After her rebirth

Delber frowned, looking at Katniss's smile, feeling a bit uneasy, and stammered, "W- what do you want?"

Katniss snorted coldly, "Don't worry, I'm not as shameless as you. My demands are simple and something you can manage."

Liam, standing nearby, smiled so stiffly that his face seemed frozen. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and quickly responded, "Mrs. Hamilton, please go ahead."

"First, you need to cover the medical expenses. We didn't suffer much, just a bit of a scare, but Ashley was seriously hurt. She can't work while she's recovering, so the Loomis family should be responsible for that," Katniss said, looking at Liam with a calm expression.

Liam nodded in agreement, "Of course."

"And then..." Katniss paused before continuing, "If Ashley wants to continue working at the club, you can't retaliate against her or discriminate against her. If I find out anything is wrong..."

"Of course," Liam quickly agreed before Katniss could finish, "That's only right. It's all because of my son's troublemaking."

A job is just a job; if they don't hire Ashley, they'll have to hire someone else. These demands weren't too excessive.

Liam suddenly felt that this Mrs. Hamilton was indeed young, kind, and very reasonable, not the type to press her advantage. If it weren't for Maximilian protecting her, she might have been severely bullied.

Katniss was very satisfied with Liam's attitude but looked at Delber with a bit of impatience.

Her face darkened as she continued, "Lastly, I hope Delber and his friends at the club will sincerely apologize to me and my friends. Especially to..."

"Ashley!"

Katniss emphasized the name.

Everything had started because Delber disrespected Ashley and tried to flirt with her.

Liam didn't immediately agree to this demand.

He looked at his son, and Delber was indeed angry, "No, if you want money, just say so. If it's not enough, we'll give more. Why go through all this?"

If he did this, how could he face his friends in the future?

Apologizing to Katniss was one thing; no one would dare laugh at him for that.

But Ashley?

Besides being good-looking, what background did she have?

Failing to get the girl, getting beaten up, and then having to submit to her?

If people who didn't get along with him found out, they'd laugh at him for a lifetime. No, no way.

He'd rather spend more money than lose his dignity like this.

At this moment, Celestia also spoke up for her son, "Exactly. Mrs. Hamilton, ask that... girl how much she wants. We'll give any amount, but a public apology is out of the question."

Katniss's face darkened, showing some displeasure.

Maximilian snorted coldly, frowning, "What, does the Loomis family think the money is too much?"

His tone was calm, but it weighed heavily on Liam's heart.

Liam quickly said, "No, no, Mr. Hamilton, you misunderstand. We..."

"Mrs. Loomis is indeed thoughtful," Katniss's voice echoed in the living room, carrying

a cold tone, "But I wonder how much the Loomis family is willing to pay?"

Liam was stunned and instinctively looked at Maximilian, wanting to determine if Katniss was serious or mocking.

Maximilian raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

Earlier, Katniss had given him a look, so he knew her intention.

However, Katniss had never cared much about money.

Why was she giving in this time?

What was she planning?

Regardless of what Katniss wanted to do, he would support her unconditionally.

Thinking of this, Maximilian's face darkened further, revealing no emotion.

Katniss looked at Liam, her expression gentle, "I wonder how much the Loomis family's apology is worth?"

Celestia's eyes darted around, and she directly mentioned a number.

Katniss's face turned cold, and she spoke with some displeasure, "It seems Delber's dignity is worth so little. Fine, let him apologize, and we'll all be comfortable!"

Liam quickly tried to make amends, "No, my wife is being unreasonable. Mrs. Hamilton, don't be angry. This time, Delber indeed went too far and caused harm to you and your friends. We'll pay any amount of compensation."

Katniss nodded, looking at Liam with satisfaction, "Yes. When you do something wrong, you must pay the price. If Delber is willing to sacrifice his pride, he won't need

to pay this money. If not, then he must buy it back with money."

Liam nodded repeatedly.

He thought for a moment, gritted his teeth, and mentioned a number.

Celestia felt a pang of pain upon hearing it.

The Loomis family had some money, but giving away such a large sum at once was no small matter.

Katniss smiled at Liam. Although he had a troublesome son, Liam was a decent person. However, she wasn't really trying to extort money from the Loomis family; she just wanted them to learn a lesson.

