Harem app-Chapter 232: A cruel woman

Third Person POV

Eric was gone after a last cruel remark, and Karen was left alone, feeling like her world had just been smashed out of nowhere.

But she had no Idea this was just the beginning of her real fall.

While Karen contained her tears, the little girl was still sobbing quietly when her father rushed over, his face tight with concern. He crouched, brushing the dust from her dress and checking her scraped hands before turning a sharp glare toward Karen.

"Hey! Watch where you’re going," he began, his voice rising with indignation. But then he froze, recognition flickering in his eyes. His anger faltered as he realized who she was.

Karen was the daughter of a family so powerful that, naturally, many knew her face.

The man swallowed hard, his voice softening in an instant. "Please, just... be more careful next time, miss." He scooped up his daughter, whispering soothing words to calm her down.

Karen, however, didn’t even acknowledge him. Her fury burned too hot, her pride too wounded to waste a glance on nobodies. With her chin raised high and her hands balled into fists, she stormed out of the restaurant, her heels clicking sharply against the floor.

As Karen stormed out of the restaurant, the night air slapped against her tear-stained face. Her heels clicked furiously against the pavement, each step as sharp as the anger boiling inside her.

Her chauffeur rushed to open the car door, bowing slightly as he said carefully, "Miss Karen, please, it’s best if you return home now."

The bodyguard, a tall man in a dark suit, echoed the sentiment in a low, serious tone. "It’s late. Let’s not wander around. Please, get in the car."

But Karen didn’t even spare them a glance. She waved her hand dismissively and kept walking, her strides quick, aimless, and heavy with pride. "I don’t want to go home," she snapped. "Just leave me alone."

"Miss," the bodyguard tried again, taking a step after her.

She spun around, her eyes flashing with irritation. "Stay away from me! I don’t need anyone babysitting me. Do your job and wait." Her voice cut like glass, and though his jaw tightened, the bodyguard obeyed.

Reluctantly, he slowed his pace, allowing distance to grow between them, but his eyes never left her back. He knew her temper, knew that defying her would only make matters worse. He had a family to keep, and couldn’t lose that job.

Karen, lost in her fury, wandered without direction. Neon lights flickered above, the streets gradually thinning of people and filling instead with shadows. Her steps carried her into a narrow alleyway, reeking of trash and damp stone.

If she was just a little rational, she would have noticed her obvious mistake. However, she was not even noticing the world around him at that moment; she was completely focused on her own emotions.

She couldn’t accept what Eric had told her; she simply refused to believe it. Biting her lip, she tried to ignore the searing pain tearing through her chest.

But Karen was far too prideful to cry any longer. She would never admit, not even to herself, that another person had the power to make her feel so small, so broken.

Already, in her mind, she was twisting the narrative of what had just happened.

It wasn’t that Eric didn’t want her, no, it was she who had outgrown him. Why would she ever need a weak boy who locked himself away in his room, sulking like a child?

She was the natural queen of the university. There would be hundreds of better men waiting in line for her, she was certain of it. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Or at least... she would make herself believe that was the case. Because in Karen’s world, everything revolved around her, whether reality agreed or not.

And as she was busy creating her fictional world, real life came in with a strong punch to her stomach.

"Are you listening, bitch?"

A figure emerged from the dark, a man with a ragged coat, eyes wild with desperation. He was thin, and her eyes seemed crazy... maybe a drug addict?

Well, it didn’t matter at the time; what really caught Karen’s attention was the metallic glint of a knife that he carried.

"Hand over your purse!" he barked, brandishing the blade.

Karen froze, her heart slamming against her ribs. All at once, the bravado that usually cloaked her shattered. "W-what? Do you have any idea who I am?!" she stammered, clutching her bag tighter.

The robber sneered, unmoved. "I don’t care who you are. Give it to me now!" He lunged forward, slashing the air near her face.

She was really lucky he didn’t have a gun; if that had been the case, she would have been dead by this point.

Still, that moment was truly scary for her. A scream tore from her throat, raw and desperate. The sound echoed off the alley walls, high, panicked, helpless.

Her bodyguard was still several steps behind, trying not to disturb her. The scream jolted him into a sprint.

At the same time, Karen stumbled backward, nearly tripping on the uneven ground. The robber closed in, the knife trembling inches from her chest.

And then, finally, the bodyguard arrived. He threw himself between them with reckless abandon, shoving Karen, but the robber was able to carve the knife into his abdomen.

"Fuck!" The bodyguard shouted. "Miss Karen, call the police and an ambulance!" he barked, gritting his teeth as he struggled with the assailant.

But Karen was too stunned to move, her eyes wide as she watched her protector grapple with the robber.

With no backup and his consciousness slipping, the bodyguard gritted his teeth, forcing his thoughts toward the family waiting for him back home. He couldn’t abandon them. He would not die in this filthy alley.

Summoning every ounce of strength, he lunged forward, slamming a kick into the robber’s gut. The assailant staggered back, and in that brief opening, the bodyguard seized his wrist, twisting hard until the knife clattered to the ground.

Disarmed and shaken, the robber froze, then turned and bolted into the night, too terrified to continue the fight.

The bodyguard didn’t chase him. Instead, trembling, he pulled out his phone and quickly dialed for an ambulance, as well as the police. His voice was strained but steady as he gave the necessary details.

Only when the call ended did his body finally betray him. His vision blurred, the edges of the world darkening as the strength drained from his limbs.

When he fought, it was the end; he heard the reassuring sound of the ambulance’s siren.