Five minutes before the graduate admission exam began, the campus heartthrob quietly slipped a crumpled piece of paper into my pencil case.

Lines of floating text drifted across my vision.

[The paper is filled with answers. The school heartthrob has reported it, and the proctor will be here any second!]

[As long as they find it, his admission slot will be canceled immediately!]

[Serves this bookworm right for standing in our heartthrob’s way. The proctor is his aunt. He’s doomed today!]

The next second, the proctor stormed into the classroom and headed straight for my seat.

“Someone has reported you for cheating,” she said sharply. “Empty your pencil case. We’re checking it.”

Without a word, I turned the case upside down. A few pens fell onto the desk, but there was no paper.

The campus heartthrob’s eyes widened in disbelief. “How is that possible? I–”

Before he could finish, a slip of paper covered in answers slid out of his own pocket and dropped onto the floor.

What they didn’t know was that I was born with a weird power called “Misfortune Rebound.”

Anyone who tried to harm me would end up suffering the consequences themselves.

The proctor, Wendy Reed, bent down and picked up the slip of paper. The moment she saw what was written on it, her face turned ashen.

“What is this?” Wendy asked sternly.

Hugh Jackson had originally called her over to catch me. Yet somehow, the cheat sheet had ended up on him instead. And since everyone was watching, Wendy couldn’t openly cover for him. All she could do was glare at Hugh in frustration.

Hugh panicked. He shot to his feet, his chair scraping loudly against the floor.

“Aunt– I mean, Ms. Reed! This isn’t mine! It was in his–” He pointed straight at me, his voice rising with desperation. “It was in Edward’s pencil case! I saw him put it in there myself! How did it end up in my pocket?”

The floating comments refreshed again in front of my eyes.

[What the hell? What’s going on? I’m sure I saw Hugh put it in the guy’s pencil case!]

[Does this bookworm know magic or something? How is he so fast?]

[That’s so sneaky! Edward must’ve slipped it back into Hugh’s pocket during the chaos!]

[Are you blind? Edward didn’t even move his hands.]

Hugh stared at me. The usual fake friendliness and bright smile were gone. What remained was resentment and bitterness.

Then suddenly, his eyes shifted, and he spoke. “Edward, I took you as my best friend. Why would you set me up like this?”

His eyes reddened, and his voice trembled.

“You borrowed my jacket earlier, didn’t you? Did you sneak it into my pocket back then?”

What a clever way to bite back.

Wendy turned to look at me sharply. “Did you frame him?”

I sneered. “Ms. Reed, there are surveillance cameras in the exam hall. And besides, the handwriting on that paper isn’t something I could just imitate, could I? Why don’t we compare the handwriting right now?”

Hugh’s face instantly went pale, but he looked like he had more to say. Wendy shot him a glare, silently telling him to keep his mouth shut.

Around us, the other students had begun whispering. Some of them were even covering their mouths, trying not to laugh.

“Hugh, come with me to the office!”

Grinding her teeth, Wendy had no choice but to take her own nephew out of the classroom in full view of everyone. Angry, Hugh kicked the leg of a desk before following her out, his face twisted with grievance and resentment.

However, just as I expected, Hugh didn’t receive any real punishment as Wendy had her way. In the end, the incident was classified as “bringing unrelated materials into the exam hall.” He only received a verbal warning, and nothing was recorded in his file.

Still, he missed the entire exam. As for me, I answered every question on the paper.

That night, when I returned to the dorm, the class group chat was exploding with messages.

Hugh had posted a long, emotional message, voicing his resentment.

[I don’t know why that piece of paper ended up in my pocket. We all know there’s only one admission slot for grad school. Edward’s grades are always so good, and I’ve always looked up to him as a role model. But today… I was just trying to help him pick up his pen. I never expected this to happen. It’s okay if I couldn’t take the exam. As long as Edward gets the spot, I’ll be relieved. I just hope everyone doesn’t misunderstand me. I really didn’t cheat.]

Underneath, the chat filled with messages of comfort and outrage.

[Hugh, don’t be sad! We all understand! Someone must’ve set you up because you were jealous!]

[The more you think about it, the creepier it gets. Edward usually keeps to himself. I never thought he’d be so cunning!]

[Framing your own roommate just to secure an admission slot? No matter how good his grades are, his character is trash!]

[@Edward Come out and explain yourself! Stop playing dead!]

I stared at the endless stream of messages on the screen and put my phone away. Trying to explain things to a bunch of idiots who had decided what to believe would be a complete waste of my time. If Hugh wanted to play games, then I’d play along, and I’d make sure he enjoyed it.

The next morning, something felt off the moment I stepped into the classroom. The previously noisy room suddenly fell silent for a few seconds. Then, the whispers began. Every pair of eyes that landed on me carried contempt and exclusion.

Hugh was sitting in the first row. Dark circles hung under his eyes. It was an obvious sign he hadn’t slept all night. When he saw me walk in, he visibly flinched. The reaction immediately drew several girls nearby to glare at me with hostility.

The fiercest among them was Tina Kingsley, an athlete with the university. She was Hugh’s most devoted pursuer. Because she was an athlete and physically strong, she’d often stood up for him.

“Some people really do have thick skin. They frame someone and still have the nerve to come to class,” Tina said loudly, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

I ignored her and walked straight toward my seat.

Just as I was about to get to my desk, several lines of floating text suddenly drifted across my vision again.

[Tina poured half a bottle of super glue onto Edward’s chair!]

