The waiter was stunned, stammering, "B-but, Master Thornton, you were the one who stepped in front—"
"What did you say?" Gavin Thornton's eyes went cold. "A mere server makes a mistake and doesn't immediately try to fix it—and instead dares to argue with me?"
"I'll let it slide this time. Just give me the rest of the drinks, and go bring a fresh one. Now." Whatever submissiveness Gavin had shown in the lounge was clearly all for show—in front of the waiter, he was full-on tyrant. "Hurry up! The Young Duke is waiting!"
"Thank you, Master Gavin!" The poor server clearly didn't overthink it. He bowed quickly, handed over the tray, apologized profusely, and dashed toward the back.
As soon as the server was gone, Gavin waited a few beats, then placed the tray on a side shelf in the hallway. After confirming there was no one else around, he eagerly began to look around.
The setup was so blatant that Vivienne, hiding just out of view, instinctively pulled back the second he turned around.
Dude's got all the subtlety of a reality show villain.
She peeked again just in time to see him pull a small white paper packet from his pocket and tear it open…
Vivienne's expression turned complicated. Really? I run into this kind of crap again?
Gavin quickly poured the powder into a wine glass and gave it a hasty swirl
He wasn't stupid.
He knew Westley was messing with him—mocking him.
- Westley Roland dared to make a fool of him?
Just thinking about that smug jerk deliberately dragging things out, watching him grovel, made Gavin furious. His skull was practically steaming.
Just because he had a duke for a dad and a princess for a mom, he thought he could act like royalty?
Hmph!
Gavin's eyes burned with venom as he stared at the wineglass. So what if you're the duke's son?
In the face of this little something… everyone's equal. You'll be begging like a dog.
Vivienne clicked her tongue in awe. Now that's textbook villain behavior—doping edition.
Suddenly, Gavin paused. His wrist console blinked. He glanced down, then strode away, entering an empty lounge nearby. Before even closing the door, he picked up the call urgently. "What is it? The cameras are down…"
…
No one around.
Vivienne looked up. The hallway's mini surveillance camera was fixed at an angle that couldn't catch the shelf.
After a beat of hesitation, she decided—screw it. She had to see the show.
Vivienne walked over to the side shelf and leaned down to inspect the drugged glass of wine. She remembered the drinks in the lounge were assigned by seat. Judging by placement…
This one was meant for Westley.
A few faint white granules still floated near the bottom, slowly dissolving.
"Sloppy work, buddy."
"Let me do you a favor." The goblin in her heart grinned. "One good deed a day."
Though she'd heard about the cameras being shut off, she still didn't touch the glass directly. Instead, she pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket, wrapped it around her fingers, and carefully picked up the glass.
Gave it a little swirl. Mixed it evenly.
Spiking: complete.
Vivienne placed the swirled glass back onto the shelf.
One last thing.
She swiftly swapped the positions of two wineglasses.
Mission accomplished.
"What took you so long?" Leonard Liem teased as Vivienne walked back in. "Yshi, how was the damsel-saving? Did the little guy offer to marry you in return?"
Vivienne smiled, "…Nope."
Shawn Lin facepalmed. "…"
Yup.
She was back.
Vivienne had just wanted to make sure that packet of powder hadn't gone to waste. Until she saw someone drink it with her own eyes, she wasn't going to relax.
Wouldn't want Master Yshi's efforts to go unappreciated.
By the time the waiter returned with a new drink, Vivienne had re-entered the lounge barely a few seconds ahead of Gavin Thornton
Gavin glanced nervously in her direction. But seeing her completely calm, he pretended nothing was wrong and cheerfully helped distribute the drinks.
The drinks were, of course, given out based on seating.
Vivienne glanced up.
Just as she expected—Westley's seat had already been taken.
By none other than Nabila, who was now giggling beside him, chatting animatedly.
"Yshi, the lounge got a bit loud earlier and Westley couldn't hear well, so he let Nabila sit there," Shawn Lin explained, pointing to the only open seat left near the entrance. "Hope you don't mind?"
Vivienne, of course, did not. It was expected.
She was about to leave anyway. Didn't matter where she sat. If she could stand and just force Gavin to chug the drink, she would've gladly avoided this whole sit-stand dance.
But no such luck.
She shook her head and sat down. "I don't mind."
The glass she hadn't finished earlier was still sitting on the inside of the table, but no one seemed to notice it—let alone offer to bring it over to the "shy and reserved Yshi."
After all, "Ixchel" had only gotten into this elite drinking circle because of Westley's favor.
Now, anyone with half a brain could see that her meddling earlier had annoyed the Young Duke.
So the smart ones had already started isolating her.
One boy down? Another to take his place. The girl who overstepped? Invisible. The beauty-chasing rich kids kept on laughing and drinking like nothing had happened.
Interestingly, though, they weren't talking about the Zarathustra family anymore. Maybe they'd sobered up, or someone had warned them. Either way, not a single mention of Callum.
Leonard Liem, red-faced from drinking, leaned toward Vivienne again. "Yshi, that kid looked pretty innocent. Did he say anything to you?"
Low EQ and nosy. Leonard, your parents fearing your ambition makes perfect sense.
Vivienne offered a good-natured smile. "He said thank you."
"That's it? Didn't leave you his contact info or anything?"
The black-haired woman patiently replied, "No."
"Hahaha, I was thinking maybe—"
Shawn Lin quickly slapped a hand over Leonard's mouth and shoved him back into his seat. "He was drunk. Let him fade into oblivion."
Things were getting rowdy again. From his central seat, the blond young man lazily glanced over—his eyes briefly meeting Vivienne's calm gaze.
Westley gave her a slow smile. The kind done purely out of manner - A smile that never reached his eyes.
Then, he looked away again, focusing on the girl whispering beside him.
Hmm…
Vivienne thought: Kinda childish, Westley.
So what if people give you the cold shoulder?
Whatever.
Vivienne, unfazed, watched Gavin Thornton lift his glass of red wine.
Twist of the wrist. First sip down.
Half the glass was gone in one go.
Gavin hadn't noticed her gaze at all. His attention was locked on his real target—Westley.
He looked very tense.
Which was great news.
Leonard, don't say Yshi never did you any favors. Just wait—a show's about to start in here.
…
Mission accomplished.
Vivienne found an excuse and slipped out.
Three strikes and you're out.
This was Westley's third time running into Vivienne—and the first time he initiated a greeting.
It was also Vivienne's third time leaving the lounge—and she had zero plans of going back.
…
Light on her feet, she zigzagged through the halls and finally stepped onto the plush carpet of the exit lobby. Her mood lifted instantly, and a random quote popped into her head.
"When the job is done, I dust off my sleeves and vanish—fame and glory hidden away…"
Yeah, right.
She hadn't even made it to the front doors of the private venue when two large, black-suited bodyguards suddenly grabbed her.