As livid as he was, Alexandre was ready to cancel their engagement then and there. But before he could say a word, Hera spoke up in French.


    "So, you must be Lady Mindy Pinault of the Pinault family—the third wealthiest family in Paris," Hera began smoothly. "It’s a pleasure to meet you in person. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about the socialite of Paris, especially the Pinault heiress. They say she’s as elegant and magnanimous as she is beautiful."


    Hera paused, dragging out her words as she sipped her champagne, letting the silence carry the weight of her unspoken meaning.


    "But now that I’ve seen you..."


    She gave Mindy a deliberate, thoughtful look.


    "I’ve never heard of a socialite—especially one considered a social butterfly or a leading figure in society—speaking so bluntly. How shall I put it? Crudely."


    Hera’s voice softened slightly, but her tone was firm.


    "My apologies if you think I was seducing your fiancé. From the moment I arrived until you showed up, I made sure to keep my distance and behave properly around Mr. Arnault. But to be called a slut so openly—that’s far below the belt. I never expected such behavior from the socialite of Paris. It’s a shame that it diminishes the etiquette, character, and manners expected of someone in your position."


    Hera said this, lumping them all together deliberately. After all, they regarded Mindy as the head of the socialites—someone with high status and an esteemed family background. A person in such a position should have known better.


    Yet, Mindy had acted without ss in front of a foreign visitor, thoughtless of the consequences, driven only by jealousy. Such behavior was unbing of someone like her.


    Moreover, Mindy’s embarrassment reflected poorly on everyone in their inner circle. Hera knew that by lumping them together, she risked offending others—but she was gambling on Alexandre to choose a side.


    From what Hera had observed, Alexandre and Mindy didn’t share a close bond. If he sided with Mindy simply because they came from the same social circle—just to save face for the Arnault name without considering right and wrong—then Hera would have to reconsider any connection with him, even if it was purely business.


    If she didn’t manage to break into this social circle now, there would be other ways to prate it once she had sessfully built her brand. The journey might be longer and harder, but it was far better than allowing these socialites to openly humiliate and belittle her. If she let this slide now, they would never respect her in the future—and would only continue testing her limits, pushing beyond her boundaries.


    If she let this slide, they would only continue to belittle her. Once they started looking down on her, they wouldn’t want anything to do with her brand—and she would lose even more. She might lose her chance to establish herself in this city altogether.


    Hera slowly swirled her flute, staring into it without giving Mindy a second nce. Her cool indifference made it clear: if Mindy looked down on her, Hera wouldn’t waste a second more on someone so short-sighted and unworthy of her time.


    Her openly dismissive attitude wordlessly insulted everyone present. By implying they were ssless, crude, and beneath consideration, Hera delivered a stinging rebuke to the entire circle. They immediately felt slighted, viewing her as arrogant and ignorant of her ce.


    Before anyone could voice their displeasure, Alexandre spoke firmly: "Mindy, apologize."


    Mindy was stunned to hear Alexandre reprimand her over a foreigner—especially when Hera had just insulted her right to her face.


    She hadn’t even fully processed the shock of Hera speaking fluent French, so naturally and like a native. Since they were both bilingual, Mindy managed toe to terms with that quickly.


    But what she couldn’t ept was Alexandre demanding that she apologize to a nobody. Her eyes widened with anger as tears welled up instantly. She felt utterly humiliated, with no dignity left to show before everyone.


    "Alexandre! She just humiliated me! Are you really siding with an outsider over your own fiancée and childhood sweetheart?!" Mindy’s voice rose in fury. "Isn’t this going too far? Do you now care more about making some beautiful stranger smile than honoring years of friendship between our families? What about my feelings, huh? Do you really think so little of me because of her?!"


    Seeing Mindy like this looking like an angry shrew wrapped in expensive dress and makeup—was a revtion for Hera. She looked at Mindy thoughtfully and thought, ’<i>Is this what they call losing yourself for love? I must have looked like this in the original novel for Alexi, right?’</i> Then she took another sip of her champagne.


    ____


    I want to thank FallinBloom and Itoni for the Golden Tickets. Thank you, little Goddesses!