Kanae and Laura walked into the hall. Laura"s eyes darted around as she checked the inside of the mansion. There was a lot of change in the furniture, but the layout of the building didn"t change at all. Well, that was quite obvious as changing the building would mean they needed to break down the walls and all.

The hall s.h.i.+mmered in gold and was filled with decoration that congratulated Sakura for becoming 18 years old. In addition to that, there were several hanging chandeliers that suspended from the ceiling that shone down on the entire room with gold and white.

Her eyes locked onto the woman standing at the very center. Immediately, a trace of fury appeared in her eyes. She would never accept that woman no matter what happens.

"Let"s eat a bit," Kanae pointed to the side.

Laura nodded her head. Although the party hadn"t yet officially started, there were still quite a few guests. If she suddenly disappeared from the hall, there might be some people who notice and become suspicious.

The two of them munched on some food before Kanae separated herself from Laura. This was included in the plan as they have to make sure no one knew that they were together. With Laura"s appearance, it was easy for her to attract the attention of the boys.

"h.e.l.lo, do you want to dance?"

"Wow, you"re gorgeous. Do you mind if I ask you to dance?"

"I asked first."

"I"m more handsome than you."

Kanae shook her head lightly as she heard the boys fight for the right to dance with Laura. In any case, Laura was already used to these situations, so she didn"t have to worry about her sister too much. Of course, if Laura needed help, she would not hesitate to help her.

For Kanae, this kind of party was only important for her to fill her belly. There were numerous delicacies that she usually couldn"t eat, so this was the perfect time to fill her belly.

"You look as plain as ever, Kevin"s secretary."

She turned around at the voice of someone familiar to her. In front of her, Sheila was standing with a hand on her hip. She was wearing a short sleeveless gown. The gown was clad in gold layers of faint glittering satin. For someone who loved to wear sparkly and revealing clothes, it suited Sheila very much.

It has been some time since the last time Kanae saw Sheila. However, she could sense that this girl was still as compet.i.tive as ever. It seemed like Sheila was still trying to seduce more rich boys to be her partner. That was totally her style.

"It has been some time, Miss Sheila," Kanae answered politely.

Sheila nodded her head. She still didn"t like Kanae because the latter caused her plan to get close to Kevin to go straight down the drain. However, she wouldn"t cause trouble outright as she was already lectured greatly by her father for almost destroying the company.

Because of that, she wouldn"t try to be like Amanda and perform cheap tricks. Instead, she would make her way slowly but surely to ensure that she would not lose.

"I guess we"re now part of the same family," she raised her left hand, which had a beautiful diamond ring on her ring finger.

"Congratulations," Kanae smiled. She didn"t know which man fell for this woman, but she pitied him. In Sheila"s eyes, he must be no more than a stepping stone for her to become the most powerful and richest woman in the city.

Sheila nodded her head. "I thought you would make progress with that cold man, but I guess I was wrong."

Well, Kanae never tried to seduce Kevin. Still, it didn"t change the fact that she was starting to feel attracted to him lately. Somehow, she wanted to stay by his side even if they were not working.

Shaking her head, Kanae erased those thoughts. They were not important right now. She looked at Sheila vigilantly. "Is there anything you want to say, Miss Sheila?"

"I heard about your situation, and I have to say that you"re quite fortunate that the rules of this family allow you to live freely," Sheila smiled. "However, I believe that you shouldn"t be stuck in that position, so I think I can help you out."

Kanae"s eyes turned sharp. "I believe I"ll be fine, Miss Sheila."

"Are you sure about that?" Sheila looked at Kanae"s appearance. "Even if you try to avoid their eyes by dressing humbly, you already caught Sakura"s attention."

She managed to get here by latching onto Sakura, so she knew very well how much Sakura hated Kanae. Kanae"s presence alone was enough to invoke anger and hatred in Sakura"s heart.

"I know, but you shouldn"t worry about other people, Sheila," Kanae replied indifferently.

Sakura hated her?

That was old news. The two of them could never stay in the same room together. From the past until the present and maybe into the future, they would stay as enemies, hating each other to the bone.

"You don"t understand, do you? The Nali Family would never let you go freely. With the puny strength you have, you wouldn"t be able to contend against the entire family. This is why I want to offer you a way to fight against them," Sheila smiled.

Internally, Kanae sneered. Someone like Sheila who hadn"t stayed in the family for long wouldn"t know the internal struggle. She already knew that they wouldn"t let her go, and for that, she had already prepared herself.

There was no need for her to ask for help from someone like Sheila. This girl was only someone who hadn"t seen the real world outside. Even just scheming to get a man, she needed help from Sakura. She only knew how to use money and her beauty but not her brain.

Towards this naïve girl who thought that she was already too smart, Kanae didn"t want to make any deals with her.

"There"s no need, Miss Sheila. I"ll be fine on my own," Kanae answered calmly.

"You"re truly someone who doesn"t know how to appreciate other people"s kindness," Sheila snorted. "Or do you think your little husband is going to keep you safe forever?"

Kanae"s eyes narrowed. She had never thought of asking for Kevin"s help even once. In terms of business, he might be only a normal businessman still in his growing period. But as someone from the underworld, he was unmatched.

Did Sheila find out Kevin"s other ident.i.ty?

It was not really a secret as they could search for the relation through Kevin"s surname. Recalling that point, Kanae came to understand why Sheila aimed for Kevin.

"So she thinks it"s that easy to make use of Kevin for his force in the underworld? She"s really too naïve."

"You shouldn"t slander other people, Sheila. I"m unmarried, and I don"t have any plans to get married anytime soon," Kanae acted oblivious.

Sheila arched her eyebrows. "You know what I mean, but I guess it"s useless since you"re just a small employee there."

Kanae sighed internally. This woman was thoroughly annoying. "I hope you can refrain yourself from slandering other people. The party is still going on, if there"s nothing else, please excuse me."

With that, she walked away with an unhurried pace. Even though she wanted nothing more than getting away from Sheila, she didn"t have any intention of showing impatience. People from high society scrutinized even the smallest detail, she must not make any mistakes.

Sheila"s eyes flashed with pity. She was staying under Sakura and had tried poaching those whom the family hated for the past two months. Because of the protection she got from being Sakura"s acquaintance, she could get close to them without anyone being suspicious. Of course, this was her hidden agenda that she never told anyone. Not even Sakura nor her own father.

So far, she only managed to talk to two people. The first one was a huge success while the other one was a failure. Well, it was not a problem. There were a lot of branch family members that she could try to poach. These poor people would be her perfect lackeys.

Sheila"s lips curled up in ecstasy. Now that she had more chances to get close to the branch family members, she would use this opportunity to the fullest.