Crystal chandeliers cast a golden glow over the Davenier family’s grand ballroom. Laughter floated through the air—hollow, rehearsed—mingling with the scent of expensive perfume and sweet wine. The capital’s elite had gathered, not just for a party, but to welcome back the Davenier family's long-lost daughter.
And yet, it was through the back entrance that another girl slipped in unnoticed.
Her coat was creased from travel, its fabric still faintly smelling of antiseptic. Her dark hair, hastily pinned, framed a face drawn by fatigue. But her eyes—sharp, unflinching—scanned the opulent room without hesitation.
No one greeted her.
Not the butler. Not the maid who looked up, caught her gaze, and quickly looked away. And certainly not the woman waiting at the bottom of the grand staircase: Kendall Bond, draped in white silk and a fresh layer of betrayal.
“Well, well,” Kendall said, lips curving into a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I wondered if you’d show.”
Esther didn’t slow. “Move.”
Kendall stepped in her path, one hand resting gracefully on the marble banister. “I just thought I’d say it face-to-face. We’re not friends anymore.”
Esther stopped—not out of shock, but at how well-rehearsed it sounded, as if Kendall had practiced the line in front of a mirror, over and over again.
“Do you remember who pulled you out when your family was drowning in debt?” Esther said quietly. “Who kept your name from landing in bankruptcy court?”
“I remember,” Kendall replied, tone cool. “But gratitude doesn’t change the fact that you’re not the real daughter of this family.”
Silence stretched between them.
Then Esther smiled—small, sharp.
“Return everything I ever gave you. Then we’re even.”
Kendall blinked. “You’re serious?”
“I’m more than serious. I’m recording. If I don’t get my stuff back, I’ll post it online” Esther lifted her phone, the screen lit. “Try me.”
The color drained from Kendall’s face.
Esther brushed past her without another word. This so-called best friend—who had once promised to stand by her forever—was quick to switch sides the moment the real Davenier daughter came home. How predictable. How pathetic.
In the ballroom, the celebration was in full swing. At the center, Alan Davenier himself stood with a glass raised high, his hand resting lightly on Chloe’s shoulder.
“Today, after twenty-four years, my daughter has returned. The Davenier family is whole again.”
Thunderous applause followed.
Esther stood at the edge of the room like a ghost, unnoticed. She picked up a glass of champagne and held it, untouched, letting the room’s warmth press against her skin without sinking in.
“Is that… her?”
“Esther Davenier? She actually came?”
“I heard she’s not even legally a Davenier anymore. Why hasn’t she changed her surname yet?”
“This is just the beginning. Now that they’ve revealed the true daughter, what’s next—taking back Esther’s fiancé?”
“What fiancé? The Westvale family would never stoop that low. They’ve already moved on. Evander has two kids now, doesn’t he? Probably found someone better.”
“Still, now that the Daveniers have a beautiful daughter again, they’ll latch on to the first noble name they can find.”
“Poor Esther. Her birth parents threw her away, the Westvale family rejected her, and now even the Daveniers want nothing to do with her.”
“The Westvales? Marry an orphan with discarded blood? Please. They wouldn’t risk polluting their bloodline.”
“Shh!”
The gossip cut off all at once when someone from the next table hissed, “Shh!”
“Wait... is that Levi? Oh my god, Evander’s assistant! What’s he doing at a banquet like this?”
“No way, that’s really Levi. Isn’t Evander totally against the Davenier family? Why would he send him here?”
People craned their necks for a better look.
For a family like the Daveniers—barely holding on to their noble title—having someone like Levi show up was huge. Most of the guests tonight were small-time nobles and social climbers trying to stay relevant. Levi showing up was like Evander Westvale himself walking through the door. Exciting... and terrifying.
“Is he just here to show face or...?”
Before anyone could finish the thought, Alan stepped forward with Chloe by his side, smiling like he’d just won the lottery.
“Assistant Levi, thank you so much for coming to my daughter’s welcome banquet,” Alan said warmly. “Your arrival truly honors us. We’re doubly blessed—”
“I’m not here for any Miss Davenier’s banquet,” Levi cut in, polite but firm.
Alan blinked, caught off guard.
Levi continued, calm as ever, “And I’m not here to meet Miss Davenier, either.”
He looked at Chloe for half a second, then turned back to Alan.
“This event has nothing to do with Mr. Westvale,” he said clearly. “We don’t care about the Davenier family’s celebrations.”
Silence fell over the room.
Everyone heard it loud and clear: the Westvale family wanted no part of this.
The moment those words dropped, the whole ballroom fell into dead silence.
Alan looked like someone had just slapped him across the face, then thrown him to the floor and stepped on him for good measure. Esther, standing closest, caught the exact moment his face went from red... to green... to ghostly pale. She had to bite her lip to stop from laughing.
Sweet.
Everyone always said Evander Westvale was cold, emotionless—like some human-shaped calculator who only cared about profits. But who would've guessed his assistant could be this entertaining?
Whatever trace of sadness Esther had been feeling earlier disappeared. She almost burst out laughing. And she wasn’t the only one. A few people nearby were already snickering under their breath, while a couple of social climbers—clearly from the lowest rungs—started quietly pulling out their phones to record the moment.
Then suddenly—
“How could I have nothing to do with Mr. Westvale?”
Just as Esther was enjoying the show, someone nudged her from behind. She turned—and saw Chloe.
