458 A Parasite
Selma Payne’s POV:
“From tomorrow onward, the royal family would become his primary investors. No matter what amount he quotes, the research funds would be paid on time every season.”
I understood what that person was thinking. Besides, since I wanted him to work for me, it was only right for me to protect him.
“Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness. Lester will complete your request as soon as possible.” It was only then that Master Kevin revealed the man’s name to me. “The Little Prince is a lucky man, and he will definitely get better.”
I forced a smile and sent him off.
I didn’t hide this from my parents, and they consented to all my decisions.
Three days later, an inconspicuous corner of the newspaper reported the disbandment of a well-established test tube baby research institute. On the same day, Master Kevin brought the medical scientist named Lester and a panicking pregnant woman to the palace.
“Greetings, Your Highness.” Lester saluted me slowly while the pregnant woman beside him cowered, followed in Lester’s lead, and bowed to me.
I stopped Lester from correcting her, asked this frail woman to sit down, and asked someone to make some simple soup for her—her eyes were glued to the snacks on the coffee table.
“Don’t be shy. Have some snacks to fill your stomach.” I pushed the pastry stand before the woman and looked at Lester.
“Please don’t misunderstand, Your Highness. I swear on my reputation that I have never mistreated this lady or the child in her. You might have to hold the Evaria Family responsible. After all, from the logs they provided, even the food of the lab rats is more appetizing than the three daily meals of this lady. Sometimes, paying too much attention to the nutritional ratio will ignore people’s wishes, making a nutritious meal a torture.”
Perhaps it was because she realized that I wasn’t that ‘scary’, or perhaps it was because she hadn’t eaten normal food for a long time, but even though the pregnant woman still didn’t let down her guard, she couldn’t help but help herself to the dessert.
Lester passed me a stack of documents. It was the pregnant woman’s basic information and medical report.
Her name was Carey, and she was born in a small pack in the west. She had a high school degree and no family. Three years ago, she came to work at Lycan pack alone, but her education and birth token were not very smooth.
Later, she participated in an experiment initiated by a medical institute under the name of the Evaria Family, thinking that she could get a high reward, but she did not expect to put herself in a pit of fire. After confirming she was pregnant, the Evaria Family put her under house arrest and used their connections to erase all her files, causing her to ‘die’ in society’s eyes.
The Evaria Family only used her as a vessel for surrogacy and did not treat her well. I believed that was why she went from a sunny girl in the photo to this timid and haggard woman before me.
I didn’t waste any time and directly told her, “I hope to be the adoptive mother of the child in your stomach. You know who I am and what kind of living conditions I can give this child. I swear in the name of the Moon Goddess that I will treat this child as my own. Besides the right of inheritance, he will have all the rights a prince has.
“And you, my dear lady, will receive a considerable sum of money and a villa located in the best area of your hometown. The internal affairs officer of the royal family will give you an annuity of five hundred thousand every year until you die. You’ll have a new identity. You can choose from a scholarly family, a rich family, or a minor noble family. No one will be able to disturb your peaceful life, and you will live the rest of your life in wealth and peace.
“The price for all this is that you will never see this child again. He will no longer have any relationship with you. Your medical records and birth records will also be erased.”
Carey’s mouth was still stuffed full of cakes. Upon hearing my words, she only looked at me in a daze. She didn’t seem to have the resistance and pain of being separated from her flesh and blood that I had expected.
“… May I ask how much the annuity will be?” She swallowed the food in her mouth and asked with her gaze lowered.
“I don’t care how much you want. Name your price: one million, ten million, ten million, one hundred million.”
“… I don’t need that much. Just one million is enough. This is a huge sum that I can’t even earn a fraction of in my life.”
Carey took another bite of the cake and suddenly burst into tears.
“I can become anyone, right? A daughter of a rich family or a noble lady.”
“Yes, if you’re worried, I can even introduce the best plastic surgeon to you.”
She continued to chew on the cake and silently calculated everything. With money, reputation, and family background, she was indifferent to the child in her stomach.
𝗳𝘳ℯ𝑒𝓌ℯ𝚋𝐧oνe𝘭. c𝐨ｍ
“To be honest, I’ve been thinking about how to abort the child, but those people are watching me too closely. They don’t even allow me to keep a spoon by my side. I can’t even abort it if I want to.”
Carey calmly said those disturbing thoughts out loud.
