Chapter 76: Academic genius

You... you slept with him?!" Natasha’s eyes widened in total shock, her face turning pale.

Victoria smiled beautifully and murmured, "We are boyfriend and girlfriend—isn’t it completely natural for us to engage in such intimate acts?"

Natasha felt a violent surge of rage, desperately wanting to rush forward and slap Victoria’s smug, radiant face a few times!

However, a sudden thought crossed her mind, and she forced herself to calm down.

No... Julian Vance only loves me! There is no way he would sleep with another woman! This woman is definitely saying those explicit words on purpose just to make me feel terrible and ruin my composure! I can’t fall for Julian’s and this woman’s pathetic tricks!

"Do you really think I’m stupid enough to believe your lies just because you say them out loud?" Natasha sneered contemptuously. "Let me give you a piece of advice: even if you somehow fell in love with Julian Vance for real, don’t even dream of winning his heart—because Julian Vance will only ever love me!"

Victoria looked at her with dark, mesmerizing eyes and smiled softly, "Then let’s wait and see whether he falls in love with me or not."

Sooner or later, she would ensure that her Julian’s heart belonged strictly and exclusively to one woman—her.

At first, Victoria had believed it was fundamentally impossible for Julian to love her back. She had thought that just as her mother had treated her father, she would have to lock Julian up inside Rose Manor, possessing only his physical body.

But lately, her Julian had been so well-behaved, so obedient, and so exceptionally gentle with her. She couldn’t help but crave more; she wanted his soul and his absolute love as well!

Natasha was completely stunned by the profound, obsessive emotion swirling in Victoria’s eyes.

Is this woman... actually in love with Julian Vance for real?!

She definitely was. The overwhelming adoration, passion, and possessiveness burning in her eyes were unmistakably genuine!

An overwhelming surge of intense panic flared up in Natasha’s heart.

If an extraordinarily wealthy, breathtakingly beautiful woman like this was genuinely pursuing Julian Vance, with her world-class looks and terrifying charm, there were practically zero men in the entire world who could resist her seduction!

NO! I can’t let a woman like this stay by Julian Vance’s side! She will completely steal Julian away from me forever!

---------------

Julian finished using the restroom and washed his hands before returning to the table.

The moment he sat down, he noticed the exceptionally unpleasant, pale, and terrified expression plastered across Natasha’s face, and a subtle sense of curiosity arose in his heart.

It’s completely unclear what Victoria and Natasha were just talking about that made Natasha look so thoroughly defeated.

"My Julian, you’re back," Victoria greeted softly, her posture instantly shifting as she turned to him with a radiant, gentle smile.

"Mhm," Julian replied, adjusting his seat. "What were you two talking about just now?"

Victoria glanced sideways at Natasha, her dark eyes sparkling with a subtle, dangerous amusement.

She smiled sweetly and said, "Just now, Miss Natasha and I were chatting about some interesting events from your past."

"It turns out my Julian and Miss Natasha used to have a remarkably close relationship... you were true childhood sweethearts."

Jullian: "..."

Hearing those words, Julian’s heart skipped a heavy beat! He could clearly hear the thick, suffocating sourness and underlying jealousy lacing Victoria’s velvety tone!

He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he had to handle this delicate matter with absolute perfection right now. Otherwise, the second they returned to Rose Manor tonight, his kidneys and waist would be in severe, fatal danger!

Julian didn’t hesitate for a single microsecond. He turned his head, looked directly into Victoria’s eyes, and reached out to grasp her hand firmly.

"Childhood sweethearts?" Julian sneered coldly, his voice dripping with absolute disdain as he looked back at Natasha.

"Don’t insult the phrase ’childhood sweethearts,’ Natasha. Back then, I was merely blind and mistook my foolish gratitude toward a cold-hearted bully for affection. But now that my eyes are open, I realize that compared to my Victoria, you aren’t even worth a single glance."

Then Julian quickly added, "Victoria, I was blind before, which is why I fell for a woman like Natasha and even chased after her like a simp."

