaint letters. Students stared in disbelief as everything unraveled.

Ariel watched from the back, her expression unreadable but her eyes sharp.

“Ever since becoming Headboy,” Mark said, stepping forward, “I’ve done everything possible to make life easier for both juniors and seniors. And if it weren’t for me, Ariel wouldn’t even be Head Girl right now.”

Silence followed. Then slowly, the room began to nod. Whispers turned to agreement.

The judge slammed the gavel. “Zack, Richard, and Daniel are hereby expelled.”

The three brothers stood, furious and humiliated. Mark’s voice slipped into their minds—calm, cold, and triumphant.

Ever since you joined this school… I planned this. I planned to expel all of you.

Their eyes widened.

I planned the fight with Ariel. I recorded it myself. I edited it sloppily and sent it anonymously. I planted the fake note in the principal’s office. I edited the footage to make it look like Daniel. And I recorded you beating me up yesterday—to prove you hated me.

He stepped closer, his mental voice echoing like a verdict.

You should have realized… I am inevitable.

Security moved in instantly, escorting the furious brothers out of the building as the principal looked on, stunned.

Mark stood alone at the center of the hall, victorious—yet unreadable.

Ariel watched him silently from the shadows, realizing that Mark wasn’t just smart.

He was dangerous.
And he had only just begun.