The Return of the Cannon Fodder Trillion Heiress - Chapter 737

Chapter 737: Chapter 737 All Bark No Bite
However, Hera had no intention of bearing the cost of the fallout herself—she planned to shift the financial burden onto the wealthy woman who had conspired against Rafael, knowing Alice lacked the means to pay.

By doing this, she would not only sow discord between Alice and the other woman but also push them into a ruthless battle against each other once they realized the full extent of the repercussions they would face.

Desperation would set in, and they would inevitably turn on each other in an attempt to shift blame and lessen their own suffering.

Moreover, neither of them—nor even Rafael, Zhane, and Dave—knew that Hera was the true force behind the Dragon Palace Hotel.

Rafael, Zhane, and Dave simply assumed that Gerald was aiding them out of mutual interest, believing he was only retaliating against Alice and the other woman for causing trouble within his territory.

They had no idea that he was acting under Hera’s orders, ensuring that her carefully laid plan unfolded exactly as she intended.

Rafael, Dave, and Zhane didn’t dwell on Gerald’s involvement too much. In the business world, everything revolves around interests and losses. Since Gerald’s interests had been affected, it made sense that he would support them in dealing with Alice and the other woman.

However, they also knew that if the situation were reversed—if they were the ones causing him trouble—he could just as easily turn against them. There was no deep bond between them, only mutual benefit, and they were well aware of how these dynamics worked.

What they didn’t realize, however, was that everything happening had Hera’s approval. She had orchestrated this entire situation from behind the scenes, ensuring that every move played out in her favor.

After all, this was her way of paying Alice and the other woman back for scheming against her men—and for the unbearable soreness in her waist that left her unable to get out of bed after being exhausted until dawn last night.

If she could stand on her own, she wouldn’t hesitate to give them each a slap (or more) just to make sure they felt a fraction of the restless night she had endured.

At the very least, she wanted to ensure she didn’t ache for anything.

More than anything, they needed to face the consequences of their actions—Hera wasn’t going to be the only one suffering. Because of this scandal, Alice’s scheme had backfired spectacularly.

Instead of Hera’s trending topic from last night—where she was introduced as the Lowery couple’s goddaughter—dominating the news, Alice’s disgrace had now completely overshadowed it.

Since Alice wanted to be in the trending topics so badly, Hera was more than happy to “invest” a little more to ensure she remained there—but unfortunately for Alice, it would be for all the wrong reasons.

Still, publicity was publicity, and now Alice was infamous nationwide for what had happened.

After scrambling to check out of the hotel in a hurry, Alice and the other woman couldn’t even leave through the front entrance.

Forced into damage control, Alice had to call her manager to arrange a getaway car in the underground parking lot, while the other woman—panicked and desperate—called her father to send bodyguards just so they could escape the paparazzi and figure out how to clean up the mess they had created.

While Alice desperately worried about escaping the hotel, Hera was still sound asleep in the presidential suite.

Meanwhile, Zhane, Rafael, and Dave returned to the floor where the suite was, only to run into Zen as they stepped out of the elevator.

He appeared like a shadow of himself—his soul seemingly drained from his body as he staggered weakly down the hallway. Gripping the wall for support, his pale face and pitifully frail state made it clear that he was barely holding himself together.

Zhane came to an abrupt stop, prompting Dave and Rafael to do the same as they all turned their attention to Zen. Their gazes swept over him, taking in his disheveled state—the red scratches peeking from his collar and the unmistakable kiss marks on his neck. Without needing to ask, they already had a pretty good idea of what had happened.

Dave arched an eyebrow, a smirk tugging at his lips as he eyed Zen with amusement. “A wild night, huh?” he quipped, looking smug and thoroughly entertained by the sight before him.

Zhane chuckled and added, “If you’re feeling a little drained, I can prescribe something to help with that… maybe a good kidney tonic?” His tone was laced with teasing amusement as he eyed Zen’s exhausted state.

“Stop!!!” Zen practically jumped in place before dashing toward the elevator behind Zhane. “Don’t think I’m that weak! I was just… just thinking! Yeah, thinking!” He repeated, though it was unclear whether he was trying to convince them or himself. His expression was a mix of shock and denial, making him look downright hilarious.

“Don’t tell this to Hera. I-It wasn’t my fault… it wasn’t…” he mumbled to himself, his voice trailing off as the elevator doors slid shut.

Zhane, Rafael, and Dave exchanged knowing looks, shaking their heads in amusement. Given that Athena had also been drugged the previous night and Zen was only emerging now, the conclusion was obvious—he had spent the night with Athena.

And judging by his disheveled, shell-shocked appearance, Athena must have driven him to the brink of exhaustion, leaving him no chance to rest until she was satisfied.

What surprised them even more was the realization that this must have been Zen’s first time. The three had always assumed he was the playboy type, but it turned out he was all bark and no bite.

“He’s pretty fast at running…” Rafael mused as he stared at the closed elevator doors.

Despite Zen’s closeness to Hera, none of them ever felt jealous. They knew Zen didn’t see Hera as a potential lover but more like a little sister. After all, men could read each other best, and they trusted that Zen had no ulterior motives when it came to Hera.

However, last night had been such a chaotic mess that they had completely forgotten about Zen and Athena—especially Luke. All four of them, along with Hera, had been drugged, leaving them too preoccupied to worry about anyone else.

Now, seeing Zen in such a state, they couldn’t help but chuckle. He looked like a mutt running away with his tail between his legs. Their amusement lingered as their gazes drifted toward the other presidential suite at the end of the hallway before they finally stepped inside Hera’s suite.

They knew that after this, Athena and Zen would inevitably act differently around each other. Whether that meant avoidance, tension, or something else entirely, only time would tell. However, they weren’t sure if they should let Hera in on what happened—until Zhane spoke up.

“Don’t get involved in other people’s business,” he said firmly. “Since the other girl is Hera’s best friend, let them talk it out themselves. It’s not our place to gossip, or Hera might think we have big mouths and don’t know how to keep quiet.”

As he said this, his gaze locked onto Dave, making sure the man got the message loud and clear. Dave had a tendency to be a loudmouth, and this wasn’t something they could afford to blurt out carelessly. It involved both Athena’s and Zen’s reputations, and it was ultimately up to them to deal with it.

In short, they needed to pretend they hadn’t seen anything. Some things weren’t theirs to meddle in.

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PS: Hi Itsloani! Welcome back, and thank you for the Golden Tickets!