The exhibition hall shimmered with light, weapons displayed on the counter, some shielded from human hands behind glass that reflected their shadows on the ground.
Elara's eyes sparkled with astonishment—a rare gleam in her gaze—as she looked at the different kinds of pistols and guns displayed over the counters, along with grenades and their information, the type that only appeared when one was genuinely intrigued by something worthy of their interest.
Nate's gaze swept over the girl, who, rather than staying back and getting afraid of the weapons, was rather excited about them.
She was seriously a rare species. He shook his head.
"You know, many people step back from the things that can kill them. You, of course, are not among many people," he commented, remembering her words about not being one of the most people.
Elara smiled at him as her hand reached for a pistol to examine it closely, but was stopped by the guard.
"You wouldn't want to touch that, miss," the guard said respectfully.
Elara looked at the man and nodded in understanding. "Of course,"
The man was just doing his duty and trying to protect anyone who might trigger something, unaware of the consequences.
"I didn't know you were a fan," Antonio commented as he followed Elara around while Nate stopped to talk to someone.
He had truly underestimated her. When he saw her the first time, all broken and crying, he had expected her to be one of the high society princesses who were treated unwell because of their innocence, but Elara wasn't innocent.
She was the kind of woman who could walk through fires, acknowledge the flames, and still keep her elegance.
Elara turned and grinned at Antonio.
"You bet. I always admire things that demand utmost precision and courage." She smiled and was about to turn to the tank section when someone stopped her.
"Elara?" She heard a familiar voice and turned in surprise.
"Candice? What are you doing here?" She asked.
Candice grinned sheepishly.
"I had an inkling you would be here today. I begged my dad to give me a ticket. One of his companies is exhibiting," Candice said.
Antonio's lips twitched at her words. Even Miss Elara's friends weren't normal. He thought to himself.
Elara raised her brows in surprise. "I didn't know your dad was in that field," she commented.
Candice shrugged. "In my defense, we never talked about my background—or yours," she said.
"In that case, which section is that company representing? I would love to see it. If it's all right, I mean," Elara said.
Candice quickly stepped forward and held her hand like a kid.
"Are you kidding me? I would love to show you. You are one of the only real friends I've made. Come with me." Candice nearly pulled her all the way to the rifles section, while Antonio struggled to push through the crowd, since everyone there was important and influential—no one he would dare mess with.
"Dad, this is Elara Frost," Candice introduced, and a man in his late fifties turned to her.
His eyes were cold, dominating, and commanding, scanning her, and Elara smiled politely.
"Mr. Stewart," she extended her hand.
The man nodded and shook her hand, visibly surprised by the firmness of the handshake.
"Elara Frost. Which family do you belong to? Never heard your name before," Mr. Stewart said.
"Dad!" Candice nearly hissed and shook her head at her father, telling him not to ask such personal questions, afraid Elara would find them judgmental and offensive.
Elara, on the other hand, didn't mind the question at all.
"The kind of family that is here to build a legacy." Elara kept her words diplomatic, making Stewart nod in appreciation. The girl had vigor, the kind needed to stay close to his daughter.
He was about to speak when his subordinate rushed to him and whispered something in his ear.
Elara noticed how Mr. Stewart's expression changed immediately.
"Are you kidding me? How could you make such a mistake?" The man's voice, though low, carried a threat, and the man flinched.
Candice, afraid that her father's anger might scare Elara, quickly smiled.
"Elara, how about I show you other sections?" She asked, wiping the little sweat from above her forehead.
Elara wanted to tell her it was fine, but she didn't want her friend to feel any trouble either and thus nodded in understanding, throwing one last look at Mr. Stewart.
At the same time, Beatrice pulled Sean and Andrew with suppressed excitement.
"Wow, this is something. I didn't know your father was an investor in weapons tech, and to say they develop too?" Sean said, honestly taken aback and amazed by her.
Beatrice looked away shyly, tucking her hair behind her ears in feigned innocence.
"It's not just that. I even took combat training while abroad and will be giving a live demo soon. It was meant to be a surprise, but I just couldn't hold myself back," Beatrice said, her gaze drifting to Andrew, her heart fluttering a little.
She didn't need him to tell her that his grandfather had connections in the underworld, which was the reason they had this empire standing without many enemies.
Not only that, they even had a subsidiary that heavily invested in weapons production. It was one of the hidden businesses of Lloyds that wasn't known to the public.
With her skills, she not only hoped to impress the man but also to have him invest in her father's company. It would be like hitting two birds with one stone.
"I can't wait to see it. There's nothing hotter than a woman handling a gun," Sean said.
Beatrice chuckled at his words, tossing her hair.
"Let me know when you'll be displaying. I'll look around till then," Andrew said.
Beatrice wanted to stop the man but knew if she appeared too clingy, he would get bored easily. Wasn't that precisely what happened with Elara? Then again, she was nothing like Elara. So they won't face the same fate.
"I'll come with you," Sean said. He wanted to accompany Andrew, but the latter shook his head.
Their weapon business was a secret, something even Sean didn't want to know, and he was here to take a deeper look at the new inventions and get their rates. He didn't want to do anything that would raise any suspicion.
Around the corner, Elara stood near the grenade section.
"Your father looked quite worried. Is everything alright? You know I am not scared of such things, or why would you find me here? You can share with me," Elara said.
Candice pressed her lips into a thin line.
"Actually, the engineer who was displaying the rifle prototype invented by my father's subsidiary, the only one who has the full knowledge about it, met with an accident when he was coming here," Candice sighed.
"We suspect it is a rival's trick, and we will deal with it later, but the main question is, who will display our rifle till then?" Candice asked.
Elara hummed. She understood the severity of the situation. This kind of exhibition didn't happen every month.
Companies spend millions of dollars on R&D for technologies that government officials may adopt if they like them.
This time the exhibition was happening after three years.
No one knew when the next time would be. And if there was no one to display the rifle, it could be discarded.
By the time the exhibition arrived again, new technologies would emerge with better results, and they wouldn't get the desired money, not to mention the cost and hard work put into the invention.
"May I have a look at it? If I can understand the basics, I might give it a try." Elara asked after some thought.
Candice raised her brows at her sudden demand. Was she hearing it right?