Chapter 434 - 204: Confrontation

But he hadn’t refused.

Knowing him as she did, he might refuse with his words, but his body was always honest.

So, he might be spared a death sentence, but he wasn’t getting off scot-free.

A moment later, the young woman from the front desk came down from upstairs and handed the three of them a key.

"It’s all cleaned up, and I’ve replaced everything with new things," she said happily. "If you need anything else, just use the phone in the room to call the front desk. I’ll be here."

"Okay," Elise said with a smile. "We appreciate it."

The young woman chuckled. "Not at all, not at all."

’I’m just doing my job,’ she thought.

The room was on the top floor—the fourth floor.

The motel didn’t have an elevator, so Sean and the others had to take the stairs.

Sometimes, a modest motel or a small inn like this could feel more relaxing than a high-end hotel. It was small enough that you could see the bed the moment you opened the door. You could just take two steps and fall right asleep. The simple decor also subconsciously made you forget who you were for a while, allowing you to let go of everything and just sleep soundly.

Although Sean enjoyed luxury and usually stayed in fine hotels, he didn’t mind motels. He was fine with the good and the bad.

However...

There were three pillows on the bed.

And three pairs of slippers.

When the young woman from the front desk had cleaned the room, she had specifically brought an extra set of new toiletries from the storeroom.

Should he consider her thoughtful or thoughtless for doing this?

Sean stared at the three clean pillows, pondering for a long moment before tentatively asking, "So, I sleep in the middle?"

Anna didn’t say a word, just watched him quietly.

Elise watched him too.

Their two pairs of beautiful eyes were like two finely crafted daggers, stabbing into Sean until he ached all over.

Sean immediately forced a laugh. "I’m just kidding, don’t take it seriously."

Anna’s voice was as beautiful as it was freezing. "You’d better be kidding."

Sean pretended nothing had happened, grabbing a towel and a bathrobe and heading for the bathroom.

"I’ll go take a shower first. You two talk."

As he spoke, he was ranting in his head.

’Weren’t you the one who wanted one room so we could sleep together?’

’Now that we actually have one room, you’re not happy about it.’

’If you can’t handle the heat, don’t start the fire. So classless. Hmph.’

CLICK.

Sean slammed the door shut with a BANG and locked it, lest he be ambushed.

Outside the bathroom, Elise sat on the bed, patting the spot beside her. She looked at Anna and said, "Care to chat?"

Anna didn’t move.

Her relationship with Elise wasn’t good enough for them to sit and have a heart-to-heart. They could talk just fine while she was standing.

Elise cut right to the chase. "Do you have your eye on my man?"

"Think he’s handsome?"

Anna didn’t answer, retorting instead, "Are you sure he’s *your* man?"

"Who else’s would he be?" Elise asked, perplexed. "If he’s not my man, is he yours?"

Anna stared at Elise for a moment, then shifted her gaze to the bathroom. "From what I know, the last time Sean came to Blake City, he had another woman with him."

She was referring to Elvire.

In reality, the last time Sean came to the New World, he had split up from Elvire and the others. He had come to Blake City alone, without anyone else; the Eleanor Sisters and Teacher Tony all came later. But based on information from her Divine Servant and her own observations over the past day, Anna had guessed that this was Elise’s first time in the New World. She likely knew nothing about Sean’s past activities, so Anna had just made it up on the spot.

It was a trivial detail, meant to test Elise’s reaction and see if her own guess was correct.

Even with a different identity, Anna maintained her usual style of hiding two layers of meaning in a single sentence.

If Sean had heard this, he might have realized something was off about this girl named "Anna." Unfortunately, he couldn’t. He was currently humming a tune while enjoying a comfortable shower. As the great Mr. Blake, he would never stoop to eavesdropping on girls’ conversations.

It was beneath him.

But when Elise heard Anna mention "the last time," she froze for a second. "You knew him before this?"

It finally dawned on her, and her expression grew more pointed.

"So that’s why you were bold enough to have him sit in the back with you on our first meeting. It turns out, Miss Anna, you didn’t just take a liking to him now—you’ve had your eye on him for a long time."

