The slap left Noelle's hand numb. She looked at Cedric in astonishment. Somehow, she felt as if he seemed taller and more formidable. She never expected him to grab her hand to deliver Lucas a slap personally.

Everyone went completely silent.

Xenia was overjoyed the moment she saw Lucas getting slapped. She was certain that Lucas would never forgive Noelle now.

Lucas' eyes were rimmed red as he asked in disbelief, "You dared to hit me, Noelle?"

He refused to believe it. He was sure that Noelle would fear upsetting him to the point where he'd ignore her forever.

Noelle slowly retrieved her hand, feeling satisfied. She said calmly, "You slapped me earlier. Is there any problem with me returning the favor?"

Lucas exclaimed, "But I'm your older brother! I was just preventing you from saying the wrong thing and causing trouble. Isn't that different?" 

He had always been a prideful pers

At that moment, Noelle was sitting in the car with Cedric. As she watched the traffic around them, her concern grew. "Frank will definitely send someone after me. He might even cause trouble for you at school."

After all, this was the Liddell family's territory. That was exactly why she had endured everything, hoping to leave after the college entrance exams.

Noelle felt guilty for dragging Cedric into her mess.

Cedric reached out and gently patted her head. "Don't worry. They won't find you. Right now, you should be thinking about where to stay."

Noelle sighed softly. "I'll rent a place." It was something she had always thought about but never had the chance to do. In truth, she wouldn't have minded if Frank had just kicked her out earlier. It would have saved her a lot of trouble.

"I know a place for rent," he said.

Noelle didn't ask too many questions and simply followed Cedric 

Noelle stood in place, looking at the others expressionlessly. She wondered if the Liddell brothers really thought she was still the old Noelle.

They never asked her opinion, acting like letting it go was a huge favor to her, even though she didn't care at all.

Lucas felt diffident. He avoided looking Noelle in the eye while waiting for Frank to step in.

On the authority as their older brother, Frank continued, "You've proven yourself in this repechage, Noelle. No one will be able to replace your position on the team in the future."

He figured that his words would put Noelle at ease.

Xenia's expression darkened instantly. She was beyond frustrated to see how easily Noelle had taken her spot away despite working so hard. Although she had no natural talent, she had put in just as much effort as Noelle.

Lucas looked at Noelle with an equally hopeful gaze. Although he said nothing, he hoped she would join their team. He figured that she shouldn't be sulking anymore now that he had given her an out.

Noelle's gaze was cold when she replied, "I refuse."

Lucas became somewhat agitated. "Why?"

Noelle replied, "I joined the repechage this time because they insulted my parents, not because I wanted to join the team."

"But you've clearly been practicing in secret. Wasn't it just so you could return?"

They thought that it was impossible for Noelle to become this skilled overnight. They figured she must have been secretly practicing just so she could join the team.

Lucas refused to believe what she said, staring at her intensely.

Noelle's expression was neutral. Her gaze was cold when she replied, "It wasn't."

Lucas' heart sank. He blurted, "Do I have to personally apologize to you for you to forgive me, Noelle?"

Noelle stopped walking. "This has nothing to do with forgiveness. The Liddell family's team isn't the only team in this world."

She loved playing in competitions but refused to be confined to Team Luminark. Her implication was clear.

"I know you hated me, Noelle!" Xenia suddenly cried, her voice choking with tears.

Almost everyone turned to look at her.

Xenia walked toward Noelle and said submissively, "Lucas really wants you to join the team. If my presence upsets you, I'll immediately leave the team. I won't compete with you for your spot!"

Noelle replied irritably, "Just shut up, will you? I'm not joining the team because I don't want to. It has nothing to do with anyone else. Stop putting yourself on the pedestal."

Xenia continued, "I knew it. You're still angry! I had overestimated myself and took over your spot.

"I thought that if I could seize the opportunity you didn't want, I'd be able to work hard to prove myself and contribute to the Liddell family. But I was just too stupid!" She sniffled, sounding meek and making it impossible for people not to feel sorry for her.

Frank felt sorry for Xenia. "Lucas was the one who went overboard and hurt Noelle's feelings. It has nothing to do with you."

Lucas felt even more frustrated upon being unfairly blamed. He glanced at how Xenia was acting pitifully, yet he couldn't muster any sympathy for her. He now regretted his decision to let her join the team. She was better suited to remain as their sweet and obedient sister—not someone to make a name with.

Seeing Lucas remain unfazed, Xenia steadied herself and quickly took out an eyebrow razor. She pointed it at her wrist and said, "Don't worry, Noelle. I won't ever compete with you for your spot if I die now!"

Noelle stumbled back in shock, wondering if Xenia had gone mad. Whether she decided to join the team or not had nothing to do with Xenia.

In fact, Xenia was the one who originally opposed her joining the team. Noelle thought that Xenia must be out of her mind to try to force her to join the team by resorting to self-harm.

Lucas was equally shocked. "Calm down, Xenia. This has nothing to do with you."

Xenia smiled tearfully. "It's all my fault, Lucas. Perhaps I wouldn't have upset Noelle if I had never seized the opportunity she didn't want in the first place.

