After twenty years, coming back here again, it still sits in the inner ring of astonishing land prices and bustling silence. The neighborhood has been around for a while now and the style and design concept of this villa are already outdated. At first glance it is still expensive and imposing, but details can no longer be scrutinized.
The rumors circulated online won't be groundless, the dismal stock price can't deceive people anymore, it looks like The Roy Family may really be in trouble.
Twice she had been here, neither of them voluntary. Today she was half "invited" into the car by the bodyguard.
Due to the deep impression of this house, that blood-related father made her memories blurry. This man, who was once a highly sought-after heir of a financial magnate and an Alpha with A-level pheromones, graduated from a prestigious school and was young and handsome. He married a wife who matched his family background. How glorious he was in those days, but soon he could be ruthlessly abandoned by the capital market.
Carol stood in front of Thomas Roy.
Thomas was tense, feeling uncomfortable with the unruffled gaze of Carol in the face of his Alpha and paternal authority. He had braced himself for her to scold him, tell her misfortunes or at least show obvious hostility, but the young person before him was too composed.
Not long after he was forced to make that decision, the child's complete profile appeared on his desk -- Carol, 27 years old, Omega female, unmarried, UCL Master of Materials Engineering and employed by the Starship Group Rare Earth Research Institute with family members being an Omega father and grandmother.
Twenty years ago, the shy and timid little girl had become a composed adult. Thinking of her background and what she was about to ask for, Thomas couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy.
"......You've grown up." Thomas had also gone through wind and rain, ups and downs in business, but at this moment he could only use idle talk to ease the awkwardness.
Carol smiled wryly: "If you had something to ask me, just say it, otherwise you wouldn't have come looking for me." Generally speaking, this kind of script where a deadbeat father comes back to look for his illegitimate child after many years is usually the last resort. But not for the Roy Family. If anything happened to their Young Master, there would be no way that news wouldn't spread.
Thomas had a hard time saying it: "I just want to make a deal with you."
"Go ahead," said Carol.
Thomas tapped the folder in front of him: "You owe money, seven million, that's not a small amount."
"Yeah, do you plan to pay me back?" Carol gave a sarcastic smile.
"I can pay you back."
Carol's pupils contracted fiercely: "What do you mean?"
"My son had an important engagement originally, but he can't fulfill it now. I need you to take his place and marry on behalf of the Roy Family."
This passage was too dramatic.
"Why can't he get married?"
"He has been marked by someone else."
Carol was silent. Her life and her grandmother's later years were both oppressed by this money, so if there is a way out of the quagmire by paying some price, how can she not take the gamble?
"What requirements for the marriage?"
"It depends on your future husband."
Carol looked at Thomas, "I want ten million."
Thomas squinted his eyes, not surprisingly but obviously displeased.
If what Thomas said is true, then her premium will definitely be accepted. The marriage proposal in the Roy family's mouth was very important, and it was related to the fate of the group and the rise and fall of the family, only that his Omega son had to pay for it, but Michael Roy was marked by someone else. This is a great humiliation for both The Roy Family and those involved in the marriage alliance. Marks can be washed away, but bite marks on glands cannot be erased by modern medicine.
Carol recalled Michael's clever and beautiful face active on social media. He looked smart, so why did he make such a foolish mistake? One of the most ridiculous mistakes an Omega could make in their youth was to be marked without being married. But thinking from another perspective, what if Michael deliberately resisted the marriage in this way, for example, if the other party was old, ugly, disabled, had peculiarities or violent tendencies, these risks were entirely possible.
She was brought in to save the day, and even if the Roy Family's stock price has been cut in half, they still have enough to come up with ten million.
Sure enough, Thomas simply said: "Yes."
But deep down in her heart she still doubted the credibility of this matter, but she hoped it was true and repaying the debt was now her most urgent wish.
She stood up: "Then it settles as this. You guys can figure out the rest. I have to get back to work, so I'll be going now."
Thomas looked at her in surprise: "You don't have any other questions?"
"No more, as long as you give me money."
".... Don't you want to ask who your future Alpha husband will be?"
Carol glanced at her phone, and there was another bunch of messages. Without looking back, she said indifferently: "Whatever."
She was young but burdened with debt and had a bleak future. She had no expectations or fantasies about marriage, so even if the other party was as bad as Michael said and he needed to take extreme measures to resist, she agreed as long as she could get back the house for her grandmother - it was worth selling herself.
After leaving the Roy Family, Carol rushed straight to the research institute. Although they had more freedom in doing research and didn't need to punch in a clock, it was still not good to be absent without any reason early in the morning.
She just graduated from university and got into the Starship Group through a talent program. This was because her mentor was in charge of one of the projects at Rare Earth Institute, and her graduate courses were mostly completed in the laboratory. In fact, her salary is high compared to other people of the same age, but facing seven million debts, she only feels distant and hopeless.
She had thought seriously, to turn her life around. One was to receive money from the sky, and the other was to get a patent. As someone who is not advantaged in both career and scientific research fields, nor having an exceptionally brilliant mind, she set herself up for the latter with twenty years of hard work. Unexpectedly it was the former which came true without any effort at all. Thinking of how she always believed since young that 'reading can change one's destiny', it seemed too ironic.
"Senior sister."
"Good morning, Carol."
When she entered the research institute, her fellow apprentices greeted her.
"Wow, it's already noon. We can have lunch right away if we hurry up." A teasing voice came from behind, "Carol, you're rare to be late today."
This is her college classmate Tracy Cox, a female Beta and long-time friend, as well as a comrade in arms with common academic aspirations.
Carol changed into her lab coat and looked at the clock: "I have something to do temporarily. Let's go, let's get some food."
The Rare Earth Research Institute has its own canteen, but they took a few extra steps today and went to the Group headquarters building's cafeteria for lunch.
The two of them ordered the meal and chatted while eating.
At this moment, there was a commotion coming from the entrance. Carol looked back and saw a group of people in suits rushing in as if they were here to inspect.
The cafeteria is so large that from Carol's distance, she couldn't see anyone's face clearly, but she still managed to accurately capture a superior height and beautiful silhouette at a glance.
"Why is the prince here in the staff cafeteria to eat today?" Tracy held her folks and craned her neck to look over there.
Carol's eyes silently followed the tall man surrounded by a group of people until he passed through the cafeteria and entered the private room. As from so far away, she couldn't smell his pheromones, but Carol still felt some agitation in her body.
Tracy asked herself again: "Maybe it's busy, just have a working meal with the customers."
Carol noticed that most of those people paid special attention are Omega at this time. After all, Omegas' genes are instilled with admiration for the strong. She can't escape from it either. A S-level Alpha walked past her with style and left behind a faint pheromone in the air, which really makes people daydreaming.
What's more, as the first heir of the Starship Group, Kris Franklin is an Alpha full of glory.