Mireille clenched her fists until her knuckles cracked, her face turning pale and strained. She stayed silent for a long moment.

At that moment, Fenris Carrington arrived, and even before he reached them, he was already yelling.

"Raina! You unfilial daughter! You come back and cause trouble everywhere, bringing shame on us! Aren't you going to..."

Originally scolding Raina, Fenris froze when he saw her, his voice cutting off abruptly.

Had Raina's appearance... recovered?

"Fenris, Raina's been out too long, that's why she's so wild. Don't bother arguing with her, don't get angry... Remember, we have serious matters today. Besides, so many guests are watching."

Odette, the third wife who'd risen in status, lowered her voice at the end.

Fenris snorted coldly, scowling, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and come with me! Such an embarrassment!"

Raina lowered her gaze, her face returning to its usual indifferent expression.

This was her father - his heart was always biased.

But it didn't matter anymore. She hadn't come back to reunite, but to find her lost baby and reclaim what was hers.

Amidst the murmurs, Raina followed Fenris and Odette out. 

Mireille snapped out of her daze and followed as well.

...

Hotel lounge.

With a sharp "slam," Fenris threw a contract in front of Raina.

"Sign this contract. From now on, the Carrington family has nothing to do with you!"

On the front page of the contract was clearly written - Company Share Transfer Agreement.

Fenris was demanding Raina transfer her mother's company to Mireille - for free!

Raina lounged casually on the sofa, but an invisible pressure radiated from her, even making Fenris furrow his brow and fix his gaze on her.

After all these years, something about Raina seemed different.

The girl raised her hand, picked up the agreement, and curled a cold, sarcastic smile at the corner of her lips.

"Company transfer agreement?"

Fenris felt no problem demanding Raina sign it. Ever since Lauren passed away, he'd taken for granted that everything belonged to him.

But before she died, Lauren left a will, leaving all her inheritance to that useless bastard, Raina.

Besides, the company was now managed by a professional manager, and without this transfer agreement, the other side wouldn't acknowledge Fenris's claims.

That's why he saw this as the perfect opportunity. Raina was always timid - with him asking personally, there was no way she wouldn't sign.

A flash of triumph crossed Fenris's eyes before he impatiently said, "It's just a failing company anyway. Think of it as your sister's wedding gift. You wouldn't be that petty to begrudge her that, would you?"

Odette quickly chimed in with a sweet smile, "Exactly, Raina, you don't know how badly business has been these past years. The company's always losing money. Even if you got it, you wouldn't be able to run it. Better to give it to Mireille as her dowry - that's what an older sister should do."

Mireille sat nearby, her arrogant pride slowly returning.

With Fenris and Odette backing her, she didn't even have to lift a finger to crush Raina.

"What right do you have?" Raina slammed the agreement down heavily on the table.

Fenris's expression hardened, a bad feeling creeping up inside him. "What do you mean?"

The atmosphere instantly thickened.

Raina tapped twice on the contract, a mocking smile playing at her eyes and brows.

"The company is mine. Why should my own property be given away for free? I won't sign this."

"Whether you sign it or not isn't up to you! You'll sign it today-willing or not! Don't fool yourself into thinking you're some untouchable high-society lady. With or without your consent, Jasper and Mireille's engagement is already set in stone!"

"It's just giving her a bankrupt company and you can't even agree to that?"Odette seized the chance to fan the flames. "Fenris, I'm telling you, your daughter is... tsk, tsk, selfish to the extreme."

Raina rubbed her forehead, knowing there was no point in staying. She stood and left the lounge.

"Raina! Stop right there! You unfilial daughter! Once you step out that door, don't ever think of coming back to the Carrington family!"

The Carrington family?

Aside from the name, she no longer had any ties to them.

Beep-

As soon as she stepped out, her phone rang. Raina glanced at the caller ID, then answered, holding the phone to her ear.

"Raina, you really have some serious charm. Wherever you go, that Mr. Vexley follows. His people are at the scene too. Be careful not to reveal your whereabouts."

Leif was here for the Hale family engagement banquet?

Rumor had it this Mr. Vexley was low-profile, never attending public events. If not to personally clear up the media rumors about the second young master of the Vexley family's leg injury, he wouldn't have appeared publicly.