"Julian Vance, you!" Natasha’s face turned extremely ugly.

Julian didn’t even glance at Natasha, continuing smoothly, "But Victoria, my eyes are healed now, and I can’t stand her anymore. I only like you. As for this Natasha, I wish she would get as far away from me as possible."

Natasha clenched her fists tightly until her knuckles turned white.

This Julian Vance actually belittled her at every turn! In her mind, she was only inferior to this woman in terms of looks and figure. She was a student at Capital University, the absolute top-tier university in the entire country! Her bright, glorious future was something no simple actress or sugar baby could ever compare to.

"Miss," Natasha said again, attempting to regain her high ground. "I forgot to introduce my credentials properly. I’m a third-year student majoring in finance at Capital University, and I’m ranked in the top five of my entire major. May I ask what school you attended?"

In Natasha’s eyes, while other women might rely on men to live a wealthy life, her academic achievements were her ultimate pride and tool for packaging herself. That was why she had always studied so hard.

Victoria Sterling smiled slightly, a subtle glint in her eyes.

"I was admitted to Capital University at the age of fifteen," Victoria stated calmly. "I completed all the required subjects of finance and business management in two years, and then spent another two and a half years to obtain my master’s and doctoral degrees from Stanford University."

If it weren’t for the fact that she had returned to take over the Sterling Group at the age of fifteen, she would have finished her doctorate at an even younger age.

Julian was completely stunned.

Victoria truly lived up to her status as the absolute villainess of the novel; her intellect was simply absurdly overpowered. Oh, right—the original novel had also mentioned that Victoria was fluently proficient in multiple foreign languages.

"Impossible! You’re just an actress or a model he hired, how could you possibly be so amazing?!" Natasha said through gritted teeth, her voice cracking.

Completing an undergraduate degree in two years, and then earning both a master’s and a doctorate from Stanford in two and a half years? Even a complete academic freak couldn’t pull off something so insane!

"You don’t believe me?" Victoria raised an eyebrow casually.

She retrieved her phone and sent a quick voice message: "Secretary Evelyn, send me digital copies of my degree certificates from Capital University and Stanford University immediately."

"Yes, President Sterling."

Barely twenty seconds later, three official digital certificates arrived on Victoria’s phone. She turned her phone around and displayed the screen directly to Natasha.

Natasha’s face turned deathly pale in an instant.

"It’s fake... it must be photoshopped!" Natasha muttered to herself, shaking her head in utter denial.

How could anyone possibly be that incredible?! These photos had to be edited!

"Still don’t believe it?" Victoria’s eyebrow arched higher. "Then I’ll log into the official Higher Education Student Information Network right now and let you verify it yourself."

Victoria opened the official academic portal on her phone, logged into her verified profile, and pulled up her official education records.

"Have a look." Victoria pointed her phone screen at Natasha once again.

If it were anyone else questioning her, Victoria wouldn’t have bothered wasting a single second proving herself. However, this was the woman her Julian used to chase after. Because she loved Julian so deeply, it made her vulnerable and competitive in front of his past.

"She... she really is a master’s and doctoral graduate from Capital University and Stanford..."

Natasha had zero choice but to believe the official government database staring right at her. This woman’s true capability was terrifyingly astronomical!

Now, a horrifying realization hit Natasha: Julian Vance might indeed have invited her here to act, but this impossibly high-achieving, powerful woman was genuinely, deeply in love with Julian Vance! Otherwise, why on earth would such a world-class genius be willing to put on a show alongside Julian?!

The surrounding people in the coffee shop were visibly shocked, whispering in awe:

"She finished her undergraduate degree at Capital University in two years and earned her master’s and doctorate from Stanford in two and a half years? This woman is an absolute genius freak..."

"Now that I see her real background, I really don’t know where this side-chik got the confidence to think this handsome guy would ignore such a top-tier goddess and like her instead!"

"Exactly! If I were that guy, I would know who to choose even with my eyes closed!"