Chapter 008: The Ex-Girlfriend from a Past Life

It was a rare occasion to see Seraphina out shopping, so as soon as they arrived at the mall, Zelda led her straight to the stores that matched Seraphina’s usual elegant style. She intended to make the most of the day accompanying her friend.

Seraphina didn't have much of a passion for shopping, but since it was a memory from many years ago, walking through the mall still offered a refreshing sense of novelty. Zelda picked out several outfits for her to try, and Seraphina patiently tried them all.

By the time they emerged from the first store, their hands were already laden with several gift bags. From then on, Seraphina stopped trying things on, though she would still pick up a set in her size if she saw something she liked or if Zelda recommended it.

Before long, both of them were covered in shopping bags—at least a dozen outfits in total. Only one of them belonged to Zelda.

Zelda wanted to head to the next shop, but Seraphina stopped her. "Zelda, let’s call it a day. We can barely carry anything else."

Reminded of the situation, Zelda glanced at their full hands and realized with a start, "I didn't even notice. How did we buy so much?"

"It’s fine. Carrying them is easy to solve—we’ll just leave them at the front desk and have the mall deliver them to our homes." She hadn't asked the individual boutiques to deliver earlier because she wanted to experience the simple joy of carrying her own purchases. Now that she had experienced enough "joy," there was no need to keep tiring herself out.

"Let's not shop anymore," Seraphina said. She had only been driven by curiosity at first, and buying this much in one go was already quite a feat for her. Now that the novelty had worn off, there was no reason to continue.

"Oh, come on! We finally made it out together, especially you, Sera. It's been less than an hour."

As Zelda spoke, she caught the amused glint in Seraphina’s eyes and sighed in compromise. "Fine, the shopping ends here. Let's move on to the next stop."

Before they could leave, they were approached by a small group of people.

"Sera, Zelda! You're out shopping too?" one of the girls exclaimed with delight. There was a hint of flattery in her voice.

As soon as she finished speaking, she received a cold glare from the girl next to her and quickly shut her mouth, her expression turning sheepish.

Seahaven was a major metropolis, but the high-society circle was relatively small. After attending a few banquets, almost everyone became familiar faces. Seraphina, in particular, was frequently praised by elders, so there were few young people in the elite circle who didn't recognize her. Her background and her excellence were naturally met with envy from some and jealousy from others.

The girl who had glared quickly masked her expression with a smile. "Sera, Zelda, what a coincidence to run into you here."

She looked at Seraphina, her tone slightly surprised. "Especially you, Sera. You rarely come out to shop. What brought on the sudden interest today?"

Seraphina didn't respond to her. Instead, she looked at the person standing behind her.

Gillian Gong. In her previous life, not long after Solas had saved her and kept her by his side, Gillian had become his girlfriend. She was an actress under Solas’s company, J-H Entertainment, and was currently a popular young starlet.

Seraphina gave Gillian a brief look before calmly withdrawing her gaze. Though it was a fleeting glance, it didn't go unnoticed.

The person leading the group, the one who had just spoken to Seraphina, was Jade Foster—Finnian Foster's cousin.

Noticing Seraphina’s gaze, Jade was momentarily stunned. Then, a thought occurred to her. Without waiting for Seraphina to reply, she asked, "Sera, do you know Gillian?"

Hearing her name, Gillian was slightly startled. She looked toward Seraphina. Truth be told, she had noticed Seraphina from the moment someone in their group had called out. Seraphina’s beauty and her status as the "Eldest Miss Pierce" were impossible to ignore.

Now, Gillian scrutinized her more closely. She didn't know Seraphina personally, but she had heard of her. Unlike actresses like herself—even though Gillian had released a few singles on the side—Seraphina was a true artist. They weren't in the same league. Furthermore, Seraphina's blue-blooded background was something Gillian could never hope to match.

Admiration mingled with a touch of jealousy.

Why are some people born so lucky?

Gillian thought. Some were born noble, while others had to fight tooth and nail only to never reach that height—and in the end, still have to flatter these pampered socialites who did nothing all day!

"I don't know her," Seraphina said simply. "She just looked familiar. I just remembered that my mother occasionally watches TV dramas in her spare time."

Seraphina didn't elaborate, but everyone understood the implication: she had seen her on television. Gillian did, in fact, have a hit drama currently airing.

"Oh, I see. I thought you might know her. Gillian is a rising star at J-H Entertainment. Recently, I heard Uncle Quentin was interested in introducing you to the young CEO of J-H. I thought perhaps you..."

Jade trailed off, letting out a small giggle. The news of the blind date between Seraphina and Solas wasn't exactly a secret in Seahaven’s upper circles.

By phrasing it this way, Jade’s meaning became loaded. It implied that Seraphina was only paying attention to Gillian because she was an employee of Solas Sterling. If one looked deeper, it could even be inferred that Seraphina was bothered by Gillian because of Solas.

After all, Gillian’s fans had once tried to pair her with her boss, starting rumors that only someone as brilliant as Gillian deserved a man like Solas. Although J-H Entertainment had officially clarified and suppressed the rumors, the gossip had lingered.

Seraphina didn't have much of a reaction, only sweeping a cool glance over Jade. Zelda, however, could not remain silent.

"Jade Foster, did you get your head caught in a door? Are you looking for trouble? If you have something to say, say it clearly. Who are you trying to mislead with that vague talk?"

"First of all, Sera isn't even close with that CEO. Even if she were, even if they were at the stage of discussing marriage, do you really think Sera would care about a mere employee at his company?"

"Especially an employee who has no relationship with the CEO other than boss and subordinate? Jade, who do you think you're looking down on? Our Sera isn't that petty!"

Zelda was aware of the blind date from a few days ago. She hadn't mentioned it until now because she knew Seraphina's temperament; Sera would never have agreed to a forced arrangement. In other words, Zelda didn't consider it a big deal and didn't want to bring up an unpleasant topic. Like Seraphina, Zelda wouldn't want her own marriage controlled by others.

Disliking Seraphina and trying to damage her reputation was one thing, but being called out so bluntly was another. Jade’s face soured. The truth was, she didn't dare to openly have a falling out with Seraphina. The Foster family couldn't afford to offend the Pierces, and she certainly couldn't afford to offend Seraphina.

Faced with Zelda’s directness, Jade’s expression stiffened. "...Zelda, you must have misunderstood. I didn't mean anything by it!"

"I just happened to remember hearing that Uncle Quentin wanted to introduce Sera to the CEO of J-H, and then I remembered Gillian works there, so I just said it in passing. It wasn't meant to be anything else."

Zelda was furious and about to snap back when someone beat her to it.

Seraphina looked at Jade and spoke calmly: "It doesn't matter what you meant. But next time you speak, please use your brain. Don't just blurt things out."