Chapter 46: The Second Young Miss North

Seeing Jasmine’s look—one that suggested she would never agree to cancel the engagement—Seren Thorne knew they would likely be talking for quite a while, so she agreed to wait.

The North family’s tea room was on the first floor. Seren and Alaric Vane followed a maid toward it. Along the way, Seren had to exert a great deal of effort to finally pry Alaric’s hand off her body.

Finally escaping his "clutches," she instinctively sidestepped to keep her distance from Alaric and shot him a secret glare.

Noticing the resentment in her eyes, Alaric’s lips curled slightly, but he didn't pull her back.

The maid led them to the tea room, brewed tea for them, and then departed.

Seren felt uneasy just looking at Alaric’s face. As soon as she sat down, she used the "bathroom excuse" to slip away, wanting to avoid being provoked by the dog man’s words again.

The Norths lived in a manor villa with a decoration style very close to Nordic, covering a massive area. Seren took several twists and turns for a few minutes before she finally located the bathroom.

However, before she could push the door open, she heard the crisp sound of a slap ringing out from inside.

Seren paused. Then, she heard a woman’s low-voiced cursing from within: "You little wench! Are you trying to fool me on purpose?

"You’re the Eldest Young Miss of the North family. How could you possibly not even have two million? Giving me two hundred thousand... are you treating me like a beggar?

"I’m giving you until the end of the week to get the money together, or else you’ll have a bitter fruit to eat!"

The woman inside finished her vicious cursing and pulled the door open to walk out. She was startled to see Seren standing at the entrance.

The woman was the private tutor the North family had hired for the Second Young Miss. She didn't recognize Seren, and seeing that Seren’s outfit only looked worth a few hundred dollars, her panicked heart instantly settled.

"Are you a new maid in the villa? Why are you wandering around instead of working this morning? Get back to your station immediately, or I’ll report you to Young Master North!"

Recently, Alaric had replaced all of Seren’s clothes with ordinary styles worth a few hundred yuan. Seren had never been demanding about clothing—as long as it was pleasing to the eye and comfortable, it was fine—so even after she had money, she hadn't bothered to buy expensive replacements.

Seeing Seren’s cheap clothes, Ms. Dan naturally assumed she was a maid of the house.

Seren ignored the throwing-a-fit woman. Her gaze moved past her to fall on the trembling teenage girl standing in the bathroom.

The girl looked to be around seventeen, with a slender frame like a willow branch that seemed as if it would snap with the slightest pressure. A bright red handprint marked her face, and she looked utterly timid and terrified.

If not for her expensive clothing, no one would likely associate her with the Second Young Miss of the North family.

It was only after seeing her face that Seren realized this was Sebastian North’s younger sister.

This sister of Sebastian’s only appeared three times in the book. The first was when the female lead saved her from being bullied; the second was when Sebastian, learning the female lead had saved his sister, paid her a visit to thank her, which caused their feelings to warm up.

By her third appearance, Sebastian and Evangeline Frost had started their sweet relationship, and the story had stabilized for a while. To stir up drama and create conflict between the leads, the author had written this mute younger sister to death.

The one who killed the Second Miss North was her uncle, George North. After her death, George framed the female lead for it. The frame-up was full of holes, but the male lead’s intelligence was nerfed; he actually believed his uncle’s lies, leading to a misunderstanding and estrangement from the female lead, starting yet another cycle of a "sadistic love" where she fled and he pursued.

And the woman who had just slapped the Second Miss was the spy planted by George North near the siblings. She was also the culprit who would eventually kill the Second Miss and frame the female lead.

This woman had become her teacher when the Second Miss was only six years old. Over the past ten years, she had constantly subjected the girl to PUA, molding her into a self-deprecating and timid character. She even took advantage of the fact that the girl couldn't speak to hit and scold her at will.

Sebastian was ten years older than his sister. After their parents died, he had been focused on seizing power to manage the North family and hadn't paid much attention to his sister. Thus, for many years, he never discovered that she was being bullied by her tutor.

It wasn't until the Second Miss passed away and Sebastian saw the bruises and scars of all sizes on her body that he realized how much grievance his sister had suffered. He began to regret and blame himself, but by then, it was too late.

Ms. Dan saw that Seren wasn't paying attention to her but was instead staring straight at Lydia North in the bathroom behind her. She grew flustered and took a step to the side to block Seren’s view, lowering her voice in warning:

"Newcomer, you saw nothing just now, and you heard nothing. If you dare say a word about this, I won't just make you lose your job—I’ll have your life!"

Ms. Dan saw that Seren looked young and thought she was a student who had just entered society, someone who could be controlled with a few simple threats.

Unfortunately for her, Seren didn't buy it.

Seren shifted her gaze from Lydia to Ms. Dan, raised her hand, and delivered a slap right to the woman’s left cheek.

"What are you barking for? You're annoying."

Having lived so many years, this was the first time Ms. Dan had been slapped. She clutched her numb face in disbelief, gritting her teeth. "You little wench! You dare hit me?! Do you know who I am?"

Seren sneered. "Just a dog raised by George North. Do you really think you've become the master of this house?"

Hearing this, Ms. Dan’s eyes filled with shock. "You... how do you know that?"

Seren ignored her and pushed her aside with a look of disgust. When she faced the trembling girl in the room, her expression softened instantly.

"Second Miss North, it’s alright now. Come, follow me. I’ll help you take care of those injuries."

On the surface, Lydia only had the handprint on her face, but Seren knew there were many injuries, large and small, on her arms and legs that needed attention. Despite the heat, the girl wore long sleeves and pants specifically to hide the wounds so others wouldn't find out—fearing that if Ms. Dan became unhappy, the torture would worsen.

Lydia looked timidly at the beautiful woman who had suddenly appeared. Although she desperately wanted to go with her, she still stole a cautious, fearful glance at Ms. Dan outside the door. Her terror was palpable.

Seren stroked the girl’s head and soothed her softly, "I’m here. she won't dare touch you. Let’s go.

"I’ll have your brother replace her later. No one will bully you ever again."

Lydia hesitated for a long time before she finally extended her "antenna" like a snail retracting into its shell. Her slender, fair hand gently grasped the hem of Seren’s clothes.

Looking into the girl’s watery, mist-filled eyes, Seren’s heart melted into a puddle. That woman, Ms. Dan, was simply subhuman. She truly didn't know how anyone could have the heart to lay a hand on such a well-behaved and lovely young girl.

She took the hand that was clutching her clothes and led the girl outside.