The Return of the Cannon Fodder Trillion Heiress - Chapter 271

Chapter 271: Chapter 271 The Little Minx
“No, please accept it. It’s for my own selfish peace of mind,” Hera insisted, determined not to retract her request. She realized her thoughts had been overtaken by the storyline, only becoming aware of her uncharacteristic actions and words after reflecting on them.

Although she really wanted to make use of the male leads to her advantage, she didn’t want to extort them or treat them as mere commodities, she felt her thoughts and actions being amplified by whatever feelings and thoughts were forcefully shoved inside her head.

“I insist,” Hera firmly stated, unwilling to accept Rafael’s refusal. Internally, she felt flustered, recognizing that her thoughts and feelings had been unduly influenced by the storyline. She was aware that this wasn’t looking good; she hadn’t even noticed if she was acting oddly or saying things out of character until she took a moment to reflect afterward.

She feared the long-term consequences of this ongoing influence. If it persisted, everything could backfire, leading to her own downfall. Was the storyline manipulating her, pushing her towards a cliff’s edge for Alice’s benefit? Today, she acted unreasonably, but what about tomorrow? Could she become a villainess, resenting Alice and acting on intrusive thoughts, even harming her? The realization that simple thoughts and feelings could sway her decisions left Hera feeling vulnerable. Pale and sweating, she couldn’t shake the dread that came with this realization.

‘No, I should kick myself for this, this must be the storyline’s desperate attempts to put me back on track so Alice could take the helm again.’ Hera thought. ‘I just have to be more aware and vigilant.’

Luckily, she caught herself in time and could still make amends. From now on, she resolved to be vigilant and very careful in her thoughts and actions.

“Please?” Hera looked up at Rafael again, her eyes filled with genuine remorse, prompting Rafael to reach out to her face, feeling compassion for her distress. Hera didn’t mean to evoke pity from Rafael; she was simply overwhelmed by her own emotions and wanted to offer something in return.

Rafael gently rubbed Hera’s cheeks with his thumb before nodding, trying to alleviate her distress.

She knew that once Rafael made a promise, he would see it through to the end. Since he had already given her his word on the ambassadorial contract, she didn’t want to feel indebted to him, so she decided to text Betty right away.

[Hera: Betty, I want to exchange some contract of equal value to the Love Potion Perfume’s ambassadorial contract, do we have any?]

[Betty: Hera, the issue isn’t whether we have similar contracts, but that particular contract for the Love Potion Perfume ambassadorial contract is out of our reach. Even with numerous international contracts, it’s exclusive and solely at the discretion of the owner of the brand or Xavier, who earned it on his own merit.]

[Hera: That’s alright. Could you please send me copies of those international contracts? I’ll select one myself to send to Mr. Briley in exchange.]

Betty didn’t argue further with Hera, realizing Hera was determined and wouldn’t listen to her unless faced with rejection firsthand. So, she searched for the necessary contracts, compiled them, and sent them to Hera.

Hera understood that Rafael needed to bolster his company’s international presence to level the playing field. Therefore, she intended to provide him with the best options available in exchange for the contract she sought. However, she couldn’t ignore the risk that Alice might exploit this opportunity to her advantage as well.

But Hera knew there was little she could do about it. If the world’s consciousness and the storyline were truly intent on helping Alice, they had countless ways to do so, even invading her mind. What else could they not accomplish?

For now, she decided to focus on winning over the male leads. By doing so, she hoped to gain their protection through their ‘male lead halo’ and continue pursuing Alice’s fate with full force afterwards.

But she would still work to hinder Alice’s ascent as much as possible while pursuing her own goals.

Not long after, Hera received Betty’s message with the compilation of contracts. Hera meticulously read through the attached files. Among them, she found the contract Rafael had been pursuing for a long time, which had ended up with Universal Entertainment. She also found another contract that she thought would be very beneficial for Xavier.

She now wondered if giving Rafael the contract he truly desired in exchange for the one she wanted was the right move. It would undoubtedly propel his company into the top 50 worldwide, significantly bolstering his standing. However, it would also make him an even more tempting target, and Alice would be more inclined to exploit the opportunity to win over him.

What would happen if Alice successfully won Rafael over to her side? Wouldn’t that mean Hera had just handed Alice a knife to stab her with? Hera sucked in a mouthful of air. Instead of giving Rafael the contract he wanted, she offered him a different international ambassadorial contract from a major luxury brand that closely collaborated with her company. This way, she could still maintain a hold over Rafael and his company if her fears materialized.

Along with the contract she chose, Hera also included the contract that would benefit Xavier. Since the ambassadorial contract she requested from Rafael was all thanks to Xavier’s merit, she felt it was necessary to prepare a gift for him as an apology.

Now that Hera was reflecting on the topic, she felt her head buzz as another realization struck her. ‘Maybe those intrusive thoughts and feelings earlier weren’t just the world’s consciousness or the storyline pushing me into a corner to become a villainess. What if they actually reflect the real thought process of the female lead? Since I’m attempting to usurp her fate, it could be that I’m inadvertently adopting her mindset and the storyline is molding me to think and act like her.’

This thought was much more scarier for Hera because, if that was the case, then, Alice wasn’t really that easy to deal with and needed to be more cautious against her.

Hera shook her head to dispel the thought that was beginning to consume her again. Her tendency to overthink wouldn’t relent until she addressed every angle. Pushing aside thoughts about the storyline and Alice, she relegated them to the back of her mind to prevent unnecessary distractions and refocused on the task at hand.

Once Hera extracted the two contracts she had chosen from the file Betty sent her, she searched for Rafael’s phone number, which he had used to call her previously. Because she hadn’t properly saved his number, she had to check her call history log, carefully noting the dates and times of the unknown number that had called her.

Seeing Hera fumble through her call history from the corner of his eye, Rafael felt his smile twitch. He knew Hera didn’t hold him in the same regard as Xavier and the others, which made seeing her search for his unsaved number a bit painful.

After finding the unknown number in her call history that matched the date and time she remembered Rafael calling, Hera dialed the number. Rafael felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and slowly pulled it out, waving the screen in front of Hera.

Hera saw his screen light up but felt a lump in her throat when she noticed the name saved on the screen: “Little Minx.”