Noah, a professional perfumer, had to admit that the quality of this perfume was exquisite. He may look calm on the surface, but he was shocked. Since first entering the perfume industry, he had experimented with numerous scents and studied the work of many renowned perfumers. He had never met a perfumer like her, one who could produce such sophisticated scents from such humble materials.With this new information, his perspective on perfumes shifted drastically. Everyone he knew, including his instructors and himself, believed that one needed high-quality ingredients to make a good perfume. It was the same way that genealogical research has shown that only exceptional individuals can produce exceptional offspring. However, he had his view of the art of perfumery radically altered. “Okay, why don’t we talk about the price of the Water Hyssop?” Lily was not interested in a meaningless competition like this. However, there was something she wanted, and she could not just let
Staring at the arm holding onto her hand, a cold and sharp gaze flashed across Lily’s eyes. She was not angry when Noah lied to her and tried to lock her up, but she started to get mad when he laid his hands on her and spoke to her in such a condescending way. Lily smirked coldly, “Since you’ve bought those Water Hyssop, and you’ve chosen to waste them, what does it have to do with me? By the way…”“Ahh…it hurts!” Before Noah could react, Lily had already twisted his arm. He had been the one to grab her wrist, but he was the one now being held from behind. She twisted his arm, and his chest was pushed down to the floor. It was so painful that he yelped and drew in a sharp breath.“Mr. Richards…” Noah’s bodyguards wanted to step forward to help, but they were intimidated by the look on Lily’s face. She looked like a frail and gentle lady, but her eyes had so much power and cut like sharp icicles. She was terrifying when she turned Noah over effortlessly, twisted his arm, and
Lily was suspicious of Noah’s intentions but did not want to stay any longer, so she chose to turn and leave. At that moment, two cars stopped right in front of them. Lily’s first reaction was to assume that Noah was responsible for this, so she turned to look at him.However, his reaction was the same as hers as he stared at the cars in slight surprise. Seconds later, he ran toward the car as one of the car doors opened.An older gentleman came out of the car. His hair was gray, and he had a walking stick in one of his hands. Even though he was old, he still looked healthy for his age. The man lifted his head and looked around him, finally setting his eyes on Lily.‘Mr. Adler?’ Lily was surprised. She might not know everyone in this industry, but she would undoubtedly recognize Lawrence Adler. He was the country's most well-known perfumer and representative of the highest authority in the perfume industry.Lawrence had already created many classic scents since he was young; the mo
After recovering from her shock, Lily laughed, “Mr. Adler, please don’t joke with me. According to my understanding, I’m still too inexperienced to join the Perfumers’ Society.”Lawrence shook his head gently and explained, “We can’t use our old-fashioned views to look at society now. Society has changed, and talented young people can are everywhere. One can always accumulate experiences as one ages.“However, you’re already talented, so why would you go through all that? Isn’t that unnecessary? There’s no point in joining the society when you’re as old as me. What can people of my age do?” He concluded while waving one of his palms in the air.The man standing next to him had a pained expression. “Mr. Adler, what does that say about us if you consider yourself too old? You’re still in your prime, and we can only look up to you and admire your work. How can we, as juniors, compare to your achievements.”“That’s right!”“Yeah!”Others around Lawrence agreed by adding, “Mr. Adler,
Lily whirled around and stepped over to look at Noah. He had no idea what was going on but was willing to help Lawrence keep her from leaving if that was what it took to get her to join them. As far as the society was concerned, everyone was on the same side, so he did not try to stop them. He was just waiting for Lily's reaction.When Lily started to approach Noah, he was taken aback. Quite a few people were watching them, and he did not want to embarrass himself by flinching when she came close. All Noah could do was drop his trembling voice to give the impression that he was not afraid. Then he looked her in the eye and asked, "What do you want?"He still remembered how she had roughed him up not too long ago. The recollection of how this witch nearly broke one of his arms was still fresh in his mind, so he eyed her warily as though she were a monster.Lily did not answer his question. Instead, she gave him a pleasant grin and reached for his jacket pocket. Noah could not belie
Lily was speechless. This older gentleman was stubborn, refused to listen to others, and only wanted things to go his way. This atmosphere turned for the worst as he put Lily into an awkward situation. His tone of voice was demanding, and even though it may look like he was asking for her opinion, he was not giving her a choice. This meant that she could only say yes. Lawrence was much more challenging to deal with than Noah. Noah was just annoying when he tricked her and gave her some challenges to overcome, which were easy to deal with. However, Lawrence was different. He was a senior perfumer in his twilight years and demanded respect from the industry. Furthermore, he had already sent her his invitation thrice in a row. Lily had already rejected him twice, and if she did it the third time, she would be known as an insolent young female perfumer. At first, she thought Noah was the sole culprit and that he had someone in the society steal the official seal and send her
“That’s indeed my wish too.” Lawrence nodded and said, “However, it seems your wife has rejected me!”The crowd was excited to watch how the situation would unfold. Lily could be ignorant about Lawrence’s identity, but they believed Alexander would know how influential the man was. No matter how powerful and wealthy La Beauté Group was, they would not offend Lawrence so publicly.However, something unexpected happened.“That’s right!” Alexander’s determined voice shocked everyone. His voice was so loud that everyone’s eardrums were still buzzing as an aftereffect.His voice was not the only thing that frightened them but his attitude also. Everyone had the same thoughts at this moment. ‘What did he say? That’s right?’‘What was right? Did he mean to say that his fiancée was right for rejecting Lawrence in front of so many people, which showed that she had no respect for him? Was he in his right mind, or did he say those things by mistake?’Lawrence’s expression did not change m
The two were being lovey-dovey with each other, completely forgetting there were still people around them.Noah could no longer tolerate it, so he stepped forward and stood before them. “Mr. Russell, I know you’re arbitrary, but I’d advise you to think twice about this matter. Do you think La Beauté Group is invincible?“As long as she’s still a perfumer working in this industry, there will always be rules and regulations restricting her every action.”His words repelled Lily. Just as she was about to retort, Alexander stopped her, and she soon heard his voice, “She’s a perfumer because that’s her passion. If the day when she doesn’t want to be a perfumer anymore comes, I can take care of my woman without her needing to work.“She can be a perfumer as long as she likes her job, and La Beauté Group will always support her.” He threw Noah a sideways glance and walked forward with Lily, who was still in his arm.Alexander continued when they were next to Noah, “La Beauté Group isn’t
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