Reborn as the General's Useless Daughter-Chapter 105: Special enrollee

"Child, you really are like a wandering ghost. How is it that wherever I go, you pop up?" Reesa said coldly.

She did not bother to hide her disdain, directly comparing Barbara to something unpleasant. Truth be told, Reesa genuinely felt that this woman appearing again and again was extremely irritating.

"Reesa, you’re asking for trouble!" Barbara snapped, her voice rising.

The two had been at odds since childhood, and Barbara had never once gained the upper hand against Reesa. Now that they had arrived at the academy grounds, free from family restraints, Reesa’s sharp tongue had grown even more merciless.

The originally orderly queue instantly grew restless. Many practitioners turned their heads, curiosity lighting their eyes. Two strikingly beautiful women arguing was far more interesting than standing in line.

Nigel glanced at Zora with a helpless expression. He had no idea how the conflict started, yet somehow he was caught in the middle.

Zora’s eyes flickered with faint displeasure.

"Enough," she said coolly. "I have no interest in causing trouble."

Her calm, icy tone carried a pressure that made Barbara recall the humiliating scene at the inn, when she had been kicked out without mercy.

That memory made Barbara grit her teeth. She hated that she was currently no match for Zora.

But this was the academy entrance, on the day of the assessment. Being publicly taught another lesson here would be unbearable.

Swallowing her anger, Barbara finally shut her mouth.

Seeing this, Reesa lifted her chin in satisfaction. Admiration flashed through her eyes as she looked at Zora.

She had argued endlessly, yet one casual sentence from Zora had silenced Barbara completely.

Zora turned back around, the coldness fading from her expression, replaced by a gentle smile.

"Do your best," she said to Nigel. "I believe you can pass."

Nigel nodded firmly. "I’ll give it everything I have."

"Zora, let’s go queue up," Reesa said.

Zora smiled lightly. "You go ahead. I don’t need to stand in line."

The moment those words fell, Barbara could no longer hold back.

"So arrogant!" she sneered. "What, do you think you’re a specially invited student? You don’t need to queue for the academy assessment?"

Reesa shot her a sharp look. "Didn’t I tell you to shut up? Why do you have so much nonsense?"

"Talking so loudly, afraid others won’t notice how foul your mouth is?"

"You—!" Barbara flushed. "You say my mouth is foul?"

Zora turned back calmly, her gaze indifferent. "If no one is speaking to you, don’t interrupt. It makes you look... uncultivated."

Barbara’s face burned red, fury and humiliation choking her throat.

Zora ignored her completely and said to Reesa, "Go queue up first. We’ll meet again inside the academy."

Reesa hesitated, a trace of doubt flickering in her eyes.

She always felt that Zora was different, but she chose not to ask.

"Alright," she said. "We’ll see each other inside."

Perhaps Zora truly possessed a special identity.

Or perhaps... she really was a specially recruited student.

"Zora, don’t you think you’ve gone too far?" Barbara raised her voice sharply. "You don’t queue, yet you say nothing. How are we supposed to believe you can participate in the assessment like this? Don’t tell me you’re a special enrollee. Do you think anyone would believe that?"

The words "special enrollee" instantly stirred the crowd.

At the academy, special recruitment was spoken of with awe.

To enter the academy was to be called a genius.

To enter as a special enrollee was to be a genius among geniuses.

"I’ve heard the academy only accepted two special enrollees this year. There’s no way it could be her."

"Exactly. Every special enrollee is famous long before arrival. How could this woman be one of them?"

Hearing the murmurs around her, Barbara’s lips curled upward in smug satisfaction.

Three days ago, Zora had humiliated her in public.

Today, she would force that same woman to lose face before everyone.

"Zora really is a special enrollee," Sapphire whispered softly.

Nigel immediately raised a finger to his lips and smiled. "Shh. Don’t say it yet. Let’s watch the show."

Sapphire instantly understood, a trace of schadenfreude flickering in her eyes. She could already imagine Barbara’s expression later.

Under countless gazes, Zora walked calmly toward the academy gates.

There were five passages at the entrance.

Four were packed with long lines of applicants.

Only one stood empty.

The special enrollee passage.

Barbara stared, stunned, then sneered openly.

She actually dares walk there?

When Zora reached the passage, she happened to meet the registrar from the adjacent lane. A glint of recognition passed through his eyes.

"Miss Zora," Raphael said with a warm smile, "we meet again."

Zora nodded lightly. "Looks like we’ll be seeing each other often."

Standing beside him, Alaric Von Seraph had naturally noticed her as well. Unlike Raphael, his expression remained cool.

"Stupid woman," he said flatly. "If you’re here for the assessment, queue up at the back."

Though his words were sharp, it was clear he was reminding her.

Zora shot him an annoyed glance. Just seeing this man irritated her.

"Idiot," she replied calmly. "I am a special enrollee."

The words fell like thunder.

Raphael froze.

Alaric Von Seraph paused.

"You... are a special enrollee?" Raphael asked in surprise.

Zora nodded. "Correct."

Alaric Von Seraph fell silent. He and Raphael were special enrollees themselves. He knew exactly what that status meant.

He had never imagined that the woman they casually encountered on the road... would be the same.

Behind them, Barbara stood frozen in place, her face stiff and pale.

She had been waiting to see Zora embarrass herself.

Instead, she watched helplessly as Zora stood shoulder to shoulder with two senior special enrollees—and walked straight into the academy without ever looking back.

"That was Senior Raphael! Senior Raphael actually smiled at Zora. Just who is this Zora?"

"Not just Senior Raphael. Even Senior Alaric Von Seraph knows her!"

"I heard that Alaric Von Seraph has always ignored others, especially women. Aside from Sylvandria, the so-called first beauty, he’s never spared anyone a glance. What kind of existence is this, Zora?"

"So unfair... Senior Raphael is gentle and handsome. If he smiled at me like that, I could die happy."

Voices of envy, shock, and admiration rose one after another, and for a moment, everyone completely forgot the original dispute.

Barbara stood rooted to the ground, her mind blank.

She never imagined that Zora would have connections with two of the academy’s most famous senior students.

Yet... even so—

How could she really skip the line?

Reesa’s eyes shone brightly, her smile stretching ear to ear. "I knew it. Zora is definitely not ordinary!"

Zora calmly took out the invitation from her Storage pouch.

In truth, all her valuables were stored inside the Ring of Chaos. A Storage pouch could be stolen, but the Ring of Chaos had already acknowledged her as its master. Even if it fell into another’s hands, no one could open it.

Naturally, the ring’s secret could not be exposed, so she always carried an empty Storage pouch for appearances.

The purple-gold invitation card gleamed faintly. Raphael and Alaric Von Seraph recognized it instantly.

It was the academy’s special enrollment invitation.

At that moment, two figures slowly walked out from within the academy grounds.

Sebastian and Miel.