It was clear his sights were set on Hera, though why remained a mystery. That was all the more reason for them to stay close and guard her, for their instincts scread that he was dangerous.
Seeing how protected Hera was between the n, Alice’s eyes burned with anger. She hated Hera, hated her so much that she wished she would die a terrible death, one where she wouldn’t even be able to close her eyes in peace. But standing in front of her targets, the n she wanted to seduce, Alice forced herself to maintain her usual kind façade.
"Oh my, what’s wrong?" she purred, keeping her tone light. "We didn’t co here to cause trouble. We’re just having dinner to discuss my participation in the zombie apocalypse movie, which, as it happens, I’m working on with Hera. And, well, the new investor is a friend of mine." Then she leaned closer to the man beside her as if to emphasize that the friend she was talking about was him.
Alice also made sure to keep her relationship with the man ambiguous, labeling him a "friend" so he wouldn’t feel like he was being strung along, while leaving herself maneuvering room with Zhane and Rafael. That way, if they questioned her relationship with this man, the word ’friend’ would suffice.
Unfortunately for her, Zhane and Rafael paid no attention to her attempts at manipulation. Their focus was entirely on the man, their vigilance razor-sharp, ensuring he didn’t get anywhere near Hera. They could sense how dangerous he was, and they weren’t about to give him an inch.
Every hair on Zhane and Rafael’s bodies stood on end. They were cautious, reminding themselves that appearances alone weren’t enough to accuse anyone; there was no reason for them to offend the man unless he truly did sothing wrong. Yet they couldn’t ignore the way he looked at Hera.
That predatory gaze grated on their nerves, forcing them to step in front of her without a word. They remained silent, eyes locked on the man, utterly disregarding Alice and her attempts at distraction. Their focus was clear: Hera ca first, and no one would breach that.
Being ignored felt like a slap in the face, and Alice quickly redirected her gaze toward Hera. She could barely see her through the tall, sturdy fras of Zhane and Rafael, only glimpsing parts of the wheelchair and the faint outline of Hera herself.
And the fact that Hera didn’t react to the "bombshell" news Alice had just dropped. And that stung more than she expected. Alice had thought that once Hera realized she hadn’t been kicked out of the casting, that she could still act in the sa movie, and that she had even secured a powerful backer, Hera would be frustrated, angry, and even shaken.
After all, Hera had spent so much effort trying to pin Alice to the pillar of sha, to make sure she wouldn’t rise again.
Yet here she was, seemingly unfazed. anwhile, Alice felt a surge of smug satisfaction. Her path might have been full of twists and obstacles, but it seed the world itself was conspiring in her favor, offering her opportunities to rise, to avoid being trampled under Hera’s foot. And right now, that realization made her feel almost invincible.
Even though she didn’t need to ntion it, Alice couldn’t resist the chance to get under Hera’s skin. She wanted to drop the news herself, before Hera heard it from the director or ran into her on set.
But to her frustration, it seed Hera had already known, or maybe not, but Hera remained completely unruffled, as if the revelation was old news or it didn’t matter, and Alice’s attempt to provoke her had no effect at all.
Alice bit her lower lip, glancing at Zhane and Rafael as if she had just been wronged, her doe-like eyes shimring with the hope that they would lash out at Hera for being "rude."
But once again, luck was not on her side. If anyone could be considered rude, Hera wasn’t even close to the worst; there was Dave, Rafael, and the others, who could outdo her simply by ignoring soone. She was lucky Dave wasn’t here; he would have roasted her for being a pretentious little bitch.
Still, her pitiful act earned her nothing. Not a glance, not a reaction. Even Hera’s entourage treated her with indifference, their expressions silently asking, "Are you done?" Most of them had already seen through Alice’s pretensions, and no act of hers could sway them.
Frustrated and desperate for so validation, Alice’s eyes flitted across the crowd until they landed on a familiar face.
"Minerva?!" Alice gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth as if the sight had completely stunned her. Her eyes flicked back to Hera, disbelief written across her face. How could Minerva be hanging out with her? A flicker of disapproval crossed her features, but beneath it simred deep resentnt and anger.
Minerva had been her best friend, or at least, Alice had thought so. She knew the bitter, irreconcilable fight that had occurred between Hera and Minerva, so why were they together now? Determined to make her feelings known, Alice carefully let her displeasure show, eting Minerva’s gaze so that her anger and sense of betrayal would be unmistakable.
She even convinced herself that Minerva was only there because of her brother, a convenient excuse to explain what Alice saw as treachery.
But when Alice sent Minerva a subtle signal, it seed as though Minerva’s gaze simply slid past her. In reality, the mont Minerva’s eyes t Alice’s, she was startled and felt awkward. She quickly pretended not to notice, slowly averting her gaze as if she were admiring the treasures scattered throughout the restaurant, feigning fascination with the surroundings.
After all, speaking to Alice in front of Hera and her brother would be incredibly awkward. Minerva didn’t want to be put in the spotlight, especially since her relationship with Hera was still fragile and was just warming up, and Athena remained slightly skeptical of her.
After surviving the life-and-death ordeal with her brother and being saved by Hera, Minerva began to reflect on everything. It was as if the rose-colored glasses she had worn for Alice had been forcibly torn away, revealing glaring truths she had previously overlooked. She no longer wanted to be Alice’s little sidekick and the one who did her dirty work.
Now, she could see Alice for what she truly was: a pretentious, hypocritical woman using others for her own gain. Minerva realized Alice had been exploiting her resources and, more unsettlingly, trying to get closer to her brother. The way Alice looked at him was stickier than rice stickers.
Before, Minerva had been blind to these subtleties, trusting that Alice was good-hearted and innocent, soone who could easily feel shy around her brother. But now, all Minerva could see was Alice attempting to seduce him, and it was even right in front of her future sister-in-law.
Just this realization made Minerva feel proud of herself for distancing herself from Alice. If she hadn’t, she might have continued down a path toward becoming the worst version of herself, one that could have cost her her family and even her brother. Sticking with Alice would have been her own undoing.
As she reflected, Minerva also recognized how naively foolish she had been. She had been used, almost led to ruin, and yet she had been helping the very person who was poisoning her mind and jeopardizing her future.
She knew she could be pampered and arrogant, traits shaped by being treated like a princess at ho. But being spoiled or confident didn’t make her a bad person. Yet when she spent ti with Alice, she had done things she’d never done before, thinking she was standing up for her friend, thinking she was helping.
But now, in hindsight, wasn’t she just being used?
Seeing Alice now, without the rose-tinted glasses she had once worn in her eyes for Alice, Minerva could finally see through her pretentious acts. And she was shocked; this was why she had only pretended not to notice Alice earlier.
She didn’t know how to reconcile the woman she had called her best friend with the person standing in front of her. Perhaps the Alice in her mory had been what she wanted to believe, not the real Alice.
Only now, as she stood as a spectator, did she recognize Alice’s true self. After all, they said that people often can’t see the full picture when they are involved; only an outsider can observe things clearly, without bias. Now, Minerva truly understood that.
A pang of guilt washed over her as she thought of Hera. She had targeted Hera so rcilessly in the past, and now she finally saw why Athena had been skeptical about her "change." Even she herself would have struggled to believe that she had truly transford, from a sidekick villain to soone capable of genuine growth and self-awareness.
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