A strong ally
“Have you seen Alpha’s new phones and computers? It’s so beautiful and well-made! My brother, who is into technology, could not stop praising it to the sky! I was forced to get the custom-made ones too, and they will be delivered tomorrow.” Jasmine giggled as she talked with Lydia and Priscilla.
Her eyes were shining with excitement and pride. “Oh, I’ve heard of it! It’s such a great product! I have also ordered it, but I can only afford it at a normal model rate; forget about custom-made; my father was reluctant to get me a normal model!” Priscilla joined with eyes full of admiration.
Lydia bit her tongue, unable to join in the conversation. The new Alpha Tech phone and computer called ‘Waves’ has always been popular since the announcement of production. Everything about the devices was attractive and tempting; even laymen would appreciate them due to their enhanced basic functions and high resolution.
Lydia, who had always wanted to keep up appearances with the rich kids around her, was naturally interested in it, but after saving for so long while working three part-time jobs, she couldn’t even save the 50% discounted price, let alone the actual price. Her eyes flashed with unacceptance and resentment, and she quickly glared at the two rich kids talking about the product.
As if to rub salt on her wound, Jasmine talked to her with a gloating look while pretending to be concerned. “Did you also order?” She asked innocently, making Lydia sneer in her heart. She had always been aware that Priscilla and Jasmine were ‘friends’ with her to make themselves look good, but what could she do? She needed them to survive the horrors of a rich society.
She swallowed the bite in her heart and put on a fixed smile before shaking her head. “No, I was unable to; my savings are still lacking a few thousand, “she confessed, and the two tutted. “That’s not good enough; as our friend, you can’t be left out! Quickly transfer your savings to me; I will add to it, and then we can buy one for you.” Jasmine offered with fake sincerity.
That little bit of money was nothing to her; after all, she gets a five-figure weekly allowance, and she can afford to spare a few thousand in exchange for a loyal dog. Thinking of this, Jasmine pushed further, not wanting Lydia to reject her offer.
“We are friends; why can’t we help you get it? Anyway, a few thousand won’t hurt her pocket, so quickly send the money over and let her buy it for you! ” Priscilla joined in. Lydia pretended to be shy and guilty while cursing the two in her heart about their show-offs.
“Then I will send it; thank you,” she finally conceded after their ‘pressure’. Seeing their roommates quietly playing on her laptop without minding them, their eyes flashed with ridicule, and Priscilla walked up to her bed. She had not forgotten how she had been ‘unjustly’ framed by the seemingly quiet girl, and every time she remembered, she couldn’t help the hatred bubbling in her heart.
She sneered in her heart and put on a fake smile as she sat at the edge of Lily’s bed. “Do you also have some savings? We will help you add more money to it,” she offered but got no response. Lily only glared at her to acknowledge her presence before returning to practising her programming skills for the daily mission.
Priscilla gritted her teeth after being ignored, but she pressed on, not wanting to pass on an opportunity to ridicule the other lady. “You don’t have to pay us back; we understand your family’s condition and also take it as an apology for misunderstanding you last time,” she explained.
Lily closed the programming tube after hitting the one-hour mark and directly logged in to the Dark Lord’s chamber to see she already had messages from Alpha. Not wanting to be disturbed while doing business, she decided to reply to the bothersome roommate.
“I just got a new device, and I wouldn’t need a new one. Besides, you’ve already apologised by bowing to me last time; why do you need to apologise again? Forget it; I don’t need your charity,” she announced, stabbing them all at their sore spots.
What would people think when they found out they had bowed to a commoner who wasn’t even worthy of being their maid? That thought alone always sent the three into an abyss of rage, most especially Jasmine, who had never been wronged in her life.
“You don’t have to be so cold, pretending to be high and mighty! We were only trying to help. Of course, your peasant brain won’t understand these things!” Jasmine sneered and pulled the other two out of the room. Lily shook her head with a dark chuckle and went back to reading the messages sent by her client.
Alpha: Did you see the news? The devices have been produced and are up for sale; the rating within the past few hours is higher than we have previously seen on our other products.
Alpha: What design would you like for both? We will custom-make them and send them to you at no cost.
Alpha: Due to the massive success, the company will give you 10% extra as a bonus.
Lily’s smirk grew as she read the messages. She couldn’t help ridiculing her three roommates. ‘What charity? I could simply get it for free with just a few words!’
Sinful: I’m happy the project is a success and that it is widely accepted in the market. You don’t have to send them to me; I can afford to buy them myself.
She paused as she typed the last part. She had been tempted by the offer, but as she remembered she would either have to meet the man again or give away our identity to get it, she immediately shut down the idea.
I’ll go to get revenge on Hamilton’s family, and if she were doing that, she would need to be in the tech world, which would naturally mean that she’d be a natural rival to Alpha.
{Or a strong ally. You can’t always shut him down} the system bit in but was ignored by Lily.
Mark on the other side of the screen let out a chuckle. He had finally confirmed that the other person was trying to hide their identity, and instead of getting angry, he became interested in the other person.
Alpha: Then I won’t insist. But if you change your mind, the offer is still open.
Lily let out a sigh of relief, seeing that the other person wasn’t pushing it.
Sinful: Did you find any suitable buildings?Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.
Alpha: Yes, I did. I will send the information right away. I like the first one the most, and I recommend it. However, the others are also okay.
Sinful: I will send someone to check them out and get back to you. In return, have you thought about my offer to upgrade the Nex phone?
Alpha: I have, but considering the product is a collaboration between two companies, we can’t make the decision alone. There will be a huge backlash if we proceed without the consent of the other company.
Sinful: Then getting their consent after the success of ‘Waves’ shouldn’t be a problem.
Alpha: For now, we can’t form a cooperation with them due to their internal struggles.
Mark’s brows furrowed as he read the last message he had sent. That message was against professional ethics, and he wasn’t supposed to say it out, but he had somehow gotten so comfortable with Sinful that he wanted to let her in on it.
Lily, on the other hand, had a dissatisfied frown as she thought about the delay. Working on her mother’s project would be a good thing, but now that both of them are no longer members of Hamilton’s family, why would she need to bring them a fortune? The thought made her remember the software that was stolen by William before her death, and her face brightened up.
“We can start from somewhere!” She smirked and typed out a message.
Sinful: Then, if it’s not possible to do an upgrade, we will just have to do something entirely different; it doesn’t matter. I heard the programmer who worked on the software was dead, and that’s why I wanted to improve it. Since it’s inconvenient, we can leave it be.
Sinful: I will send you a new project I am working on in a few days. Tell me if you want it before I reach out to other people.
Mark narrowed his eyes at the last few words and scoffed. ‘Reach out to other people? Who would allow you? If it’s not as high profile as Waves, we will just give it to the secondary company!’ he thought to himself before replying.
Alpha: Send it; I will have my team look over it. And my offer to employ you for our company is still open.
He waited a few minutes and realised the other person had gone offline without replying to him. He let out an amused laugh and adjusted his tie. “Young Master, your father wants you home for dinner.”