[Haha, nice one! It’s time to teach Edward a lesson!]

[That’s industrial-strength glue. If he sits down, his pants are done for. He won’t even be able to tear them off. Let’s see how he shows his face in public after this!]

My steps paused for a brief moment. My gaze swept over my chair. Sure enough, under the light, the surface reflected a faint glossy sheen.

Tina and a few girls nearby were exchanging knowing looks, clearly waiting for the show to start. Hugh had also turned slightly in his seat. He appeared to be reading a book, but he kept glancing in my direction out of the corner of his eye.

I pretended not to notice anything and calmly sat down.

“He sat down! He actually sat down! This is going to be good!”

Tina clenched her fists excitedly, the muscles in her face trembling with anticipation. However, one second, two seconds, and three seconds later, I remained seated steadily in the chair. I even adjusted my posture, took out my book, and began reading as if nothing had happened.

“What’s going on?” Tina froze, muttering under her breath. “Did the glue lose its strength?”

Instinctively, she reached into the pocket of her athletic pants, wanting to check whether the bottle of glue had been emptied earlier. The moment her hand slipped into her pocket…

“Ah!”

A shrill scream suddenly tore through the classroom, startling everyone.

Tina shot up from her seat, but it was as if something had grabbed hold of her. Her body twisted awkwardly as both hands frantically tried to rip her pants away from her thighs.

“It burns! It burns! Ah! Help! My leg!”

She screamed while clawing desperately at the inside of her thigh. It turned out that when she had poured the glue earlier, she’d been in such a hurry that she stuffed the bottle back into her pocket without tightening the cap, and my ‘Misfortune Rebound’ superpower had made the bottle explode right in her pocket.

Half a bottle of industrial super glue poured out, soaking the entire inner side of her thigh and instantly bonding the fabric to her skin. The searing, chemical-burning pain that followed was far beyond what an ordinary person could endure.

“Call an ambulance! Someone call an ambulance!”

A student froze for a second before shouting in panic.

Tina was rolling on the floor in agony. Her pants were already a horrifying mess. Every small movement pulled at torn skin, and blood soaked through the fabric.

Everyone in class turned pale at the sudden disaster. Only I calmly flipped to the next page of my book and watched the scene with an indifferent expression.

The floating comments filled my vision again.

[How did this happen? Didn’t she pour the glue on Edward’s chair?]

[There’s something seriously wrong with this guy! First the note, and now the glue…]

[Does he actually know some kind of dark magic?]

Hugh stared at Tina writhing on the floor, his face drained of color. Then, he looked at me with visible fear. I raised my head and met his gaze.

“Hugh,” I said with a faint smile, “your friend seems to be in trouble. Aren’t you going to check on her?”

He shuddered. My smile alone seemed to scare him so badly that he stumbled back half a step and bumped into the corner of a desk.

He whipped his head toward me, eyes full of terror. “Edward! It was you, wasn’t it? You did something!”

I stayed seated and spread my hands innocently.

“Hugh, accusations need evidence. Everyone in class saw what happened just now. I was at least ten feet away from her. How could I have done anything? What? Do you think I can pour glue through the air?”

Hugh was left speechless. After all, everyone had seen it. I hadn’t even touched Tina. However, the sheer strangeness of the coincidence sent a chill down his spine.

That afternoon, Tina was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. Rumor had it that a large piece of her skin had to be removed during the procedure, so she would probably be out of school for the rest of the semester.

Meanwhile, the rumors about me on the campus forum evolved from “scheming nerd” to “cursed guy.” According to the posts, I apparently knew some kind of black magic, and anyone who messed with me would end up unlucky.

I couldn’t help laughing when I read those ridiculous comments. Black magic? No. It was simply karma.

Due to what happened to Tina, no one in class dared to openly target me anymore. However, I could still feel it. The isolation and quiet rejection were getting worse by the day.

Hugh had also learned his lesson. He stopped confronting me directly and switched to playing the victim instead. On social media, he started posting photos of himself studying late into the night with captions such as:

[Even though I’ve suffered a lot of unfair treatment, I won’t give up on my dream.]

[Even if there’s only a one-in-ten-thousand chance, I’ll give it everything I’ve got.]

When I read those posts, I couldn’t help feeling that the harder Hugh tried, the more pitiful he looked. However, I knew exactly why he was working so hard. It was because the final decision for the graduate admission spot would be made in three days, during an open defense. This was his last chance.

Our department was only given one slot this year. Originally, it should have been mine without question. However, thanks to some maneuvering by Hugh’s aunt—and the earlier cheating incident, even though it had been cleared up—the school now had an excuse to place me under a so-called “observation period.” So, the department decided that Hugh and I would compete in a public defense, and whoever performed better would get the spot.

The day before the defense, Hugh suddenly approached the girl responsible for managing the multimedia classroom. She was another one of his admirers, and her name was Jocelyn Benjamin. The two of them whispered in the corner for quite a while. Before leaving, Hugh slipped a USB drive into Jocelyn’s hand.

At that moment, the floating comments appeared again in front of my eyes.

[Here comes the big move! The USB Hugh gave Jocelyn contains a virus. As soon as Edward plugs it into the computer, it’ll run automatically.]

[This isn’t just a simple crash either. The virus will pop up explicit videos on the screen!]

[Hahaha, that bookworm is going to be humiliated!]

I looked at the vicious plan laid out in those comments, but my expression didn’t change at all.

They wanted to sabotage my presentation? Fine. We shall see who’d end up disgraced.