Yet he even came to some insignificant noble family's engagement banquet - low-profile, huh?

Raina lowered her gaze lazily and replied, "Got it."

She hung up and tapped a few times on her phone screen. A complex web of lines and dots appeared, with over a dozen red dots blinking.

For such a large event, the other side could insert their people quietly without alerting the hosts - interesting.

"Raina! Stop right there!"

A sharp, venomous voice sounded from behind.

No need to turn around - it was Mireille.

Raina put away her phone and turned to look at Mireille, raising an eyebrow.

"Second Miss Carrington still have something to say?"

Second Miss Carrington - those words were like a fine needle piercing through Mireille's skin. The pain was subtle but impossible to ignore.

Mireille stood frozen for a moment, then suddenly raised her head, her tone and expression turning cold and cruel as she sneered, "Why aren't you dead yet? You should have died five years ago... Raina, seriously, just die already, won't you?"

"Answer me! Say something, Raina! Answer me-"

Her voice grew sharper and full of malice, making it clear this curse wasn't just empty words. She really wanted Raina dead.

But Raina laughed, covering her face with one hand as the laughter slipped through her fingers.

"You're still alive, so why should I die? Mireille, everything you stole from me, I'll make you spit it out one by one."

"Never!"

Mireille's eyes widened, a flicker of fear and panic flashing in her pupils. She clenched her fists tightly, as if holding onto something, and yelled fiercely at Raina:

"What I've got, is mine! Raina, you'll never take it from me again... never!"

***

Mireille's eyes were bloodshot, veins bursting vividly. Suddenly, she lunged at Raina. Her delicate, seemingly boneless hands were now convulsing, her knuckles whitening as she snapped lightning-fast at Raina's neck.

But before her fingers could touch Raina, a hand intercepted her.

Mireille jerked her head up abruptly, her face flashing with shock. She hissed, "You..."

Crack-

The sharp sound of bone breaking rang out suddenly.

Mireille screamed in agony, cold sweat pouring down her forehead, yet she refused to give up. Her eyes blazed with fury as she glared at Raina. "How dare you! Raina, you filthy-"

Raina had just crushed one of her arm bones with a single hand!

How was that even possible?

Raina didn't even glance at her. Calmly, she wiped her fingers and said, "As you can see, there's nothing I'm afraid of now. So, Second Miss Carrington, you'd better not come after me again. Because next time, the price won't be just one broken arm."

With that, Raina turned and walked away.

Mireille's arm hung limply at her side, the pain from the shattered bone mixing with countless other inexplicable feelings. Flames of rage flickered and danced in her eyes as if they were tangible.

Why? Why was Raina so proud and arrogant before her, even after losing everything?

And why was she left looking like a ridiculous clown, destined to live forever blinded by Raina's dazzling brilliance?

No, no, no, no!

Clenching her crushed arm tightly, Mireille finally loosened her grip. Then she grabbed a heavy ornament nearby and slammed it hard onto her injured arm!

...

Dodging Leif, Raina smoothly exited the hotel. Instinctively, she glanced toward the spot where the black car had been parked earlier.

The place was empty-the car was gone.

That made sense. It was just a random kid she'd bumped into. After all this time, why would he still be waiting there?

Rubbing her forehead, Raina shook her head slightly and hailed a car, heading straight back to her hotel.

The car arrived quickly. Just as she stepped into the lobby, a small figure suddenly pounced on her, grasping her leg with tiny hands.

That familiar scene repeated itself. Raina was momentarily stunned, then her eyes softened as she recognized the little face - it was the same kid she'd met at the hotel earlier.

But thinking that this kid was Leif's son - gave Raina quite a headache.

If it were just any other child, it'd be fine. But Leif was a notorious powerhouse who made people nervous just by mentioning his name. She really didn't want to get involved.

On the way back to Elaris, she had taken the time to check on the major powers in Estravia. The landscape was totally different from five years ago. Of the once-dominant five great families, two had fallen, leaving only three.

And the biggest change was Leif.

Five years ago, Leif was an unknown nobody. Overnight, he crushed two great families with a single blow and rose to fame. In the years since, through unknown means, he kept the other three families under his thumb, becoming the undisputed number one power in the capital.

