The backdrop can also be propped up.

Chapter 42 Banquet

Maria Elisa has been very busy lately, busy organizing the procedures for the planet transfer, busy attending all sorts of banquets, big and small, with Ankadis, and busy entering her consciousness space with Lu Renkui and the system WQBYRZM when she closes her eyes to summarize the strengths and weaknesses of each difficulty so that she can address them effectively when they cause trouble in the future.

Upon entering the consciousness space once more, Maria Elisa witnessed the wealthy and powerful male protagonists (Alphas) ​​doing some incomprehensible things in their struggle for Pollarid. She couldn't help but sigh, "No wonder Anx and Lily almost overthrew the Empire and the Federation after my death. Besides being rich and powerful, another reason is that these Alphas are really good at causing trouble—all for the sake of competing for and tormenting an Omega. If Anx and Lily hadn't been so extreme, they might have actually been able to overthrow the Federation and the Empire."

After sighing, Maria Elisa wanted to see if she could find a better way to address the mistakes made by Anx and Lily in the timeline where she died, but she was awakened by someone.

Maria Elisa opened her eyes and remembered that she was still at the birthday party that Hewlett-Packard had thrown for her. Since there was nothing for her to do, she found a place to sit.

Maria Elisa looked up and saw Ancadis looking at her with concern.

"Liasa, haven't you been sleeping well these past few days?" Ankadis remembered that Maria Elisa would close her eyes and fall asleep anywhere if she had nothing to do these past few days.

He could understand if it were a few days after the exam, since Maria and Elisa had stayed up all night studying before the exam and it was normal for them to be very tired.

But it's been almost half a month since the exams ended, why does she still look so sleepy? Maybe I shouldn't have brought Maria Elisa to this awful banquet today. Ankadis thought to himself, and when no one was looking, he patted Maria Elisa's head.

“Anx, I’m fine. It’s just that my schedule has been a bit messed up these past few days—I’ve been too busy lately.” Maria Elisa accepted Ancadis’s pat on the head.

“There are some things you can actually have someone else do for you, Lisa.” Ankadis was utterly exasperated with Maria Elisa’s insistence on doing everything herself.

Ancadis touched Maria Elisa's hair for a while, and seeing that he had messed it up, he used his hands to comb Maria Elisa's hair back to normal.

“Ah, I feel more at ease doing these important things myself,” Maria Elisa said. “Otherwise, I just don’t feel at ease.”

"Alright then, don't overwork yourself—Alaria's going upstairs." Seeing Alaria's outfit today, Ankadis frowned. "Why is he dressed so strangely today? Like an actor from a cheesy comedy."

"Hmm, what is he wearing?" Maria Elisa looked up, her eyes sweeping over the smooth or thick-haired heads, and then noticed that Aralia's muscular figure was wearing a bright red tight-fitting dress that contrasted sharply with his hair, and his lips were painted with lipstick that looked like he had just eaten someone.

But what caught everyone's attention wasn't any of that; it was Aralia's large, shimmering purple eyeshadow that gleamed under the light—like the glowing bruises around his eyes from being punched in the eye.

Maria Elisa, seeing Aralia's outfit, vaguely guessed Hewlett-Packard's purpose. Her features were almost scrunched up as she tried to suppress her laughter: "Is Aralia going to be the female A?"

“Try to talk as little as possible, Lisa,” Ancadis said, popping a yellow macaron into Maria Elisa’s mouth. “Be careful that guy doesn’t hear you and pull out a sign yelling that you discriminate against transgender people.”

Maria Elisa ate the macaron, and then heard Lu Renkui in her mind complaining about why Western desserts are always so sweet.

Maria Elisa also felt that the macarons were indeed too sweet, and she was thinking of getting herself a glass of cold water to wash away the sweetness in her mouth—because the juice was also the kind with lots of sugar added, and she didn't like drinking alcohol either.

After Hewlett-Packard finished his introduction, Maria Elisa saw that everyone had gathered around Ancadis, wanting to chat with him more but unable to get a word in edgewise. She then gestured to Ancadis that she needed to leave for a while.

Then Maria Elisa pushed her way through the crowd to ask a waiter for a glass of water.

She patted the waiter on the shoulder, and when the waiter turned around, Maria Elisa was somewhat surprised to find that the waiter was Pollalid.

Pollalid's face was flushed and her eyes were glazed over, making her look like she had a fever. If Maria Elisa could smell the pheromones, she would know that Pollalid was in heat.

But Maria Elisa, looking at Pollalid's face, had a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on.

"Are you feeling unwell? Should I take you to the rest room first?" Maria Elisa used her body to block Pollard—she didn't expect to be able to stop the pheromone leakage, but it was better to prevent the Alphas from finding the Omega in heat at a glance.

Pollalid was already unhappy because the place where she was working was the birthday party of her ex-boyfriend, who is now the person she hates the most, and to make matters worse, she was in heat.