Katniss lowered the amount and said leisurely, "I'll only take what my friend deserves, not a penny more."

Liam felt relieved, thinking Katniss was quite reasonable.

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At this moment, he suddenly understood why Maximilian would marry such an unknown girl.

After the Loomis family left, Katniss met Maximilian's inquisitive gaze and felt a bit uneasy, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Maximilian smiled gently, "You didn't really want Delber to apologize; you just wanted them to pay some money? Is it for that girl named Ashley?"

Katniss looked at Maximilian, her face full of admiration, "How did you guess that?"

Maximilian's lips curled up slowly, his expression pleased, "To you, money isn't important, especially not money obtained in this way. You wouldn't want it."

"Juniper and Cecilia weren't seriously hurt and don't lack money. If it were them, they'd prefer to see Delber's pride hurt rather than take the money," Maximilian explained logically, "You mentioned before that Ashley had helped you. And since she works at the club, she probably needs money and was the most seriously injured."

Katniss nodded repeatedly, praising, "Maximilian, you're amazing. I did ask for the money for Ashley. Her father is sick, so she might be short on money."

Compared to an apology from Delber, which had no real benefit, a large sum of money was more practical.

Moreover, this wasn't extortion; it was rightful compensation for emotional distress. She believed Ashley wouldn't refuse.

Indeed, Ashley didn't refuse and sincerely thanked Katniss.

She wouldn't take money she didn't deserve, like borrowing from Lucas or Byron, as she had her pride.

But she wouldn't hypocritically refuse money she was entitled to.

Knowing Katniss genuinely wanted to help her and that Katniss didn't lack money, she didn't pretend to offer Katniss a share.

Ashley solemnly said, "Although I may not be able to help you, if you ever need me, I will do my best."

This was her promise.

She knew Katniss wasn't like Clara, who had no bottom line.

From Katniss's actions, risking danger to help her, she knew Katniss was kind-hearted.

After saying goodbye, they each went their separate ways.

What they didn't know was that not far from their conversation, Clara and Desmond were on a date.

Desmond and Clara sat by the window on the second floor of a café.

From there, they could see Golden Lake, a famous spot in Luminous City. The lake shimmered under the sunlight, giving it its name due to its golden appearance and prime location.

There were handsome men and beautiful women boating on the lake, and although they couldn't see clearly from a distance, Desmond could feel the sweetness between the couples.

Once, he and Clara had such times.

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"Desmond," Clara's gentle voice came, "What's wrong with you today? You seem

preoccupied. Is something bothering you?"

Desmond snapped back to reality, glanced at Clara, and then looked away, "It's

nothing."

Clara's expression froze.

Desmond had always been warm to her, but his attitude had noticeably cooled.

Clara felt a pang of sadness, her nose tingling, "Desmond, are you despising me now? But I'm fine now, aren't I? It was all rumors; I'm innocent."noveldrama

Desmond felt a deep sorrow hearing Clara's words, but who could he confide in?

If he hadn't agreed to break off the engagement, his father wouldn't have helped Clara. Since his father had shown him the outcome, for Clara's sake, he had to break off the engagement. As his father said, he could clear Clara's name or drag her into the mud.

Without power, he had no choice but to obey his father.

Desmond's face was serious, his expression stern, "Clara, we..."

His throat was dry, and he spoke simply, "Let's... break off the engagement."

"What?"

It was as if a thunderbolt had struck Clara's mind.

At that moment, her mind went blank, and tears streamed down her face.

These were real tears, not the fake ones she sometimes used to gain sympathy.

Clara's lips trembled, her face full of disbelief, "What did you say? Break off the engagement?"

Once the words were out, Desmond felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

He nodded, his face serious, "Yes."

After speaking, Desmond stood up, unwilling to stay any longer.

He couldn't bear to see Clara's tears; he feared he would soften. Everything he was

doing now was for Clara's sake. If he didn't leave, he might ruin everything.

He couldn't explain his predicament and had to let Clara be sad.

Sadness would pass, but if she fell into the mud, her future could be bleak.

But Clara wasn't going to let him go so easily.

She blocked Desmond's way, her eyes red, her expression no longer weak. She looked

at Desmond with hatred, "Give me a reason!"

Desmond moved his lips but said nothing, choosing to leave.