A chilly dread crept over her.

"She might have gained a little reputation, so many of you may already know her," Absolon continued, a proud smile on his face. "But let me formally introduce my true daughter. From now on, Lilah is a member of the Morris family."

The crowd burst into cheers, accompanied by a wave of congratulations.

Everyone rushed to offer Lilah congratulations, trying to make up for their previous harsh words. Only Karol and her two friends didn't.

In that instant, they resembled startled quails, silent yet with eyes wide open in disbelief.

Following a prolonged silence, one of her friends eventually composed herself and stuttered, "Karol... How did it happen? How come Lilah is your dad's daughter?"

"Yeah, why keep us in the dark until now?"

Actually, Karol had only just discovered the truth herself. How could she explain something she hadn't even been aware of?

Karol felt like she'd been tossed into the ocean, embarrassment washing over her, submerging her limbs and pulling her beneath the surface.

Now, she grasped the reason behind Absolon's assistant's warning against offending Lilah and figured out who paid for the trending topics for Lilah.

At this moment, everything clicked into place.

Absolon likely realized Karol was targeting Lilah, but out of respect for his mother, he chose not to confront Karol directly; instead, he issued a warning. Unfortunately, Karol didn't heed the warning at the time, so..

Karol felt regretful and adrift, uncertain of how to respond. Then, suddenly, a comforting hand landed on her shoulder.

Kaden smiled reassuringly. "Now you have a sister. That's a positive development."

Clearly, he had stepped in to spare her from further embarrassment.

With a relieved exhale, Karol nodded. “You're right. I've always wanted a sister. I should congratulate Dad."

With the box Kaden handed her, Karol approached Lilah and offered it to her. "I got this for you. I hope you like it."

Whatever was inside, it was at least a limited-edition luxury gift from this year. It would make others think Karol was being genuine with Lilah.

Lilah had noticed their earlier actions. She was somewhat surprised that Kaden had smoothly helped Karol out of the awkward situation.

Even though Lilah had accomplished her goal, Kaden's involvement still caught her off guard.

Lilah's smile was gentle. “Thank you, Karol. I hope we can stop seeing each other as rivals from now on."

“Of... Of course."

Absolon gave Karol a pointed look and said, “Everyone here knows that Lilah is now with Gerard. We will be celebrating the marriage of the Harris and Morris families in the near future. I hope everyone will join us in celebrating."

“We'll be there, for sure."