Dressed in a sleek, white satin gown that clung to her like it was custom-made (because it probably was), Chloe stepped forward with a soft little smirk.
“Our families—the Daveniers and the Westvales—have always had a close relationship,” she said, loud enough for the room to hear. “There’s even a marriage agreement between us. I’m the rightful daughter of the Davenier family—and his fiancée.”
She gave Levi a pointed look, all sugar and venom.
“So for Assistant Levi to say something like that... is he trying to make the Westvale family look ungrateful?”
***
The crowd of stunned women snapped out of their daze.“Sabine,” he barked, “explain. Now.”“That woman—” Sabine pointed dramatically at Esther. “She came out of nowhere, claiming she’s here to audition for the female lead. Élodie told her her face wasn’t suitable and then… things just got out of hand.”She plastered on an innocent look, playing the part of the reasonable friend. “You know how women can get when they argue—things get nasty real fast.”“You want to audition for the lead role?”Mathieu walked up to Esther, narrowing his eyes and giving her a once-over, hand resting thoughtfully on his chin. Just as Esther instinctively reached into her bag to pull out proof, he tilted his head and said, “Actually… she might work.”Esther: “…”“Mr. Laurent—!”Élodie’s voice spiked an octave. Relying on her identity as the wealthy Mills family heiress and her personal acquaintance with Mathieu, she immediately protested. “Look
Originally, everyone had been reading their scripts or spying on the competition. After all, there were only so many roles to go around, but a whole pack of wolves vying for them. Before fighting for the meat, they had to tear each other apart first—any less competition was good competition. So when Élodie shouted like that, everyone’s firepower instantly turned toward Esther.“What’s up with that face? Got beaten up for being a homewrecker, huh?”“This clown-faced thing dares to compete with us for the lead role? Isn’t she just wasting the director’s time?”“Someone call security and get her out of here already…”“Throwing her out isn’t enough!”The jeering hadn’t even faded when Sabine snapped, “What is this, some amateur street play? No audition invite, yet you sneak in like you’re owed something. These days, every girl thinks she can be a star—cling to someone famous, ambush the director in the bathroom, and boom, she lands the role. How’s that
"I don’t want to have any emotional entanglements with the Westvale family anymore!"The Davenier family once saved the Westvale family’s ancestors, which was why there was talk of a marriage alliance between the two families. Because of something Levi said at the banquet, she and Evander ended up with a verbal engagement. That matter—right now, it's just being spread around to piss off Chloe, but eventually it will need to be resolved.She couldn’t possibly marry Evander. Of course, Evander was even more unwilling to marry her. The man already had two kids; obviously, he had someone in his heart. And she did too. The two of them were basically just subjects of gossip for people to talk about. If they threw in a "life-saving grace" debt, then even if Evander didn’t want to marry her, he’d be forced to. So—"Doctor Lewis, that’s your hospital. Whoever you say saved Mrs. Westvale is who saved her. There are so many experts at the hospital—just pick one to take the
She clicked to read the message:[Esther, it’s me, Kendall. My brother offended Levi’s girlfriend and got locked up. Can you ask Levi to let him go? He listens to you!]…What the actual hell?!She wanted to hurl her phone across the room.Hadn’t they already cut ties? Hadn’t she blocked her?Where did this woman get the nerve to act like she was still entitled to anything?She handed the phone to Judy with a sarcastic smile. “Here. Check out the ‘friend’ that Chloe stole from me.”Judy’s eyes darkened the moment she read the message.“What the hell? Chloe actually thinks I’m in the same category as this?”She angrily typed a reply with Esther’s phone: [Didn’t we cut ties? Go ask your Davenier Family princess to help you!]A response came almost immediately:[Levi only listens to you. The Westvale family hasn’t denied your engagement to Evander, so he still recognizes
Meanwhile, at the hotel, Kendall was still waiting for Chloe, completely unaware of the disaster that had unfolded.Instead, she was greeted by Levi, Secretary to Evander.She froze.“S-Special Assistant Levi, where’s my brother?”Levi gave a slight nod, expressionless. “He’s being held inside.”“I’m so sorry, Assistant Levi. Please—don’t take it personally—he’s just a foolish kid.”She remembered Levi from Chloe’s welcome banquet—the one who descended like a god from the sky, casually declaring Esther Evander’s fiancée in front of the entire upper class. Elegant, poised… and brutally blunt. No wonder her brother said he was a “handsome devil.”But this man was no joke. Even Chloe couldn’t match him.Kendall realized her usual manipulative, soft-girl routine wouldn’t cut it. She had to pivot—and fast.She pulled out her last card.Everyone in the circle knew she used to be close to Esther
When Chloe got the message from Kendall, she was still fuming from being scolded by Alan. Ever since she came home, Alan had pinned huge hopes on her. Right out of the gate, he appointed her executive president of the company.Previously, Esther had only been a finance clerk—officially “starting from the bottom” since she wasn’t a biological daughter. Of course, the company’s key roles wouldn’t go to her. Even if Chloe never came back, he still had a son, so the family fortune was never meant for her.But when Chloe returned, Alan felt like heaven was smiling on him—two kids, a boy and a girl. He immediately handed her the executive president title, planning to retire soon and pass the chairman role to his son. That way, the family wealth would all stay “in-house.”Since his son was young and clueless, the real responsibility fell on his daughter. The moment Chloe took office, Alan entrusted her with the huge task of negotiating financing—trusting his own flesh