Chapter 10: Chapter 9
’But... this isn’t in the plot.’
’Tsk, the plot didn’t have Ethan Crowe coming to me and spouting all that nonsense either.’
So rigid, following the plot bit by bit... It’ll take forever to finish the mission.
was dumbfounded. ’It can be done like that?’
The warning didn’t sound, which must mean it was okay, as long as she didn’t break character.
It lacked the convoluted thinking of humans. Once it figured things out, it actively cooperated: [’In that case, let’s get a head start on the upcoming plot points.’]
Joanna Kennedy: [’?’]
[’Let’s have an early encounter with the second male lead.’]
Joanna Kennedy: [’...’] ’Now you’re getting it.’
*
[’We’re here.’] 166’s electronic voice overlapped with the sound of a cat’s cute mewling.
Joanna Kennedy stopped in her tracks, stunned for a moment. She tilted her head and saw a beautiful calico cat sprawled out on the wooden steps, meowing.
A young man of about twenty walked out of the shop. He cleared his throat with a fake-angry AHEM and pointed at the little cat. "What are you meowing about? If you’re like this now, what’s going to happen in the spring? You’re getting out of hand..."
"MEOW~"
The young man: "..." Joanna Kennedy couldn’t help but laugh out loud. [’So this is the tragic second male lead?’]
’What kind of thing is that to say?’
retorted: [’The Kennedy family’s bankruptcy has everything to do with him. Who told you to offend the female lead?’]
The female lead’s plot armor was no joke. Even though her own family background was tragic, her suitors were each more capable than the last.
Charles Jennings, the female lead’s boy-next-door big brother figure, was actually the illegitimate son of a wealthy family. He was hiding his true colors here and had fallen in love with the kind and wonderful female lead.
Unfortunately, the female lead was in love with someone else, so he could only make a sad exit and dedicate himself to protecting her love story instead.
To ensure the female lead’s happiness, he returned to his wealthy family, engineered the Kennedy family’s bankruptcy, and rescued the male lead from Joanna Kennedy’s obsessive love.
CLAP, CLAP. Joanna Kennedy clapped, utterly amazed by this grand and selfless view of love.
"Boss, I need to ask about someone."
The girl’s tone was spoiled. Charles Jennings frowned imperceptibly, turning toward the voice while holding the small cat.
Trumpet creepers bloomed wantonly over the grayish-blue wall. The girl stood beneath the flowers, a high ponytail swinging, her chin slightly raised. Her beautiful features still held a touch of youth, hinting at the devastating beauty she would one day possess.
He was only stunned for a second before his usual expression returned. "I don’t really know the people around here. You can ask someone else."
’If I ask someone else, how am I supposed to advance the plot?’
Joanna Kennedy ignored him. "Serena Sutton. Do you know her? She lives around here."
At this point, Charles Jennings didn’t have romantic feelings for Serena Sutton yet; he just saw her as a little sister. He would learn from Joanna Kennedy that Serena Sutton was getting close to another boy—a boy named Simon Lockwood.
Charles Jennings remained impassive. "Are you her classmate?"
"Yes!" Joanna Kennedy said without a hint of guilt.
"She boards at school. She doesn’t live at home."
"I know," Joanna Kennedy said impatiently. "Just tell me where her house is."
She clearly had bad intentions. Charles Jennings’s expression cooled. "Sorry, no comment."
"You!" At the end of the day, Joanna Kennedy was still a girl of sixteen or seventeen. No matter how spoiled and imperious, she was still thin-skinned. She grew angry at his words. "Fine, don’t tell me."
’His isn’t the only shop here. I’ll just ask someone else.’
She walked into another shop. Seeing a pretty young girl, the shopkeeper cheerfully told her and even came out to point the way.
Charles Jennings was still standing on the steps of his shop. Before leaving, Joanna Kennedy shot him a triumphant arch of her eyebrows. The meaning was clear—’If you won’t talk, someone else will.’
