Chapter 213: This is Power
[Young Residence]
Melissa sat at the vanity mirror, looking increasingly frustrated. It was still early, but she had already tried on a few clothes in front of the mirror. Yet, she was not happy at all.
"Hah!" she huffed, recalling the style Lola had worn yesterday.
A plain dress that reached down to her knees—quite conservative, but not too outdated. She paired it with minimal jewelry: a thin necklace, one bracelet, and just a ring on her finger. To complete her look, she wore simple stilettos that matched the color of her bag.
"Tch!" Melissa hurried back to her closet and browsed through the countless dresses on the rack. After several minutes, she stood in front of the full-length mirror once more.
It was a plain dress in a light color, almost the same as Lola’s.
"Isn’t this a bit too long?" she wondered aloud, eyes falling on her knees, hidden beneath the skirt.
As far as she could remember, that woman didn’t even show her knees. Yet, why did the dress look so good on her, while Melissa looked a little... smaller?
"Maybe because I’m not used to it," she told herself, nodding. "Or maybe I just haven’t done my hair and makeup yet."
With that thought, Melissa quickly returned to the vanity mirror to do her makeup. Although her style often made her look reserved, Melissa still liked to add a modern touch or wear a shorter skirt to flaunt her flawless legs.
Who wouldn’t like a reserved woman who showed a bit of skin, right?
So, this new style she was trying on was probably why she felt it wouldn’t suit her. Drowning in her thoughts while dolling up, Melissa suddenly paused.
"I can’t get it out of my head," she clicked her tongue in irritation. "That woman..."
She clenched her teeth, hissing at the thought. "Lola is almost out of the picture, and now I have to put up with someone like that."
She might’ve smiled in front of Mrs. Bennet, but there was nothing about her that Melissa liked. Not her style, not her face, not even the way she talked. For her, that woman was lucky to be married to a man from a rich family.
"She’s not that much better than me," she told herself, huffing. "We’re the same age. How could she—"
Another scoff escaped her, now revealing the real reason she was so unhappy with Mrs. Bennet. They were the same age, but even Jasmine had to curry favor with this woman. But most importantly, that woman’s life... was exactly what Melissa had been aiming to have.
Ding!
Amid her thoughts, her brows rose as her phone lit up in the corner of her eye. She turned her head slowly, catching the constant notifications. Curious, Melissa sauntered toward it and picked it up, checking the messages.
"Huh?" she whispered, scrolling through messages from different social platforms.
Some were from people she hadn’t even spoken to, or completely new people who would normally ignore her. Now, all these people were reaching out because...
"How did they find out about our lunch and shopping date with Mrs. Bennet?" She wondered, biting her lip as the answer came to her quickly.
Jasmine.
Surely, Jasmine hadn’t wasted time telling her friends about her day with that woman. And since Jasmine’s friends had loud mouths, the news quickly spread from one person to another.
But then Melissa noticed one message among all these countless notifications.
Celestine Lancaster.
Derek’s aunt, known for her elegance and influence among the madams and young madams in Novera. The message read:
[From: Celestine Lancaster
Melissa, this is Celestine, Derek’s Auntie. What do you think of attending our next tea party in a few days?]
Melissa’s mouth fell open as she stared at the message, reading it at least three times just to make sure she hadn’t misread it. Even the sixth read didn’t change anything.
"Hah!" Her face brightened as she stared at it. "They want me... was it because they already heard that I’m an acquaintance of Mrs. Bennet?"
The corners of Melissa’s mouth lifted. Her initial irritation toward Lola slowly faded.
"Mom is right, after all," she whispered, reading the message again. "A strong connection will expand your network."
This was power.
Melissa got rid of any lingering negativity toward Mrs. Bennet; that woman had served her purpose. That investment in shopping yesterday? Nothing compared to this.
A loud squeal escaped her as she jumped onto the bed in glee. She held her phone up, staring at the message with a wide smile stretching from ear to ear.
DING!
Her joy halted for a moment when another message appeared—this time from Manager Kang.
[From: Manager Kang
Melissa, it’s done. You can check the article later.]
Her brows rose as her smile widened, now tinged with malice. "I think everything is going to go my way again."
"Lola Young, you can try to get rid of me... but you’re no match for me," she chuckled. "The only thing you have is your hand, the one that drew Angel’s Revenge."
Melissa pressed her lips together, slowly placing a finger on her chin as she thought.
"What if... Angel’s Revenge is the last thing she’ll ever make?" she asked herself, covering her mouth with the back of her hand as she giggled. "Without that hand... she’s nothing... right?"
A glint flickered across her eyes. She meant, what was the point of cashing a big check from the film Angel’s Revenge if she couldn’t enjoy it? Or worse... if it went to hospital bills?
Melissa licked her lips. "I’ll deal with her later for sure. She’s been very annoying."
Had it not been for Lola, Melissa was certain she wouldn’t need to go to such extremes. But Lola had tried to mess with her, so it was only right to retaliate.
*****
Meanwhile...
"What’s wrong with the two of you?" Haji stopped in the gym, spotting Silo and Cedrick seated in one of the chairs. As they looked up at him, his brows knitted. "Why do you two look like the world just ended?"