As soon as Kent finished speaking, the group behind him burst into laughter. "Hahaha! Who does he think he is? Does he really believe he’s some big-shot senior?" "He thinks just because he's a senior, he has the responsibility to protect freshmen? He should take a good look at himself first!" "This is killing me! A loser saying he’s going to protect another loser? Hahaha!" They laughed without restraint, completely disregarding the fact that Taylor was one of Hugo’s students. Arthur listened, feeling both angered and confused. Taylor was still Hugo’s student, after all. Even if they didn’t respect Taylor, shouldn’t they at least show some respect for Hugo? How did they dare to publicly mock Taylor like this? Unable to hold back his curiosity, Arthur leaned in and whispered, "How can they bully you like this? Aren’t they afraid of Mr. Hugo punishing them?" Taylor’s face fell. "Mr. Hugo isn’t around much. He’s made it clear that we have to learn to protect ourselves. Once we’re out in the real world, no professor or teacher is going to shield us. So, when it comes to conflicts like this, he never steps in—he expects us to handle things ourselves. They know that, which is why they act so recklessly." Arthur nodded. That made sense. Seeing the two of them whispering among themselves, Kent and his group felt insulted. Kent immediately shouted, "Hey! What’s the meaning of this? Didn’t you hear us talking to you?" He looked them up and down, sneering. "Finley is an outstanding student, and yet, even he wasn’t chosen by Mr. Hugo. So what kind of tricks did you two losers pull to get in?" One of the guys behind him immediately chimed in, "They must have done something shady!" "It was bad enough when Hugo took in this loser Taylor, and now there’s Arthur too?" "Arthur might have been a big deal in his little hometown, but at Governance University, he’s nothing! He doesn’t even compare to a single finger of Finley. Why would Mr. Hugo pick him as a student?" Taylor didn’t hesitate to fire back. "Finley? Wow, you guys are really dedicated lackeys! What exactly did he give you to make you bark so hard for him?" At Taylor’s words, the group’s expressions stiffened instantly."What the heck are you talking about? We’re just standing up for Finley because he deserves better!" "Yeah! You two nobodies have no right to even mention Finley’s name!" "Looks like you’re tired of living!" The group was practically fuming, looking like they were ready to pounce on Taylor. But instead of looking intimidated, Taylor seemed amused. "Oh wow, hitting a nerve, huh? Since Finley is supposed to be so outstanding, but if his little followers are this easy to mess with, isn’t that embarrassing for him?" Taylor wore a mischievous, taunting grin—like a kid sticking out his tongue in playful defiance. Arthur could barely watch. But oddly enough, Taylor’s tactic worked. It successfully drove the four of them over the edge. Kent’s face turned red with rage. "Taylor! If you’ve got any guts, let’s settle this one-on-one! All you do is run your mouth!" "One-on-one? Who’d bother wasting time on that?" Taylor rolled his eyes, completely uninterested in taking the bait. Seeing Taylor refuse to fight, Kent and his group suddenly switched tactics, forcing themselves to calm down. Kent smirked and said, "Fine, if you don’t want to fight, that’s okay. Just tell us what tricks you used to get Mr. Hugo to take you in as his students, and we’ll let you off the hook. How about that?" He lifted his chin, acting as if he were offering them some great mercy. Taylor burst out laughing. "Oh, so that’s what this is about! Finley has been dying to become Mr. Hugo’s student, but no matter how hard he tries, Mr. Hugo doesn’t even glance at him." Taylor gave them a knowing look. "Did he send you guys here?" At that, all four of them instantly lost it. "What the heck are you talking about? Finley would never stoop so low! He’s way too good for that! If Mr. Hugo refuses to accept him, that’s Mr. Hugo’s loss!" "Even if Finley isn’t Mr. Hugo’s student, he’s still leagues ahead of you two nobodies!" Taylor scoffed. "You keep calling us nobodies, but let me ask you—what have you four actually accomplished?"That shut them up instantly. Taylor looked at them with nothing but disdain. He pointed at Arthur. "This guy—the so-called ‘nobody’ you keep mocking—founded Cloudia Corporation at a young age and became the CEO of a publicly traded company! What about you guys?" It was as if they had been punched in the throat—suddenly, all four of them were struggling to breathe. Kent quickly tried to regain his composure.