Chapter 27
Narissa thought, ‘Orsin City, Zobrioca. Waylen Auction House.
“If these few keywords lined up, then no matter how many ways I tried to explain I wasn’t Fox, Bastien would never believe
- me.
‘Damn it. He really pulled this move on me!’
“Narissa was found in…” Hector began with a smile.
Narissa’s hand, resting loosely at her side, had already reached the shape of the knife handle.
Right at the critical moment, Amanda suddenly looped her arm through her husband’s and said warmly, “Narissa was brought back from Velmora.
“Poor girl, she’s had it tough–been away from home for so many years. When we found her, she was doing hard labor.”
Hector immediately nodded in agreement. “Exactly. When we found her, she was even skinnier than she is now. Broke our hearts, truly.”
“Velmora, huh?” Bastien finally moved his gaze away from Narissa. Judging by his reaction, this time, the suspicion truly faded.
Clearly, Narissa had already spoken with her parents beforehand, making sure they wouldn’t mention anything about finding her at the Waylen Auction House in Orsin City.
Narissa didn’t want anyone digging into her past. And back then, Hector and Amanda had shown complete understanding.
But Narissa had still made extra preparations, just in case they let something slip. Fortunately, her parents remembered everything she told them.
After that round of probing, Bastien soon furrowed his brows, turned around, and left without another word.
Watching him walk away with her own eyes, Narissa curved her lips into a small arc. She thought, “This round goes to me. A narrow win, but still a win.
‘So what if he’s the War God of Rothialand’s military district? He’s just been toyed with in the palm of an intel officer’s hand from the Military Intelligence Office.‘
The party carried on smoothly, and Bastien’s appearance only made the event more impressive–adding both weight and face to the Everton family’s celebration.
Once he left, the guests around began to relax again, resuming their scattered small talk and laughter.
“Hey, Narissa.” Jaylen walked over with a few of his friends, all smiling.
Each of them carried a gift box, clearly having just arrived.
Narissa gave them a casual nod–not too warm, not too cold–a silent greeting.
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Chapter 27
Jaylen grinned. “We came especially for your welcome party. Not bad, right? We meant to show up earlier, just got held up. You didn’t get bullied or anything, did you?”
The so–called welcome party sounded nice on paper, but those born into high society knew how it really worked.
These kinds of parties often turned into power plays, and the weaker ones usually ended up getting stepped on.
Narissa had only just returned to the Everton family. She probably wasn’t used to handling all the hidden daggers and coded
games.
That’s why Jaylen and his group had made a point to come–just to show some support and help give her a bit of presence.
Across the room, Cressida nearly bit through her lip when she saw Jaylen talking to Narissa like they were close.
Cressida thought, ‘When do they even get this close? I can’t figure it out.
‘Narissa has barely been back a few days. Yet no matter how I tried to get close to Jaylen, he’s always stayed lukewarm at best.
‘And now? Just a few days, and he’s already chatting and laughing with Narissa like they’ve known each other for years?
‘It isn’t just Jaylen either–his usually aloof friends are also being polite and friendly with her. As if that isn’t enough, they even bring gifts.”‘
When Jaylen and his friend handed the gifts to Narissa, Cressida was burning with jealousy.
“Hey, Cressida, what’s going on?” her bestie, Miranda, asked from the side. “Since when did your sister get that close to Jaylen Presley? They seem really tight.”
Cressida clenched her fists and snapped, “How would I know?”
Egged on by his buddies, Jaylen scratched his head awkwardly. “Narissa, you mind taking a walk in the garden with me? There’s something I wanna talk to you about–just us.”
It was a simple invitation, but to everyone else watching, it felt more like a date request.
“Are they actually into each other?” Miranda muttered, visibly shocked. “Narissa’s got skills.”
