Chapter 7: Shocking Everyone

Elena stood calmly, not even attempting to dodge. Just as Abel’s fist was about to reach her, she swiftly grabbed his wrist. In one smooth motion, she stepped forward, applied pressure with both hands, and lifted her leg. Elena made it look effortless, as if she wasn’t exerting herself at all, yet Abel was sent flying backward. He stumbled several steps before stopping, looking back at Elena with shock etched across his face. The entire park fell silent. "Beautiful! That move was absolutely flawless, like water flowing smoothly!" Norris applauded enthusiastically, unable to hide his excitement as he looked at Elena. Louis, along with the others, was equally stunned, unable to express their disbelief. The move Elena had just demonstrated was something they all practiced regularly. Yet, they had only ever reached the level of practice—it was more form than function. In other words, their moves were just for show, lacking real combat effectiveness. But Elena was different. Her skills were the real deal. "This... how is this possible?" Daphne stared at Elena in disbelief. She couldn’t comprehend how someone who appeared to be around her age, maybe a year or two older, could be so skilled. She knew how strong Abel was. Her grandfather had personally chosen him from a pool of hundreds, and Abel had been the strongest of them all! How could this be? "Abel, what are you waiting for?" Daphne, caught between disbelief and frustration, commanded. Abel snapped out of his daze, and without further hesitation, charged at Elena again, throwing another punch. Elena moved unhurriedly, raising her right arm to block Abel’s punch. As she did, she rotated her body, using the momentum to power her left fist, which shot out from beneath her right elbow, striking Abel hard in the ribs. Abel grunted in pain and staggered back. The onlookers gasped in unison. "That girl is incredible! That punch must have really hurt!" one of the older men exclaimed. Abel, now visibly pale, clenched his teeth and launched another attack at Elena, this time holding nothing back. But even with his full effort, he couldn’t gain any advantage. Elena swiftly dodged, moving behind him in an instant. With a sweeping kick from her right leg, Abel was sent crashing to the ground. Abel felt as if every bone in his body had shattered. He tried to get up but found it impossible. His muscles were too sore to muster any strength. The park was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Without hesitation, Norris walked over to Elena. "May I ask, who are you...?" "My name is Elena Campbell. There’s no need to be so formal, sir. I just practice Taekwondo for fitness," Elena replied. Norris was stunned. She was this skilled just from practicing for fitness? As he processed this, Norris turned to look at Daphne, who stood frozen in shock. "Daphne, you were incredibly rude earlier. Aren’t you going to apologize?" Norris scolded, frowning with disapproval. He couldn’t help but think that he had been too lenient with Daphne. If she continued with such a brash attitude, who knew what kind of trouble she’d bring upon herself in the future? And worse, she might not even realize it was her fault! While Norris was lost in thought, Daphne had already walked over to Elena. Her face flushed, but she still knelt before Elena. "Please teach me!" Norris, still processing the situation, was taken aback by Daphne’s sudden action. Elena was equally surprised. The disdain Daphne had shown earlier was nowhere to be found. "Teacher, I want to learn your skills too! Please teach me!" Daphne pleaded, now fully convinced of Elena’s abilities. It was the first time she had seen someone as impressive as Elena. She had been utterly captivated by how cool Elena looked while fighting Abel. In that moment, Daphne felt like she might have fallen in love! Elena glanced at her watch—it was already 8:00 AM. She was late... again. Taking a deep breath, she turned back to Daphne. "If you want to learn Taekwondo, just find a teacher. I have something else I need to do." With that, Elena turned and walked away, not caring about Daphne’s reaction. Daphne didn’t try to stop her. She simply watched Elena with admiration until she was out of sight. Then she turned to Abel, who was still struggling to stand. "Find out everything about her, but make sure she doesn’t know! And remember, from now on, she’s my teacher. Show some respect!" Elena was unaware that Daphne had ordered an investigation into her. She was focused on getting to school. When she finally arrived, she was fifteen minutes late. The math teacher stood at the front of the classroom, his face a mixture of anger and frustration as he looked at Elena standing at the door. "Late again, Elena! Do you have something against me?" "Teacher, it’s not just you. Elena is always late!" a student chimed in from the classroom. The math teacher was caught off guard. His complaint hadn’t really made him feel any better. He looked at Elena, who stood with her head down, and sighed. "Elena, you’re not a child anymore. Always being late, leaving early, or skipping class altogether—what kind of behavior is that?" "At this rate, do you think you’ll ever graduate successfully?" "If I had a student like you, I’d..." "Teacher, can I come in now?" Elena interrupted, glancing at her seat as she spoke. The math teacher was at a loss for words. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Stay calm. No matter what, don’t lose your temper! After several deep breaths, he finally decided he couldn’t hold back anymore. "Elena, solve this problem!" he demanded. Elena paused, then turned to look at the blackboard. The board displayed a system of linear equations—nothing too difficult, but for a "troubled student" like Elena, it might as well have been an impossible challenge. "Alright," Elena said, walking to the board and picking up the chalk. Without a moment’s hesitation, she began solving the problem. "Teacher, I’m finished," Elena said. The math teacher, standing nearby, looked at the board and couldn’t believe his eyes. "Do the rest of the problems, too!" Elena didn’t hesitate, methodically working through the rest of the problems. The other students were in awe. These were problems from advanced math competitions, and the teacher was clearly trying to make things difficult for Elena. The math teacher was feeling quite smug, certain that Elena wouldn’t be able to solve them. Unfortunately for him, Elena was more than capable. As she solved each problem, the classroom became so quiet that even the sound of breathing seemed unusually loud.