A free dinner was certainly tempting for someone broke, but Vivienne Cross still turned it down.
Of course, the cryptic invitation reaffirmed one thing for her—her appearance was definitely a win.
Vivienne: I told you I don't look like leftover takeout. (〜￣▽￣)〜
However, Westley's invitation didn't exactly leave room for refusal.
The guy had the staff organize her inside and out, practically strong-arming her into one of the most visibly extravagant places she'd ever stepped into.
Vivienne suspected she'd just been sold.
Beyond the heavy, intricately carved wooden doors was a spacious foyer, every inch screaming refined luxury. A giant crystal chandelier hung from the high ceiling, casting a dazzling pattern of lights across the polished marble floor.
Guests in haute couture evening wear lounged or stood in groups, moving with graceful ease. Their conversations flowed, punctuated by bursts of delighted laughter.
Snippets of their chatter revealed in-depth takes on art, business, and politics.
Pretentious as hell.
Not everyone was formally dressed, though.
Like Vivienne.
And the group of young people nearby, all casually decked out—in designer labels, of course.
"Who's that Yshi girl?"
"No clue. Never seen her before, but word is…"
"Another heiress, maybe?"
…
Vivienne sat steadily in the booth.
Since I'm already here, might as well enjoy it.
Ever since she got dumped into this strange setting, people had been arriving one after another. All of them young, all of them chatty—painfully so. But Westley? Not a shadow.
She mulled it over. Maybe he's some big deal who likes making dramatic entrances…
But young people didn't wait for cues. They chattered about everything: elections, auctions—
"When are Jan Squire and Pike Anna finally getting engaged?"
Here we go again.
Vivienne's ears twitched.
"Why do you care so much about other people's business?"
"My parents are on my case! I told them everyone my age is still single—I can't be the only one diving headfirst into marriage hell. But looking around, those two are the only ones close."
"Nice try shifting the heat, but that plan's doomed."
"How so?"
"Jan isn't having it. Constantly at odds with his dad. My mom says Mrs. Squire ran off to Zone C for a vacation—classic case of 'out of sight, out of mind.'"
"What's he even mad about? Honestly, I think Pike Anna's pretty—"
"Don't even try to guess what's in that guy's head. LOL."
Clearly, tonight was Gossip Night.
The room was scented with a light trace of wine and mellow jazz. Vivienne bit into a mini mango mousse cake, vaguely satisfied. Not a total waste, after all.
"If you don't want to be pressured into marriage, stop bringing up Jan Squire. He's the classic problem child of our generation. I'll teach you a magic phrase my sister swears by—it works every time."
"Don't tease—spill!"
"Tell your parents your idol is His Highness the Crown Prince and you want to follow in his footsteps to build a career. If your idol's not getting married, neither are you."
"…that's such a bad plan!"
"Use your brain, babe. The Crown Prince is a guide like you, but he's the heir to the throne. There's no way he won't get married. Boom—your parents get hope. Then you just pretend to hustle at work or start a fake startup—whatever."
"My parents don't fear lazy kids. They fear ambitious ones."
"Well, wash yourself up and wait for a marriage alliance then." The girl rolled her eyes with exaggerated flair. "With your pea-brain? You wouldn't land a good one anyway."
"Huh? Did you forget who gifted you that Tiger Shark mech?"
"Tiger Shark?! You gave him that?! Who's your real bestie here, huh?!"
"C'mon, sis, don't be mad. I got something nice for your birthday too…"
"Not enough! I wanna see it tomorrow!"
"Guys, calm down! I'm seriously broke right now." The protest came with a dramatic prayer gesture. "If I had Young Duke money, I'd be throwing millions at auctions—buying Eternal Moment just for you to flex."
"Big talk. If you're rich, then I'm richer." Another voice sighed. "Young Duke's not even graduated and already running things. Financial freedom must be so sweet. Eternal Moment went for 47 million—jeez…"
Duke?
"You don't even need power if Grandpa's the Speaker. That's love enough. Nathan Pennington bid on Eternal Moment too, but lost to the Young Duke. I heard from Leighton Ray that he went home and trashed his room."
Speaker?
Vivienne internally screamed, What kind of high society mixer did Fate throw me into this time?
"You even know what's going on in the Speaker's family? Where do you get this gossip?"
"Believe it or not."
…
Vivienne sat silently, absorbing the not-so-secret secrets, nibbling her cake thoughtfully…
"Yshi?" A curious girl poked her head over. "Mind if we say hi? Did you come with the Young Duke?"
Cake—suddenly not that tasty.
Vivienne had zero interest in getting cozy with this chatty crowd. Behind their buzz was basically an open-mic gossip sesh—everyone tossing out juicy tidbits as if auditioning for a drama.
The nobleman who brought her here still hadn't shown up…
She was about to throw out a polite deflection—when someone stepped up to the podium. The lights dimmed, a spotlight hit center stage.
The girl beside her puffed her cheeks and gave Vivienne a knowing wink, clearly planning to catch up later.
The host of the art exhibit, Librena, was a tall woman with chestnut hair and striking red eyes. Her fishtail gown hugged her silhouette as she took the stage—and even teared up while speaking.
"…Thank you all so much for coming… It's because of the hard work and careful planning of our team that this exhibit could be a success…"
Meanwhile, Vivienne took advantage of the distraction to search some keywords on her terminal: Westley, Young Duke…
Bingo. Westley Roland's profile popped right up.
He really is the Young Duke.
You little snake.
Vivienne silently put her terminal down and looked up, scanning the front rows near the stage. She wasn't at all surprised to spot a familiar figure right up front.
Contrary to what she expected, everyone around Westley had gone up to say a few words—but he hadn't budged.
…
As soon as the speeches ended, the blond young man cut through the crowd and made his way over. A smile tugged at his lips.
"Yshi. There you are."
"Young Duke?" The girl who'd tried to introduce herself blinked. "So you were with him!"
"Mhm." Westley came to stand beside Vivienne, towering over her by a head. He raised an arm lightly around her shoulders. "Mind if we join you?"
"Getting handsy already?"
Vivienne couldn't figure out his angle. He couldn't possibly have taken a genuine liking to a stranger he'd only met once, right?
But since he was a pretty guide, and his hand wasn't actually touching her, she offered a polite smile and decided to watch the show unfold.
The others, seeing Westley so close with Yshi, had mixed reactions.
"Of course not!" The same guy who'd been whining about being broke looked thrilled. "We were just heading to a private lounge."
A whole crowd migrated over to the lounge.
"Long time since you hung out with us."
Westley gave a soft "Mm," and said, "Been busy."
"Understandable. Young and successful—what a combo, Young Duke."
Someone else asked, "Where've you been, Gavin Thornton? Haven't seen you in like three months. Gone all Zen on us?"
Vivienne suddenly noticed a brown-haired guy trailing closely behind Westley. He looked pale and tired, with bruised shadows under his eyes. He let out a soft cough and muttered hoarsely, "Business trip."
…
"Yshi." Westley took his seat. He raised a hand, gesturing to the seat next to him with a confident smile. "Sit here."
—right next to him.
No one else said a word.
Vivienne squinted. Westley had taken the host's seat, and the one next to him clearly wasn't for just anyone. But since he'd invited her—
Why say no?
You don't crash a party just to play it safe.
Vivienne accepted the seat with a flourish.