Chapter 855 Stolen Design
And she was right to worry. Unbeknownst to them, the meal originally designated for Hera had, in fact, been laced with an extremely high dose of laxatives. Had Hera eaten it, she would have ended up hospitalized, unable to participate in the competition. Her name would have appeared as "Forfeited" on the event list, quietly eliminating her from the stage before she ever got to present.
Alice silently watched as Hera ate the meal her people had brought for her, frustration simmering beneath the surface. She clenched her jaw, teeth grinding in irritation. The second half of the competition was about to begin—the segment where both she and Hera would present their designs. Alice had timed everything perfectly. The laxatives should’ve taken effect right as Hera stepped onto the stage.
But she hadn’t expected Hera to ask her best friend to bring her food.
Alice’s eyes narrowed, studying Hera carefully. ’Did she suspect something?’ If she did, knowing Hera’s personality, she wouldn’t have stayed silent. She would’ve confronted Alice outright. ’Or... am I just being paranoid?’
Lost in thought, Alice stabbed at a piece of sushi in her takeout box, popping the salmon into her mouth and leaving the rice untouched. Her gaze never left Hera, watching her every move while her mind raced, scrambling for a new plan to get Hera out of the competition before it was too late.
A sinking feeling twisted in her gut the longer she sat there. Her instincts screamed at her—she couldn’t let Hera step onto that stage. If she did... Alice knew she would lose.
Even after the break ended, Alice still hadn’t come up with a new plan to sabotage Hera. Her mind raced for options, but nothing concrete formed. To make things worse, the organizers had decided the presentation order through a random draw—and by sheer luck, Alice was scheduled to go right before Hera. Her turn was approaching fast, and the pressure only added to her mounting frustration.
As she anxiously fretted, her phone dinged. She opened it with a scowl, expecting nothing useful—but the moment her eyes scanned the message, she froze. A slow, wicked smile curled on her lips.
’Gotcha,’ she thought smugly.