The next day, Joy became a guide and took Eden and the others around town for half a day. After lunch at the Coleman's, they headed back to Audair.By the time they dropped Joy off at Riverside Senior High and returned to Skygarden, it was already around midnight.Quin and Talia's rooms were dark. Only Noah was sitting alone on the living room balcony, looking as if he was in a bad mood.Alain and Eden exchanged a glance. Eden didn't say anything but walked over to Noah's side. "You're upset?""Not really," Noah said, looking at her before sighing. "I need to go, Eden."Eden was slightly taken aback. "Where to?""To where I should be," Noah replied, gazing at the sky. "I've been running for decades. It’s probably time I fulfill my duties. There are responsibilities I can’t escape."Eden bit her lip but remained silent.Noah didn’t explain further, but she understood.Noah tapped his cigarette and stood up, then lightly tapped Eden’s shoulder."You won’t see me for a long time
"No," Eden said. She didn’t experience any of the sensations Alain described.When she first took the Scarlet Jade of Thousand Mountains out of the box, she only noticed it felt different from other jades—extremely cold, almost bone-chillingly so. But since her own physique was cold-aligned, she didn’t find it uncomfortable.She had been wearing the jade for a long time without any issues.But…Eden glanced at Alain. His body seemed to react the moment he held the jade."No?" Alain frowned even more deeply.After a moment of silence, Alain went to get a pair of gloves and put them on. "Give it to me again."Eden handed the jade over without a word.This time, Alain didn’t feel as bad thanks to the gloves, but he still sensed the draining effect.He returned the jade to Eden and whispered, "Keep it well hidden. Don’t let anyone see it, and don’t tell anyone about it.""What is it?" Eden asked, frowning.It was her first time seeing Alain so serious about something."I can’t
Alain owned dozens of companies. Apart from the ones under the Ward Group, all were registered under his personal name, and he managed them himself.The company’s management and systems were well-optimized. However, when Alain was poisoned six months ago, he handed over the day-to-day operations to his staff.Fortunately, Alain’s staff were highly skilled. The technical team consisted of elite professionals who had never faced any attacks—until now. Not only had they been hacked through cyberspace, but they had also lost 100 million dollars. The worst part was that they only discovered it early this morning.Caelus could already imagine how furious Alain would be.As expected, Alain’s expression darkened. "Which company?""Digital Tech," Caelus replied firmly. "The hacker is very skilled. No one noticed the breach until the accounting team found discrepancies when balancing the books today. Our tech team also detected signs of a system attack."Digital Tech was Alain’s most profi
"That's right. Tyler from Class 3-1 has always been at the top, so he should be fine..."Grant raised his hand, cutting off the discussion. "Even though our class isn't the best, I'd still like to see some of you join. Eden, since you scored full marks in Physics, can you join? I’m only asking for one team."Eden, who was reading a medical journal, glanced up and lazily said, "I can’t, Mr. Grant. I cheated on the exam."Grant was speechless.He clearly didn’t believe her.Grant tried to persuade her again, "Please think about it. The Physics competition..."Before he could finish, Eden cut him off. "I’ve already considered it."She didn’t even look up from her journal.If it weren’t for Sofia’s final wish, she wouldn’t even be in school."I will," Quin said, raising her hand and lifting her chin proudly like a princess. "I’ve always been at the top in Physics. I’m confident I can lead my team to the finals."Before Grant could respond, Quin added, "Unlike someone who lacks te
The pressure from both the schools and the government regarding the international competition was intense.Riverside Senior High, the top high school in Estburg, had been instructed to send 20 students from their intensive classes to participate. The competition wasn't just about personal pride but also about national prestige. The schools had to ensure they didn’t fall behind other countries.With three intensive classes and 20 students, they were confident that at least a few would make it to the finals. The goal was to place in the top 100, and the Department of Education wasn’t asking for much beyond that.As long as Kentra was among the top 100, they would be satisfied. Anything less would be considered a disgrace.To meet this challenge, all the teachers selected the top Physics students for a five-day intensive training session.Grant also organized his own training program. He initially planned to focus on Eden, given her perfect score in Physics. A student like her wouldn
Naisha and Sinead often talked about things that were close to their hearts.Sinead was starting to feel a bit worried. "That's right. Eden's teacher, Mr. Grant, is acting strange. He said Eden has to join an international Physics competition. I’m not strict with her, but her grades are pretty bad. Can she really handle something like this?"Sinead didn't have high expectations for Eden. She just wanted her to live a happy life. Even if Eden wasn’t academically gifted, the Ward family could still take care of her.If Eden wanted to go to university, they could support her medical studies, especially since her skills in that field were impressive.But a Physics competition? Sinead wasn’t confident in that.“If her homeschool teacher personally called, it should mean that she can do it. But if she doesn’t want to attend the extra classes, you could always bring in some physicists to tutor her,” Natasha suggested with a smile. “It’s an international competition, after all. Even if sh
Alain lowered his head and glanced at his phone, but he kept an eye on Talia from the corner of his eyes.He had met Talia twice before she moved into Skygarden.The first time was when she jumped into the river. The second was the night Sofia passed away.By the time Alain and Eden arrived that night, Alain had missed Talia’s fight, so he didn’t think much of it.To him, Talia had always seemed like a sweet and pleasant young woman.But now, he was seeing a different side of her.Her cold eyes and commanding presence weren’t something that had developed overnight.Alain could tell that if he hadn’t stepped in, Talia would have snapped Quin’s neck without hesitation.A tense silence settled between the three of them. Quin was shaken by Talia and, fearing Alain might actually throw her out, stayed quiet.Talia, too, remained silent, not wanting to risk her place in someone else’s home.When Eden finally came out, she sensed the strange atmosphere and glanced at them before ask
Talia, who was standing outside Eden’s room, could hear the sound of someone breathing. A fire seemed to burn brightly in her clear eyes. She wished she could kick the door open and kill the man inside.She was about to leave when Eden, from the other side of the door, sensed someone outside. Eden grabbed her jacket and rushed out, freezing halfway when she saw Talia. Frowning, she asked, “What are you doing here?”“I… I came back to get my revision papers. Our teacher wants to give us extra Physics classes this afternoon,” Talia said, lowering her head, the anxiety evident in her eyes.Eden glanced at the revision papers in Talia’s hand, which included questions for the upcoming international Physics competition. “When did you get back?”Eden and Alain were highly perceptive, and it was almost impossible for someone to enter their home without them noticing. It was clear Talia had tried to sneak in.“Just a little while ago. I thought you were all resting, so I did my best to sta