Chapter: 1567

Alyssa tugged at Greta's arm and said to Norah, “Forget it. I apologize for my friends’ harsh words. They were trying to defend me. Please don't take them to heart."

She apologized first, feeling that the competition should not proceed under these circumstances.

Alyssa did not wish to use her status to intimidate others. She had simply found the skiing in Sevaedda intriguing and had invited some friends to join her.

“Greta, we should leave. Are you not going to heed my request?"

Greta, however, was adamant about demonstrating her skills before Alyssa. “She is not intimidated, so I must compete against her. Alyssa, have faith in me. I will make her apologize to you."

She then fixed her determined gaze on Norah.

Norah's Lips curled into a soft smile. “Okay.”

Norah, Sean, Alyssa and Greta took the ski lift up, the cold air biting at their faces as they reached the mountain's peak. Without hesitation, Norah and Greta picked the black slope-the hardest and most dangerous route down.

Greta, already on her skis, crouched down to double-check her gear.

“I'm telling you, this isn't like the blue slope. One wrong move, and you're not just falling—you're getting seriously hurt. Or worse.”

Sean's chest tightened with worry. He knew Norah could handle the blue slope, but the black was a whole other challenge.

His voice came out, pleading, "Norah, let me go instead."

But Norah remained calm. She gently held Sean's helmeted head between her gloved hands, her eyes steady. "Alyssa doesn't throw her weight around, and I won't either. I need to win this on my own, and I want them to know it. Don't worry about me-I never take risks I'm not ready for."

Norah never did anything without thinking it through. To outsiders, she might seem like she didn't care, but she always handled things with a quiet precision that left no room for error.

Sean cautioned, "Just be cautious. This competition doesn't matter— what matters is you."

“Don't worry. I know exactly what I'm doing." Norah smiled.

Alyssa stumbled toward Norah, her words shaky. “Miss, I didn‘t want to “Stop. Save it for after the competition. Apologies won't mean anything right now."

Norah headed for the starting line, ignoring Greta’s snide remarks about her exceptional skiing skills. Her face remained unreadable, as if Greta's words didn't even register.

At the foot of the mountain, Alyssa's two other friends sat as judges, live-streaming the event to prevent any cheating.

Alyssa shut her eyes tight and swallowed the lump in her throat, silently hoping that the young woman wouldn't get hurt. She knew she couldn't handle the blame if something went wrong.

“Ready, set, go!"

As soon as the words were spoken, Norah and Greta shot off, racing at full speed.

Alyssa watched them disappear down the slope, her stomach twisting with worry. She wasn't used to this kind of thing, having lived a life sheltered from danger. She hated how quickly everything had gotten out of control.

“I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean for this to happen. It's my fault," she said, her voice shaky. “No matter how this ends, I'll apologize.”