The murmurs in the crowd below grew louder by the minute. Everyone was staring at Calliope, more and more stunned by the revtions.


    She hadn''t been expelled after all! Not only that, but she had been one of the top students at that prestigious university, earning countless awards for her contributions.


    "The official blog just responded!"


    Someone eximed, waving their smartphone in the air. "Calliope was telling the truth. She spent a year at that school, and in just that year, shepleted all her courses!"


    "Oh my God, she''s incredible!"


    "And, get this, they said her name is on the school''s honor wall! Only people who''ve made significant contributions to the school get on that wall."


    "She''s not a dummy or a cker; she''s a genius!"


    "She was a star student even back in high school!"


    "Wow!"


    "The official blog wouldn''t lie about this!"


    "It''s not just the blog. I asked my cousin who knows someone from that university, and they said Calliope is a legend there, a real standout! She really did go abroad for her studies!"


    "Folks, I have something to add. I reached out to our former high school


    principal... he said Calliope wasn''t expelled. In fact, he begged her not to leave, but she was recruited by a national program!"


    "The principal called her a prodigy, saying she had extraordinary abilities. Not only did she ace exams, but many of our toughest test papers were actually her creations!"


    After these revtions, everyone fell silent. They stared at Calliope in disbelief.


    The truth was undeniable: Calliope was far from the failure they thought she was. She hadn''t been expelled she had been sent to that school by the government, and rumor had it she received millions in


    schrships...


    Could she even be considered human? A high schooler receiving millions in schrships was unheard of.


    Back then, many hadpared her unfavorably to Lisette, saying she wasn''t as good academically. Now, it felt like they''d been pped in the face.


    Of course, academics weren''t everything.


    Someone spoke up, "Calliope, even if all of this is true, and you did graduate with those amazing achievements, that was just schoo Back then, grades were important, but we''re all adults now! Bringing this up again doesn''t change anything! We''re not questioning your past grades; we''re talking about your character."


    Calliope looked out at the crowd and nodded, "True, all of this is in the past, but when someone spreads lies about me, I have to set the record straight, right? Don''t worry, I''ll exin everything in due time."


    "Oh, and by the way, given the


    schrships received, do you really think I need to sleep with men for money? Maybe some of you might say yes. See, no matter what I do, you have a bias against me, always ready to judge!"


    "But you might want to consider who those men and women in the photos really are, what kind of people they are. Spreading rumors about them could get you into serious trouble!"


    Calliope warned them with a look of genuine concern.


    Yet, the crowd remained skeptical, thinking she was just trying to scare them. As if


    a few rumors could actually cause them any harm.