Chapter 223: Man of the Hour.
Meanwhile...
The tea party hosted by Celestine Lancaster was exactly as people said it would be. Like a true noble gathering, only the wealthiest madams and young ladies filled the large, glamorous greenhouse. Melissa quietly scanned the table, maintaining a polite smile as the conversation continued.
There were six ladies around the intricately set table, counting Melissa and Celestine. All except Melissa were married to influential men—either prominent businessmen or high-ranking government officials. For Melissa, this was unlike anything she had ever experienced before, and she quickly felt a strange sense of belonging.
"Right." One of the ladies cleared her throat, placing her teacup on the saucer with elegant precision. "Melissa, how are your preparations for your engagement party?"
All eyes turned to Melissa.
"Ah." Melissa smiled at them. "There are still a few things I’m getting done, but mostly, everything is ready."
"If you need any help, don’t hesitate to ask me," one of the ladies offered. "I might be able to assist."
"Absolutely," another chimed in. "When I got engaged, I asked for her help as well."
"She is the best!" a third added, stressing each word as if that alone would convince Melissa.
Celestine smiled at Melissa with serene elegance. "They’re not lying. She is the best and will recommend only the finest people to ensure your engagement party with Derek is truly exceptional."
"Thank you," Melissa said, her smile widening, cheeks flushing. "I’ll keep that in mind."
"By the way, we heard you went shopping with Mrs. Bennet from Anteca?" One of the ladies straightened suddenly. "To be fair, I was put on hold at Sun Couture because one of their VVIP clients called the head designer. I was surprised you managed to shop there when they’re not taking other client requests."
Melissa’s mouth formed a small "O" before she smiled. "Yes. She felt a little guilty and insisted on expediting my request with Sun Couture."
The ladies smiled in quiet satisfaction, though they already knew. The woman Melissa mentioned was in the same echelon as them—or perhaps slightly above. The gap wasn’t massive, but it was noticeable.
"No wonder you’ve been wearing MC Brand," Celestine pointed out, smiling.
Melissa bit her lip and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She had deliberately worn several MC Brand items, including her bag, to impress these ladies. So, of course, they noticed.
"I would be very impressed if she attends your engagement party," Celestine continued with a gentle smile. "Do you think you could invite her, Melissa?"
Melissa maintained her composed demeanor, having expected such questions. After all, she knew Celestine likely invited her to build a bridge with Mrs. Bennet.
Her smile stretched gracefully. "Mrs. Bennet said she would do her best, but she couldn’t promise. Her schedule is tight at the moment, but she said she’ll try."
The ladies accepted the answer with subtle smiles, knowing when to press and when to stop. A woman like Mrs. Bennet would naturally have limited availability. One of them added, though:
"I hope she can make it, Melissa. It would be interesting to meet her."
Melissa pursed her lips slightly, still smiling. As the conversation shifted, she noticed being left out occasionally, as no one tried to keep her in the loop. Until finally...
"I heard MC Brand will hold its first fashion show in Novera," one of the ladies remarked. "Melissa, do you think you could ask Mrs. Bennet if she has access to it?"
"I tried pulling some strings for us all, but to no avail," another replied. "The designer said only personal invitations will be sent."
"And each piece in the collection will only have one or two copies worldwide. If true, only items not sold at the show will later be released via bidding."
Melissa bit her inner lip, realizing she knew only a little about MC Brand’s plans. These details were all new to her.
A second later, all the ladies turned toward Melissa. She flinched slightly under their attention—but just then, her phone vibrated.
"Uhm." Melissa lifted her phone and saw Manager Kang’s name on the screen. She glanced back at the ladies and smiled, showing her screen. "I’m sorry, but I need to take this call."
"Don’t worry about us, Melissa," Celestine said with a nod. "We’ll be here. Take the call. It might be important."
Melissa excused herself and strode off to answer the phone. The ladies’ eyes followed her until she disappeared from their line of sight. Then, as they were exchanging looks, their expressions subtly shifted—enough to reveal their thoughts about having Melissa around.
"She’s not bad, I think?" one mused, glancing at Celestine. "No wonder Derek chose her over Lola Young."
Celestine merely smiled and shrugged. Her subtle reaction made the ladies raise their brows.
"Just be careful with her," Celestine finally said, picking up her teacup. "She may not be as bad as we thought, but she’s still the daughter of a mistress. Her mother conceived her while the late Loren was still alive, and that alone tells me what kind of woman raised her."
****
At the same time...
"What?" Melissa scoffed at Manager Kang’s remark. "What do you mean by that?"
Manager Kang sighed. "I don’t know either, but... I don’t think our plan worked."
Melissa’s shoulders tensed, eyes wide. Without a word, she hung up and checked his messages. Several had gone unnoticed. Clicking a link, her eyes dilated in shock.
"How... did this happen?" She muttered under her breath. "How could things change in a matter of hours?"
How could the internet, once united in bashing Cedrick, now be divided and arguing fiercely, with more and more people taking his side, all because of Slater? And Director Sarian’s public statement was simply the final straw, convincing everyone else.
She paled, lips parting as she read the most relevant comments. Then she checked a few other sites, just in case, but all she found was a fan video of today’s event. In the clip, a fan was being shoved out of the security line only to be caught by Cedrick.
Just like with any article about the man, it blew up instantly with more fans screaming at how gentle he looked.
"Impossible..." she blurted. "His name is everywhere at this point."
And she was not wrong because at the moment, Cedrick’s name or anything related to him was dominating the current trending charts. Calling the man a new nickname: The Rise of the Fallen Star.