Lily was also baffled, and even Galen, playing by himself, looked up questioningly.“Granduncle, you’ve always refused to tell me or publicly announce who your secret apprentice is.” Austin curled his lips into a mysterious smile and peered at Lily. “It’s Alexander, isn’t it?”Lily and Dominic were perplexed. They exchanged looks and communicated without words again.‘He’s so dumb. Is he truly your grandnephew?’‘He’s not my family, and I don’t know him, okay?’Austin felt frustrated to see the two communicating through expressions. It was as if there was a wall between them and him, and he could not be a part of them no matter how hard he tried. He could not understand why they were shrugging, shaking their heads, blinking their eyes, or sighing.“Granduncle, I know you don’t wish to announce it publicly because Alexander is someone special, and he wants to keep it a secret, but you don’t have to hide it from me. I guarantee that I won’t reveal it to anyone!” Austin held up his
“You never expected that, did you?” Austin was pleased with himself and felt he could finally beat her at one thing. “I restored the data you destroyed, and the lab is running as before—no, it’s better than when you were there, and I believe all experiments will soon succeed.”“You…” Lily wanted to tell him that he was an idiot and had self-righteously done something stupid. On second thought, she knew she could achieve nothing by scolding him since he had recovered the data—instead, she laughed coldly. “Then I wish you good luck.”Austin thought Lily was upset that he could recover the data she destroyed and felt even prouder. “You have no idea I learned from a hacker for a while, do you? I could restore the data even if you destroyed the database and only smashed the hardware.”“Really?” Lily lifted her gaze and smiled because Austin had given her a new idea.‘He’s right that I only destroyed the hardware. What if I hack into the database and destroy all lab data? It seems like a
“Nothing. Just… trying to follow the news,” Lily said blandly.Having been disregarded by them, Austin finally found an opportunity to join in as he knew about the matter.“You’re worried about Alexander, aren’t you? You don’t need to!” Austin said, “Since he’s my granduncle’s secret apprentice, he should be able to deal with the pandemic. Even if he’s not good enough to solve it, he should have no problem keeping himself safe.”Since the duo did not deny it, Austin naturally thought they had acknowledged that he was right about Alexander. He thought that since Alexander was Dominic’s secret apprentice and had studied herbal medicine for so long, dealing with the pandemic would not be a big problem.However, he did not know that Lily was Dominic’s secret apprentice, not Alexander, as he had assumed.Lily could not help but roll her eyes when she heard what Austin said. ‘He’s such a dumb*ss for thinking he’s right all the time!’She had no interest in replying to Austin and turned
Austin could no longer hold it in. “Granduncle, I understand if you’re partial to your secret apprentice, but what does she know? You can’t possibly be so biased, can you? Also, she’s taking so many precious herbs from you. Does she even know how to use them? Whenever I try to get some from you, you only let me take a little yet her bag…”He grew jealous when he looked at Lily’s bag. All the plants there were precious medicinal herbs that Dominic had carefully cultivated. Austin wanted to take them several times but got turned down, except for the few times Dominic gave him a little bit. Still, Lily’s bag… Austin was indeed jealous.“They belong to me, and I can give them to whoever I like! You spend your days hanging around with those rich people, so don’t think I don’t know what you’ve been up to. Instead of focusing on herbal medicine, you keep trying to get famous, even at my expense. You stay the hell away from me, okay?” Dominic rarely got so angry and scolded him in one brea
At this moment, the supposedly locked showcase was open, and one of the teapots had fallen and broken into pieces on the floor. The other one was still…“My darling!” One could not tell if Dominic was referring to the teapot or the boy as he shouted in a trembling voice. On tiptoe, he sped over. “Here you go, Grandpa!” Seemingly knowing what Dominic wanted, Galen reached out his hands to grab the teapot for Dominic and lost his balance. His body swayed and fell backward. “My darling!” The older man screamed again and quickly lunged forward to catch the boy as he fell. At the same time, he heard another crash. He shut his eyes as if he could not face reality. His heart and body ached, inside and out! “Don’t be scared, Grandpa!” Galen patted his chest soothingly. Dominic was speechless. He wanted to cry! Lily came over at this moment and sighed. “I was trying to ask you whether those two teapots were expensive.”‘But he had to interrupt me and give a heroic speech.’“Wha
Since he had said so, Lily could not punish Galen in his presence. Pulling her face back, she gave her son a solemn look. “Are you sorry?”The boy was young but knew what was right and wrong. Holding his head low, he peered nervously at his mother and pursed his lips quietly when she asked. “We must all feel sorry for our mistakes. As a boy, don’t you even have the courage to admit that you’ve made one?” Lily continued, “Are you sorry?”"Yes," he said softly but clearly enough. Lily asked, “What did you say? I couldn’t hear you.”“I’m sorry.” His voice was louder this time. Pouting, he looked pitiful, with shimmery tears welling up in his big eyes. This was enough to make Dominic feel sorry for him and wave. “Okay, okay, you’ve said it enough. What does a little child know?”“The fact that he’s young makes it all the more important to teach him what he should and shouldn’t do! Didn’t I tell you many times before not to touch the things in Grandpa’s house and not to climb up a
