2026-03-25 18:17:27Cassian slowly turned when he heard the mocking voice and immediately saw Fiona walking toward him like she was stepping onto a stage prepared just for her.
She was dressed in a glittering silver gown that hugged her figure tightly, chin lifted high with the confidence of someone who believed tonight belonged to her.
Her hand was wrapped possessively around the arm of a tall young man in a designer suit who looked like he had spent more time perfecting his hairstyle than understanding business. The two of them walked together with matching arrogant smiles, as if they had already decided who deserved to exist in this hall and who didn’t.
Cassian’s eyes swept over them lazily.
“Well,” Cassian said lazily, “you upgraded fast. I see the replacement model comes with built-in confidence and factory-installed stupidity.”
Fiona’s smile twitched.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded coldly.
Cassian shrugged. “Breathing. Walking. Existing. None of which require your permission. Now move aside, you’re blocking the scenery.”
Her expression darkened.
“You don’t belong here,” she said. “This is a banquet for elites. Not a reunion for unemployed househusbands.”
Several nearby guests began to turn subtly, sensing tension and whispers spread quickly around.
Cassian tilted his head.
“Strange,” he replied. “I was just thinking the same. Why are you still here? Didn’t we finish our conversation this afternoon?”
Fiona let out a sharp laugh filled with pure contempt.
“You really have no shame,” she said. “Do you think standing here will make you look important? You were nothing in my house and you’re still nothing outside it.”
Zora watched the whole exchange with interest and from the short time she'd known her new husband, one thing was certain, he has a foul mouth and he never runs out of what to say... and the bonus, he's sarcastic and might never lose in wars that involve roasting one.
"If you are here for the money, then it's too late, I'm done with trash like you."
She tightened her hold on the man beside her and pulled him forward proudly.
“This,” she announced loudly, “is Young Master Leon Hartley of the Hartley Financial Family. The one who helped me secure the Skyline Dominion Strategic Contract. The one who arranged tonight’s banquet.”
A ripple moved through the crowd.
The Hartley family name carried weight. Banks listened when they spoke. Some investment boards trembled when they moved. Leon immediately straightened his back even more, clearly enjoying the attention.
“That’s right,” he said smugly. “Miss Fiona has talent. I simply recognized it before others did.”
Cassian raised his brows slowly.
“Are you… absolutely sure he secured the contract for you?” he asked.
Fiona scoffed loudly. “What kind of stupid question is that? Of course I’m sure. Without Young Master Hartley, do you think someone like me would be standing here tonight?”
Leon smirked. “Some people should know their limits. Big projects are not decided by washing machines and grocery lists.”
A few people chuckled and Cassian stared at him quietly for a moment then he nodded thoughtfully.
“Incredible,” he murmured. “So you’re telling me the entire Skyline Dominion Group personally handed you a billion-level development contract because they were impressed by your jawline?”
A louder wave of laughter spread through the surrounding guests and Leon’s face tightened while Fiona’s expression turned ugly.
“You’re just jealous,” she snapped. “You wasted three years of my life and now you can’t stand seeing me succeed.”
Cassian smiled faintly.
“No,” he said. “I’m fascinated. I spent years building a stage and today I finally got to meet the clown performing on it.”
Beside him, Zora suddenly covered her mouth but a sound escaped anyway.
A sharp, uncontrollable laugh.
She tried to stop herself but her shoulders shook slightly as she turned her face away. The more she tried to hold it in, the worse it became.
Fiona’s eyes widened with rage.
“Why are you laughing?” she demanded.
Zora looked back at her calmly, her expression almost polite.
“I was just thinking,” she said lightly, “I have attended many banquets in this city. But I have never seen someone this foolish in real life before. It’s educational and refreshing”
Leon’s face flushed red.
“Who do you think you are?” he snapped."You are asking for trouble. "
Fiona immediately raised her hand and signaled the guards nearby.
“Throw them out,” she ordered coldly. “Both of them. This instant.”
Several guards began moving toward Cassian and Zora. Guests stepped back to watch openly now, sensing a dramatic scene unfolding. Phones were subtly raised and whispers grew louder.
Cassian suddenly laughed though not loudly but enough to make the approaching guards slow down.
“If I’m kicked out,” he said calmly, “this banquet won’t hold.”
The guards hesitated.
Fiona scoffed. “Stop bluffing. Seriously, you're just a lovebrain dog I fed for years, stop thinking you are some big shot here cause you are not.”
Cassian slipped his hands into his pockets and looked around the grand hall lazily.
“You won’t sign that precious contract tonight” he continued. “The one your new lover… hmm… what should I call him…”
He looked Leon up and down thoughtfully.
“Young Master Sponsorship?”
The crowd chuckled but they immediately hid for fear of being discovered and marked.
Leon’s fists clenched and Fiona’s nails dug into his arm.
Cassian smiled faintly.
