Saintess's Worthless Husband Turned Dragon Commander novel Chapter 205

CHAPTER 154 PART 1

Azure Water Entertainment City occupied the heart of Five-River Province’s luxury district like a monument to

excess.

Six floors of decadence catered exclusively to the children of wealth-private karaoke suites, high-stakes gambling rooms, imported liquor collections that cost more than most people’s annual salaries.

The fifth floor, reserved for the elite among the elite, featured private rooms where young masters and their circles celebrated victories, mourned losses, and plotted their next moves in the endless game of status and power.

Room 507 pulsed with music and laughter.

Crystal chandeliers threw fractured light across expensive furniture and designer-clad bodies.

Champagne flowed freely from bottles that cost thousands each. T

he air smelled of expensive perfume, premium cigars, and the particular kind of recklessness that came from being young, rich, and convinced of invincibility.

At the center of it all, Elize Yarrow raised her glass for the third time in an hour.

“To freedom!” Her voice carried over the music, slightly slurred but defiant. “To breaking chains! To never bowing to anyone again!”

“To Elize!” The chorus came from two dozen voices-her friends, her social circle, the second-generation elite who weren’t quite powerful enough to run the province but wealthy enough to pretend they could.

Glasses clinked. Expensive alcohol disappeared down expensive throats. Someone turned the music louder.

But beneath the celebration, unease rippled through the crowd like a hidden current.

“Elize, are you sure about this?” Simeon King leaned close, her voice barely audible over the bass. “Making this much noise after what happened with Atlas Lancaster… it’s like painting a target on your back.”

“Let them target me.” Elize drained her glass and immediately poured another. “I’m done being afraid. Done being told who to marry, how to act, what to think. If the Lancaster Family has a problem with that, they can-”

“They can destroy your entire family,” interrupted Brandon Chen, his earlier confidence around Marcus completely absent now. “Elize, you made Atlas Lancaster look like a fool. In front of everyone. You know what that means in our world.”

“It means I finally did something honest for once in my life.” Elize’s eyes were glassy but her voice remained firm. “Atlas is a controlling bastard who wanted me as a trophy. My father tried to sell me like livestock. Why should I apologize for escaping that?”

A girl named Madison Park, daughter of a mid-level real estate developer, shook her head nervously.

“Because Atlas’s father nearly had a heart attack when he heard what you did. Because rumors are spreading that Young Master Lancaster is planning retaliation. Because in Five-River Province, you don’t humiliate the Lancaster Family and walk away clean.”

“Then maybe it’s time someone stood up to them,” Elize shot back, though her hand trembled slightly as she refilled her glass again.

The truth was more complicated than her bravado suggested. Her father had already disowned her-not officially, but in every way that mattered.

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When she’d returned home after the Pearl on the Water incident, Grant Yarrow had looked at her with such disgust and disappointment that she’d fled to Simeon’s apartment rather than spend another night under his roof. Her family’s reputation had taken a hit. Business partners were already distancing themselves. And all because she’d gotten drunk, worn a bunny costume, and let Marcus Steel use her to humiliate his enemy.

Marcus Steel.

The name sent conflicting emotions through her chest. Anger at being used. Gratitude for being protected. Confusion about what she actually felt.

And underneath it all, a stubborn attraction she couldn’t quite kill despite knowing he was married and had made it crystal clear he had no interest in her whatsoever.

“You’re thinking about him again,” Simeon observed, reading her friend’s expression too easily.

“I’m not-”

“You are. That Marcus guy.” Simeon’s voice held a mixture of concern and exasperation. “Elize, he told you straight up-you were just a tool to him. Nothing more. Why are you still—”

“I know what he said.” Elize cut her off, her voice sharper than intended. “I was there, remember? I heard every brutal word. But that doesn’t change the fact that he defended me when Carl Davis attacked. That he broke Carl’s arm to protect me. That he-”

“Used you,” Brandon interjected bluntly. “Wake up, Elize. He’s not some prince charming. He’s a manipulator who played you like a violin to hurt Atlas Lancaster. That’s it. That’s the whole story.”

“You don’t know that,” Elize muttered, but even she could hear how weak it sounded.

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