Chapter 016: No Longer Boring

"Big cousin, why are you down here?" Zelda asked, then added warily, "You aren't here to nag me to go home again, are you? Don't you dare. I'm with Sera today. Even if Mom and Dad find out, they won't say a word. In fact, they’d tell me to stay out longer!"

"Besides, with Sera here, we won't stay late anyway."

It wasn't that Zelda was afraid of Harvey, but she was tired of being nagged at home and didn't want to hear it while out. Harvey shot her a look of disdain. "Who's bothered about you?"

"Good." Zelda stepped forward and took Seraphina’s arm. "Then Sera and I are heading up. You go deal with whatever you need to do, cousin. We won't keep you." She pulled Seraphina toward the elevator.

Harvey had already stepped out. "Wait!" He reached out to block the closing doors and stepped back inside.

"Wait, why are you coming back up? Did you come down just to welcome us?"

"I had something to handle, but seeing you here, I’ll put it aside. Zelda, you're an old pro at The Dawn; you're fine. But Miss Pierce is different. She rarely comes out, and many people don't recognize her. There are bound to be some blind fools trying to cause trouble."

As the elevator doors closed, Harvey shot a pointed, meaningful look at Lucien Lu, who was still standing nearby. Harvey’s voice wasn't quiet; everyone present, including Lucien, heard him clearly.

A hush fell over the lobby. Lucien felt even more uncomfortable, but he didn't dare offend Harvey Zale. In his view, Solas was just a self-made man with no roots, but Harvey was the heir to the Zale family. Their status in Seahaven was untouchable. He could never understand why someone of Harvey’s status always hung around Solas.

They had been in the same class in high school. Lucien had tried to befriend Harvey, but Harvey had always ignored him while practically chasing after Solas.

Indeed, Solas and I are naturally incompatible!

Despite his anger and the strange looks from the crowd, Lucien didn't leave immediately. He didn't have a membership card—or rather, he wasn't qualified to have one. He had borrowed it from his uncle. Most of the people he invited today were potential business partners he wanted to win over. Even if some now looked at him with judgment, he didn't want this trip to be a waste. He needed them to owe him a favor for bringing them to The Dawn.

Inside the rising elevator, Harvey looked at Seraphina with an inquisitive gaze. He asked Zelda, "Is it just the two of you, or are you meeting others?"

He had always wanted to matchmake them, but he never expected Solas to actually take the bait.

I guess Seraphina Pierce really is as exceptional as the elders say,

he thought.

Even that old iron tree, Solas, is finally blooming.

Harvey wasn't a playboy, but he’d had his share of girlfriends over the years. Solas, however, had never had a woman around him, nor had he ever expressed interest in anyone—male or female. He simply seemed disinterested in humanity. This was a rare development.

"We invited Finnian Foster, but he's busy and couldn't make it. I didn't want to invite those noisy socialites who would bother Sera, so it's just us."

"Since it's just the two of you, don't bother with a separate suite. Join me. It’s not safe for two girls alone at night." Harvey paused, then looked at Zelda. "I'm not talking about you. With your looks, you're perfectly safe!"

"..." Zelda wanted to punch him. She was about to snap back when she noticed Seraphina. Seraphina’s expression hadn't changed—she was as elegant and quiet as ever—but Zelda felt something was off. She couldn't put her finger on it.

Suddenly remembering the scene at the entrance, Zelda’s eyes lit up. She ignored Harvey’s jab and said directly, "Why would we join you? We don't know your rowdy friends. Actually, cousin, of all the people you know, only that Mr. Sterling from J-H seems decent enough to befriend. The rest... forget it."

"Is Mr. Sterling here?"

"If he is, Sera and I will go over. After all, he’s someone Uncle Quentin likes and someone our Sera has actually sat down with for a blind date. I really want to meet him and see how exceptional a man chosen by Uncle Quentin is. If he’s good enough, maybe I’ll even put in a good word for him to Sera. You know I’m Sera’s best friend in Seahaven; my opinion carries weight with her."

