Chapter 6

Seth POV

After a forty-minute drive, we arrived at the hotel. As soon as we got out of the car, I noticed another familiar vehicle parked nearby. Shawn hurriedly got out of the car and walked towards me.

"Let's go," I said, taking a step forward. Shawn quickly followed.

Just as the two of us stepped out of the elevator, we were greeted by a chaotic scene. A group of young men and women formed a circle in the lobby, with Lorena at the center.

As Shawn and I entered, a woman with cream all over her hair and face limped towards Shawn.

"Shawn, you have to avenge me," she cried.

Shawn was taken aback. "Are you Wilona?"

Wilona hysterically sobbed, "I was attacked. That woman used a cake to smash my face. My face and leg are injured. You must avenge me. I want to make her suffer, be exiled, and become a rogue."

"Alright, I will definitely avenge you," Shawn said, feeling heartbroken seeing his sister in such a state. "Who attacked my sister?"

"It was her," Wilona angrily pointed at a girl standing straight in the middle of the crowd. Lorena held her head high, her face mask had been torn off during the fight, her hair was messy and covered in cream, and one side of her face was swollen like a bun, with a few scratch marks on the other side.

She looked disheveled, but her eyes were cold and dark, like a lone wolf lurking in the abyss, distant and indifferent.

"Lorena, it was you," Shawn exclaimed in anger. "I used to think you were outgoing, but I never expected you to be so malicious, to even harm my sister. I won't let you get away with this."

"Until the facts are investigated, everything is just your sister's one-sided account," I said coldly.

Shawn had a somewhat surprised expression, obviously not expecting me to speak up for Lorena over Wilona. "Seth, what's wrong with you?"

I ignored her and walked straight towards Lorena. When Lorena saw me approaching, she froze for a moment, but quickly lowered her head and remained silent. I lowered my head and looked down at the disheveled woman in front of me. She hung her head, not looking at me, like an abandoned cat.

Somehow, my voice softened a bit. "Why did you hit her?"

Lorena remained silent for two seconds. "She deserved it," she said, lifting her head. Although her face was clearly disheveled, her eyes revealed the rebelliousness of her age.

Shawn, who had come over, almost got angry when he heard this. "Lorena, who do you think you are?"

He was furious and wanted to punch someone, but I grabbed his fist.

Shawn was stunned, while Wilona cried out in disbelief, "Seth, she's the one who did this to me. No one has ever dared to hit me like this before, and today is my 21st birthday." She started crying, looking as pitiful as ever.

Lorena remained cold and silent, her lips tightly pursed.

"Lorena, explain yourself," I didn't look at Wilona, but instead stared at Lorena with a dark expression. "Why did you hit her?"

Although Lorena had an impulsive and hot-tempered personality, I knew that she wasn't the type to randomly attack someone without reason.

Lorena sneered, "Does it really matter why I hit her? Have any of you ever bothered to listen to reason?"

She didn't believe me at all. I didn't blame her, but I knew that I couldn't stop her when she got angry. "Lorena, the only person who can help you right now is me. You're a smart person, you know what I am saying."

Those words seemed to hit a nerve with Lorena. Her eyes trembled, revealing a hint of pain.

Wesley, who had been asking around, approached and said, "I think I understand what happened. Tonight is Wilona's birthday, and her friend from France had a birthday cake air-shipped from overseas for her."

"Lorena's friend, Jill, works as a delivery person. She took the order and delivered the cake from the airport logistics center to here. But Wilona looked down on Jill because she was a delivery person and refused to let her ride the elevator. So Jill had to carry the cake all the way from the first floor to the 50th floor."

I furrowed my brows, a hint of gloom passing through my eyes.

Wilona nervously said, "I hired her and expected her to come up as soon as she arrived."

Wesley couldn't bear it anymore, "On the 50th floor, she climbed for twenty minutes, dripping with sweat and didn't dare to rest. Jill was afraid of being complained about, so she left in a hurry, and the glass doll on the cake got crooked."

Wesley glanced at Wilona, who was about to make a scene, and briefly explained the situation to me and Shawn. Finally, I understood what had happened.

"You're talking nonsense," Wilona looked at Shawn and me, then hurriedly said, "It's not like that. Lorena saw her friend drinking and put the cake on my face. My friend can testify."

"Yes, Miss Ortiz is telling the truth. That delivery person and her friend were way out of line," Wilona's friend chimed in.

