In the open, spacious atrium on the third floor, wood and stone imbued with natural vitality interwove, harmonizing with the dark furnishings around them to create an air of quiet elegance.
In the lounge area off to one side of the hall, a luxurious set of sofas and low coffee tables rested beneath the soft glow of floor lamps, as though time itself had grown languid here, steeped in an indescribable sense of harmony.
At this moment, the three guests seated on the sofa were all scions of the Hutton Kingdom's most powerful nobility.
They waited quietly, like the most honored guests in an elevated concert box, exuding an extraordinary aura merely by sitting there.
"Your Highness Ainuoer, Miss Hyperion, Miss Sophia. So the friends Student Lanqi has been thinking about were you all along."
Lawrence bowed politely.
Clearly, Lawrence knew frequent guests like Prince Ainuoer, and he was also well aware of Duke Mikhail's daughter.
Lawrence was not surprised that Lanqi was acquainted with these aristocratic students from Ikerite Academy.
And yet...
Lawrence could not help sensing something strange in the atmosphere.
Prince Ainuoer looked thrilled, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.
Meanwhile, Hyperion, seated on the single-seater sofa to the left, hung her head low, nervously staring down at the tips of her shoes.
Countess Sophia, on the other hand, seemed lost in a dream, still in a daze.
The three of them did not seem to be on the same wavelength at all.
At this moment, Hyperion alone was completely clearheaded.
Realizing Lanqi had finally arrived, she looked up at him, knowing full well that she must not ask a single question next—she just needed to get Lanqi out of this place as quickly as possible!
However...
Before Hyperion could even make a move, Prince Ainuoer had already jumped up impatiently from the sofa. Striding over, he gave Lanqi a hearty hug, grabbed his shoulders, and eagerly asked:
"My bosom friend! What rank were you assigned?"
Before Lanqi could even open his mouth, Vice President Lawrence, standing by, was already beaming as he said to Ainuoer:
"Your Highness, you truly have an eye for talent and know how to foster good relations. Our Hutton Kingdom is about to gain another Platinum-rank card maker."
"..."
Instantly, Hyperion's face turned deathly pale.
If Lanqi had received Silver rank today, it wouldn't have been a big deal; Sophia would only have felt a bit awkward at most.
If it were Gold rank, Hyperion would certainly have been delighted and would have found a way to comfort Sophia; the situation wouldn't have been so dire either.
But now...
Platinum rank.
My friend, this is a complete dead end.
Sophia was being roasted over an open fire, and Hyperion felt utterly powerless to save her even if she wanted to.
"Platinum rank..."
Upon hearing Lawrence's words, Sophia stared blankly at Lanqi.
The youth who had seemed to be sitting just across from her that morning suddenly felt unimaginably distant, his shadow stretched long and thin by the light of the floor lamps.
At this moment, Sophia remembered the words she had spoken right in front of Ainuoer—"I'm seventeen, and I'm already a Silver-rank card maker. What about you?" Her cheeks burned uncontrollably.
Standing there now was a sixteen-year-old Platinum-rank card maker, far beyond anything she could ever hope to reach.
Sophia's shoulders trembled slightly, and mist welled up in her reddened eyes.
At this moment, she felt as if what she had said that morning had turned into a curse, echoing over and over in her ears, sending panic through her that she could not escape.
She desperately wanted to find a hole in the ground to crawl into and hide from everything before her.
"So—Sophia, my father always said card making is three parts skill, seven parts performance, and the remaining ninety parts depend on the Goddess's mood..."
Hyperion looked at Sophia with overwhelming anxiety. She raised her hand slightly to touch Sophia, but terrified that Sophia might shatter at the slightest touch, she hesitated, not daring to reach her arm.
"An Orange Epic... isn't something that can be made on luck and performance alone..."
Sophia's voice trembled, as though her tears would spill over and stream down at any second.
She understood better than anyone that without sufficient ability, even if all other factors were maxed out, it was impossible to craft a card of that caliber.
In other words, Ainuoer's judgment had been right all along, and she was far inferior to the youth he favored.
She was even more acutely aware that when it came to painting, her skill compared to Lanqi's was like that of a newborn infant.
"..."
Hyperion sensed that Sophia's eyes could no longer hold back her tears, and she didn't dare agitate her any further.
"Hyperion, did you... know about his card making and painting skills all along?"
Sophia finally seemed to realize why Hyperion had been so uneasy the entire time.
"No, Sophia, I really had no idea he could be this ridiculous..." Hyperion said timidly.
This only made Sophia tremble all the harder.
Sophia tried to hold back her tears, but the shame nearly suffocating her was beyond words—because she had uttered those words right in front of Ainuoer, and there was no taking them back.
Her cheeks grew redder and redder, tears streaming down like broken strings of pearls.
Finally, Sophia looked directly at Lanqi.
Lanqi's expression was as gentle as ever, carrying a hint of concern, as if he harbored not a single bad intention in his heart.
Such pity was far more devastating than mockery.
"Waaah..."
Unable to control herself, Sophia broke into loud sobs, leaped up from the sofa, and fled.
Ainuoer stood completely baffled, glancing between Lanqi before him and Sophia's rapidly retreating figure.
"Student Lanqi, congratulations, I..."
His brain short-circuiting in utter confusion, Ainuoer could only stammer out congratulations to Lanqi first.
"What are you congratulating me for? Hurry up and run after her!"
Lanqi gave Ainuoer several brisk slaps on the arm.
"Oh, right!"
Prince Ainuoer snapped out of it, responded hurriedly, and took off in pursuit of Sophia.
Just like that, leaving Vice President Lawrence utterly clueless about what had just transpired.
Hyperion lowered her head and covered her eyes with both hands, feeling as though the Goddess was watching the two of them at this very moment.
Lanqi let out a breath and returned to stand before Hyperion, smiling at her with a mix of relief and helplessness:
"Hyperion, Sophia probably won't be giving you those troubling looks anymore."
Hearing this, Hyperion was suddenly struck with realization, replaying every single scene from the moment they arrived at the Card Makers Association this morning.
"You... you didn't deliberately play dirty just to protect me, did you?" she asked, her voice trembling.
"Eh? I just meant that Sophia and Ainuoer communicated their true feelings to each other, so naturally they won't misunderstand anyone else in the future," Lanqi said, looking as if he was genuinely worried he had done something bad despite good intentions.
"...?"
Hearing Lanqi's response, Hyperion froze for a long time.
She could no longer tell whether Lanqi was playing dumb, trolling, reveling in the drama, or undercover behind five layers of irony. If he was just putting on an act right now, his performance had left her completely numb.
She couldn't help removing her hands and opening her eyes to look at Lanqi's expression.
His emerald-green eyes were as gentle and clear as ever, his face carrying a touch of genuine, innocent bewilderment.
Hyperion felt a chill run through her entire body.
If Lanqi were secretly smirking, she honestly would have felt better about it.
But seeing his utterly naive, pure expression right now made her feel like she had just bitten into a matcha cookie!
"Lanqi, thank goodness you're not a girl. Otherwise you'd be terrifying..."
Hyperion truly couldn't tell anymore whether Lanqi was genuinely naive or a masterclass green tea.
No wonder this guy had no fear of a romantic battlefield.
Turns out, he was the apex predator at the top of the food chain all along!!
Chapter 118