Chapter 3

The school's efficiency was faster than I had expected.

In less than half an hour, they had quickly gathered all the students from my class.

I stood at the podium, looking around.

The students below were whispering among themselves.

"Why is Bertha standing up there? Why is there a class meeting today? This is so annoying. I haven't finished watching my TV show yet."

"Didn't you hear? I heard Bertha embezzled the class funds and spent it all on herself!"

"What! Embezzling is terrible! I haven't stolen anything, so why should she get to?"

"Being class president is the best. You can spend the class' money however you want."

"I told you not to elect Bertha as class president. She has a scheming look. If it were me, I'd have picked Vanessa. She definitely wouldn't embezzle!"

When I saw Vanessa sitting eagerly in her chair, I finally figured out who had reported me.

It could only be her.

She had run against me for class president and lost with only half the votes I received.

Since then, she had been making trouble for me.

For example, at class meals, she would deliberately sit at the same table as me, then enthusiastically mingle with the other students, either serving food or toasting, all while bossing around.

Or in class, she would always sit right in front of me, as close to the teacher as possible, trying to show off her studious nature while overshadowing me.

The most memorable instance was during gym class when she would choose a spot at a comfortable distance from me, chatting with the boys around her. Thanks to her looks, the boys quickly gathered around her.

Vanessa seemed like a victorious peacock, strutting past me proudly.

My roommate saw this and whispered to me, "Why does she look like a turkey, sticking out her butt all high and mighty?"

While I understood Vanessa's almost twisted sense of victory, that didn't mean I had to accept it.

I tapped the microphone to check the sound.

The class quickly fell silent, clearly curious about what I would say.

"Today, one of my classmates reported me for embezzling public funds.

"Normally, I would need to prove my innocence.

"But according to Article 67 of the Civil Procedure Law, the person making a claim must provide evidence. That means whoever makes the claim must prove it.

"You say I embezzled, but where's the evidence? Vanessa?"

A wave of murmurs spread throughout the class.

I watched Vanessa's face flash with a hint of panic, and I couldn't help but sneer.