One of Wilona's friends, discontented, said, "That delivery person and her are in cahoots. She's definitely helping her friend and lying."

And who complained, saying, "So what if it's wrong? It's just a delivery person."

I gave that person a cold glance, which scared them to the point of turning pale.

Wilona, realizing the situation was not in her favor, grabbed Shawn's sleeve and cried, "Shawn, you know, today is my 21st birthday, and I've been preparing for it for a long time. The birthday cake got ruined, and I'm definitely angry. And look, I also have bruises on my body, it hurts so much."

She showed her arm, with bruises of different colors.

Shawn was initially angry at his sister for going too far, but seeing her injured, he felt somewhat sorry for her. "Seth, you see this situation... Lorena is also upset, and my sister is hurt too, so it's even."

I gave Shawn a sneaky look and said, "I think you all spoil her too much."

"Seth, I'll definitely discipline her when we get back," Shawn said with a forced smile, "By the way, I will also compensate the delivery person."

Wilona wanted to argue further, but Shawn pulled her away. The crowd dispersed upon seeing this, and soon, only Lorena and I were left in the hall.

My silhouette reflected on the ground. From my perspective, I could see her messy, thick hair, but she seemed oblivious and didn't care much about her appearance. She kept looking down at her phone. Unaware, we collided chest to chest. Lorena suddenly gasped in pain.

"I know you can feel pain too. I thought you only remembered playing with your phone." I turned around, my handsome and cold face looking down at her miserable little face, my eyes slightly darkened.

"I was texting my friend who was involved in the incident tonight. I don't know how she's doing after being taken to the hospital," Lorena explained in a low voice, without looking at me.

I quietly watched her for a while and couldn't help but ask, "Lorena, do you hate me?"

Lorena was taken aback.

She thought about it and shook her head gently, "I don't hate you, I just disliked you before. But you helped me tonight by taking me out, so thank you for that."

My heart was pricked, and my expression subtly changed. "Funny enough, I used to dislike you too."

I unbuttoned the shirt button below my collarbone, a cold smile appeared on my lips. "Lorena, do you know how foolish your actions were tonight? Seeking revenge for a friend may feel satisfying, but have you ever thought that if it wasn't for me, Shawn would let you go because he genuinely felt his sister went too far?"

Lorena's face gradually turned transparent and pale. She bit her lip and said, "I know, it's because of you."

"You're aware, that's good."

I sarcastically replied, "The Ortiz family is also a prominent family in the kingdom for centuries. Wilona is treated like a precious gem by the Ortiz family. By smearing cake on her face, you have offended her greatly. Your tribe can't compare to them, Shawn could easily crush you like an ant. You almost risked your life."

"But, if I could do it all over again, I would still do the same."

Lorena finally looked up, her swollen face looking unattractive in the moonlight, except for her determined and pure eyes, shining brighter than the stars in the sky. "I would definitely do it again."

I had a complex expression on my face. As someone who has been navigating society for many years, ideals and justice are things I have long abandoned. But at that moment, Lorena's purity touched me.

"Lorena, justice without power is called foolishness," I said.

"Perhaps, but I'm only 21 years old this year. Who hasn't been young and passionate?"

Lorena self-mockingly curled her lips. "Maybe in ten years, twenty years, I will become worldly-wise, polished, and a refined selfish person. But I won't regret what I did today. Why does she have the right to mock my friend? Is she asking for compensation from us? She wants to trample on our dignity."

Lorena's chest heaved with anger, and a hint of restrained mist appeared in her eyes. Her small mouth kept talking, getting angrier with each word. Then her slender body trembled gently in the night breeze. Her eyes turned slightly red, but she stubbornly refused to shed a tear.

Such Lorena, made me feel uneasy, inexplicably regretting that I spoke too harshly just now. But I couldn't help but bend down and hold her, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. The girl in my arms visibly stiffened for a moment. The smell of blood and tears mixed together wasn't pleasant, but the moment I left her lips, I somehow felt a bit unsatisfied.

"Don't cry," I tightened my throat, coughed lightly to try to shift the attention, subconsciously searching for tissues in my pocket.

"Who's crying? I won't cry," Lorena rasped, sniffed, and took a step forward to push me away and walk down the steps. "Thank you for today, I'm leaving."

"Wait." I grabbed her wrist. "Where are you going with this ghostly look? Let me take you to the hospital."

"No need."

"You must come with me now." Without hesitation, I pulled her towards my car.