Eloise held her daughter’s hand and wanted to say something when she heard a car approaching from outside. Her face sank. "Your father is back."It did not take long for her words to fall as Joseph entered the house with a bag in his hand. He was stunned when he saw Eloise and Arianna sitting in the living room. "Ari, you’re home too," he said, walking straight over. "Perfect. I have one for each of you.""What is it?" Arianna smiled, stood up, and took the bag from his hand. She opened it and glanced inside. "Wow, perfume!"Seeing her surprised expression, Joseph smiled. "This is the first-ever perfume from our company, and we’ve sold out of them! I bought two bottles directly from the factory for you two to try."His smug look annoyed Eloise. She knew Joseph was only happy that the product came from that little brat, not because it was the company’s first-ever perfume. She felt unhappy inside and could not return a joyful expression to Joseph. Her gaze was indifferent as if the m
Joseph was preparing to make a latte when he entered his home office. His espresso machine was grinding the beans, making a whirring sound."Ari, I haven't seen you much in the company recently?" He asked while casually adding milk to the jug.She smiled. "Well, you wouldn’t come and find me often anyways. I’m usually in the office. What's wrong?"Maybe it was a little embarrassing initially, but Joseph stopped adding milk and coughed lightly, "I-It’s nothing. I was just asking. Maybe the company has been too busy recently, so I wasn’t aware. By the way, what do you think of Damian's project?" While frothing his milk, he raised his head to look at her."I’m all in to support him! You can see that I even purposely bought one to show my support." Arianna said with a smile, and her face was full of sincerity.Joseph shook his head and said, "That’s not what I meant. I mean, what do you think of his performance?""Good! He’s doing great! I initially wanted to give Damian some advice,
He was never willing to recruit a son-in-law. He always thought it was like handing over a piece of the family business to an outsider, so he set high expectations for Damian instead, hoping he would succeed and inherit the company."Hey, if I can help, I will. Damian is strong, though, so you should also consider his self-esteem. He'll think I'm protecting him more, and it's easy to take that to heart.Joseph thought about it, then sighed and responded, "Never mind. In any case, the outcome is all but certain. Praise Damian in front of the shareholders in the upcoming management meeting. I’ll have another piece of news to announce on that day too.""What news?" Arianna asked curiously, frowning."You'll know when the time comes. This is something about which I'm still not entirely certain, and I need to be sure before I play my cards. You can go now," he waved absentmindedly.Joseph’s unfinished words aroused Arianna’s intense curiosity. At the same time, she also knew that if he
"What happened to Benedict?" She frowned, but she was very concerned about this, "Didn't you say he disappeared? Has there been any news?"Although she did not take Benedict seriously, he was still a direct descendant of her uncle. There was still recognition of him among upper management. Besides, he stayed in the company until he rebelled and left, and he also helped Derrick handle the company's affairs for some time.Arianna probably would not have had any chance if it weren't for him insisting on working on wood carvings instead of running the business.She, therefore, felt a little uneasy when she learned that there could be updates regarding him."Well," Eloise said, her face dignified, nodding slightly, "I heard Benedict passed away.""Passed away?" The news was so shocking that Arianna was speechless for a while before asking her mother, "Mom, is it true?""Eighty percent," After thinking about it, Eloise continued, “Your father isn’t very sure, so he hasn’t said anything
"The initial idea is that each has its own characteristics, but they can all be related to the same theme. After all, they're all in the same place, which is what gives them their individual traits.” "Then what is the theme of your show?" Lily asked again. "The clothing is CL's latest style, and the theme is about “spring,” with green as their color palette. That's about it." The two chatted, and Lily slowly came up with ideas. She was no longer as clueless as before and asked a few more questions. Finally, she said, "There’s one last question. Even if your dad couldn’t make time for it, I believe you must know a lot of other perfumers, many of whom are better than I am. Why did you have to travel all this way to find me?" Without waiting for Lisa to speak, she added, "Don't say anything else. As far as I’m concerned, if this is simply for the fragrance, I don't think I'm so special that you have to travel so far." Lisa almost choked on her words. She stu
Lisa’s attitude stunned Noah. He felt she was hostile toward him for some reason, even though he had never done anything to offend her. After some thought, he peeked over and looked in. Then he saw Lily, who was also looking over.Their eyes met, so Noah smiled and said, "I’m looking for her." He walked past Lisa and went straight toward Lily’s direction.Lisa was shocked and quickly turned around to chase after him."You seem so laid back.” Noah looked around the studio and smiled again. "Have you completed the paperwork and licenses yet?""You don’t need to worry about that." Lily stood up and had a terrible attitude toward him."It’s part of my job to be concerned. All the perfumers in the country are under the Perfumers’ Society’s control. You don't have a license to practice, but you are still involved in this industry. It’s illegal to create so many perfumes for sale on the market. So tell me, how can I ignore this?"He looked around casually as he spoke and noticed many he
When the Perfumers’ Society invited Lily to join them, they did not mention checking for the certificate. However, they held it against her this time.She could guarantee that many small perfumers in Hyderland did not have this certificate and were still performing well. It was one thing to have the certificate or not, and another if anyone would check on the status.Lily was about to speak when Lisa interrupted, "That’s ridiculous! Being a qualified perfumer is about talent and hard work. What does anything have to do with the certificate? Does it mean one can only be a perfumer with the certificate?”"Sorry, this is a matter between Lily and me. You shouldn't interrupt." Noah came today to negotiate with Lily. If she changed her mind and was willing to join the Perfumers’ Society, they could resolve the certificate issue. However, if she disagreed...Since Lily was in this industry, she should abide by the rules set by the Perfumers’ Society."Lily is my friend, and her business
“You’re just jealous!” Lisa ignored Noah’s explanation. “I think you’re all just a bunch of losers from Hyderland. The only one that’s genuinely talented and capable is Lily!”“Lisa.” Lily thought this was just plain arrogance. There were still some talented perfumers from Hyderland, and Lisa had just offended all of them with what she had just said. “Lily! I’m just saying what’s on my mind,” Lisa pulled Lily’s sleeve and remarked.It resulted in Noah smirking coldly. “I can assure you, Lily is not the only talented perfumer from Hyderland. Miss Parker, I’m sure your father would disagree with you!” Noah would have already taught Lisa a lesson if it were not for her father.“It’s pointless to argue over here. Noah, it’s true that I don’t own the license you’re referring to, and I won’t even try to get it,” Lily stood tall and continued, “Studying perfumes and making them was merely a hobby of mine. I’m willing to do it, and no one can stop me.“It isn’t up to you to tell me wheth
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