The Alchemists

Sarah was truly out of words. She shook her head as if trying to convince herself that she misheard the words that came out of JM's lips. No... that guy over there cannot be the uncle of JM's boyfriend.

He was too young! And... too poor.

JM's boyfriend must be ultra-rich, judging from the dress that he could easily gift her. Sarah knew how much the dress cost. It was not just a dress, but a wearable artwork that costs A LOT of money, even by very rich people's standards.

Someone who could easily spend that much money on a single dress, must be really, really, really loaded, and she could only think of a few families who were on that level.

Could it be....?

"Are-are you sure you are not seeing the wrong man?" Finally, she asked JM to confirm.

The beautiful supermodel nodded. "Yes, I am not blind. I can recognize my family members easily."

Sarah could sense that JM sounded annoyed, so Sarah didn't ask again and just believed her. Sarah glanced at Rune and saw him talking with Rose and his face was all smiles.

Actually, Sarah saw Rune for the first time, she thought Rune was good-looking and he seemed compatible with Rose. However, knowing the man was just a commoner, she didn't think he was of the same level as them.

Now, Sarah wasn't so sure anymore. If Rune was really related to JM's boyfriend, the ultra-wealthy man... maybe he was someone to be reckoned with.

"Sarah.. look," Lisa whispered to Sarah and distracted her attention from JM. "The representative from the Schneider Group is here. He came!"

Sarah turned to the right, following Lisa's direction. Ah, Lisa was right. Sarah almost forgot that they had prepared a surprise, a bad one, for Rose.

Since she claimed that she was dating Rune Schneider from THE Schneider family, which was obviously a lie, it's time to set her straight and expose the truth.

At least.. that's the plan they made when they talked about inviting the Schneider family to the royal wedding.

Princess Anne herself was the one to sign the invitation.  They thought it would give them a good laugh.

Now, Sarah looked at JM and then turned her attention to Rune. JM wouldn't possibly lie. If she said Rune was related to her boyfriend... she must be telling the truth.

That means, Rune might really be someone important. He was more than meets the eye.

So, would someone important lie about his identity? Would he really claim to be someone he was not?

Sarah bit her lip. Somehow, she started to think that she might be really wrong this time. She looked at the royal couple who just got married.

Princess Anne looked beaming, holding the prince's hand as they met and talked with the VIP guests who came to them and congratulated them. They looked a bit tired after the wedding ceremony in the morning and then prepare for the reception, but they still smiled and talked to people.

"We should go there and talk to them," said Lisa. She held Sarah's arm and nudged her to walk with her toward Leon and Anne. Sarah turned to JM and nodded her goodbye awkwardly. JM just furrowed her brows and then smiled at her.

Weird, she thought to herself. She didn't really understand why those girls seemed to be interested in Rune. She decided to walk toward Rune and Rose who were enjoying some c.o.c.ktails while chatting. Terry quickly strutted behind her.

"So many important people," Terry commented as he walked beside JM and cast his glance around them. He recognized many faces attending the wedding reception and hoped they wouldn't recognize him. 

He had changed his hairstyle and dressed a bit casually tonight. So, he thought he looked different from his old self, Terrence Chan, the president of the Schneider Group who retired at the age of 40, several years ago.

When he was the president, he was always dressed impeccably, looking formal and business-like. One of the reasons was to look older.  Now, with his current appearance, he looked so young and relaxed.

Well.. this would be a good test, to see if people would really be suspicious of his new identity.

"Hey, how are you enjoying the party?" Rose asked them with a smile. She waved at a servant and told JM and Terry to get drinks for themselves. "You should try the Bacislia sling, it's Medion's signature c.o.c.ktail. I think you will like it."

She pointed at glasses with red drinks in them. JM and Terry nodded and took her advice. They sipped the c.o.c.ktail and their faces immediately beamed. 

"This is good!" JM commented. "It's like Singapore Sling, but different."

"Yeah.. that's the reason why it's named Bacilia Sling. The inventor, a very famous restaurateur in Medion, was impressed by Singapore Sling and wanted to have one for ourselves. So, he assigned his connoisseur to create something that we can be proud of," Rose explained.

"I love it!" JM commented. She took a big sip and smiled so broadly. "I will ask for the recipe later.. hehehe."

"Hi, Rose," Anne smiled so sweetly when she reached the small group. She spoke to Rose with her melodious voice. "I hope you are enjoying the party. I am so happy you are here for our wedding. I want my husband to be surrounded by his whole family on our happy day."

Rose forced a smile and nodded. "It's my duty to... come here. I am wishing you and Leon happiness."

She glanced at Leon who just arrived behind his new wife. His face looked apologetic and he forced a smile too. He knew Rose his whole life and could tell when she was feeling uncomfortable, even though she could fake a smiley face.

"You are here with your boyfriend, right?" Anne asked Rose, then turned to Rune. "Glad to meet you. The Fourniers said that you and Rose are very serious about your relationship. I am happy for you two. The Schneider family is a very respectable family and we are honored to be related to them soon."