Zelda finished and suddenly met Seraphina’s dark, unreadable eyes. "..."

Why does Sera's gaze feel a bit scary?

She hadn't said anything wrong, had she? Sera was clearly interested in Solas—so why the glare?

Seraphina’s gaze was "scary" because Zelda had completely misread her intentions. Her feelings for Solas weren't

that

kind of interest. Well, she had intentionally misled Zelda and others initially, so she couldn't entirely blame her. But being misunderstood this way felt... strange. It wasn't a feeling of dislike; she just felt an indescribable sense of oddity.

Harvey watched Seraphina’s reaction while listening to Zelda.

She doesn't seem to like the mention of the blind date? But that's not how she acted at the mall today. Is she just being shy in front of friends?

It was getting complicated.

However, Zelda’s point was valid. Her influence on Seraphina was significant. It was a pity, though.

"Then I'm afraid you'll be disappointed," Harvey said. "Solas isn't here. He went to the Capital on business and won't be back for a while."

At those words, Seraphina’s lashes fluttered down as she remained silent.

"Oh, he's not here!" Zelda said with disappointment. Seeing that Seraphina didn't seem particularly interested in the topic anymore, Zelda didn't push it. "In that case, I'll still take a separate suite. Sera and I will play for a bit and then head home. You go on and do your own thing, cousin."

Zelda pulled Seraphina away the moment the elevator opened, not giving Harvey a chance to argue. Harvey watched them walk down the hall and shook his head.

Well, it's just the two of them; no shady characters around, they should be fine.

He pulled out his phone. "I've picked her up."

"What could happen? She's perfectly fine! I say, Solas, you're so anxious—have you really taken a liking to the eldest Miss Pierce?"

There was a long silence on the other end. Harvey sighed, "Fine, keep your secrets, stingy!"

"Lucien Lu? Hah!" Harvey cold-snorted. "Solas, when you get back from the Capital, give him a proper lesson. He doesn't know his place. It’s bad enough he keeps trying to prove himself in front of you, but he actually dared to hit on Miss Pierce? He's delusional!"

"I'm not saying this for her sake—we're just acquaintances. But anyone with eyes can see that Lucien hitting on her is 90% about you. Your blind date wasn't exactly a secret. I don't want him bothering her because of you; it’ll give the Pierce family a bad impression of you."

"I know, I’ll keep an eye out. Don't worry, I'll protect her until you get back. Tsk tsk, Solas, I never thought you’d actually..."

Beep... beep... beep...

The call was disconnected. Harvey stared at his phone. "Talk about burning the bridge after crossing it!" He wasn't truly angry; Solas rarely hung up while he was speaking unless he was genuinely annoyed by Harvey’s constant chattering. But Harvey would never admit he was being a gossip.

Seraphina and Zelda didn't stay long; they headed home by ten.

In the following days, because Solas was away and no one was looking for trouble, Seraphina’s life returned to its peaceful rhythm. Aside from occasionally accompanying Xenia Pierce to small social gatherings, she mostly stayed at home. Even Zelda didn't bother her.

The clothing designs Seraphina had provided had sent Zelda into a work-frenzy. Zelda planned to produce the outfits within a month and organize a high-budget fashion show to launch Seraphina's name into the fashion world.

Seraphina didn't object; she simply offered to cover all the costs and left the rest to Zelda. This made Zelda’s eyes shine with even more fervor.

A week passed in a flash. Then came the news: Silas Pierce and Sylvia Foster were back.

When Seraphina heard the news, she was in the garden pruning plants. With a sharp

snip

, she accidentally pruned a small tree bald.

Leo Pierce, who brought the news, jumped in fright. "Sis, you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said, calmly retracting the shears. "Just a bit excited to hear that Uncle Silas and Auntie Sylvia are back. My hand slipped."

Excited? Indeed. She had been waiting nearly half a month for this day.

It’s good they’re back. Now, life won't be boring anymore!