Chapter 1635: Hugo brought home a woman… two women, to be exact.

[BENNET MANSION]

Kiara and Cassandra stood in the entryway, watching in stunned disbelief as Hugo dramatically clung to Atlas’s leg on the floor.

"First Brother, please... just this once! Have mercy on these ladies!" Hugo wailed, causing both Kiara and Cassandra’s faces to twitch.

This... was his plan?

The women swallowed hard, their faces flushing with secondhand embarrassment at the sheer absurdity of the scene. Even at their lowest, they never imagined begging like this. And while they knew Hugo was putting on this low-budget performance for their sake, it was still painfully awkward to watch.

Atlas stood motionless, utterly unfazed by the weight clinging to his leg. He cast a cold glance down at Hugo, then shifted his gaze toward the two women standing not far away.

"Hugo, you woke me up... for this?" Atlas’s voice was colder and harsher than usual. He blinked slowly, his expression making it clear he did not appreciate the interruption. "Get off me."

"But First Brother, don’t you pity these ladies? They’re going to die!" Hugo cried dramatically.

"Not before you, if you don’t take your hands off me."

"No!" Hugo tightened his grip on Atlas’s leg, unwilling to let go—partly because he needed to convince him... but mostly because he kind of liked hugging Atlas’s leg.

Cassandra: ...

Kiara: ...

As they tried to make sense of this ridiculous scene, Butler Jen approached them from the side.

"Have you ladies eaten?" he asked gently, his voice warm and comforting—immediately putting them at ease.

Cassandra and Kiara turned to him, their eyes landing on the kind-faced older man already dressed in his pajamas. Thanks to their time at the same school as the Bennets, they knew this wasn’t their father. Even so, they offered Butler Jen polite smiles and nodded.

"How about some tea?" he offered. "Come with me. I’ll prepare some for you."

"Uh..." Kiara gestured uncertainly toward the two brothers still locked in their ridiculous power struggle. "About them..."

Butler Jen smiled knowingly. "Don’t worry about them. Sir Hugo is just teasing Sir Atlas. It’s one of his small joys in life."

Or rather, he thought, it’s everyone’s joy to tease Atlas at least once. But for his younger siblings, it’s practically a duty.

"But..." Cassandra clutched at Kiara’s sleeve, her eyes filled with concern. "They might fight because of us."

Kiara nodded in agreement. "We really don’t want that."

Butler Jen maintained his gentle smile, his eyes flicking toward Atlas, who was now trying to kick Hugo off—but with Hugo’s solid build, it probably felt more like a tickle.

"They always fight," Butler Jen assured them. "All of them. And so far, they’re still alive." He motioned for them to follow. "Please, come with me."

Reluctance lingered in Cassandra and Kiara’s eyes as they exchanged a hesitant glance. But with the ongoing scene being almost too painful to witness, and realizing they desperately needed some peace to think of a better plan, they eventually nodded and followed Butler Jen.

Just as they turned to go, the front door suddenly swung open.

Slater walked in and stopped short, his brows immediately knitting together at the chaos before him. This was the first time he’d come home early—and apparently, he’d walked straight into a soap opera.

"Uh..." he blinked, looking from Hugo to Atlas. "What’s going on?"

Hugo, still dramatically clinging to Atlas’s leg, quickly changed his tone. "I’m copying you."

"Excuse me?" Slater scoffed, crossing his arms as he walked further inside. "Second Brother, what did you just say?"

"I’m hugging First Brother the way you do—hoping he’ll pity me," Hugo explained without shame.

"Second Brother, that doesn’t work—it’s not for everyone!" Slater gasped in disbelief. "You have to be believable to be pitiful!"

Atlas’s already-dead expression darkened further as he shot a glare at Slater. "Slater, shut up."

"But how do I make it more believable?" Hugo asked, watching as Slater shook his head and clicked his tongue.

"You need to squeeze out a few tears. And your voice—shake it a bit," Slater lectured. "Just clinging to First Brother’s leg isn’t enough."

"Even if you two cried blood, it still wouldn’t work," Atlas muttered coldly, now shooting an equally cold glare at Slater. "Butler Jen, when is he going to die?"

Butler Jen, who had stopped when Slater entered, could only smile helplessly. Kiara and Cassandra, meanwhile, had never been this speechless in their lives. They thought Slater’s arrival would end the madness—but instead, he had casually joined in and was now coaching Hugo on how to beg properly!

Slater frowned dramatically. "First Brother, how could you drag Butler Jen into this? You know how fond he is of me. You’re breaking his heart!"

"The only thing breaking here is either my sanity or my patience," Atlas shot back coldly, glaring at Hugo. "Hugo Bennet, I’m telling you one last time. Let go."

But instead, Hugo clutched his leg even tighter, meeting Atlas’s glare. The longer they held each other’s gaze, the more Hugo felt the sweat beading on his back and trickling down the side of his neck.

"Heh... First Brother, you know I’m just kidding, right?" Hugo chuckled nervously as he finally let go and carefully dusted off Atlas’s pajamas. "I was really just checking out the fabric. Feels nice—great quality!"

"Tch." Atlas clicked his tongue in irritation and yanked his leg free—kicking Hugo in the chest for good measure. "Get out of my sight."

Hugo frowned while Slater sighed heavily.

If that were me, Slater thought smugly, First Brother would’ve already said yes to whatever I asked. Second Brother... you’re just not irreplaceable like I am.

Just then, a voice echoed from the first floor.

"What is going on here?"

Everyone instinctively turned their attention toward the stairs, spotting Charles descending with Allison following closely behind.

Charles frowned deeply, his sharp gaze scanning the scene below before settling on his sons.

"Hugo, this is the first time you’ve shown your face here in ages, and you’re already causing trouble. What exactly is going on here?"

"Second Brother is copying me—that’s what’s happening," Slater answered immediately, right as Atlas coldly added:

"Hugo brought home a woman... two women, to be exact. He should be in jail."