They Hated Me in My First Life, But Now I Have the Love System

Chapter 311: Unfamiliar Feelings

She moved with grace, precise and composed, like someone who had done this more than once. But it was not the elegance that had him stuck. No. It was the raw power she had just shown a few moments ago.

The way she had taken down that hefty man, without even using her hands. The way she ran and fought back the guards. He still wasn’t sure what he had seen.

A blur, a twist of motion, and the hefty man was on the ground groaning, completely disarmed and disoriented. No punches. No shouting. Just skill.

The image played in his head like a loop. She didn’t even break a sweat.

The weak girl he once thought she was… that was clearly a lie. He felt a flicker of embarrassment for ever thinking otherwise.

Back at the Grand Ball, he wasn’t there when everything happened, but the rumours had spread like wildfire, some people said she cheated, others said she used tricks. He hadn’t really believed them, not completely, but he hadn’t rejected them either.

Now? Now he knew better.

Now he had seen the real her.

All the rumours, all the whispers about what she did at the Grand Ball, they weren’t exaggerated. If anything, they hadn’t even captured half of it. She was strong, sharp, composed, and scarily skilled. She wasn’t just a King’s daughter with good privileges. She was a force of her own.

Realizing this made something stir inside Ekene. His heart beat faster, louder. It wasn’t the adrenaline from the chase. It wasn’t fear either. It was… something else. Something he wasn’t used to.

He suddenly became very aware of the fact that he was staring.

Nnenna, feeling his gaze, turned to meet his eyes. Her brows furrowed in quiet confusion. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

like a jolt. His face flushed instantly, blood rushing to his cheeks in a red wave he could feel physically. His ears

too quickly, like a guilty child caught with a

slightly, even

“I—uh—what?”

fever. “Are you okay? I mean… I know that escape

groaned out loud. Great. She thinks you’re having a

I’m fine,” he said, his voice cracking slightly like it

mouth, mostly because it was the first time in his life he had ever stammered. The Ekene people knew didn’t stammer. He was steady. Cool headed. He didn’t turn red because a girl looked

Nnenna wasn’t

was wrong with him? She was about to press further when Ekene

to find that river before nightfall. It won’t take long before they cover all possible escape routes. Someone might even tell them such a

firm. His words made sense, too much sense for her

She simply nodded and picked up her

open. Soon enough, they found a small shop, one of those general supply places that sold everything from compasses to

keep a low profile as they made their way to the dusty shelf that had rolled up maps stacked in uneven piles. After a

whispered, showing it

scanned it

came the next

Marka’s local currency. No shop in

by the counter, pretending to browse other items, hoping to come

aged man with squinty eyes and a suspicious frown, had started to notice them. His

“We can’t stay.