Author's note: this is from Duke's point of view

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~ London, Eclipse HQ building ~

I returned to my office in a good mood.

Finally, things are moving in the right direction, and I felt like I can breathe again.

I spent nearly three years descending into madness.

At first, I had hopes that Serina will come to me, but soon I realized that I will have better chances of drinking water with a fork.

She was insecure and closed up, unwilling to open up and tell me about her situation, and the only thing I could do was to hold her and believe that she will change her mind.

Of course, it was stupid to think she will come to the man who is the source of her pain.

I was stuck with no way of explaining myself as she believed everything is just a dream, and I feared that if I reveal that it's real, I will lose that as well, so I kept quiet and endured.

I reached the point where I questioned if I will snap and go searching for her recklessly, or just give up, like she did. But giving up on Serina was giving up on myself and I forced myself to focus on amassing my fortune with a belief that it will somehow bring me closer to her.

I fervently collected every bit of information on Seraphina Mezzanotte, and I hired people to keep watch on any place she might visit.

When I saw photos of Serina with a blonde exiting her old house, I was not sure if I could take advantage of that. And then I found out that the blonde is local, Monique Belmondo, the owner of the Beauty Sphere.

When I dug further into information about Monique, I discovered that Serina owns 25% of that business. Now that was a jackpot!

I didn't know how to get close to Serina, but in a matter of twenty-four hours, I found out that Serina is friendly with Mona, a native of London, and they share business ties through the Beauty Sphere.

I realized how narrow-minded I was. I was focused on Serina's personal life, and I neglected the possibility that Serina is establishing herself in the business world. I assumed that she is still that sweet naïve girl, relying on Mr. Mezzanotte to support her.

I was elated to find out that other than a quarter of the Beauty Sphere, Serina also purchased an apartment in the Westminster neighborhood. It's not that I'm planning to break in there (not that it's excluded), but Serina got herself a property in London and that means she plans to visit more often. That thought was like a balm to my tortured soul.

Stray investors that owned fractions of the Beauty Sphere played in my favor and I didn't care how much money they asked for their shares, as I would pay whatever they wanted.

Buying them off was not business investment, it was my way to get close to the love of my life.

I earned my fortune for Serina, and in a way, I was spending it for her.

Of course, those greedy guys knew who I am, and they didn't dare give me a hard time; they readily accepted my offers which were above the market value with a promise for a good future collaboration if they come to Eclipse to seek my financial advice.

My offers were generous and if they tried to haggle for more, I would bankrupt them later.

I was glad to find out that Serina has a good friend and I managed to find a way to send her a message that doesn't involve dreams.

I need to see her in person and to make her pay attention long enough to hear my explanation.

Of course, if Mona fails, I have backup plans.

Now that I know more about the nature of the relationship between Mona and Serina, I can always use Mona to get to Serina. If the Beauty Sphere is in trouble, will Serina stay on the side? Or what if her friend ends up sick or in an accident? So many possibilities!

I would rather not go there, but a broken bone will heal, and I will do anything to get in the same room with Serina.

"You are back?", Sergio asked from the door.

"Did you have surgery where they removed the knocking part from your brain?"

Sergio was visibly confused. "Huh?"

"You didn't knock.", I reminded Sergio of his lack of manners.

These things might pass when I was fifteen years old, but now I expect him to follow some protocols. Like, if the door of my office (or my bedroom) is closed, he is expected to knock and to wait for a response before letting himself in.

He is pretty good with bedroom as I threw a fit more than once when he barged in and interrupted my precious time with Serina, but at the office, Sergio still acts like he owns the place.

Even now, Sergio looked at me like I said something silly. He obviously sees me as a child, and he secretly hopes that he will catch me doing something I shouldn't.

"Where did you go?", Sergio asked, ignoring my comment about knocking.

"The Beauty Sphere."

Sergio's face fell. He was aware that I own 12% of that company, and he knows who the other two owners are.

"You are really set on pursuing Seraphina Mezzanotte? What about Sanya?"

I smiled to the point of my cheeks hurting. Sergio has no idea that they are the same woman. I will let him think that way. It's fun.

"I thought that you wanted me to find a woman who is not Sanya."

Sergio exhaled forcibly. "You are going from difficult to impossible. Sanya is missing, and you picked an untouchable princess."

"You see an untouchable princess, and I see a woman worth pursuing."

Sergio shook his head in disapproval. "Sometimes I think that you were dropped on your head as a child."

I chuckled. "My mind is set, Serge. Regardless of how many reasons are there for me to give up, I will find one to hold on. I'm not letting go of Seraphina. She is the one for me and I will spare no efforts in pursuing her."

Sergio frowned and I thought he will bring up Sanya again, but then he asked, "Do you know who her father is?"

"Yes, he is a powerful man."

"You don't understand, young master. He is much more than just powerful."

I narrowed my eyes at Sergio. "You are right, I don't understand. Why don't you explain it to me?"

I saw him lower his head and I snorted. "I thought so. Unless you are ready to provide concrete evidence for your ridiculous claims, I expect that you will stay away from this. I will not give up on Seraphina, no matter who her father is. After all, I don't plan to spend my life with him."

Sergio opened his mouth to say something and then he closed it without saying anything.

I watched him as he left my office.

I can see his wheels rolling as he is trying to convince me not to provoke Aldus Mezzanotte, but he is not giving me any valid reason. Not that I care. Even if the guy is the king of the underground mafia, that will not stop me from pursuing Seraphina because she is my Sanya.

I am bothered to see that there are more things Sergio is keeping from me. I thought that we were done with secrets, as I'm not a kid anymore, but now I confirmed that I was wrong.

The days when he said, 'because I said so' and 'you need to listen to me', and I obeyed, are long gone.

If he wants me to listen, he needs to provide firm evidence.

At the end of the day, there is nothing Sergio can say or do to make me change my mind. I'm done with listening to him. I don't need a guardian anymore and Sergio works for me. If he doesn't like it, he is free to leave.

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