QT: Against My Will-Chapter 528 - 8.45 - Nathaniel’s Infamous Dresses - Monster Heist

Soon, Alain appeared to help Elera in the kitchen. He nodded at Bing Shi as he took over the large pot, stirring the contents and inhaling deeply. He added various ingredients and spices to the pot, his movements confident and precise.

Elera was moved to tears as she watched Alain expertly take charge of the kitchen. She watched him intently and quickly learned to understand his gestures. He made a chopping motion with his hand to signal that he wanted some vegetables to be chopped and pointed to a nearby knife.

Elera looked up to express her thanks to Shina Night, and she realized the other person had already disappeared.

As the hours passed, the aroma of the cooked food grew stronger and more enticing. Just when Elera thought that the female lead had turned for the better, Shina Night appeared with Victor.

Elera pushed down her emotions and forced a smile to greet them from behind the serving counter.

Bing Shi quickly approached Alain and Elera with a suggestion, "Why don’t you take a break with the rest? We will take over the serving of the food."

"We?" Victor looked at Bing Shi with a mixture of surprise and suspicion, but he eventually nodded in agreement.

Alain nodded, seeming to understand her request, and the two quickly switched places.

Bing Shi stepped up to the serving counter, deftly spooning generous portions of the stew onto each plate. She added a few slices of fresh bread on the side and a sprinkle of herbs to finish it off and give the steel plate to Alain, "Enjoy your meal."

Elera eyed the female lead suspiciously before accepting a plate from Victor, ’Is she trying to look good before Victor?’

While Bing Shi continued to serve the food, she noticed that some soldiers were looking at her with admiration and amazement.

"I can’t believe you cooked so much food all by yourself," a soldier exclaimed, eyeing his plate of stew appreciatively, "Thank you very much for your hard work."

Bing Shi was taken aback. "I didn’t cook this. Elera and Alain did," she clarified, gesturing towards the table where Elera was sitting with Alain.

Victor looked at her skeptically, confusing the soldiers further, "But I saw you bringing in the ingredients. You must have been helping them."

Bing Shi shook her head. "No, I just thought it would be fun to serve food I didn’t make. The true chefs are Elera and Alain. "

Despite her efforts to clarify, the misunderstanding seemed to spread throughout the dining hall with Victor’s comments. Soon, other recruits were approaching her with compliments and praise, thanking her for the amazing meal she had prepared. Or more like, trying to suck up to her in any way possible.

Bing Shi’s gaze hardened as she looked at Victor, "I see you finally decided to take up a new hobby instead of just wasting your time away," she said with a sarcastic undertone, "I’m so proud of you."

Victor simply shrugged, a smirk playing at the corner of his mouth. "What can I say? I like to stir things up," he replied nonchalantly, "Since I can’t have sex, I have to get creative in other ways."

"Well, I’m sure whatever you come up with will be just as impressive as your growing charm," She chuckled softly before turning back to serving the food, "I used to dread seeing that flashy smirk of yours, but now it’s almost tolerable. I guess some things do get better with age," she said as she suppressed her laughter.

Victor’s smirk faded as Bing Shi’s comment caught him off guard, "Unfortunately, your charm is still very much lost on me."

Bing Shi wiped an invisible tear off her mask, "It’s fine. I never expected my charm to work on someone with such impeccable taste as yourself." It was not something she would lose her sleep over.

"..." As Victor watched Bing Shi serve the food, he couldn’t help but notice her change in behavior.

In the past, she had always acted off-putting as if she wanted him to be gone from her life. But since the incident where she put a spell on him and forced Leon to sign a marriage contract, something has shifted.

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While Elera sat at the table with Alain, she had a feeling there was more to Victor’s interest in Shina Night than he was letting on, ’How could the world plot be still so strong?’

If the cold and aloof male lead suddenly showed interest in Shina Night too, then Elera’s theory about the world’s attempt to correct the story to its original plotline could be right.

Elera suddenly stood up, her eyes fixed on the door leading out of the dining hall. She knew what she had to do. Without a word, she quickly made her way through the crowd of soldiers. And then she saw him switching his shift with another soldier, his expression impassive.

"Senior! What a coincidence," she said, her voice firm.

Nathaniel looked down at Elera, "What is it, Elera?" he asked.

Elera took a deep breath. She was just thrown into this world as extra, not meant to interfere with the main plot. She couldn’t stand in the way or she would end up dead like Riley, "N-nothing. I just wanted to warn you to stay vigilant. Just remember that not everything is set in stone," she said softly, "You still have the power to make your own choices."

Elera looked around in urgency, "There is something else I need your help with." She stood on her tiptoes and whispered her request to him. She took a step back before clasping her hands together in a gesture of desperation, her eyes pleading for his assistance.

"..." Nathaniel widened his eyes slightly, curiosity etched on his face as he processed her request. After a moment of silence, he nodded slowly, "I can help you with that."

"Thank you." Sighing in relief, Elera turned back to normal, walking by his side, "I don’t know for whom you’ve been preparing those dresses for but I don’t want to see you get hurt because of love like me. Trust me, I’ve been there."

Nathaniel’s eyes narrowed as he processed this information. "I see," he said finally, "I already burned them."

"What?!?!" Elera raised her voice in surprise, "Why?!" She didn’t work so hard just for her masterpiece to be burned just like that!

"The dresses began to represent hopes, dreams, and desires of countless people who yearned to be chosen, to be loved, to be special." He smiled, but there was no warmth in it. "However, that was never my intention, so I burned them."

One by one, he watched as their material worth turned to ashes. It destroyed their illusions of grandeur and brought them back to reality.

"What about the person who was meant to wear those dresses?"

Nathaniel leaned in closer to Elera, his tone lowering. "I don’t like it when people pry into my personal life," he said calmly, but there was a frosty edge to his voice that made Elera feel as if she had just stumbled into a frozen wasteland, "I suggest you don’t make the same mistake, Elera."

"I-I understand," Elera said, her spine stiffening like an icicle as she contemplated the weight of his words. "Anyway, just be careful," she repeated before turning to leave for the kitchen. "I’ll see you later."

Those dresses and jewelry were always meant to be burnt like a tribute to his wife. They were a way for Lu Kai to honor her memory. He never expected Bing Shi to wear them, but she apparently did. He got to know it was the only offering she was looking forward to receiving.