"Never mind who this girl you claim he brought last time was. It just proves he has a woman. But what about you?"

"Knowing he has a woman, yet you’re still hung up on him, pining for him even now, Miss Anna..."

Elise’s tone was mocking. "Don’t tell me you have some nasty habit of exclusively going after other people’s boyfriends?"

Anna shook her head. "Not enough."

Elise: "?"

"What’s not enough?"

"Your attack wasn’t aggressive enough," Anna said coolly. "I can tell you’re trying to insult me, but it’s too weak. I don’t feel a thing."

Elise was so annoyed she almost laughed. ’Who asks to be insulted more harshly?’ she thought.

"Do you have a humiliation fetish?"

"That’s none of your business," Anna said. "But I can teach you how to properly attack someone."

"Do you know what it meant when Sean wanted to get three rooms just now?" she asked.

Then she answered her own question. "It means he hasn’t accepted you in his heart yet. He subconsciously wants to sleep separately from you."

"In other words, this so-called boyfriend-girlfriend, or even husband-wife, relationship is all just your wishful thinking."

"You like him, but it seems he doesn’t like you very much."

This struck a nerve with Elise. She had never been sure about Sean’s attitude—or rather, his feelings—toward her. As his "lover," she didn’t actually ask for much. Even if Sean didn’t like her, that was his business. Likewise, who she liked and who she wanted to sleep with was her own business.

But those were her own private thoughts. She could mock herself, call herself a shameless simp who put lovers before friends—she could say whatever she wanted. But when someone else said it, it felt completely different.

Elise’s tone turned hostile. "Are you trying to drive a wedge between me and my man, Miss Anna?"

"Drive a wedge?" Anna scoffed. "You say that as if you two have a great relationship to begin with."

’It’s a fake relationship anyway. Does it even need someone to drive a wedge?’

Anna said with disappointment, "I thought you were a smart woman. Turns out I know why Sean wants a separate room from you, but you don’t."

Elise: "?"

"Why?"

She really did want to know.

And just like that, she fell into Anna’s trap.

She had forgotten one thing—Anna was still in the middle of teaching her how to insult someone.

"Because you’re not slutty enough," Anna said.

Elise: "?"

"Bullshit, I’m very..."

’Wait a minute.’

’No, how can I say that I’m slutty?’

Elise stopped mid-sentence, her beautiful face flushing bright red.

She truly hadn’t expected that Anna, who looked like a cold and aloof noble girl, could be so good at making snide, backhanded remarks.

She had to calm down for a good while before she could find the words to retort. "So you’re saying you’re the slutty one?"

"I’m alright," Anna replied, her expression calm, completely unfazed by the attack. "We’re not the same type. I don’t rely on being slutty to attract men."

Elise: "?"

’What does that mean?’

’You’re so noble? You’re so high and mighty?’

With just one simple sentence, Anna nearly broke through Elise’s defenses again.

She was truly no match for Anna.

She couldn’t win a verbal fight, and she couldn’t get physical, or it would look like she’d truly lost her temper. With no other options, Elise could only counterattack with a "fact." She sneered, "Miss Anna, that pretty little mouth of yours is really something. I just wonder, has Sean ever had a taste of it?"

The implication was that Sean had tasted *her* lips.

’So what if you’re a smooth talker?’

’She had kissed Sean, but Anna hadn’t.’

Anna: "?"

She looked up, meeting Elise’s eyes.

Clearly, that remark had gotten to her.

Elise pressed her advantage. "What’s wrong? Feeling sour?"

Anna’s voice turned a few degrees colder. "Don’t you like him?"

Elise: "I do. I like my own man. Is there a problem with that?"

"Then have you considered that what you just said could bring him a great deal of trouble?" Anna said.

"A great deal of trouble? Hah." Elise laughed disdainfully. "Are you threatening me, Miss Anna?"

"Sorry, but I don’t fall for that."

"And let’s say there is some trouble, just like you said. I’ll shoulder it for him myself."

She dared to love, dared to act, and dared to take responsibility.

"Is that so?"

Anna looked at her and asked,

"Does that include dying for him?"

...