Juniper grabbed Shanley''s pillow and hugged it tightly. Before long, she drifted off to sleep.


    When Shanley returned from his shower, he found Juniper lying in bed, her brow furrowed, sleeping restlessly. What was wrong with her? She had seemed perfectly fine when she got back this afternoon.


    Shanley gently tucked her in, then took out his phone and opened a WhatsApp chat with Qadir. [Hi Qadir, has anything happened with Juniper at school recently?]


    Receiving a message from Shanley, Qadir shot upright, clutching his phone as he carefully typed his reply: [Mr. Schwartz, nothing''s wrong with Juniper. She just, you know, lectures the teachers a bit, tutors some ssmates. When she''s hungry, she goes to the cafeteria, and when she''s sleepy, she naps in the ssroom...]


    Qadir reported every detail meticulously. Suddenly an idea urred to him. He added: [By the way, no boys dare to approach Juniper, so you can rest assured.] Shanley pinched the bridge of his nose as he read the long, rambling message. [How was her appetite this afternoon?]


    Qadir: [Juniper ate three tes of pasta, spicy chicken, pizza with minced meat, stir- fried greens...]


    Was he reading a menu? But it seemed Juniper''s appetite was fine.


    Shanley replied with a "Thanks," then leaned over the bed. He gently brushed a stray strand of hair from her forehead, his heart heavy. Why was she so unhappy? It broke his heart to see her like this.


    Meanwhile, in Australis, Harold went straight to the old family estate afternding. The Houston family was a renowned medical dynasty in Australis, famous for their phnthropic work.


    "Good day, Mr. Houston," the servants said, their eyes widening in surprise when they saw him. "What brings you back?"


    "Why can''t I be back?" Harold shot a cool nce at the servants, his tone icy.


    "No..."


    The servants quickly lowered their head, stepping aside respectfully. It wasn''t that they were shocked, but the young master didn''t have a good rtionship with his family and rarely came home more than once a year. Besides, didn''t he have a very importantpetitioning up? Shouldn''t he be holed up in hisb right now?


    "Mr. Houston, your father isn''t in Australis," a servant whispered, following behind


    him. "Your mother and your wife are in the music room."


    Harold hesitated for a moment before continuing up the stairs. From around the corner, the melodious sound of a violin drifted a violin drifted through the air. It was a cheerful piece, but it sounded incredibly mncholic.


    "Knock, knock-"


    Harold paused for a second before knocking on the door.


    "Come in."


    It was Noemi''s voice. She had expected a servant, not her long-unseen son.


    "Harold?" Noemi stood up, her face lighting up with joy. "You''re back!"


    "Screech-"


    The woman ying the violin beside her flinched, her fingers slipping and producing


    a jarring note.


    "I need to talk to you about


    something, Harold said, his tone softening, He nced at Lorelei. She was wearing a pale, form-fitting dress her hair styled in an elegant updo held with a pin adorned with a pale green gem, which entuated her delicate features. It had been a while she seemed to have lost weight. Shouldn''t she be happier without him around?


    Lorelei stopped ying and looked up at Harold. For a moment, their eyes met.


    Both expressions were neutral; neither spoke first.


    "I have something I need to ask you," Harold said, breaking the silence as he looked away from Lorelei and toward Noemi.


    "Something to ask?" Noemi nced at Lorelei, then gave an awkward smile. "You two haven''t seen each other in half a year, have you? Why don''t you sit down and talk for a bit?"