Wherever Leif's name appeared, it brought storms of bloodshed and terror.

In other words, no matter what path people walked in the capital, the last person they wanted to mess with was this seemingly refined, elegant Leif.

Before Raina could react, a surprising voice cut through: "...Why is it you again?"

Raina looked up reflexively but didn't see the speaker first - instead, it was Leif himself who had appeared.

But the one speaking wasn't Leif; it was his assistant, Rael.

Rael's right hand was balled into a fist pressed against his lips. He coughed twice, maintaining a careful distance from Raina. Quietly, he said, "Miss... if I may be frank, it's really not good for you to keep following us like this... A young lady should keep her dignity, and not... not..."

'Not to keep pestering Mr. Vexley. Mr. Leif Vexley was just a cold, emotionless money-making machine. Haha, don't fool yourself.'

Though Rael didn't finish the sentence, Raina could clearly read between the lines from his expressions.

Raina said nothing at first.

This misunderstanding was really a bit big.

She exhaled a breath and pressed her brow. "I think you've got it wrong. First, I'm not following you - I live here. Second, I'm not pestering you. If you'd been paying attention, you'd see the kid came to me first..."

Before she finished, Gale suddenly let go of Raina's leg, as if something had hit him hard.

A sudden pang rose in Raina's heart - an inexplicable sadness.

Gale stepped back a few paces, his face pale. He looked like he had just been triggered by something. Bloodshot eyes, clenched tiny fists. Though he didn't make a sound, his whole body screamed silently, venting something.

"Gale! Calm down! Listen, be good..." Leif held him tightly, struggling to calm him. If Raina wasn't mistaken, there was even a trace of fear in Leif's eyes.

Then Leif growled, "Call a doctor - now!"

Rael pulled out his phone, searching for a number. "Yes, Mr. Vexley, I'm calling right now..."

"It's too late," Raina's voice exploded in their ears.

Rael froze and blurted, "What?"

Raina couldn't hold back any longer. She stepped forward, pressing several points on Gale's body hard. Suddenly, Gale quieted down.

More precisely, he had passed out.

The next second, a cold, bone-chilling hand suddenly grabbed Raina's wrist just as she was pulling back.

An icy, intense gaze locked onto Raina's face.

On the hand's third finger was a silver ring, shining faintly.

Raina's wrist hurt sharply. She looked up instinctively - caught off guard by a pair of dark, unfathomable eyes.

"What did you do to Gale? Why did he suddenly pass out?" Leif's voice was like a freezing wind, heavy with menace.

"I was saving him," Raina replied.

Leif sneered, his voice seething with anger, "Saving him?"

Raina didn't look at him but stared at Gale thoughtfully for a moment, then spoke softly, "His eyes were already bloodshot - clearly out of control. If I hadn't acted immediately, the boy you're holding... would already be dead."

***

"You're spreading lies to confuse the public!" Leif clearly didn't believe her.

As long as he was here, Gale would never lose control.

Still, despite his words, he loosened his grip on Raina's wrist.

There was a ring of bruises on her wrist, but she didn't care. She just glanced at Gale in his arms. Strangely, even though she barely knew this child-having only met twice and not even knowing his name-an inexplicable, subtle feeling stirred in her heart.

Raina suddenly said, "He's been poisoned."

Leif's pupils sharply contracted as he fixed his gaze on her, wary: "Who exactly are you?"

Gale usually didn't let strangers touch him. In fact, even with Leif, Gale wasn't very close. And after seeing Raina, it was clear Gale was prone to losing control around her.

So when Gale had rushed over to cling to Raina, he had been quite surprised.

And now, for Gale to once again cling to her leg-this was truly baffling.

Raina pressed her forehead and said sincerely, "If I told you I'm a doctor, would you believe me?"

That doctor identity was probably going to come out eventually.

Leif was stunned for a moment. "A doctor?"

Because of Gale's condition, he had ordered his men to search for famous doctors everywhere. But most so-called experts were frauds and useless.

Yet, he had never heard of Raina's name or seen any photo of her.

Was she hiding her skills, or was she just a con artist?

Raina didn't know what Leif was thinking. Calmly, she said, "Believe it or not, your son isn't doing well right now. If you don't want him to have an accident, I suggest you lay him flat. Let me examine him."

