Chapter 60
Arthur hadn’t expected Maelys to agree so quickly
But since she dul, it was the test he wanted.
After making comtart, his breathed a sigh of relief and immediately shared the good news with Sophie.
Sophie let out an excited squeal: “Thank you, Arthur! If you hadn’t pleaded for me, I probably would’ve been disqualified for real. It’s all iny fault… I was too impulsive”
Arthur fondly ruffled Sophie’s hair, smiling: “Sophie, no more impulsive moves like that, okay?”
Sophie nodded eagerly, but something felt off: “Arthur, we don’t even know Maëlys that well. Why did she agree so quickly?”
That was what puzzled Arthur too.
“Isn’t it obvious? Sophie’s work was so amazing it totally won her over,” Joanne chimed in from her spot in the hospital room, providing the answer to their confusion.
“But that was sister’s design…” Sophie felt a bit guilty.
“What sister this, sister that-whatever Rachel designed is yours. We’re all family, no need to split hairs,” Joanne laughed it off. “Besides, it was originally designed for Sophie anyway.”
Hearing this, Sophie felt a bit more at ease.
Right, it was originally designed for her, so she could use it guilt-free.
Sophie smiled softly, asking with apparent concern: “Arthur, you still haven’t found sister after all this time?”
Mentioning this made Arthur’s blood pressure spike.
He’d practically turned the entire city upside down, but Rachel had vanished like she’d evaporated into thin air!
He’d also checked every surveillance camera he could find from that day, but there was no trace of Rachel anywhere-like she’d disappeared into thin
air!
Seeing his state, Sophie could guess what happened. She sighed worriedly: “Sigh, sister’s really something, disappearing without a trace and making mom and dad so worried.”
“Forget about her!” Arthur got angry just thinking about Rachel. “If only she were half as well-behaved as Sophie.”
Sophie twisted her fingers together, feeling a bit embarrassed.
Arthur didn’t stay much longer. He was juggling work stuff and the urgent search for Rachel, so he left soon after.
After he was gone, only Sophie and Joanne remained.
Sophie’s phone buzzed a few times. She glanced at the content briefly before flipping it face-down, then smiled sweetly at Joanne: “Mom, I’m really craving Marco’s pasta.”
Then she seemed to regret it: “But it’s so far away… never mind.”
Hearing this, Joanne couldn’t bear to let her suffer such disappointment and quickly said: “I’ll go get it for you. Just wait here, sweetie.”
“Thank you, Mom.”
Sophie’s sweet words had Joanne completely charmed.
After she left, the hospital room returned to quiet.
A while later, the door opened and a woman with smoky blue waves strutted in, swaying her hips.
Chapter no
“Baby girl, miss me?” Yvonne plopped down next ta Sophie.
Sophie shifted away slightly in disgust: “You changed your hair color again?”
Tvenne raised an eyebrow with a smile, twirling a strand of hair around her finger: “Min hum=”
Oh honey, the last time we met was before your old man kicked the bucket. That old bastard finally croaked and we didn’t even get to celebrate properly, then you go and get yourself all banged up!”
She reached for the bandage on Sophie’s head, but Sophie dodged away.
“Your psycho sister again?”
Sophie rolled her eyes. “Need you ask?”
Yvonne pouted: “She’s already left the Leroix family, so now it’s all yours. Once you get into Maelys’s studio and smoothly marry faxon, you’ll have career and love locked down. One little Rachel isn’t even competition anymore.”
This hit Sophie right in her sweet spot, and she smiled with satisfaction.
Actually, she was already looking forward to it.
But Rachel remained a thorn in her side.
“Help me find Rachel. I can’t shake this uneasy feeling.”
“Her? She can’t stir up any real trouble. Probably dead in some ditch somewhere,” Yvonne didn’t take it seriously at all, but seeing Sophie’s displeased expression, she agreed anyway: “Fine, fine, but I can only try. If your precious brother can’t manage it, what makes you think I have that kind of power?”
Sophie nodded. She hadn’t really expected Yvonne to find anything anyway-it was just for peace of mind. “I wonder if Rachel even submitted a design.”
“Ha,” Yvonne laughed mockingly, “how could she? There’s no way she could finish something decent in such a short time, okay? Just sit back and wait for first place!”
She was right.
Yvonne’s words were like a reassuring pill, putting Sophie more at ease.
They timed their chat carefully, and Yvonne left before Joanne returned, perfectly avoiding her.
Maelys’s team worked efficiently-just three hours later, all competition entries were published online.
All works were anonymous, so nobody knew who the real authors were.
Except for Sophie.
Her earlier livestream shenanigans had sparked intense online debate.
The comments section was severely polarized-one side questioned the competition’s fairness, arguing that her early reveal violated the rules, while the other side consisted of Sophie’s fans desperately trying to whitewash the situation.
Some people went straight to the official social media to voice their complaints:
“Is there any fairness left in this competition? Sophie’s work was revealed early-clearly the organizers are giving her special treatment.”
“Looks like the winner was predetermined. Everyone else is just there for show.”
“This world is just one giant soap opera and we’re all background characters.”
But Maelys remained completely composed. Even though netizens were practically burning down Instagram, she didn’t make a peep.
Vivian was running around in circles, practically ready to get on her knees: “Boss, what do we do?”
Maelys trimmed her freshly cut nails, admiring them with satisfaction for a few seconds: “No rush. If Mr. Rothschild isn’t worried, why should we be
Despite the constant criticism, Sophie’s massive fanbase kept her vote count way ahead, holding steady at first place.
Sophie’s fans rallied to vote for her, with comments everywhere praising “Sophie’s designs are always the best!”
Their campaigning was actually effective-casual viewers who saw it also joined the voting bandwagon.
Meanwhile.
Rachel was constantly monitoring the online discussion.
Her “Thornbird” piece was getting massive attention.
“Thornbird” was a brooch featuring a bird with outstretched wings ready to take flight. The bird’s body had flowing, elegant lines, with sharp thorns extending from the tail, wrapping around the bird’s body and piercing through its chest.
The thorns were set with black diamonds or black onyx, while the bird’s body featured gradient sapphires from deep blue to light blue, symbolizing life’s journey from suffering to transcendence.
The eye was set with a ruby, like the bleeding heart of the thornbird.
The overall effect was tragic yet beautiful.
This piece’s vote count was far ahead of the rest.
