Paid To Care, Destined To Conquer Novel

Chapter 486 Has to Find a New Way Turns out, inside was this year's special bonus from the International Military Council, Violet Bamboo. "Got it," Stella replied in a laid-back tone, shutting the box and stuffing it into her pocket without a second thought. "I know this might sound a bit unfair to Sebastian, but..." Hudson said with a rare, playful grin, "Honestly, I'm grateful that Sebastian's charm was enough to keep you on Clusia's side, instead of making you our rival." Stella's gaze drifted over to Sebastian, who was standing not far away.

As if sensing her eyes on him, he turned and met her gaze. He was almost unreal in his beauty. Sebastian shot her a sly, flirtatious smile. It was a sight for sore eyes. "Sebastian has got way more going for him than just his looks," Stella said, her gaze steady as she smiled back. Hudson thought. 'Tsk. Exactly. And don't forget, Sebastian has a whole bunch of doggy quirks, too! 'Is this what people mean when they talk about the cheesy vibe of young couples in love?' Hudson shook his head. He thought, 'I'm stuffed with all this lovey-dovey stuff.

'Seriously, I can't handle any more of this mush.' ***** In the night, State Hall was lit up as a festival. All the top families of Jaffina showed up, plus every big shot in power. It was as fancy as it gets, and every single one of them had gotten an invitation sent down from Dragon Hill two weeks ago. Aside from wanting to see if Bernard's only son, Salem, had really snapped out of it, everyone was itching to find out just who the granddaughter Bernard kept talking about. But right now, all eyes were glued to the Clinton family's table.

If people were paying attention, they would notice the Clinton family showed up in two separate cars, Ryker and Sophie in one, while Aveline and the two boys took the other. To everyone watching, it just made that juicy rumor from two weeks ago feel even more legit. Word on the street was that Sophie, the adopted daughter, totally lost it when the Clinton family's real daughter was found. She went off the deep end, landed herself in the hospital, and single-handedly drained Jaffina's entire stash of rare blood types. The 7 PM news was playing.

Just then, the broadcast cut to footage of Stella, Sebastian, and the others being awarded special medals earlier today. Everyone watching was absolutely floored. Sophie, who had been sitting up ramrod straight on purpose, suddenly froze, her hand under the table, balled into a tight fist. Aveline's eyes welled up with tears in an instant. Her breath quickened, and she was visibly shaken. "Mom," Emerson murmured, shooting her a meaningful look, a silent reminder.

Maybe it was that long heart-to-heart they'd had, weighing all the pros and cons, but Aveline managed to pull Successfully unlocked! Chapter 486 Has to Find a New Way herself together, grabbing her wine glass to mask her feelings. Next to her, Dexter, who'd buzzed off his long hair just days ago, looked spaced out. Compared to the last time he'd seen Stella on TV, he was way more composed now. Still, Dexter's face looked rather pale. "Emerson, I..." Dexter started, about to say he wanted to move out, but before he could get the words out, he saw Emerson's face suddenly tense up.

Emerson was staring at something behind Dexter. Sebastian walked in, rocking a sharp black suit, while Allan followed right behind in the same style, but in smoky gray. Lucas, looking every bit the little prince, had put on a tiny black suit and a bow tie, taking the whole thing super seriously. And right beside them were two faces that were pretty much strangers to everyone in Jaffina. "Mr. Gray!" someone called out in surprise. "Mr. Gray!" another voice echoed. "Good evening, Mr. Gray!" a third person chimed in.

As soon as Sebastian walked in, everyone immediately got to their feet, showing their respect. Only now did they realize that the table right in the center had actually been reserved for him all along. Sebastian didn't bother with any of the small talk people tried to make as he walked by. He just took Lucas and headed straight for the empty table, sitting down without a second glance. "Go on, sit down," Allan said, raising his brows at Blake and Emily with a mischievous grin. Blake froze for a moment. Blake thought, 'Damn, deep breath. 'State Hall... This is unreal.

'Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd ever set foot in a place like this, and now Sebastian has actually brought me in. I could barely hold back my tears. 'The love is seriously overwhelming!' "Mr. Gray, what are we even doing here?" Blake asked, still totally lost. Blake had only arrived that afternoon. His grandpa was recovering well after surgery, and ever since Stella and Sebastian came to Jaffina, Blake had finally started taking charge himself, with Grandpa's trusted aide showing him the ropes.

This time, he was here to prep for lon Wing Drones' new contract with the military, and for something else. He was also here for Nova Group's tenth anniversary celebration in Jaffina, which was happening the day after tomorrow. By then, everyone would finally know who Moondust really was, and Blake was determined to be the one guarding their love, even if he had to play the idiot himself. Meanwhile, Emily, dressed in a sleek black Chanel-style suit, looked totally calm on the outside, but inside, her soul had already left her body. State Hall.

The words kept looping in Emily's mind, like someone just hit Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V in her brain, over and over again. Emily muttered, "What are we even doing here?" She instinctively straightened up, but Allan just gave her a lazy, teasing smile. "To eat, obviously." Emily stared at her phone, her eyes widened. 'Eat? Ugh, a goddess can't curse!' Emily thought. She just sat there, all stiff and awkward, not sure what to do with herself. Chapter 486 Has to Find a New Way But Lucas, ever the little cutie, noticed how tense she was. He tilted his head and pushed a glass of juice toward her.

"Here, drink." He blinked. Emily was too busy being cute-struck to say a word. She thought, 'Ugh, this is just too much. He's so freaking adorable! 'Lucas is seriously the cutest kid ever! I can't even handle it!' Emerson felt a weird sense of dread the instant Sebastian walked in, but before he could even process it, someone else appeared and totally broke the tense calm in the room. It was Salem, who was the only son of Bernard. The guy who'd been off his rocker for more than ten years, and now, just like that, he was back in everyone's line of sight, clear-headed as ever.

Salem was rocking a crisp suit, looking every bit the part. After two weeks of medical checks, he'd finally been cleared to take up a desk job again, starting next week. It was nothing like the life he used to have, but at least it was the first step toward getting back to normal. Seeing Salem standing there, looking totally normal, some folks were secretly annoyed, some felt a little sour, and a few were honestly happy for him. But whatever was going on in their heads, everyone kept up appearances, acting all friendly. "Thanks for coming out tonight," Salem said, breaking the silence.

After the initial brain fog when he first snapped out of it, Salem had slowly come to accept that the world now was a whole different ballgame from what he remembered. From those ancient pagers to these tiny phones that could go online anytime, Salem still had a hard time wrapping his head around all this "smart" tech. But thanks to his stubborn streak, he was slowly figuring it out. At the table next to them, Seth sat beside his great-grandfather, who was still half-asleep at over a hundred years old. Seth's eyes were dark and brooding.

Seth thought, 'Who would've thought Salem would actually get better? 'Why couldn't something go wrong tonight? Just one slip-up, and he'd embarrass himself in front of everyone. Otherwise, with Bernard hogging all the power, the rest of us in the family won't even get a taste of the leftovers.' As Seth listened half-heartedly to Salem speaking clearly and smoothly, he knew this was all just Bernard's way of hyping up Salem's comeback, making sure he got all the spotlight. Seth curled his lip in disdain. Meanwhile, Sophie's eyes were locked on Salem, sharp and full of calculation.

Her life in the Clinton family was going downhill fast. It wasn't just Aveline freezing her out. Emerson had taken control of everything in a flash, leaving their dad with nothing, and even her allowance kept shrinking. She had no choice. She needed to carve out a new path for herself, whatever it took. Subscribed 1 Likes Editorial Board Editorial Board Our editorial team works behind the scenes to refine each chapter, maintain consistency, and deliver the best reading experience.