Pampered By My Three Brothers: The Return Of The Neglected Heiress - Chapter 1465

Chapter 1465: Who’s your pick?
At the Prime Group’s First Cyber Security Competition…

As dawn approached, many of the company’s distinguished guests arrived one after another. The event was significant enough to attract an audience from across the industry. Since the competition had been raging since before noon, the ten teams had already been narrowed down to four.

“And now, two,” someone muttered from the VIP section on the second floor, watching as one team emerged victorious from the latest round. The young man turned to his companion, smiling. “I heard there’s a betting pool on the two finalists. Should I put some money on one of them?”

His companion laughed, smirking. “Who’s your pick?”

“Since this round is played by four, with the first two to finish moving on… the one who succeeds first definitely holds the better odds,” the man replied.

Patricia listened to these conversations from the floor, surrounded by respectable and influential individuals. She recognized most of them, having spent days tagging along with Penny and meeting many of these figures herself.

“There’s a betting pool?” Shawn, her current partner and fellow on-duty staff, leaned toward her. “Is that even allowed?”

“Probably not,” Patricia huffed lightly, already suspecting who was behind it. After all, she knew one person who seemed addicted to betting. “But for fun? I guess.”

Shawn tilted his head. “Actually… it’s a good strategy.”

“Strategy?”

“If I bet on something, I’ll probably stick around to see whether I win or lose,” he explained quietly. “Wouldn’t you?”

Patricia’s brows rose slightly in realization. She slowly shifted her eyes toward Penny, who was speaking with a few guests, with Teddy and Hayley standing nearby.

“Come to think of it,” she whispered, “she often starts betting pools. And when she does, everyone gets invested.”

Just like that challenge between Atlas and Theo against the Star Section, or even the basketball game. Everyone had been too into it. If that was all part of a plan, then maybe Penny wasn’t just a betting addict.

“Wait… does that mean she actually thinks through everything she does?” she wondered aloud, causing Shawn to furrow his brows.

“What are you talking about, Patricia?”

“Nothing.” She smiled and shook her head. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Okay.”

They returned to watching the event, keeping Penny within their line of sight. Occasionally, they exchanged a few polite words with the other guests, subtly guiding them toward Penny or advising them to wait. Depending of their importance.

—

“Miss Bennet!”

A middle-aged man suddenly called out.

His voice alone commanded the attention of the room, drawing everyone’s eyes toward him. When Penny saw him approaching, she smiled and turned to the people she had been speaking with.

“I’m so glad to see you tonight. It’s truly an honor. Please enjoy the rest of the evening,” she said, politely excusing herself before meeting the man halfway. “It’s good to see you, good sir.”

The man laughed heartily. “Ah, Penny! It’s been a while. How have you been, young lady?”

“So far, so good,” Penny replied with a warm smile, clasping his hand before letting go. “How was your flight?”

“Not great. You know how I feel about flying,” he said with mock exasperation, making her chuckle. “But for you, I did it! Besides, I wanted to see Anteca — to see the place where you moved your office despite my begging.”

“Let me know how long you’ll be staying,” she offered. “I’ll make time to accompany you.”

He waved dismissively. “Don’t bother. I know how busy you are — and I’ve heard about what happened with Ito Motors.”

Penny sighed faintly. “Ito Motors made a mistake. Hopefully, they’ve taken the time to reflect.”

“Oh, they have,” the man smirked. “I made sure of that when they returned home.”

Penny looked at him with both appreciation and a hint of defeat. This man had been disheartened when she relocated to Anteca. He had been among those who pleaded with her to stay. He wasn’t her first client, but he had provided her with the proper tools to expand her business— and she would never forget that.

“I’ll let Uncle Haines know you’re here,” she said. “He’ll be thrilled.”

“So thrilled he’ll ditch me, like he did with Wild?” the man asked, narrowing his eyes. “I heard about that too, young lady.”

Penny laughed. “I didn’t know you and Uncle Wild were still in touch.”

“I’m not! He’s just the kind of man who’ll spill everything out of nowhere. Speaking of — where is that demon’s son? I’ll give him a beating for bothering me so much.”

“Uncle Wild couldn’t make it tonight,” she said, carefully biting her tongue to avoid revealing he was out on a date. “He had some… business to attend to.”

“Watching his show again? That’s his idea of business.”

Penny chuckled and continued chatting with him, eventually guiding him toward the glass wall overlooking the stage.

“Where are the teams?” the man asked, noticing only staff preparing the final setup. “Has it not started yet?”

“The final round hasn’t started,” she said. “They have a half-hour break before it begins.”

He nodded approvingly and gave her a knowing look. “Plenty of time to decide who to bet on.”

At that, the corner of Penny’s lips curled into a smirk.

“So… where do I place my bet?” he asked.

“You don’t have to do anything,” Penny replied playfully, casting a look at Hayley. “Hayley, please assist His Grace at the beverage section.”

Hayley nodded and smiled. “This way, please.”

“I’ll talk to you again later,” the man said as he followed Hayley — fully aware that choosing a drink would be enough to signal who he was rooting for.

Penny watched them walk away, her brows lifting when she saw Atlas enter the hall. This time, she didn’t wait for him. She strode over to meet him herself.

“Welcome, First Brother!” she greeted, standing in front of him.

Atlas narrowed his eyes. “What’s with that look?”

She leaned in to whisper, “There’s a betting pool. Who’s your pick?”

When she drew back, a mischievous grin stretched across her face.

Atlas blinked, then muttered, “Your gambling addiction is getting worse, Penny. I’m afraid I’d soon start looking into rehab facilities.”