The others rushed over to help and discovered that Ruth's face was pale and clearly in pain. She appeared to be genuinely hurt.

"Is she hurt? Should we get her to a hospital?"

"Oh my gosh! What's happening? Lilah injured her. She's an instructor, and she hit the student so hard!"

"Do we really need to? It seems like she's just taking out her frustrations."

A crowd had now gathered and was murmuring about the scene that had unfolded.

Ruth grinned with satisfaction, pleased with her impromptu performance and the idea she'd come up with on the fly.

She planned to ask the company's PR team to post comments accusing the Fearless League—no, directly blaming Lilah—of using her authority for personal revenge. That way, Lilah would be publicly condemned!

"Oh? Are you injured, Miss Ruiz?"

Lilah looked down at Ruth, her arms crossed and her gaze dripping with sarcasm.

Ruth managed a strained smile and said, "It's nothing. Miss Phillips. That was a great move. I wasn't paying attention, so I couldn't dodge."

Her voice sounded rough and full of bitterness, as if she might collapse at any moment. People couldn't help but believe she was seriously hurt.

The crowd felt uneasy. They thought Lilah was being too cold. She was the one who had hurt Ruth, yet she seemed so indifferent.

"How about having Mr. Cooper come over personally to check on you, Miss Ruiz?" Lilah suggested with a faint smile.

Only then did the others think that was a reasonable idea.

Barth was known not just for his martial arts skills but also for his expertise in healing. It made perfect sense to have him take a look.

Barth arrived shortly.

When their gazes met, Lilah gave a slight nod, and he understood immediately.

He told everyone to step back and knelt down to examine Ruth.

Ruth was unaware of the connection between Barth and Lilah. Seeing him take a serious approach, she felt some relief.

"Mr. Cooper, my chest hurts. I'm not sure why," she said with a strained smile, placing a hand over her heart. Her voice sounded raspy.

After a brief pause, Barth looked up and said, "Actually, it doesn't make sense for you to feel heartache. You just have irregular breathing. There might be an issue with your lung."

Ruth's expression turned to shock. "What? How can that be? Miss Phillips only gave me a light hit. I didn't think it would cause a lung issue. No wonder I feel something's wrong inside..."

Her voice was frail. Tears welled up in her eyes and her tone was full of unspoken sorrow. Hadley watched everything unfold with a confused look.

"That girl's acting skills are all about scheming against others. Seriously, you don't know that everyone's saying her performances in those TV series are awful and fake. Now she looks like she's genuinely hurt," Hadley muttered quietly.

With a forced smile, Lilah remarked, "What's the big deal? She'd do anything to scheme against others, even if it meant taking a hit, so a few tears are nothing."

"Mr. Cooper, what do you suggest we do for Miss Ruiz?" Lilah asked in acalm tone.

Barth stood up and replied, "Please have Miss Ruiz carried to the infirmary."

He then signaled two people to lift Ruth onto a stretcher.

At that moment, one of the young men lost his grip, and the stretcher slipped. He muttered, "Oops!"

The sudden slip startled everyone. This was serious; the injured Ruth was now in a risky situation.

To everyone's surprise, Ruth abruptly stood up and leaped away. She exclaimed, "What are you doing? Are you trying to kill me?"