Chapter 428

Did Shermaine miss that last shot on purpose? The thought coiled in Judy’s mind like smoke, dark and suffocating.

Her grip on the bow tightened, and the air around her grew heavy with suppressed fury.

In the spectator stands, Tiffany and the others, who had been holding their breath, finally allowed themselves a sigh of relief.

Only Joshua had remained entirely composed from beginning to end.

He had never once entertained the possibility of Shermaine losing.

He beckoned a staff member over. “Get some water ready. And have strawberries and dessert brought over.”

“Yes, Mr. York. Right away.”

At the sound of food, the white cat leapt to his feet and darted to Joshua’s side, wide eyes gleaming as he meowed softly, clearly asking for his share.

Joshua glanced down at him. “Give him some cat food.”

“Meow! Meow! Meow!” the cat cried indignantly. He did not eat cat food.

Joshua smiled faintly. “A cat who turns his nose up at cat food? You’re quite the character.”

The cat lowered his head in quiet protest. Truth be told, the stuff didn’t smell all that bad. It was even kind of appetizing. But the truth was, he wasn’t really a cat, just someone temporarily inhabiting this feline body.

‘Could Joshua have figured it out?’ he wondered, alarm creeping into his thoughts. ‘No… impossible. I haven’t slipped. I’ve been careful. Haven’t I?’

Beyond one edge of the riding field stretched a manicured garden, lush and vibrant in the distance.

On the opposite side, open grassland marked the start of the riding trails, designed for students to enjoy long rides through the countryside.

The moment was tense.

They had arrived at the final three arrows.

Judy had already lost six million dollars.

At this point, the only path to victory was precision and uncompromising accuracy. She needed bullseyes, all three. But if Shermaine matched her shot for shot, it would be meaningless. Victory would still slip through her fingers.

There would be no tiebreaker. That had been agreed from the outset. The rules were fixed and non-negotiable.

But rules had never meant much to Judy.

She’d clawed her way through power struggles and palace intrigue with lies, manipulation, and ruthless cunning. Mercy was for fools.

She raised her bow and released the arrow. In the next breath, it went straight at Shermaine.

Had it landed, Shermaine might easily have been knocked off her horse.

The attack came out of nowhere.

“What the hell? She’s cheating!”

“Unbelievable. That’s low.”

Shermaine caught the movement in her peripheral vision. She leaned back, her spine arching with fluid grace until her back nearly brushed the horse’s back.

In the same motion, she loosed her arrow, then straightened, reining in slightly to slow the horse’s pace. “What exactly are you trying to pull?”

Judy lifted her chin, utterly unapologetic. “There’s nothing in the rules that says I can’t.”

Shermaine let out a quiet, almost amused breath. “I gave you too much credit.”

Judy’s lips pulled into a smile, but there was no warmth in it. “I owe my opponents nothing, not fairness, not restraint. If it helps me win, I’ll do it.”

“Is that so?” Shermaine’s voice turned quiet. “Then tell me, did it help you win?”

Judy faltered. She hadn’t seen where Shermaine’s arrow had landed.

Now, her gaze shifted to the target. The red-feathered arrow was lodged firmly in the yellow ring.

It was another perfect ten.

Her ploy had not only failed, it had backfired. To the spectators, she was now the villain, the cheat, the one who couldn’t win clean.

Shermaine’s voice cut through the silence like a blade. “Nine million.”

Judy’s expression twisted. It was as if the match had already been decided.

Only two arrows remained. Even if she hit both perfectly, she’d still fall short.

Just then, a peculiar gust swept across the field.

With a sharp metallic clink, the red-feathered arrow that had been buried squarely in the bullseye slipped free and dropped to the ground.

In most matches, a dislodged arrow, especially one caused by environmental factors, was ruled invalid.

Judy smirked, a touch of triumph flickering at the corner. “Your arrow fell.”

Shermaine frowned.

An arrow that strikes the center with proper force does not simply fall. It embeds with precision, held firm. Something was wrong.

