Chapter 86 iming Authority


    Emma brought up the Dead of Night on purpose to remind Marcus that he owed her a tower. She wanted him to uphold her dignity as his fiancée in front of ever


    However, Marcus ignited her intentions. He said indifferently, “Ms. Walker is our guest. Nathaniel is my friend, so let him show you around. As for the Dead of Night, make sure to properly thank sky for it.”


    Afiers, Marcus shamed his gaze Natalie. His deep,manding voice left no room for argument. "Nathaniel, take M. Walker outside for a


    Natalie was speechless. She thought to herself, "Seriously? Why do these crazy couples have to drag me into their mess?


    Seeing her hesitation, Marcos bone sharpened. “Nathaniel.”


    Natalie took a deep breath and forced a smile. She said, “Ms. Walker, this way, please?”


    Emma clenched her fists, though she kept wearing a bright smile "starcas, there''s no need for so much formalry between os. I''m yourncée, and helping you is something I''m happy to do Voudon''t need to go out of your way to thank Sky


    "Soon, we''ll be Lamby. Helping each other is onbe natural, isn''t it? Don''t you agree, Nathaniel?”


    Expressimless, Natalie replied, "I wouldn''t know. Don''t ask me. As Walker, are you going outside or not? if you''re not, I''m heading off to rese


    She hade all this ww, and while exhaustions weighed heavily on her, there were still other matters she needed to attend to


    “Of course, let''s go, but I know the Holden residence quite well. This is your first time here, int, Nathaniel Let me show you around instead


    With that she smiled before turning around. “Nathaniel, this way, please."


    Natalie didn''t bother going. Instead, she quickened her pace and stende out without a word


    After giving Marcus a light nod, Emma followed Natalie.


    After the two women had het, Marcus usedtert wipes to clean the chat Emma had been sitting on


    Charles was speechless by Marcus'' retion. He thought to hunser "He really doesn''t like his fiancée, does he?"


    “Grandpa, your medicine is ready,” Marcus reminded Charles,


    Charles picked up the bowl of ck, bitter medicine. Pinching his nose, be downed it all in one go.


    egave it a final spray with disinfectant


    "You really dislike that girl, don''t you? Charles asked ather drinking his medicine. The medicine was so botter that it made his face twisted.


    “you already know the answer to that?" He said Indifferently as he sat down, “I n to annul the engagement with the Walkers.""


    "You''ve made up your mind?"


    "This engagement was dr


    ent was arranged by your mother and Emma''s mother before you we even bom. Your parents are not here now, but before you end it, shouldn''t you at least discuss it with her?!


    At the mention of his parents, Marcus fell silent. Wesley and Laura had rarely been present in his life, ew from the time he could remember


    He had been raised almost entirely by Charles. Over the years, Charles had be the closest person to him instead of his parents.


    Marcus had lime memory of his parenti.


    "Marcas, don''t hold anything against your parents,” Charles said. Looking at him not wanting to say anything he sighed. “They had their reasons for being away."


    "Grandpa, I''ve never med them."


    Picking up a chess piece, Marcus ced it on the board. The game, which Emma had lost earlier, suddenly showed signs of a turnaround.


    Charles then picked up his own piece and ced it beside Marcus“.


    "Why don''t you give your parents a call and let them know about i


    “Alright, Grandpa."


    Marcus didn''t make another move. Instead, he pulled out his phone and scrolled to the contactbeled "Mother", Hebesitated for a bit before pressing the call button.


    The call connected almost immediately, but no one picked up. The ringing continued, looping the automated hold music, until the system eventually cut off with a mechanical


    "Sorry, the number you dialed has not responded. Please try againter."


    Marcus ended the call. "No one answered."


    "Then try againter. The Walkers will bing for dinner tonight. You ca talk to them after the meal.


    Charles picked up the empty medicine bowl and said, "Connie mentioned that after two more days of this bitter medicine, I''ll need to start acupuncture. She told me to mentally prepare for a. When the acupuncture starts, don''t you daree in to match!"


    "Grandp


    “Enough. I''ve been drinking i


    ng this medicine for days, and I actually feel much better. I don''t want to hear any nonsense from you


    With that charles stood up and said, "I''m going in rest for a bit. Go check on Emma Make sure she isn''t ping Nath a hard time"


    was prour


    Natalie was sweet-natured and soft-spoken. She was the type of woman who endured mistreatment withoutining. The way the Langley family had treated her was


    ough at that.


    If it hadn''t been for care entrusting Natalie to him as her godbrother, she might have been bullied by the Langleys:


    On the other hand, Emma always wore a polite smile and spoke with a gentle, measured tone.


    Yet every word she uttered seemed to as set her im to Marcus as her fiancé, as if she feared the world might forget


    At Charles'' age, his greatest wish was to Marus settle down and get married everything went well, it would be perfect it he had great-grandchildren


    Chapter is rining Authority


    Emma understood this perfectly and used it to her advantage, keeping the old man in high spirits with her charm and attentivenessE


    Even so, Charles wasn''t someone who could be easily swayed by sweet work.


    While he hoped to see Marcus settle down, he respected his wishes.


    It Marcus didn''t like Emma, he wouldn''t force the manage


    The Holden and Walker families had always had a good rtionship. If the engagement were to be called off,


    it would need to be handled with care, ensuring everything was resolved smoothl


    As for his god-sister, Grace, she had asked him to help create some opportunities for Natalie and Marcus to spend time together. Marcus just needed to go with the flow when the moment felt right.


    However, people were biased. Charles couldn''t help but feel a


    Il it came down to choosing one of the two as his granddaughter-inw, he would pick Natalie over Emma


    He couldn''t help it because that was what he wanted all along. At his age, all he wanted was to follow his


    desires.


    After Charles lett, Marcus went outside as well.


    The Holden residence wasrge, but its design was quite different from the Walker family''s residence.


    There were pavilions and towers, artificial hills and flowing streams, and impably clean stone paths winding in all duections, all surrounded by ancient-style buildings at the


    back


    Emma led Natalie across an arch bridge, where the water flowed gently beneath them. Goldfish swam, and water blies floated on the water''s surface, blooming into vibrant red


    blossoms.


    Emma held some fish food in her hand, tossing it into the stream piece by piece. The goldfish swarmed eagerly, happily devouring the food.


    "Mr. Langley, Marcus is my fiancée,” Emma said with a polite smile, Her tone was also gentle and graceful.


    She continued, "I really like Marcus, and he likes me too."


    Forcing a faint smile, Natalie didn''t respond. To be honest, she couldn''t see any signs that Marcus liked


    Emma


    "In three months, it will be my birthday, and my birthday party will also serve as our engagement celebration."


    Emma turned to look at Natalie and continued, “Mr. Langley, I sincerely invite you to attend our engagement


    party"