Chapter 1484: He made me say all those things!

"But what I do know is... I told you tonight was going to be fun."

Yugi’s face twitched as he watched Penny laugh and walk away.

"What does that mean?" he muttered to himself, shaking his head as he turned and leaned against the railing. "Whatever."

Yugi slowly gazed up and let out a short laugh. "That woman... she never stops surprising me. Does she really not know she’s X?"

---

"Miss Penny, you’re leaving?" Teddy perked up and stood when he caught Penny walking in from the balcony.

Penny raised a hand, seeing that he and her assistants were already rising to their feet. "You guys enjoy the rest of the night. Your rooms are ready, so you don’t have to walk me out."

"But—"

"I’m not going home," she laughed. "I’ll be staying here tonight too."

Her brows wiggled. "Just relax, you four. You did a good job tonight. Enjoy your day off tomorrow."

With that, Penny resumed walking and left. Everyone’s eyes followed her as she exited.

Hayley gave a shallow smile. "I guess I’ll head to my room too," she said, standing. "It was fun."

"You’re going?" Patricia perked up. "I should go too!"

"Why are you going? It’s not like you’re sharing a room with her," someone from Yugi’s team commented with disdain. "Just stay here so I can beat you some more."

"What do you mean beat me more? This game is rigged! Cheater!" Patricia hissed. "I know I’m fun to be around, but I take care of my beauty. So, you guys party all night—while I take care of my skin."

Hayley chuckled. "Then let’s go, Pat."

With that, Patricia and Hayley gathered their things to return to their rooms. Meanwhile, Shawn and Teddy watched them leave before Teddy stood.

"It was great meeting you all," he said. "But it’s been a long day. I’m heading to my room too."

"Eh? You too?" Some frowned, but when Shawn tried to excuse himself as well, someone hooked an arm around his neck.

"Nope, buddy, you’re staying with us."

Shawn frowned. "Why won’t you let me go?"

"Because we still haven’t beaten you, that’s why!"

Hearing that, Shawn felt like crying. He’d been trying to lose, but somehow always got the good cards. At this point, he might as well add "lucky" to his resume!

---

As Patricia and Hayley walked down the hallway, Hayley glanced over.

"Are you going to sleep right away?" Hayley asked, causing Patricia’s brows rise.

"No? How could I?" Patricia shrugged. "I need to do my skincare first... and think about what happened tonight."

Hayley smiled and nodded. "She’s amazing, right?"

"You mean Penny?" Patricia hummed, her gaze lowering as she recalled how Penny shone on stage—even without a spotlight. Not just because of her beauty, but her brilliance.

Patricia might be a little slow, but she wasn’t so slow as to miss that tonight. Everyone saw Penny for who she truly was—Penelope Bennet, the brains behind Prime Group.

"She’s really amazing," she murmured. "I... I want to be like her too."

"You are like her," Hayley replied, making Patricia look up. "You’re amazing too, in your own way."

Then she smacked her lips and looked ahead. "I might actually last in this job. Good pay, great benefits... and our boss would fight tooth and nail for us. Best of all, there’s a lot of room to grow. Plus, my friends are here."

"Friends?" Patricia furrowed her brows, glancing at her. "You have friends here?"

"Huh?" Hayley slowed down, mirroring her confusion. "I thought we were friends."

"We are?"

"Are we not?"

"..." Patricia pressed her lips into a thin line, her brows rising. "I’ve never had real friends before. The people I called friends never saw me as one. So... I don’t really know."

Hayley blinked, then smiled brightly and looped her arm through Patricia’s.

"Let’s be friends," Hayley said. "I’ve never had real ones either. They all kept betraying me. You saw those girls lock me in the bathroom, right?"

"..." Hesitation flickered in Patricia’s eyes. That word—friend—was still too hard to believe. So instead, she just smiled and didn’t answer.

"Say, Pat... where do you think Miss Penny went?" Hayley asked. "We should know where she’s staying."

"Why would we need to know that?"

Hayley gave her a knowing look. "We won’t be in the office tomorrow—Miss Penny and Sir Yugi are taking the day off. But wouldn’t it be great to earn some brownie points?"

"Oh!"

"Teddy and Shawn are tough competition. They’ve been racking up all the extra points lately."

"You’re right." Patricia’s face twisted, remembering how Teddy already landed his first official project. "Let’s make a plan in my room."

"Yes!"

With that, the ladies headed to Patricia’s room—well, their rooms were just next to each other. They spent the night plotting ways to pamper Penny with queen treatment first thing in the morning.

---

In the penthouse of the hotel...

Penny tapped her key card and walked in without hesitation. As the door clicked shut behind her, she caught movement from the corner of her eye. When she turned, Zoren was already approaching.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close with a warm smile. "Congratulations," he whispered, kissing her lips. "You were amazing."

"Hehe." Penny dropped her bag and looped her arms around his neck. "Renren, I thought you wouldn’t come. I was starting to feel sad, you know?"

"I was there," he chuckled. "But First Brother told me not to hurt your feelings by showing up."

Her smile dropped. "What?"

"He said his sister is so unpopular he was afraid you’d be left unnoticed at your own event," he explained with a faint sigh. "So, I had no choice but to watch from the sidelines."

"..." Penny’s face twisted in horror as she imagined Atlas’s smug expression. "Love of my life, why are you even listening to my First Brother? You know he was born out of rage and resentment. Plus, he accidentally drank rotten milk as a kid—that’s why his brain’s all messed up!"

Zoren opened his mouth but said nothing.

Meanwhile, Penny kept ranting.

"Right?! I’m not poor! I’m richer than him!" She paused. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Uhh..." Zoren cleared his throat. "He’s... there."

"Huh?"

"First Brother."

Slowly, Penny turned her head toward the living room. There, sitting on the couch with sharp eyes locked on her, was Atlas.

"So..." Atlas stood. "... I accidentally drank rotten milk that’s why I’m all messed up, huh?"

Penny burst into laughter and quickly pushed Zoren aside. She looked at her husband apologetically, but still pointed at him and shamelessly declared—

"He made me say all those things!"