In an instant, the roles of culprit and victim flipped in this case—
but no matter what happened, a defective omega with no backing would never be defended by these young werewolves.
To them, I was nothing more than entertainment.
Not that I needed their help. I could handle this myself.
"Mrs. Willette, since Oscar can't explain the research references used to create The Shifter's Aide, I'll do it. The main reference comes from… And for the bracelet form, I based it on a study from…"
I explained everything in detail while Mrs. Willette searched for the papers I mentioned.
Nothing was incorrect. Of course! I was the one who made it.
Even a child would know who was at fault here.
Meanwhile, Oscar grew more frantic with every word I said.
Halfway through my explanation, he snapped. "I'm not the culprit! I only—"
"Oscar, don't lie anymore! I'm a witness. I saw you do it! And I have proof!"
I turned toward the voice and found Shannon speaking, her face burning with anger. I had never seen this expression on her before.
"Shannon, you…" Oscar looked stunned.
He definitely knew that Shannon knew something. He probably assumed she and I had no connection, so there was no way Shannon Green would step forward as a witness.
Caught red-handed, Oscar!
Just as I suspected, Shannon had seen Oscar stealing my design file. "The device was built in the workshop I booked. I saw Oscar Sanders sneaking around. When I approached him, he panicked and dropped the file. But then he ran off."
Shannon turned to me, eyes glassy, close to tears. "I thought you two were friends since you're in the same class. I even thought you designed it together. I didn't expect he actually stole it."
I patted her shoulder. "This isn't your fault. It's his! for stealing my design."
Beside witnessing it, Shannon also brought proof. One of the materials, which needed to be ordered from another region, had been purchased not only by her, but also by Oscar a day after her order.
With both proof and testimony from a Shannon Green, everyone openly sided with me.
Oscar stood there silently, head hanging low.
I still couldn't believe how stupid Oscar was — him, and all the students here. When I presented proof, no one defended me. But the moment Shannon arrived, everything shifted.
Was the family's background really this important?
What would happen to me once everyone learned I was the biological daughter of the Alpha of the Green Pack?
Mrs. Willette quickly took control. She suspended Oscar on the spot and told him to bring his parents later.
"Thank you very much, Mrs. Willette," I bowed politely.
"You've gone through enough," she said, patting the back of my hand.
I also went to thank Shannon.
Students finally began to disperse. Among them, Larry remained, staring at me with worried eyes.
I understood, he wanted to help but didn't know how.
But Shannon had helped enough. And to me, what each of them does was already reflected the entire family.
The more time I spent with them, the more I felt accepted by that family.
No, it felt like I actually had a family who defended me… worried about me.
Suddenly, something shot into the faculty room with incredible speed. All I saw was a blur of brunette streaking past like a bullet.
The blur stopped, revealing a boy with neatly tied brunette hair, blue eyes, oversized clothes, and a very familiar face.
He tried to look intimidating, but he resembled a flower boy more than anything.
Then he shouted, startling everyone in the room.
Especially me, because…
"Who dared accuse Clarissa of plagiarizing someone else's device?! Do you not know how amazing she is in aether application?! Even tiny homework projects look like they're made for prestigious competitions! I, Edwin Green, guarantee it! If someone's device looks the same, then they copied Clarissa! Where are they? Where?!"
My jaw dropped. Everyone's jaw dropped.
Larry was the first to recover. He grabbed Edwin's arm and pulled him back.
"It's done. Clarissa isn't guilty. The plagiarizer was already punished," Larry said, shaking his head.
"I'm late?" Edwin asked dramatically. Larry nodded once, then went back to shaking his head.
The youngest of the Green siblings grinned like a fool. Luckily the students had left, so only a few teachers and Oscar saw his ridiculous entrance.
Edwin scanned the room and locked eyes with me.
"You're Clarissa, right?" He walked over immediately. "If anyone dares say you plagiarized or insult your skills, just tell me."
I froze. Edwin… he was very different from Larry. Far more overly familiar, even more than Shannon.
We'd just met, and he was already crossing every social line I had.
If I ever joined that family, would my personal space be constantly invaded like this?
Edwin continued staring at me like he was watching a mystery movie nearing its climax.
Thankfully, Mrs. Willette called me. "Clarissa, you can go now. I'll handle things here."
Too bad she only called me to send me away. I nodded and walked out…
…followed by the Green siblings.
Shannon and Larry behaved, but Edwin… he circled me, observing me like some kind of lab specimen.
"I already know about our relationship. Don't be so tense," he said with a grin.
His young and cute face looked a bit like Shannon, but overall he resembled Larry more.
I responded with an awkward nod. Edwin didn't seem to understand when someone didn't want to talk. Or maybe I was just too sensitive.
As the youngest child, with both parents, older brothers and a sister— of course he grew up free, unrestrained. It wasn't that he couldn't read social cues. He just never needed to.
"Don't space out!" Edwin waved a hand in front of my face. "Your device adjusts its size to match the user's arm, right? What did you use to change the size?"
He asked with so much excitement.
I forced away the strange thoughts swirling in my head, then answered him, "I used…"
Our fates differed despite coming from the same parents, but that didn't mean I blamed them.
What mattered was the present.
…