Leif looked down at his son in his arms. Gale was indeed acting very strangely today, and his condition was unclear. Since she immediately diagnosed poisoning, maybe she wasn't a fraud after all.

His men probably wouldn't arrive for a while. If they delayed any longer and something happened to Gale...

Without hesitation, Leif said, "Alright."

Raina: "..."

He agreed just like that?

She had thought he would refuse or at least doubt her. But to her surprise, he didn't hesitate and accepted immediately.

A few minutes later.

On the top floor, the presidential suite.

The moment Raina stepped out of the elevator, the corner of her brow twitched slightly.

There were only two presidential suites on the top floor. She stayed in the one on the right. Unexpectedly, Leif was staying in the one on the left.

But soon she noticed that although both were presidential suites, Leif's was much more spacious. Outside his room was even a private pool-and... a vegetable garden?!

Growing vegetables in a hotel presidential suite where every inch of space is precious?

This must be what they mean when they say rich people's brains don't quite work right.

Meanwhile, Leif had settled Gale on the sofa. Gale was still unconscious, but even so, his delicate, carved-like face was scrunched up in pain, looking both vulnerable and pitiful.

Raina pulled back her gaze and casually sat down on the sofa, raising a hand to check Gale's pulse.

Leif sat rigidly on the nearby sofa, his eyes fixed unwaveringly on Raina.

After a long moment, Raina withdrew her hand, her expression dark and difficult to read as she looked at Gale's face.

Finally, she spoke hoarsely, "The toxins in this child's body were passed down from the mother..."

She paused, took a deep breath, and pronounced slowly and clearly, "Have you ever heard of the most sinister poison-'Velvet Mercy'?"

From Gale's loss of control earlier, she had her suspicions. Now after checking his pulse, she was certain.

But "Velvet Mercy" was an extremely rare poison, very hard to implant. As its name suggests, it was the deadliest poison of all, but not concentrated or obvious at first. If carefully controlled, the early stages were nearly undetectable. But once it spread deeply into the blood and body, there was no cure.

And yet, Raina had seen it once-this poison on a child.

Leif's back stiffened slightly. His long fingers tapped the armrest irregularly, his gaze darkening.

After a long silence, he said as calmly as he could, "I've heard of it... Do you know how to cure it?"

The poison was notoriously tricky and required long experimentation to identify the exact type used by the poisoner. One mistake could mean no effect-or worse, speed up the poison's spread.

Since Gale's birth, when the poison was detected, Leif had been desperately seeking a cure.

But "Velvet Mercy" was harder to plant and even harder to cure, especially since it came from the mother's body.

This made Leif hate Gale's unknown mother all the more.

Raina said, "I know how. But curing it takes time, and..."

For years, Leif had consulted countless doctors, only to hear the same answer-no cure.

He was already resigned to this fate and had just asked out of habit. He hadn't expected Raina to actually know how to treat it.

Even if it was only a slim hope, he wasn't willing to miss it.

Leif's eyes widened a little, and his voice trembled slightly, even without his own awareness, "And... what else?"

Raina smiled faintly and said calmly, "I charge quite a lot. For a poison like 'Velvet Mercy,' the price starts here-"

She held up five fingers.

A glimmer flashed in Leif's eyes. "And if you fail..."

Raina smiled again, confident, "Failure is not in my dictionary. But there is one condition... Well, it's nothing difficult."

Leif asked, "What condition?"

Raina lifted her eyes and looked at Leif. "Oh, nothing much. Just wanted to ask-have you been staying here recently? Or, where exactly do you live?"

Her words hung in the room, creating an odd silence.

On the side, Rael rolled his eyes, thinking: 'So much for not being a con artist-it turns out she just wants to get close to Leif! Leif, don't be fooled by this charlatan!'

"This is your condition?" Leif asked.

Raina, clueless about his meaning, repeated, "My condition?"

The next second, Leif said coldly, "You've been following me on purpose, using Gale to get close to me. I don't know what tricks you used to make Gale act differently toward you than others, but it doesn't matter. If you can really cure Gale's poisoning, I'll accept you-become my girlfriend."

Raina's mouth twitched sharply, nearly spitting blood in shock.

"...Sir, are you out of your mind?"

***