No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric)

Noelle glanced at her chat with Magnus, noticing he hadn't replied either.

It seemed that Magnus had misunderstood as well.

After a moment of thought, she messaged him.

"Did you misunderstand what I said earlier? I wasn't trying to figure out your weaknesses to threaten you into withdrawing from the competition. That wasn't my intention."

After sending the message, Noelle felt her explanation was a little weak.

Cedric had mentioned that Magnus' family didn't approve of him playing games.

Could it be that Magnus withdrew from the competition in her previous life because of family pressure, and not for the reason she had assumed?

Meanwhile, Magnus had just woken up and saw Noelle's message. Instantly, his drowsiness disappeared.

Sitting up, he stared at her message and let out a sigh of relief.

He knew it—Noelle wouldn't have any ill intentions toward him.

Magnus happily replied, "That's a relief!"

Noelle felt much more at ease after seeing his response. "Are you attending the banquet this weekend?"

Of course, he had to go!

Magnus needed to be there to protect her. After all, Cedric wouldn't risk showing up to protect his concealed identity.

Haha, now it was his turn to shine.

He made sure Cedric realized how valuable his smart and capable little brother was. Maybe then Cedric would regret ever calling him adopted.

"Magnus! Why are you still not up? Your grandmother is waiting for you to have breakfast together!"

Emma burst into Magnus' room, only to find his bedroom in complete disarray. Her temples throbbed with anger.

"Mom, how can you just barge into my room? I have a right to privacy!"

"What privacy? Get up now!"

Emma looked at her youngest son in front of her. "Your brother must've asked you to come back, didn't he? Just so I wouldn't investigate that girl he's protecting."

"Mom, can't you just let Cedric have some privacy?"

"This is for his own good."

Magnus casually picked his nose. "You're just his stepmother. Why do you care so much?"

Emma's blood pressure shot up at his words. "Say that again?"

"Cedric can be with whoever he wants-that's his freedom!"noveldrama

"Magnus, stop right there!"

Emma grabbed the nearest object and hurled it at him.

Clad only in his boxers, Magnus bolted down the villa's hallway, yelling at the top

of his lungs, "Grandma, help! The stepmom is abusing her stepson!"

Emma chased after him but couldn't catch up.

Out of breath, she fumed. "Even if I am the stepmother, I'm going to arrange the best marriage for him! I'm shutting up those gossiping harpies for good!"

Although she was the stepmother, Cedric had been raised entirely by her.

It infuriated her to no end. Why couldn't Magnus be half as obedient as Cedric?

If it weren't for Cedric's excellence and well-behaved nature as a child, she would've never considered having a second one.

Given their Greene family heritage, she assumed they wouldn't be too different. Instead, she ended up with a troublemaker who seemed born to provoke her.

If Emma had known, she wouldn't have bothered!

After successfully escaping, Magnus sneaked back into his room.

After getting dressed, he replied to Noelle's message, "The banquet might not be

all that exciting, but since you're going, I'll go too."

After all, he was a responsible and generous little brother.

When Noelle saw his reply, she thought it would be a good opportunity to meet

him in person and clear up any misunderstandings.

...

After class, Noelle received a message from Maple Enterprise's representative. "We have a pre-trial mediation at the court this afternoon. The lawyer will be there, too. Are you free to come?"

"I'm free this afternoon. I'll head straight to the court."

As a key figure in the case, she couldn't afford to miss it.

After informing Grace, Noelle hailed a cab to the courthouse.

Maple Enterprise representatives had already arrived. The person in charge

greeted her. "Noelle, do you know who our lawyer is?"

"I don't. Hasn't the lawyer arrived yet?"

"Not yet. But the Liddell family's lawyer is here already. He's quite famous. This case might be tough to win."

Noelle frowned, her thoughts interrupted by Donovan's voice.

"What's this? Haven't found a suitable lawyer yet? Want me to recommend one for you?"

She looked up to see Donovan walking over with a group of people. Beside him was Lucas, looking noticeably haggard.

Donovan gazed down at Noelle. "It's not too late to admit defeat now. Since you're my dear sister, I'll forgive you."