Chapter 471:
“Wait,” Cloud stammered. “You guys are… actually, officially…?”
“We are,” Aurora said calmly.
Cloud dropped the camera onto the sofa.
“Finally!” Cloud threw his hands up. “I knew it! I’ve been analyzing the micro-expressions and pupil dilation ratios from the security feeds for months! The biometrics don’t lie, but visual confirmation is satisfying.”
“You were analyzing our pupils?” Elias asked, his voice dropping an octave.
“Standard security protocol!” Cloud squeaked. “Focus on the bet! Zhang Liyan!”
“Focus,” Aurora snapped, bringing the room back to reality. She pointed at the challenge letter. “Zhang. He’s betting big because he has a secret weapon. What is it?”
“We dug into ‘Velvet Skin,'” Julian said, recovering his composure. “They have a new formula. Heavy on chemical peels. Immediate results, but harsh side effects.”
“We can beat that,” Aurora said. “I have the formula for ‘Lumina Cream.’ It utilizes the specific regenerative alkaloid strains my father cultivated in the Kensington greenhouse. These were the plants intended to be the antidote to the toxins, capable of repairing cellular damage at an accelerated rate. We’re turning the weapon inside out.”
“It’s ready?” Elias asked.
“It needs a demo,” Aurora said. “A public one.”
Meanwhile, in a sprawling mansion in the Hamptons.
Zhang Liyan stood in front of a mirror, adjusting his tie. Behind him, his wife, Kim, sat on the edge of the bed. She was a beautiful woman, but her head was bowed.
On her left cheek, a large, angry red patch of dermatitis flared. It was raw and peeling.
“Put the veil on,” Zhang said, not looking at her. “We have guests tonight.”
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“It hurts, Liyan,” Kim whispered. “The cream you gave me… it burns.”
Zhang turned around. His face was twisted in disgust. “You’re useless. I buy you the best products, and you still look like a leper. Just cover it up. If anyone asks, say you fell.”
Kim flinched. “But…”
“Silence!” Zhang shouted. “When I win this bet with the Thorne girl, I’ll have enough money to trade you in for a newer model. Maybe someone whose face doesn’t make me sick.”
He stormed out of the room.
Kim sat there, trembling. She touched the red patch on her face. Tears welled up in her eyes, stinging the raw skin.
She looked at the door where her husband had just exited. The fear in her eyes began to harden into something else.
Something colder.
Hate.
The press conference for Vance-Thorne Solutions was packed. The air was thick with skepticism. After the Vitality-X debacle, the public was wary of “miracle cures.”
Aurora stood on the stage. She wore a simple white suit, no jewelry. She held a small, unbranded glass jar.
“This,” she said into the microphone, “is Lumina Cream.”
A reporter from the back shouted, “Is it FDA approved? Or is it another ‘Vitality-X’?”
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