Chapter 379: Look, This Is the Consequence

Chapter 379: Chapter 379: Look, This Is the Consequence

With things having escalated to this point, was there any way Claire could back down now?! Evan’s expression also looked rather grim. They were the ones who had insisted on the race and placed bets, turning it into a formal wager.

Estelle had explicitly stated several times back then, "I don’t know how to ride." Even so, they had demanded a race. If they tried to cancel it now, right after everyone realized Estelle’s riding skills were actually quite good, how humiliating would that be if word got out? Besides, the bet was already set in stone. Refusing to race would mean an automatic forfeit.

Suddenly, Evan realized a loophole. "Estelle! You explicitly said you didn’t know how to ride, yet you clearly have a deep understanding of horsemanship! You deliberately deceived us into agreeing to this race! Therefore, this doesn’t count!"

Estelle clicked her tongue. Was Evan a complete idiot?

"So, Mr. Yeats, what you’re saying is that this was your intention all along?"

"What?" Evan hadn’t processed her words yet.

However, Claire’s expression changed drastically. "I’ll race—"

Unfortunately, she was cut off by Estelle before she could even finish her sentence.

"Mr. Yeats," Estelle said sharply. "You assumed I couldn’t ride, yet you demanded I race against Claire and even asked for shares in Evernight International. What was your goal?

"Wasn’t it simply because you thought you could easily beat me, banking on the fact that I couldn’t ride?

"But since you believed I couldn’t ride and still forced me into a race, doesn’t that prove you were eager to see me humiliate myself while coveting Nathaniel’s shares?

"And now that you know I can ride, you’re being a sore loser and trying to back out.

"Looking at it this way..." Estelle paused, letting out a helpless chuckle. "You truly aren’t the heir to the Yeats family, Mr. Yeats. Your tolerance and courage really can’t compare to Young Mr. Yeats...

"Furthermore, I only said I couldn’t ride because Miss Claire claimed to be an equestrian expert with certifications. I’ve merely dabbled in it and never taken any certification exams, so...

"So, I naturally told Claire I couldn’t ride," she continued, shaking her head in exasperation. "After all, think about it. I’m just an ordinary person, not even an equestrian enthusiast. How could I dare show off my meager skills in front of a professional? I only claimed ignorance out of respect for Miss Yeats. I just didn’t expect..." She paused, feigning curiosity. "I didn’t expect you guys were just full of hot air?"

"PFFT." Someone in the crowd couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, full of hot air..."

"She’s absolutely right! The horses here are actually very docile. Look at that brown one—it threw Claire off just a moment ago, but now Estelle is riding it without any issues whatsoever."

"Exactly. Claire changed horses and still got bucked off. If you ask me, you can’t blame the horse for that... It’s obvious her mounting technique is flawed."

"And she still calls herself an equestrian expert? She’s just blowing smoke."

"Not gonna lie, she really had me fooled earlier. I genuinely thought Claire was some kind of pro. Compared to a professional, amateurs like us really don’t know how to ride. Estelle wasn’t wrong."

"So what’s the situation now? Did their little act completely backfire?"

"Hahaha, pretty much..."

Evan’s face instantly turned livid. No, no, he shouldn’t have said that! All he had done was hand Estelle more leverage! And now... now he didn’t even have the option to refuse...

Claire bit her lip hard. "Estelle, you’ve misunderstood. Of course we’re still racing. It’s just that the equestrian rules here are a bit different from Capital City. I used the mounting technique common in Capital City and accidentally hurt the horses. Everything is fine now, so let’s get the race started."

Everything would be fine. No matter how much attention Estelle was commanding right now, the fact remained that she had been abandoned by the Lockwood family in the past. She had grown up in the countryside with Chase. Horsemanship was a sport exclusive to the wealthy; truly mastering it wasn’t something one could achieve after riding just once or twice. It required a massive investment of time and money.

And time and money were exactly what Claire had in abundance. She had practiced countless times, and on that front alone, Estelle had already lost.

Claire forced herself to calm down. That was right. Estelle had to be bluffing, trying to win without a fight, but that trick wouldn’t work on her! She absolutely could not fall for it!

Estelle curled her lips into a smile, completely seeing through Claire’s renewed confidence.

She had been in a position of power for far too long, rendering her deaf to the voices of others. In the past, Claire was the eldest daughter of the Yeats family, which had deep roots in The Capital Circle. Even if they were slowly declining now, the prestige they had accumulated over a century was still present. Who wouldn’t show the Yeats family respect?

Not to mention, Claire always boasted about being the "sole, beloved" eldest daughter of the family. Someone like her couldn’t stand hearing a single word of criticism. When she was learning to ride, would her instructor actually dare to say, "You’re doing this wrong; you need to do it like this"? Would Claire even listen? What if she got upset?

Over time, the people around her only fed her compliments. They would say things like, "Miss Yeats is amazing! She truly is a once-in-a-century prodigy! Even if she competed internationally, she wouldn’t do poorly!"

And so, Claire had taken it all to heart.

Estelle suddenly chuckled. Fine. Then she would be the one to give Claire a hard slap in the face and force her to see reality.

"Since Miss Yeats has no objections, after you."

Claire had completely regained her confidence. Seeing her so assured, Evan and the young masters all breathed a sigh of relief. Never mind Evan’s seven percent shares, even the villas the young masters had offered as bets were worth tens of millions. They had never actually intended to give them to Estelle; they merely wanted to back Claire up. If Claire actually lost, they would...

Forget it, there was no point dwelling on that. Claire wasn’t going to lose! That was the shared sentiment among all the young masters of The Capital Circle at that moment.

However, once the race began, the expressions on these young masters’ faces slowly turned grim. They could no longer maintain their smiles.

"The race has started!"

"Whoa, Miss Lockwood doesn’t look like a beginner at all."

"Who told you she was a beginner? I don’t get it—isn’t Evan her brother? How could he not know? When she was abroad living with the Kendrick family, they hired professionals to teach her."

"Although Mrs. Sloan’s skill level can’t compare to a proper equestrian athlete, it’s definitely quite impressive."

The young masters wanted to furiously curse Estelle for being a scammer. So much for not knowing how to ride!

"Indeed." However, a nearby coach didn’t even give them the chance to vent, nodding in agreement. "Miss Lockwood is certainly not a novice. But from a professional’s perspective, her movements are still a bit rusty and not entirely standardized. However, for a non-professional just riding for leisure, it’s more than enough.

"But in front of ’professionals’, Miss Lockwood’s claim that she ’doesn’t know how to ride’ is actually quite accurate."

"Oh, I get it now," another bystander nodded. "Miss Lockwood is outstanding among non-professionals, but she misunderstood. She thought Claire was an actual professional, so she claimed she didn’t know how to ride. As a result, Claire and Evan fell right into the trap."

"Sigh, this is why they say you shouldn’t act like a big shot if you don’t have the skills to back it up. Look, this is what happens."

The young masters’ faces instantly flushed beet red in humiliation.