The three had just entered the academy's tree-lined path when Oscar couldn't help scratching his head, his steps slowing by half a beat. Morning light filtered through the branches onto his face, making the tiny scratch hidden beneath the end of his right eyebrow—so faint it was nearly invisible, yet had become a knot in his heart—stand out all the more.
"Actually... I wasn't jealous just because I saw you two standing so close." His voice was a little muffled as he raised a hand to touch the scar. "Five years ago, while training in the Far North, an ice soul beast scratched my face. It's only a tiny wound, but I always thought it looked ugly—I was already unworthy of Rongrong, the eldest daughter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Now that I have a scar too, I have even less face to see her. That's why I kept avoiding her for the past five years."
Lin Zhixia stopped when she heard this, and the glow of her Star Pattern Bracer softened. She leaned closer to inspect the scratch, then couldn't help laughing. "You call that an injury? It's much lighter than the cut I got from a Meteorite Fragment during my last God-Tier Assessment! If Rongrong cared about appearances, she wouldn't have fought you for the last sausage back then, much less secretly slipped you a soul-protecting talisman when you left. What she loves has never been your looks—it's you."
Tang San nodded as well, recalling how Oscar had desperately trained with hidden weapons for Rongrong's sake. "Zhi Xia is right. Rongrong isn't that kind of person. This knot in your heart is just you scaring yourself."
Oscar's ears reddened slightly. Just as he was about to say something else, Lin Zhixia suddenly remembered that she had