“His allowance won’t be enough to pay for the teapots. Why don’t you just use it to buy toys for him?” Dominic could not help but speak on the little boy’s behalf.Lily nodded. “You’re right. Then I’ll deduct his allowance for two years.”Galen pursed his lips and wanted to cry again. He had accepted that his mother would deduct his allowance for a year, but after Dominic tried to defend him, it became two years instead.“B-But…” Dominic was at a loss and dared not help Galen again, so he faked a coughing fit. His gaze wandered toward the open showcase as he tried to devise a random excuse. “It’s not entirely his fault! I didn’t lock the showcase properly. Even if he didn’t break the teapots, the thieves might have stolen them!”Then he raised his voice and scolded, “Look what you’ve done! Didn’t I tell you guys to keep the showcases and cabinets locked? Couldn’t you do such a simple thing? Do you still want this month’s salary? Do you still want your jobs?”The maid tidying up th
Galen thought his mother would severely reprimand him at first. He happily wanted to show off his skill and realized that not only was Lily not going to scold him again, but she also said she could not open the lock.Galen put his tiny hands together, twisted them, then said, “Poof!” to indicate how he opened the lock. Others might not understand his performance, but since he was Lily’s son, she immediately caught on, even though she found it hard to believe. “That was it?”“Uh-huh.” He nodded vigorously.Lily thought about it and gestured at the maid standing aside. “Please lock the showcase.”The maid was puzzled. Dominic also came over as the maid looked toward her employer for his instruction. Dominic was also curious how a toddler could open the showcase.Initially, he thought it was an accident and that the maids did not lock the showcase properly. Now that Lily questioned her son, he rechecked the lock and felt it did not seem to be the maid’s fault.‘If Galen did open it,
Lily tilted her head up to fight back her tears, saying, “There’s something I find strange.”“What is it?” Mike asked after comforting his son.“Instead of detaining Prince Ross, Her Majesty has sent him back to Yudonia. If so, why couldn’t we reach him?”After some thought, Mike answered, “There are two possibilities. It’s probably due to poor signals, or he doesn’t want us to contact him.”The two shared a look, knowing what each other was wondering.‘Why can’t we contact Ross? Is he planning something?’…Three days later, Lily inserted the last needle into the queen’s leg and looked up at her, saying, “You should start feeling your legs tomorrow. Still, it’ll take some time before you can stand.”Suddenly, Lily chuckled.“Why are you laughing?” Yasmin touched her legs. She had begun to regain sensation in her legs over the last two days. She then began to believe that she could get up. However, the queen was hesitant when the queen heard Lily chuckle.Lily shook her head
Lily straightened up and said without resentment, “Of course, you wouldn’t.”“That’s… quite a pity,” the queen murmured thoughtfully.“Well, there’s a price to pay for everything. That’s how the world balances itself,” Lily continued, “I can’t stop you if you must carry on with R10. Still, I won’t witness whether or not it succeeds. I just wish the outcome isn’t something you’ll regret.”Lily smiled and turned to head out the door.Rick heard their conversation as he stood guard outside. After exchanging looks with Lily as she brushed past him, he entered the room and saw the needles in Yasmin’s legs. “Your Majesty, those needles—”The queen waved dismissively. “It’s okay. Lily will remove them later.”Even so, Rick was wary. “You’re being too careless, Your Majesty. What if that woman—”“She wouldn’t,” Yasmin interjected, shaking her head."Why do you trust her so much?" Rick asked despite himself. The queen fell silent. If Rick had not asked her that, she would not have rea
Lily took out a cloth and unfolded it, revealing a row of silver needles inside. Yasmin was surprised she carried the needles with her.“Tell me. What do you want?” The queen took a deep breath to calm herself. She then reminded herself that she could always say no to Lily’s request. Still, Yasmin was cautious about Lily trying to trick her.Lily casually said, "I left because Prince Ross wanted to help me. I hope you don’t punish him.""That's it?" Yasmin thought she had misheard Lily. 'Is she trying to talk terms with me just so that I won't punish my son?' she wondered in disbelief."Ross is my son. I won't harm him. Don't you think you've wasted an opportunity by making such a request?" The queen shook her head. "I wasn’t sure if you’d blame him, but he did rescue me once. If I don't do anything, it would be ungrateful of me," Lily said gently, "Also, didn’t you already lock him up?"Yasmin was puzzled. "No, I only sent him back to Yudonia. He kept trying to get me to sto
