"Still not willing to give up?" Catherine folded her arms and laughed mockingly. "Raven & Radiance is nothing more than a small jewelry brand."Her eyes swept over Iris disdainfully. "Those projects will be completely wasted in your hands."Victor's expression was equally ugly. His bruised face made him look especially sinister."Iris," His voice was cold. "Don't think that just because that useless husband of yours knows a little martial arts, you suddenly have someone to rely on."A sneer appeared on his face. "He's nothing more than a brute. Just a thug that could never compete with families like ours."Iris' expression gradually darkened. Her fingers tightened into fists.Nobody understood the Blackwell family better than she did.As long as they could benefit from something, they would stop at absolutely nothing to get it.Money, power, connections—they possessed all three. And worst of all... she had personally signed the transfer agreement.Even if she knew it was signed under

CRACK!It felt as though something inside Iris had shattered. The pain wasn't physical. It was far deeper than that.Her eyes reddened, more tears spilling over, but she stubbornly wiped them off."I regret it too!" she snapped. Her voice was hollow, yet filled with years of buried resentment."Out of all the men in this world, why did fate choose you to be my father?""You—!" Victor's face instantly darkened. His eyes widened with fury as he pointed at her. "How dare you talk back to me?!"He rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward aggressively. "I'll teach you a lesson today!"However, before he could make another move—"Enough!" Grandfather Blackwell's cold voice rang out. "Victor, stop wasting your time."The old man frowned impatiently. "We have more important matters to handle."Victor's expression twisted unwillingly. He clearly wanted to vent his anger, but in the end, he could only suppress it."Dad is right."The transfer of Cartier's projects was far more important.He sh

Angry tears shimmered in Iris' eyes. Her fingers curled tightly by her sides as old wounds she thought had long scarred over were ripped open once more.All her life, people had pointed fingers at her. They called her names. Mistress' daughter. Bastard child. An unwanted burden even her father didn't want.Even as a child, she had been isolated because of those labels. Other children avoided her. Adults whispered behind her back. No matter how hard she worked or how much she achieved, someone would always drag up the circumstances of her birth.As though she had chosen it. As though she had begged to be born.Her chest tightened painfully. Was this mark destined to follow her forever?No matter how hard she scrubbed, would it never disappear?Just as her heart was saddled with immense sadness—SMACK!SMACK!SMACK!Three crisp slaps echoed through the entrance. Catherine's shrill scream followed immediately."ARGHHHHHH!"Her head snapped from side to side as the force of the slaps ne

Only a handful of people within Cartier had ever met the Legendary Warlord face-to-face. Chairman Augustus Laurent had. His son, Vincent Laurent, had. And a few core executives at the very top of the company as well. As for everyone else? They only knew the title, the name and the legend. No one knew what the Legendary Warlord truly looked like. No one had seen him in person. Naturally, Harold Bennett belonged to that group. Despite working for Cartier for years, he had never met the man everyone revered. Yet Harold had always enjoyed acting superior. He enjoyed being admired. He enjoyed making others believe he had access to circles they could never enter. If word spread that he had never actually met the Legendary Warlord before, wouldn't that be humiliating? Besides, promotion was only a matter of time. Soon enough, he would become one of Cartier's top executives. When that day arrived, he would naturally meet the Legendary Warlord himself. Thinking of this, Haro

Just before Iris could finish her sentence, a sharp, resounding sound suddenly echoed through the entrance hall.SMACK!"HNGH!" A muffled groan escaped Harold Bennett's lips.Absolute silence followed. Everyone stood frozen in place, staring at the scene before them as though their minds had gone blank.Their eyes slowly shifted toward Olivia Jensen. Her raised hand, her icy expression, and the unmistakable red handprint blooming across Harold Bennett's face.For a moment, nobody could process what they had just witnessed.They had been waiting to see how Olivia would deal with Veyron.Instead... She had slapped Harold. The entire crowd looked utterly dumbfounded."What... what just happened?" One of the guards rubbed his eyes."Did Secretary Olivia hit Director Harold? Why would she do that?"The Blackwell family was equally stunned.Catherine's mouth hung open while Victor blinked repeatedly. Even Grandfather Blackwell's brows knitted together in confusion. Something wasn't right.