Claimed by My Bully Alpha Chapter 461

Aurora’s P.O.V

(One year later)

I let out a long, dramatic groan, leaning back in my chair and dragging my hand down my face.

“Do we really have to do this? I mean, we fought wraiths, we survived Harmona’s curses, we literally saved this entire town, and now we’re… filling out college applications? That feels like the lamest kind of punishment.”

Caroline looked at me from across the table with that calm, patient smile of hers, though I could tell her eyes were already tired from trying to wrangle all of us. “Aurora, yes, it’s necessary. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t care that we’ve slain wraiths and vanquished evil witches. People only care about degrees and resumes. If you want to walk into a job interview, saying ‘Hey, I once stopped a dark sorceress from ripping apart the veil between worlds’ is not going to get you hired.”

Shane immediately burst into laughter, leaning back so far in his chair I thought he’d topple. “Oh my god, can you imagine Aurora in an interview? ‘Strengths? Uh, well, I’m good at stabbing shadow monsters. Weaknesses? Probably potion classes.’” He was practically wheezing.

Mia snapped her head toward him, eyes narrowed. “You don’t get to laugh, Shane. You’re the one who barely scraped by with a 2.8 GPA. Don’t act like you’re the genius of the group.”

Shane straightened, still smirking. “Excuse me, 2.85, thank you very much. And last I checked, I was the one who actually survived Calc II without crying.”

Mia jabbed her pencil at him like it was a weapon. “You passed Calc II because you copied half my notes and bribed the professor with coffee every morning. Don’t pretend it was skill.”

“Coffee is a skill,” Shane shot back, grinning wider. “Takes timing, precision, and charm. Three things I have in abundance.”

I rolled my eyes and waved my hand between them. “Okay, but seriously, do we all have to go to college? Like, is there an option where I can just… live in the woods, eat berries, and train the next generation of monster slayers? That feels way more useful.”

Caroline sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Aurora, no. You need a degree. We all do. Society won’t take us seriously otherwise.”

“Society can bite me,” I muttered under my breath, slumping down further in my chair.

From the corner, Jade, who had been quietly filling out his application like it was no big deal, finally looked up.

“You guys are acting like this is the end of the world. It’s just applications. You’ve fought wraiths. You can fill out a form.”

“Forms are worse than wraiths,” I said flatly. “Wraiths you stab. Forms stab your soul slowly with repetitive questions like ‘list your extracurricular’ and ‘what makes you unique.’ Like, what am I supposed to write? ‘Well, I once killed a ghoul with a frying pan and rescued a cat possessed by a spirit.’ Is that unique enough?”

Shane snorted again, nearly choking on his own laughter. “I would pay to see an admissions officer read that.”

“Don’t encourage her,” Mia groaned, smacking Shane lightly on the arm with her notebook. “We’re supposed to be serious. This is about our future.”

“Future,” I said, twirling my pen aimlessly. “I already know my future. It’s me handling you bunch of hooligans as your new Luna. College doesn’t fit in that picture.”

Caroline looked me dead in the eye, her voice firm now. “Aurora, stop it. You deserve a life where people see you as more than the girl who stabs monsters. That’s why this matters. You’re smart enough. You’re capable enough. So fill out the damn application.”

The room went quiet for a second, her words settling in heavier than I expected. I fiddled with my pen, pretending not to let them sink in.

“…Fine,” I muttered. “But I’m still writing about the frying pan thing. I think it’s legendary.”

Shane leaned over, grinning. “Legendary enough to get you into Harvard.”

Mia rolled her eyes so hard I thought they’d get stuck. “Please. Harvard would set her application on fire.”

Caroline groaned again, but I caught the small smile tugging at her lips.