Pollalid thought he was doomed tonight, and in his heat, he didn't have the strength to go to the bathroom to hide. Although most of the people at the party were Bs, there were still several As.

Just as Pollalid was feeling dizzy and disoriented, he heard a girl asking him for water.

Pollalid forced himself to stay upright, and when he turned around, he saw Maria Elisa.

Pollard, who wanted to hold on a little longer, was forcibly taken to the bathroom by Maria Elisa.

It's incredibly embarrassing to lose face in front of someone you know, especially if you have some feelings for that person.

After taking the two inhibitor pills that Maria Elisa handed him from outside the bathroom and drinking a glass of water, Pollalid's first thought as his mind began to clear up slightly was this.

After preparing himself mentally, Pollalid opened the bathroom door and saw Maria Elisa leaning against the wall opposite the bathroom door, waiting with her eyes closed.

Hearing the sound, Maria Elisa opened her eyes and saw that the redness on Pollard's face had faded. She was relieved and asked, "How did you end up here? Didn't you say you were going home?"

"I'm sorry, but I actually received news of a family member's illness on the day I graduated, so I was thinking of doing a few more part-time jobs and going back to pay for my family's medical treatment once I had enough money."

"Then why didn't you bring any inhibitors?"

“The cheaper ones aren’t very effective and can be addictive, so they’re bad for your health. But the better ones are too expensive; I can’t afford them.” Pollard’s voice trailed off.

Maria Elisa nodded thoughtfully, then asked Pollalid, "How are you feeling now? If you're not feeling well, don't push yourself. Go back and rest. If you're worried about getting into trouble going back alone, I can arrange a driver to take you home."

Will Mr. Ankadis Autolai agree?

“Why is Anx stopping me from doing this? It’s clearly a good thing. Besides, I’m not at the age where I need his permission to do this anymore,” Maria Lisa said with a smile, but in her heart she was thinking: If I really needed his permission for everything, I would be in real trouble.

Pollalid wanted to refuse a couple more times, but he still felt dizzy and uncomfortable. In addition, Maria Elisa looked at him sincerely with her golden eyes, so he agreed.

Maria Elisa called over two waitresses, gave them a generous tip, and asked them to take Pollard to a taxi.

After making sure Pollalid was safely in the taxi, Maria Elisa told Pollalid to text her when she got home, and then she went to find Ancadis.

Ankadis had already sent the cunning bald men away, and although people still came over to chat from time to time, he still had a chance to find Maria Elisa in the banquet hall.

Ankadis was puzzled as to what Maria Elisa had been up to—she had only said she was going to get a glass of water, but she hadn't returned yet.

Just as Ankadis had politely declined for the twelfth time a man who brought his daughter to propose marriage, he finally saw Maria Elisa enter through the entrance of the banquet hall.

Ankadis had just breathed a sigh of relief, but when Maria Elisa approached and he smelled her scent, his heart tightened again: "Lisa, why do you smell like an O?"

"Oh, really?" Maria Elisa lifted her sleeve and sniffed herself, but didn't smell anything. "Someone was in heat just now, so I took him to the bathroom, had someone give him an inhibitor, and then had someone take him home."

“Lisa, don’t always be so kind.” Ankadis said with a hint of reproach in his voice. “Who knows, one of my enemies might use this to trick you out of your life someday.”

“Oh, it’s alright, I know my limits,” Maria Elisa said with a smile. “Don’t treat me like some clueless little kid anymore, Anx.”

Ankadis knew that Maria Elisa was being discreet, but he couldn't help but worry. He felt that he had smelled Maria Elisa's pheromones somewhere before, but he just couldn't remember where, which made him even more upset.

The two were talking when an old voice came from behind them. They both turned around and saw it was Hewlett-Packard.

"Miss Otolay is so kind," said the elderly man with white hair and a Mediterranean head, leaning on a cane, with a smile. Although he had fair skin and regular features, anyone who knew his background would feel that he had ill intentions when he smiled.

Behind the smiling Hewlett-Packard stood Aralia, their expressions forming a stark contrast.

Aralia stared intently at Maria Elisa, which displeased Ancadis.

Ankadis spoke first, drawing everyone's attention to himself: "Mr. Alark, is there something you need?"

“It’s nothing, I just came to see my old friend’s child. I didn’t expect Ottoray to leave so soon. Sigh. I’ve lost another person who can keep me company.” Hewlett-Packard looked very distressed.

Maria Elisa looked at the white-haired old man opposite her, his face contorted with pain. She knew that this man and Mr. Ottolai had never known peace—the two were always vying for everything, from women to money. They were practically mortal enemies.

So don't be fooled by Hewlett-Packard's current grief and desire to be with Mr. Olato in death; if he were to actually stand before Mr. Olato's tombstone, he'd most likely open two hundred bottles of champagne and belt out "HAPPY HAPPY AHHHHHHHHHH—!"

Of course, it depends on the situation. If there are too many people, Hewlett-Packard would probably cover his laughing face with a handkerchief—after all, he can't act too arrogantly in front of so many people.