From the audience, the white cat let out a string of agitated meows, as though hurling curses in a forgotten tongue.

‘Pathetic! If Xyperia ever falls into the hands of someone like Judy,’ he thought bitterly, ‘there will be nothing left of its future.’

Judy tilted her head, eyes glittering. “So much for your reputation. Bit of bad luck, isn’t it?”

Shermaine’s gaze sharpened, her voice laced with calm contempt. “Is that what you’re counting on? Luck? Do you really think two arrows will be enough to close the gap?"

“You and I both know the truth. If I called it out in front of everyone, it’d just be embarrassing for you.”

Judy remained unbothered. “Victory’s all that matters.”

Shermaine didn’t reply. Her silence was colder than disdain.

From the stands, the white cat vanished like smoke, slipping away.

Joshua watched the empty space where the cat had stood. There was something in his expression, something knowing.

Chapter 428

“Shall we continue, Ms. Shue? There’s no point debating,” said Judy.

Shermaine said nothing.

There was no need to argue with someone who had abandoned dignity long ago. Words were wasted on the shameless.

As she raised her bow for the second to last shot, the air around the target grew unsettled once again.

The wind shifted, subtle in appearance, yet unnaturally calculated.

Her arrow caught the wind and began to veer off course.

But then, as though tugged back by an invisible force, it corrected its path.

The deviation was minute, the movement swift and imperceptible to most.

But Joshua saw it.

He also knew not all parties involved were equally equipped.

Hidden in the tall grass just beyond the arena’s edge, the white cat lay motionless, panting heavily.

Without access to Energon to sustain its strength, it had become utterly vulnerable in the face of superior technology.

Born of nature and spirit, the creature was now running on fumes.

The effect was immediate. Shermaine’s arrow drifted wide—so far, in fact, that it missed the scoring rings entirely.

Judy’s arrow, on the other hand, struck within the white zone, earning her a single point, just enough to win the round.

Shermaine said nothing, but a glint of thought lingered in her eyes.

The audience, however, could only stare in confusion.

A miss, even from a seasoned archer, could be forgiven, but this miss was not just unexpected. It was unthinkable.

Shermaine was no stranger to pressure. For her to lose composure so completely meant only one thing—interference.

She knew someone had manipulated the conditions in Judy’s favor. The method was too subtle to call out without sounding paranoid. The shifting wind had altered her arrow’s trajectory. But even if she pointed a finger, who would believe her?

‘So that’s what she’s hiding,’ Shermaine thought, her gaze darkening.

Elsewhere, the white cat lay limp, its head drooping low as the last reserves of strength drained from its small body. A second later, it closed its eyes.

When it opened them again, it felt disoriented and let out a desperate series of meows, each one more helpless than the last.

And then came the final arrow, and Shermaine missed again.

In the end, there was no victor.

Shermaine, who had never once been outmatched in open competition, had now been forced into a tie by someone who had won not through strength or skill but by cheating in plain sight. And the worst part was, she could do nothing about it.

“Well, that’s unfortunate,” Judy said, her smile serene. “Not a single coin to show for it.”

Shermaine met her gaze with icy calm. “I didn’t win, but you didn’t gain anything either. That’s its own kind of loss, isn’t it?”

To her, the match had been nothing but an orchestrated waste of time.

Chapter 428

She dismounted, her movements measured, her face unreadable.

Tiffany joined her quickly. She, too, had noticed something odd in those final three arrows, but it was too nebulous to speak aloud.

Judy walked off without a word, her steps brisk, her mood far from triumphant.

Though she hadn’t lost, the match had left a sour taste.

For someone of royal blood, it was disgraceful to resort to deception just to avoid defeat. If word ever got out, it would be a stain no reputation could survive.

“Shermaine,” Tiffany whispered, glancing over. “What happened? You were on point the whole match. How did that last one miss so badly?”

Shermaine accepted the cup of water Joshua handed her. The wind had dried her throat. She drank slowly, saying nothing.

It was Joshua who finally broke the silence. “She cheated.”