The pretty, spoiled girl tossed her head and left, her high ponytail swinging a few times in the air.
After crossing a deserted alley, Joanna Kennedy stopped in front of a house. It was a small, old bungalow with a red wooden door. A few flowers bloomed magnificently on either side of the door, evidence that the owner took good care of them and was someone who loved life.
This wasn’t what Joanna Kennedy had imagined.
Just as she was about to knock, the door opened from the inside.
The middle-aged woman was not yet forty. Having raised her daughter alone, her delicate face was etched with the marks of time. Serena Sutton looked a lot like her.
Joanna Kennedy had come straight from school and was still in her uniform, the school crest on one side clearly visible.
A classmate from the same school showing up at their house during school hours... The middle-aged woman’s expression shifted from confusion to faint anxiety. "Are you Serena’s classmate? Did something happen to my Serena at school?"
"...No."
Joanna Kennedy was an orphan and had never experienced parental love. Because she’d never experienced it, she didn’t really understand it.
The worry and concern on the middle-aged woman’s face were too obvious. For a moment, a strange emotion flickered through her heart, and she found she couldn’t say the vicious words she had prepared.
Hearing that her daughter wasn’t in trouble, the middle-aged woman breathed a sigh of relief, but was still confused. "Then you..."
"Wrong house," Joanna Kennedy blurted out.
’The wrong house? How do you end up at someone’s front door by mistake?’
The middle-aged woman’s eyes were suspicious. If Joanna Kennedy tried to explain further, she would break character.
She gave a little laugh. Before she could decide whether to just leave, she caught a glimpse of someone striding toward them from the end of the lane.
She hadn’t expected Simon Lockwood to come looking for her. She followed a few paces behind him for several minutes, her initial surprise turning into anger.
Simon Lockwood was tall with long legs and walked so fast he didn’t seem to care about her at all.
Joanna Kennedy couldn’t keep up even at a jog. Frustrated and angry, she simply squatted down on the spot. "Simon Lockwood, stop right there!"
She saw Simon Lockwood stop and turn sideways, his icy gaze landing on her.
Not showing any weakness, Joanna Kennedy stubbornly met his gaze until her eyes ached. Only then did Simon Lockwood casually walk closer, looking down at her squatting form.
"Get up." His voice betrayed no emotion.
"I won’t." Joanna Kennedy pushed her luck. "You pull me up."
She brazenly held out her hand, just as she had a few days ago when she’d willfully made Simon Lockwood carry her to the nurse’s office.
Simon Lockwood’s lip twitched. His hands remained at his sides, unmoving. He clearly had no intention of pulling her up.
Joanna Kennedy’s legs were going numb from squatting. Feeling wronged, she stood up by herself.
They stood facing each other. Simon Lockwood ignored her as she massaged her legs. "Young Miss, are you done playing around?"
Joanna Kennedy froze. Simon Lockwood clearly thought she had come to cause trouble for Serena Sutton today.
That was indeed the case. Although she hadn’t actually done anything bad, Simon Lockwood didn’t need to know that.
"No," Joanna Kennedy said deliberately. "Today was just a warning. If she dares to pester you again, I’ll hire people to trash her house."
She moved closer to Simon Lockwood, tilting her head up to stare at his handsome but overly cold face. A mischievous impulse sparked within her. "Simon Lockwood, you want to protect her? Fine. Then you have to be with me."
Her face was calm and composed as she delivered the threat, but her palms, hidden at her sides, were damp with nervousness.
frantically sent a stream of garbled code, expressing its shock at how quickly the plot was advancing.
Simon Lockwood stared at her silently, his dark eyes deep and unreadable. He showed no sign of embarrassment upon hearing such a coercive demand.
For some reason, Joanna Kennedy felt anxious. She forced herself to meet his gaze, not even realizing that an unconscious look of hopeful expectation had appeared in her eyes.
"Be with me, and I’ll leave her alone," she repeated. After a moment’s thought, she added, "Otherwise, I’ll trash your house too."
