Chapter 20\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 20\u00a0<\/p>\n
Selene\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I said, I wasn\u2019t a kind person.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And if I ever did something good, I expected something in return.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The crowd turned toward me, murmuring in disbelief, apparently, gratitude without payment was still the moral standard here. Beside me, Evelyn gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. I didn\u2019t need to look to know what that meant; she was probably horrified.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The moonborn, asking strangers for money? She must have been wondering if I\u2019d gone mad.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I didn\u2019t care. I wasn\u2019t one of those people obsessed with the title Moonborn like it was some divine badge. Titles didn\u2019t feed you. Respect didn\u2019t buy clothes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was the unwanted daughter of the Bloodrose family, and right now, we were just broke people trying to survive. If that meant charging strangers for a little help, then so be it. I was still young, and might as well start earning early.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And besides, these men didn\u2019t look poor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even with their faces hidden beneath cloaks and scarves, I could tell they were wealthy. The fabric alone gave them away, fine stitching, rare textures, the faint scent of something expensive and foreign. Whoever they were, they were important.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Curious as I was about their identities, I wasn\u2019t about to pry. All I needed was coins for my service. After that, they could go back to wherever they came from.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked up at the man in front, the one who had spoken the least. He stood there in complete silence, staring at my hand that was still stretched toward him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a while, he didn\u2019t move. His silence made me pay closer attention.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What was he thinking? Was he insulted? Amused?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t tell, and that only made me more curious.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I tried to read his thoughts. I had no idea how to do it, but I knew I could if I focused enough. So I concentrated on his energy, his expression, the faint shift in the air around him, waiting for that familiar buzz in my mind that usually came when someone\u2019s thoughts slipped through, but nothing happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My brow creased.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That was strange.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Usually, if I looked long enough, people\u2019s thoughts would slip into my mind like a door quietly opening. I tilted my head, staring at him harder, but still nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Huh? Why is this woman staring at the lord like that? Has she gone mad?\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned slightly toward the voice and saw one of the men behind him watching me, his thoughts echoing clearly in my\u00a0<\/p>\n
head.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another voice joined in, calm and feminine. \u2018She\u2019s a strange woman, but I won\u2019t deny she\u2019s strong.\u2019 My eyes flicked toward the woman in the group.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018She might be a threat. Should I just kill her now and be done with it? But\u2026 would he allow it? This is hard, I have no idea what he is thinking about and I don\u2019t want to offend him.\u2019 A third voice followed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:41 Tue, Dec 23 0 MG\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 90\u00a0<\/p>\n
My gaze slid to the last man, the one whose fingers twitched near his blade\u00a0<\/p>\n
Their thoughts came to me easily, clear as spoken words. Yet when I turned back to the man in front, the one they called lord, and everything went silent\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was like my ability had slammed into a wall. I frowned, my curiosity sparking Why couldn\u2019t I read him when the others thoughts flowed so easily into my mind? Did my ability not work on him or was he somehow blocking me?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I crossed my arms, studying the man in front of me. This man was a mystery, cold, silent, unreadable. Even now, standing this close, I couldn\u2019t sense a single emotion from him. It was unsettling. Most men fidgeted or averted their eyes when I stared too long, but not him. He just stood there, steady as a wall, as if nothing in the world could move him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just when I thought he wasn\u2019t going to answer me, his low voice echoed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGive it to her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My eyebrows shot up. What?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I blinked at him, unsure if I\u2019d heard correctly. Even his own men seemed stunned. They looked at him as if he\u2019d just ordered them to hand over their heads.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019s really giving me coins? I thought, almost laughing at the absurdity of it. Did he actually take me seriously? I peeked at him again, trying to gauge his expression, but he was calm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The man standing just behind him hesitated, as though waiting for the order to be withdrawn. But when nothing changed, he turned to another man at his side.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cKaius.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The one called Kaius looked up, startled, then quickly bowed his head. \u201cYes, my lord.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He reached into his cloak and brought out a pouch. He walked toward me with the posture of someone who would rather be facing an executioner, not a girl demanding payment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stopped in front of Evelyn and handed her the pouch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Evelyn\u2019s eyes widened. She looked from the pouch to me, her lips parting in disbelief.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cM-my lady,\u201d she whispered. \u201cIt\u2019s\u2026 it\u2019s heavy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1 arched a brow, taking a step closer. Heavy? What was that supposed to mean? Rocks? Were they mocking me?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Evelyn hesitated before loosening the strings. The sound of coins clinking filled the air, and when she opened it, we both froze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Our eyes widened in unison. The pouch wasn\u2019t filled with bronze or even silver. It was filled with gold. Pure, shining gold\u00a0<\/p>\n
coins.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Evelyn\u2019s jaw dropped. \u201cI-is this fake?\u201d she stammered, staring at the glowing pieces. \u201cHow is the pouch filled with gold\u00a0<\/p>\n
coins?!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shook my head slowly, unable to tear my eyes away. \u201cIt\u2019s not fake,\u201d I murmured. The faintly metallic scent of real gold proved that. These were genuine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even Alphas never carried more than a few gold coins at a time. Gold was rare, difficult to earn even for nobles, and yet these strangers, they had just handed me a pouch full of it like it was spare change.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Who were these people?\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:41 Tue, Dec 23 MG.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Editorial Board: Our editorial team works behind the scenes to refine each chapter, maintain consistency, and deliver the best reading experience.<\/p>\n
Hope Is Not Optional \u2014 Manuel Flores 20 Chapter 20\u00a0 Chapter 20\u00a0 Selene\u00a0 As I said, I wasn\u2019t a kind […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27814","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-ruthless-tycoons-obsession-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27814","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27814"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27814\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}