Urgently called by their mother, Lily wandered through the school grounds searching for her older brother, Ethan. She first checked his classroom, but he was nowhere to be found. With no other choice, she began searching the places he usually frequented.
It wasn't until she reached a narrow pathway behind the school that connected to the dormitory area that she finally spotted him.
Ethan was standing there with two other men beside him.
The moment Lily saw them, her brows furrowed slightly. Those two didn't look like ordinary students at all. Their appearances were rough, unruly, and intimidating—more like street thugs than people who belonged on campus.
Instead of approaching immediately, Lily remained at a distance and quietly observed.
Ethan seemed to be giving them orders about something. After quite a while, the two men finally bowed their heads slightly toward him before turning around and leaving.
Even though Lily instinctively felt that something about the situation was wrong, her mother's message was more important right now. She quickly walked over.
"Ethan… big brother…"
Hearing her voice, Ethan turned around. Tilting his neck lazily with that familiar rebellious attitude of his, he looked at her with a faint smirk.
"What is it, little sis? Something happen?"
Before reaching him completely, Lily abruptly stopped three steps away and narrowed her eyes at him.
Then, as if she had suddenly noticed something, she cautiously stepped closer.
Without warning, she grabbed the collar of the white shirt beneath Ethan's jacket.
Her eyes widened slightly as she stared at the reddish stains smeared across the fabric.
"Big brother… what's this? Is this blood? Hm? What did you do?"
Ethan immediately brushed her hand away and forced a casual smile onto his face.
"Ah… this? I fell off my new motorcycle earlier while riding it. My friends happened to see me and came to help. Look—even my lip got split a little."
He answered calmly, almost too calmly.
Lily knew perfectly well he was lying. Still, she didn't want to argue here, so she merely rolled her eyes with an expression that clearly said I know you're hiding something.
"Whatever. Just don't do anything stupid. Mommy's going to get high blood pressure because of you someday."
Then she crossed her arms lightly and continued.
"She couldn't reach your phone, so she told me to find you. She said it's important and wants you to call her back immediately. And another thing—you've been skipping classes way too much lately. Study properly for once. The entire school's scared of you already. Try behaving yourself a little."
Ethan chuckled in amusement.
He reached out and messed up Lily's hair playfully.
"My little sister's acting like a grown-up now, huh? Relax. I've got everything under control, okay? Your big brother's a professional."
Then he grinned mischievously.
"You just stay out of trouble. Oh—and don't forget to ask Rosalie that thing for me."
Lily wrinkled her nose in annoyance and slapped his hand away from her head.
"Oh, stop it already! Leave her alone and quit bothering her. She's minding her own business. That girl only has studying in her head. Forget you—even her friends get ignored whenever she's focused on schoolwork."
She pointed a finger at him warningly.
"Don't bother my friend. I seriously don't like it. And I'm not helping you, so stop asking."
Ethan stared at his sister for a moment before clicking his tongue softly.
"If you won't help me, then I'll just ask her myself. Why are you acting like I'm dragging her straight into hell or something? I'm only asking her out to dinner."
"That's enough, big brother. Mommy's calling you. Pick up your phone already. I'm leaving."
As she turned around to leave, Ethan suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist.
He stepped in front of her, tilting his head slightly as he studied her expression.
"Oh right… I saw big brother Julian near the front gate yesterday."
Lily's heart skipped a beat.
"What was he doing at school? Something important?"
Ethan's lips curved faintly.
"And you know… he and Rosalie seem pretty close lately."
The moment those words left his mouth, Lily inwardly panicked.
Still, she quickly forced herself to stay calm.
"Ah… they're doctor and patient. Of course they're close. They've known each other for years already. What's strange about that?"
Ethan narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her.
Then he gave a crooked little smile.
"Well, if it's really just a doctor-patient relationship, then that's fine."
His voice lowered slightly.
"But if it's not… hm."
Lily immediately glared at him in alarm.
"Hey, big brother! Even if it isn't, what business is it of yours? Just leave them alone. Dad's going to scold you again, you know that?"
She jabbed a finger toward his chest.
"You're never satisfied unless you're causing trouble. And don't you dare bother the shareholder's daughter either. You know how much Dad treasures Lily—he treats her like his own daughter. So stay out of it."
Ethan simply smiled back with a look that said relax.
"Alright, alright. Go already. I'll handle my own business."
Then his grin slowly deepened.
"And besides… if father's adopted daughter becomes his daughter-in-law someday, wouldn't that make him happy too?"
"Ugh—you're impossible!"
Lily groaned in frustration.
"I'm leaving. And don't bother my friend. That's final."
With that, she immediately turned and walked away.
Ethan remained standing there, silently watching his sister's retreating figure.
A strange dissatisfaction slowly surfaced within him.
All his life, he had felt trapped beneath Julian's shadow.
No matter what he did, his stepfather's admiration always seemed to belong to Julian alone—the biological son.
Even though they were treated equally on the surface, Ethan had always believed he was the one being pushed aside.
And because of that…
He wanted everything Julian possessed.
Everything.
Including the beautiful little rose named Rosalie.
The more he thought about the connection between Julian and Rosalie, the more unsettled he became.
In the end, Ethan decided he would investigate the matter personally and uncover the truth for himself.