Pursuing Her

Charles felt a shiver down his spine when he saw the way Tristan was glaring at him.

"I-I-I was just joking, Mr. Tristan! Even if I did like Sophie, there's no guarantee that she'll like me back!" he explained in an attempt to save himself from Tristan's wrath.

"Correction, I will never like you because you're not my type at all," Sophie said.

Ouch! That hurt! Am I really that bad? Is Sophie always that mean to others?

"My heart is broken again, Sean! Please comfort me!" Charles pleaded.

"No, I don't think so. Your heart seems perfectly fine to me!" Sean replied. That's what he gets for breaking so many girls' hearts!

Ysabelle couldn't help but chuckle as she said, "See, Charles? This is payback for all those girls' hearts you've broken in the past! One day, you'll meet a girl who will counter playboys like you!"

Charles shook his head in response. "No, that day will never come! I would never give up an entire forest for a single tree!"

There are plenty of beautiful women out there, so why should I limit myself to just one? Isn't it better to go around sampling them all?

Ysabelle rolled her eyes at him. "Honestly, I'm really looking forward to seeing you meet your match."

"As I said, there will never be such a person because I won't allow that to happen!" Charles repeated himself.

He didn't believe in retribution for one's actions.

Jennifer's eyes were filled with disdain when she saw the group fawning over Sophie.

What's wrong with them? They're clearly knowledgeable people, so why would they believe that Sophie's present is the real deal? Do they take us all for fools? Sophie does not belong in this circle! The problem is, how can I get rid of her for good? I can't stand the sight of her!

Minerva, who was standing beside her the whole time, could see that she was very upset.

"There's no need to stress yourself out, Jennifer. That thing has got to be a fake. She'll become the laughingstock of Jipsdale once those appraisers confirm that it is fake. On top of that, I think you should just forget about her. You two aren't related at all, and she has always been calm and composed about everything. You'll come off as the loser if you take her too seriously."

Jennifer made it this far because she's excellent in almost every aspect, but she started changing ever since Sophie showed up...

"Shut up, Minerva!" Jennifer snapped at her impatiently.

Minerva pouted and looked away in response.

Being Jennifer's friend, she always had Jennifer's best interests in mind when giving advice or helping her out. However, Jennifer was so stubborn that she refused to listen to any of Minerva's advice, so there wasn't much Minerva could do.

Meanwhile, the Chief of the Bureau of Cultural Affairs had arrived at a conclusion regarding the item's authenticity.

"Old Mr. Lombard, we have confirmed that this item is indeed the real deal. How did you find it? Could you hand it over to the country?" the chief asked excitedly.

"Really? Are you sure that this is authentic?" Although William was hoping for it to be authentic, he still got excited when he heard the chief say it.

The chief nodded as he replied, "That's right. These men are the best appraisers in the country, and they have all confirmed that it is indeed authentic. There's no way they'd be wrong about this. I know you've spent many years looking for this, but it means a lot to the country. Would you be willing to hand it over?"

Everyone at the scene fell silent after hearing that.

What? Is that really authentic? This isn't a joke or something, right?

Naturally, Jennifer took it the worst out of everyone else. She knew just how badly William wanted to get his hands on that national treasure, but she wasn't able to get it for him.

The diamond she spent a lot of money on was the best she could manage, but it paled in comparison to Sophie's gift.

Just like that, the diamond she presented felt like it had become worthless all of a sudden.

That was probably the worst feeling she had ever experienced.

Minerva had thought about comforting her, but she held her tongue when she recalled Jennifer's stubborn attitude from earlier. She knew it was pointless to say anything if Jennifer wouldn't listen.

Unless Jennifer gives up on this herself, nothing I say will change her mind.

Tristan held Sophie's hand and asked, "How did you pull this off? I didn't know you were capable of something like this!"

"Oh, I just had a few of my friends get it for me!" Sophie replied casually.

Although she made no mention of the price she had to pay, Tristan was able to figure that out on his own.