Iris Dalton drove a flashy sports car, heading toward the plot of land in the suburbs according to the address.
Along the way, the AI surveillance system continuously provided voice prompts. [YellowFish], who was in charge of monitoring, was extremely excited and kept chattering endlessly.
[[YellowFish]]: "Your Highness, Your Highness! This morning, I went through 500 gigabytes of wealthy families' juicy secrets! It was absolutely mind-blowing, I was laughing my pixels off! It's insanely epic, so I've decided to share the video details with you."
"YellowFish, I told you to run real-time surveillance, not to snoop through my email and peek at my files!"
Yesterday, Iris had logged onto UmbraNet and hooked up with the "Information Peddling Hound." Through a mix of bluffing and sweet-talking, she had finally haggled the price down to the bare minimum and acquired 500GB of high-society secrets.
It had just been sent to her inbox. Before she even had the chance to look at it, [YellowFish] had intercepted the whole stash.
It was so frustrating!
"My, my, my, don't be so stingy! Your Highness, the Pond Lord, you've hoarded such good resources—aren't you going to share them with your little companions? Gossiping together is the best part, wouldn't you agree, Your Highness?"
[YellowFish]'s electronic voice was androgynous, adopting the tone of a seasoned gossip monger as it clucked its tongue in admiration. "Reality is always more thrilling than imagination. Even yours truly never expected this! Both from the Sherwood Family, yet Tristan Sherwood is a hopeless romantic, while Claire Sherwood is a King of Players. These scandals are more explosive than the last!"
Iris was speechless.
She had bought the high-society secrets mainly to stave off boredom with some gossip. Who would have thought there would be major scandals about the Sherwoods!
Her interest was instantly piqued.
"Hurry up and tell me! What kind of tea do we have? Is it verified?" Iris forgot her earlier frustration, her eyes lighting up as she bantered with [YellowFish].
"Your Highness, let me tell you," [YellowFish] began. "The woman Tristan is currently married to is his first love's roommate. She faked a pregnancy to secure her position, and he's still completely in the dark! He even thinks he's a stud for hitting a home run on his first try. The hilarious part is that he hides a photo of his first love in his phone and stares at it every night before bed. Hahaha, the headline is pure comedy: 'Stolen Away by My Ex's Best Friend: The Woman in My Bed Can't Compare to My First Love.'
"And get this—Serena Sherwood is secretly hooking up with Shaun Adler, while Young Master Adler is simultaneously stringing along a rising entertainment starlet, Mia Miller, plus two internet-famous mistresses. The headline for this one is delightfully vicious: 'Childhood Sweethearts Yet to be Engaged: The Heartbreaking Truth of My Affair with a Scumbag Young Master!'
"Then there's Claire Sherwood, who is leading on several men at once, even making them get into physical fights over her. Just listen to this title, tsk, tsk, it's so dramatic: 'The Spare Tires and Simps Enter The Asura Field: Jealous Men Behaving Badly.'
"But the absolute funniest is that Vincent Thorne! He's the President of Elysian World. He simped so hard for Claire Sherwood that he broke his back. Now he's going to struggle to perform in the bedroom! Haha, it's so funny!"
The entire Pike: "..."
Iris: "..."
She was nearly blasted out of her seat by [YellowFish]'s smutty brain rot!
Meanwhile, a black Bentley drove slowly down the road. The male secretary in the passenger seat held a tablet, busy reporting on work matters.
"President Thorne, the variety show producer just called," the secretary said. "They reported that Tristan Sherwood declined the invitation for 'Idol Brother and Sister.' The show is currently short two male guests, and they wanted to know if you had any arrangements in mind."
The man sitting in the back seat wore a black suit, his long legs crossed. Enveloped in an aura of cold, ascetic authority, he was reading the documents in his hands.
Hearing the secretary's words, Vincent Thorne slightly raised an eyebrow. "Who are the female guests?"
"There are four: Serena Sherwood, Mia Miller, Sophie, and Susan Hughes." The secretary turned around and handed the tablet to Vincent. The screen displayed the photos and profiles of the four female guests.
"This Susan Hughes, is she a student at Lumin-Umbra University's Academy of Sciences?" Vincent furrowed his brows and zoomed in on her photo.
The girl had delicate features, her eyes curving into bright smiles. If not for the faint, barely detectable hint of ambition hidden in the depths of her gaze, she would have looked exactly like a gentle, obedient girl next door.
