If an ordinary student had come to buy alchemical items and seen the shop assistant suddenly rush into the back room in a panic, they might have found it strange, but probably would not have read too much into it. They might simply have assumed she was going to consult the owner or fetch some stock.
But Greg was different.
Ever since setting foot on the surface, he had been under the constant attention of that damned minus-ten luck stat, forced to get used to all sorts of sudden mishaps and trouble.
So when he saw the female assistant's expression change drastically after getting a clear look at his face, and even watched her hurry into the back room, the alarm bells in his mind instantly went on full alert.
What's going on?
Could it be... she actually has a grudge against me?
Is she pretending to head into the back for something when she's really getting people, ready to find an excuse to teach me a lesson?
The more Greg thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
After all, his old notoriety at the Academy had not come out of nowhere.
Throwing his weight around as a duke's son, he really had offended plenty of people. Although most of the specific incidents were rather hazy in his memory, he certainly had a long record of misconduct.
Those people might once have swallowed their anger because of his status, but things were different now.
He had been publicly expelled from Duke Sass's House and lost his greatest backer. In many people's eyes, he had gone from an arrogant young thug to a beaten dog they could kick around as they pleased.
If someone wanted to seize this opportunity to get revenge for old grievances, it would make perfect sense.