“Because the moment I leave,” he added quietly, “everything you’re celebrating here will collapse.”
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Chapter 91
Chapter 91: Five Million for JunkThe first thing on stage was a painting.It was brought out by two attendants wearing white gloves, carried with the kind of solemn care that immediately made several guests sit a little straighter. The frame was old, carved in dark wood with faint gold lining along its edges, while the painting itself showed a misty mountain landscape with a lone pavilion half-hidden beneath pale clouds. St first glance, it had the quiet charm of an antique piece, the brushwork delicate, the colors aged enough to look valuable, and the entire thing carried that vague old-world feeling collectors often liked to romanticize. The auctioneer began introducing it with a polished voice, speaking of its supposed origin, the artist’s rumored connection to a forgotten scholar, and the careful preservation done over the years, yet Cassian only glanced at it once before his interest faded.Jackson, however, sat forward.His eyes brightened as he looked at the painting, and f
Chapter 90
Chapter 90: Between Two WomenSensing the subtle tension building between the two women, and unwilling to let it stretch any further, Cassian smoothly cut in.He had been quiet long enough to let both of them test the air around each other, but not long enough for the silence to become a blade. Zora’s smile was still polite, yet Cassian could feel the suspicion tucked beneath it, sharp and controlled, while Miranda’s composure was too deliberate to be natural. Both women were intelligent and used to reading people, and neither of them liked being placed in a situation where the truth sat close enough to touch but not openly enough to confront. If he allowed them to keep staring at each other like that, the auction might start before either of them stepped into the hall, and somehow, he would still be the one blamed for it.Cassian lifted his hand slightly and gestured toward the main hall. “The auction should be starting soon. We might as well find our seats.”His voice was calm and
Chapter 89
Chapter 89: RecognitionAs the commotion settled and the small crowd began drifting back toward the main hall, a new figure approached, drawing more than a few curious glances.The attention around Jackson and Damian had not disappeared completely, but it had loosened enough for the entrance of the auction house to regain its polished calm. Guests resumed their slow movement toward the hall, attendants guided people with professional smiles, and conversations returned in low voices, though a few eyes still lingered on the Harthwone brothers, Zora, and Cassian. In places like this, people rarely stared openly. They only looked through reflections, through half-turned faces, through the pauses between polite greetings. Everyone pretended not to notice trouble, but everyone remembered it.Then Miranda Ravencroft walked into that thin layer of attention.She wore a fitted outfit that balanced elegance with authority, the sort of style that did not beg to be admired but still made people
Chapter 88
Chapter 88: A Warning in PublicBefore Jackson could answer, another voice called out from behind him, tense and urgent.“Jackson.”The voice was not loud, but it carried enough weight to cut through the small noise gathering around them. Jackson’s smirk paused before it could fully settle on his face, and the few people flanking him also turned slightly, their expressions shifting with the kind of cautious respect people showed when someone more important had arrived. Damian stepped forward quickly from behind him, his pace controlled but a little too fast to be called casual, and though his face was carefully blank, the sharpness in his eyes made it clear he had not come over to join the provocation.“Stop causing trouble,” Damian said.Jackson’s expression changed immediately. “Brother?”Damian did not look at Cassian for too long. He allowed his gaze to pass over him once, briefly and calmly, as if Cassian was nothing more than another guest standing beside Zora at the auction h
Chapter 87
Chapter 87: His Brother Is BackThe following day, they arrived at the auction house together.The building stood tall at the center of a quieter business district, its glass front reflecting the pale morning light while polished black cars rolled up one after another before the entrance. It was not the kind of place that needed loud banners or exaggerated decorations to prove its value. Everything about it spoke in a lower voice, from the clean stone steps to the discreet security at the doors, from the attendants in matching uniforms to the guests who stepped out of their cars with the calm certainty of people used to entering places ordinary men only heard about afterward. The wealth here was restrained, but it was everywhere. In the watches hidden beneath sleeves, in the soft shine of tailored suits, in the brief nods exchanged between men whose businesses crossed in public and clashed in private, in the way even laughter was kept at a polite volume.Zora walked a step ahead, el
Chapter 86
Chapter 86: The Auction TomorrowBack at the estate, Zora was waiting by the door when Cassian strolled in.She stood beneath the soft light of the entrance hall with her arms crossed, one eyebrow raised, and the kind of stillness that made it clear she had been standing there for more than a minute. Ahe was not panicking, not exactly, but her expression carried that familiar edge between curiosity and suspicion, the one she always wore whenever Cassian disappeared for longer than expected and returned looking as if nothing in the world had happened. The estate behind her was quiet, servants already moving carefully through the deeper parts of the house, but the front hall felt strangely focused around her, as if the entire place had been waiting for Cassian to step through the door.Cassian paused for half a breath when he saw her, then continued walking in like this was completely normal.Zora’s eyes followed him. “Where have you been?”Her voice was calm, but not soft. It had tha
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