Vincent stared at the school badge pinned to the girl's collar for a few seconds. The corners of his lips pressed into a faint line, seemingly sparking a trace of interest.
"Yes, Susan is a junior and also Miss Rosalind's junior sister. Both of them are Mentor Miles's star pupils." Sensing his boss's thoughts, the secretary made sure to emphasize this point.
As Claire Sherwood's junior sister appearing on a variety show invested in by President Thorne, he would surely look out for her on account of Miss Rosalind's face.
"Here's what we'll do. I will personally participate as a male guest. Notify the producer and remind Susan that on the show, she will stick with me. Give the other male guest slot to Xavier Kendrick and arrange for him to join the cast."
He emphasized the words "she will stick with me" quite heavily, making it sound entirely suggestive.
The secretary froze for a moment. His eyes flickered, and he hastily took the tablet back, pretending to think, though he was actually masking his internal shock.
Miss Rosalind was still abroad, and President Thorne was lovesick enough to personally join a variety show just to... form a showmance with Miss Rosalind's junior sister?
This clearly meant he was looking for a stand-in!
The secretary felt his worldview shattering. Unable to bear looking straight at the situation, his eyes darted around, unsure of where to focus.
SCREECH—
With a red light ahead, the driver slammed on the brakes.
The secretary glanced over and spotted a red Maserati, instantly looking startled.
"President Thorne, that's Miss Rosalind's car!" he said, his eyes widening as he quickly alerted his boss.
Vincent turned his head slightly and sat up straight. His icy eyes cast a sidelong glance out the window, landing perfectly on the red sports car.
The young woman inside wore headphones, her skin as flawless as white porcelain and her long hair flowing gracefully. Her exquisite side profile bore a thirty-percent resemblance to Claire Sherwood, yet she was undeniably more youthful and vibrant, captivating the eye.
He had seen this girl at the club before.
The man's gaze darkened, carrying a mix of scrutiny and cold amusement.
"Miss Rosalind hasn't returned to the country yet, has she?" The secretary quickly realized the discrepancy, clicking his tongue in displeasure. "Who is driving Miss Rosalind's car?"
Vincent's lips pressed into a tight line. As his deep eyes locked onto the figure in the red sports car, his gaze gradually turned sharp and piercing.
That car was a custom build, a birthday gift he had given to Claire Sherwood. There wasn't a second one like it in all of Stellan.
With Claire Sherwood out of the country, someone actually dared to drive her car around and show it off.
"Go investigate that woman," he ordered, his deep eyes narrowing as he fixated on the girl's profile. "Find out who she is."
Back in the Maserati, Iris was listening to [YellowFish]'s juicy gossip with great relish when a piercing mechanical alarm suddenly blared.
[WARNING! WARNING! Real-time scan detects a target in the rear left. Hostility index: 70. Danger index: 60. Predicted attack index: 67. The safety threshold has been exceeded! Requesting defensive counterattack! Requesting defensive counterattack!]
"..."
Someone was trying to kill her? What a surprise!
Iris turned her head to the left, meeting a cold, sharp gaze.
A man was sitting in the luxurious back seat of a Bentley, watching her impassively. His eyes exuded a bone-chilling coldness, staring at her like a keen Hunter locking onto its prey, filled with a ruthless, predatory aggression.
Who was this guy? She didn't know him.
Iris retracted her gaze, having no interest in paying him any mind.
[Scanning target... 3D scan in progress... Vincent Thorne. Male, 24 years old. A member of The Direct Line of The Thorne Clan. Current President of the Elysian World entertainment and media company. One of Claire Sherwood's rumored boyfriends.]
[The system detects that Vincent Thorne harbors hostility toward Your Highness. Waiting for Your Highness to choose whether to launch a counterattack. Please select: Continue or Cancel.]
"Vincent Thorne? The guy [YellowFish] just exposed for having a bad back?"
Iris curled her lip, feeling a twinge of sympathy for him.
"Cancel attack mode," she instructed. She was always lenient toward men in poor health.
[YellowFish] let out a regretful sigh. "Your Highness, I was just about to command The Golden Arowana to launch an assault! You canceling it just ruined my whole mood."
[[The Golden Arowana]]: "Someone is plotting against Your Highness! Please heed my professional advice: let's just kill him!"
"..."
Iris turned her head, glancing at Vincent once more. She hooked her lips into a brazen smile. "The poor guy can't even use his back anymore. Impotent rage is only natural. It's not easy being a man, so let's cut him some slack."