"I've already been more than satisfied having grown up in the Liddell family all these years anyway. I wouldn't mind dying now!"

Lucas, who had been holding some reservations about her earlier, felt his heart instantly soften.

Frank anxiously turned to Noelle. "Are you really going to stand there and watch your sister hurt herself, Noelle?"

Lucas frowned. Although he knew that Xenia's measure was somewhat inappropriate, he figured that everything would be alright if only Noelle agreed to join the team. All she had to do was to agree to it.

Noelle asked indifferently, "I'm sorry, but have you guys mistaken something here?"

Frank was dumbfounded. He asked, "What do you mean?"

Noelle said, "Firstly, I've made myself clear. I'm not joining the team because I don't like it. It has nothing to do with any of you.

"Secondly, what's the difference between Xenia using self-mutilation to force me to compromise and me pressuring King to marry me by cutting myself?"

Her sarcasm hit the mark perfectly. The other teammates, who originally wanted to speak up, all fell silent upon realizing her logic.

Lucas blurted, "No matter what, Xenia is still part of our family."

Although Xenia was horrible in the game and lacked a sense of responsibility, she was only a teenager in the end.

Noelle retorted, "Does that have anything to do with me? I don't care if Xenia self-mutilates or commits suicide. None of that has anything to do with me. Stop trying to guilt trip me!"

"Her father saved your life, Noelle. How could you agitate her like this?" Lucas lost his temper and threw her a harsh slap.

Noelle couldn't react in time as she never expected him to actually hit her. Aside from Blake, her other brothers had never once hit her.

However, Lucas' slap never fully landed on her face.

Cedric, who was beside her, had stopped Lucas' hand just as it had made contact with her face, preventing her from receiving the full force of the slap. He had a stern expression when he said, "This is already your second act of violence under child protection laws. By law, the victim has the right to call the police and seek protection."

Noelle turned around and stared numbly at him. She wondered why he was there.

Lucas gritted his teeth and spat, "Who are you? This is a family matter. You have no right to interfere as an outsider!"

Frank recognized Cedric. He did not expect Cedric to show up here.

Cedric calmly replied, "That shows how outrageous your behaviors are if an outsider like me couldn't even stand it anymore." 

His gaze grew cold when he learned that the Liddell family was bullying her yet again. He was about to lose his patience.

Frank frowned and replied, "You've misunderstood the situation, Dr. Greene. It's different this time."

Cedric asked, "How is this any different? Your fake sister held everyone back, threw a tantrum, and then disappeared. It was only because your real sister, Noelle, joined in for the repechage game that you received a sincere apology from the other party.

"Not only did you guys not treat her better, but you're even hitting her now? Aren't you guys ashamed?"

Frank was instantly speechless. He only now realized how much he had overstepped in his treatment of Noelle earlier. He looked at her guiltily and said, "I didn't mean it that way, Noelle. I just didn't want Xenia to do something rash to hurt herself!"

Noelle pursed her lips.

Cedric scorned, "You don't want your fake sister to get hurt, so you chose to hurt your real sister? What kind of excuse is that?"

Frank felt more guilty. He turned to Lucas and said, "Hurry and apologize to Noelle! Who told you to hit her?" He was shocked by Lucas' earlier action.

Lucas stood stunned, hiding his hands in shame. He never thought he would actually hit her, either. He looked at Noelle diffidently and said, "I only… did it because I got too angry when I heard what you said."

Lucas wasn't sure what made him so angry that he lashed out unrestrained. It was just like how he used to scold her as he liked.

After all, no matter how outrageous he was, Noelle never held a grudge against him. He assumed that it would be the same this time. Still, he knew he wouldn't be doing it in the future anymore.

Noelle's cheek was still throbbing in pain, but it did not hurt as much as how she felt. She looked up scornfully and asked, "So?"

Only then did she realize that she had been a punching bag to Lucas all this while. That was why she had been looked down upon.

"You should have the right attitude if you're apologizing." Cedric grabbed Noelle by the hand and used it to deliver a harsh slap to Lucas.

The slap left Noelle's hand numb. She looked at Cedric in astonishment. Somehow, she felt as if he seemed taller and more formidable. She never expected him to grab her hand to deliver Lucas a slap personally.

Everyone went completely silent.

Xenia was overjoyed the moment she saw Lucas getting slapped. She was certain that Lucas would never forgive Noelle now.

Lucas' eyes were rimmed red as he asked in disbelief, "You dared to hit me, Noelle?"

He refused to believe it. He was sure that Noelle would fear upsetting him to the point where he'd ignore her forever.

Noelle slowly retrieved her hand, feeling satisfied. She said calmly, "You slapped me earlier. Is there any problem with me returning the favor?"

Lucas exclaimed, "But I'm your older brother! I was just preventing you from saying the wrong thing and causing trouble. Isn't that different?" 

He had always been a prideful person. Even after his apology, he wasn't expecting to be slapped by Noelle, and he felt somewhat embarr

Chapter 20