"Three days," Lily replied.“That’s it?!” Yasmin was in disbelief. She thought Lily would try to buy some more time and suspected she would say the process would take several months or even years.‘I haven’t felt my legs for over a decade. I wouldn’t mind waiting for three more days.’“Are you sure I can get up and walk in just three days?” Yasmin pressed her legs hard but felt nothing. She would have treated her legs long ago if it were that easy.The queen had visited many famous doctors from various countries, but they could only stop her legs from getting weaker. However, Lily confidently told Yasmin that she could fix her legs so quickly.Yasmin wanted to believe it.After some consideration, Lily said, “I can’t guarantee that you’ll walk as fast as you once could. After all, you haven’t used your legs for a long time, and your muscles have atrophied. Still, you’ll recover slowly.”Yasmin nodded repeatedly, thinking it was good enough. She never dreamed of walking as well a
“Because only our opinions matter." Lily thought of something and said, "Unless you choose to believe Rhea.""I… don't trust anyone." Yasmin’s expression stiffened as she turned her wheelchair away."Your Majesty, I know you're dedicated to the experiment, but there are other things in life. Have you ever considered letting go of your burden to sightsee? You’ve done enough as a queen over the last few decades. Aren’t you tired of living a lonely life?”Lily gently spoke as she gazed at Yasmin’s back.The older woman caressed her knees with both hands and stared down at her legs, murmuring, “Sightsee, huh? I’ve forgotten what that’s like.”Yasmin had not used her legs for many years. Initially, she could still stand up and sometimes took a few steps. However, she could no longer get to her feet.She had grown accustomed to sitting in a wheelchair, but she felt a pang of sorrow after hearing Lily’s suggestion.Lily asked, “What if I can help you stand again? What if you can walk a
"Yes, I returned not just for him but also for you," Lily said, "I'm sure you were anxious for my return, weren't you?"Yasmin scoffed dismissively. "Why would I be? I have my bargaining chip. Besides, did you honestly think I couldn’t bring you back?""Bargaining chip? Do you mean Nick?" Lily shook her head with a smile. "Don't forget that he's not my son. Do you think he'll be much of a bargaining chip to you if I choose to ignore him for my three children?"She did not wait for Yasmin to reply and continued, "Besides, Nick still has a father who’s willing to die for him. If Mike decides to take drastic action against you— Yes, you're a queen, and you don't care much about an insignificant businessman.“However, don't forget that his business spans worldwide. There's no guarantee what he might do. Who knows, he might spread information that can affect Your Majesty and Yudonia's reputation?""You…" The queen was exasperated but could not retort.Lily noticed it and casually said
Rick could only remain silent at that moment.Yasmin then turned her wheelchair around and blandly said, “Bring Lily over. I’d like to see what excuses that sly woman can come up with.”"Your Majesty?" Rick was puzzled. "You know she'll just lie to you. Why must you—"Yasmin interjected, "I'd like to hear what she has to say."Rick had no choice but to leave and do as she said.As Lily was about to doze off, she heard noises from outside and opened her eyes. Immediately after, the door opened, and Rick appeared. He glared at her and spoke coldly, “Her Majesty wants to see you.”Lily glanced at Rick calmly and stood up as if she had expected his appearance. On the other hand, Mike rose before her and headed out.However, Rick stopped him as he reached the door. “You stay.”"But we came together!" Mike glanced over his shoulder at Lily, signaling her to persuade the man. Rick added, "The queen doesn’t wish to see you. Just stay here!"Lily patted Mike's shoulder and said gentl
Everyone was shocked when Lily returned to the embassy with Mike. One of the staff members quickly left to report the news to Queen Yasmin.Meanwhile, Lily saw people peering at her and Mike from the corner. Afterward, several guarded-looking men appeared. Lilt recognized them as the queen’s attendants. They brought Mike and Lily inside and then gave the duo a thorough search.The men only relaxed after finding nothing suspicious about the duo. Even so, Lily could not see the queen as the men told her to wait in an innermost room instead.After returning to the embassy, Lily felt a sense of strange familiarity. Although she knew the place well, her mindset had changed.She previously hated the embassy and simply wanted to escape. However, she had returned with a critical mission. Not only did she have to complete it, but she also needed to leave the place in one piece.While she was calm, Mike was somewhat anxious. He clasped his hands on his knees and glanced around as he sat dow
"I promise I'll do anything you want, okay?" Mike begged. He was desperate to see his son, so he decided to follow Lily when she insisted on returning to the embassy.Mike continued, “If any of you go with her, they might stop or suspect you. They won’t do that to me. It’s natural for me to want to see and rescue my son. I’m the best candidate because it makes sense for me to sacrifice myself for him.”After a short silence, Lily said, “You’re right.” She then looked at Alexander, who pondered before slowly raising his head and saying, “Me too.”Dominic tapped the table. "So do I."Cameron thought for a moment before saying, "I've no objections."Seeing this, Austin spread his arms and said, "Since you all agree, what else can I say? Let's do it!"It did not matter whether or not he agreed, but he just wanted to support Mike. The latter nodded and became emotional, saying, “Thanks, you guys!”"Why are you thanking us? Just be careful, and don’t be rash like you promised," Aust