Lana leaned back in her chair and quietly listened.

Phillips continued. "I know exactly what you’re doing."

He folded his arms. "Someone from Tianmei City approached you, didn’t they?"

His eyes narrowed. "They asked you to convince my brother to invest a larger amount, and now you’re acting as their spokesperson."

As he continued speaking, Lana simply glanced at the timer on her phone.

The countdown was still running. She had started it the moment she entered the café.

Exactly thirty minutes. Meanwhile, Phillips noticed that she was barely paying attention.

His expression became even uglier. "If you don’t answer me, then I won’t give you a single dollar."

Only then did Lana finally lift her head. She looked at him for several seconds before letting out a soft chuckle.

"Alright."

She placed her phone on the table. "Since you want an answer, I’ll give you one."

Her gaze sharpened. "I didn’t hold a knife to his throat. I didn’t force him. I didn’t treat him like a child who couldn’t think for himself."

She shrugged. "I gave him a suggestion. He accepted it."

A playful smile appeared on her face. "So why are you here complaining to me? Especially when it isn’t even your money."

The moment those words landed, Phillips laughed. However, there wasn’t any amusement in that laugh. "Lana. Oh, Lana."

His eyes carried open mockery. "Do you really think you’re some kind of master manipulator?"

He leaned forward. "Because from where I’m sitting, every single identity you’ve built is fake."

Lana blinked. "What identities?"

Phillips chuckled. "Your talisman practitioner identity. Your mystic cultivator identity. Your genius identity."

He pointed at her. "Every single one of them is fake."

Then he added with even greater disdain, "Even your charity persona is fake. Everything about you is fake."

Hearing that, Lana actually laughed. The laughter was so genuine that it briefly stunned Phillips. "Wow."

She shook her head. "You’re living in a very interesting delusion."

However, Phillips was completely convinced of his theory. He refused to back down.

"Regardless. I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to imitate Thessy."

The moment the name left his mouth, Lana’s eyes flickered slightly.

Phillips noticed the reaction and immediately assumed he had struck a nerve.

A triumphant smile appeared on his face. "It’s useless. You’ll never be able to compare to her. Not in a hundred years."

Lana remained silent. However, her silence wasn’t because she was hurt.

Instead, a completely different thought occupied her mind.

’How does he know about my talisman practitioner identity?’

As far as she remembered, only Conrad knew about some of those matters.

And Conrad didn’t seem like the type of person who would casually reveal such information.

The more she thought about it, the stranger it became. Meanwhile, Phillips mistook her silence for defeat.

His confidence immediately grew. "Anyways."

He straightened his collar. "Stop competing with Thessy."

A smug smile spread across his face. "If you do that, I might consider giving you a little of my affection."

Lana laughed so hard that tears began forming at the corners of her eyes.

The surrounding customers turned to look in confusion. "Do I look like a stray dog to you?"

Phillips froze. For a moment, he genuinely wondered whether she had lost her mind.

Then his expression darkened. "Oh, please."

His voice became colder. "You’re not some innocent stray dog. You’re a wolf hiding in sheep’s clothing."

Lana nodded immediately. "Exactly."

Her smile widened. "And because of that, I don’t need anyone’s love to prove my worth."

She calmly stood up. "I also don’t need anyone’s affection."

Her eyes met his. "So stop acting as if I’m desperately begging for yours."

Phillips was momentarily speechless. "You..."

Before he could finish speaking, Lana glanced at her timer.

"There are eighteen minutes left."

She tilted her head slightly. "I’ve already calculated everything."

A playful smile appeared. "Just transfer the twelve minutes worth of compensation that I’ve earned."

With those words, she turned and walked away.

Seeing her leave, Phillips immediately stood up. "Wait! Stop right there!"

Unfortunately for him, Lana had already lost interest in the conversation.

His accusations sounded ridiculous to her. Without even looking back, she left the café.

Not long afterward, she received a message from Layla.

Today would be the final treatment session. Once today’s healing was completed, Layla’s grandmother would be fully cured.

Without wasting time, Lana headed toward Layla’s residence. Meanwhile, Phillips remained standing outside the café.

His frustration continued growing. Eventually, he decided to follow her.

His original intention was simple. He wanted another opportunity to expose her lies.

However, when he watched Lana enter a rather isolated district, his expression gradually changed.

The area wasn’t exactly dangerous, but it wasn’t particularly reassuring either.

A faint feeling of unease surfaced within him. Without hesitation, he called several bodyguards.

"Protect her secretly."

The bodyguards looked surprised. Phillips quickly added, "Don’t let her notice."

Truthfully, he still didn’t have a favorable opinion of Lana.

Yet despite that, the thought of something happening to her felt strangely uncomfortable.

After giving his orders, he temporarily set off for his own business affairs. Meanwhile, Lana arrived at Layla’s house.

Soon, she began the final healing session. The process consumed a considerable amount of her mystic energy.

By the time she finished, exhaustion had spread through her body. A faint layer of sweat covered her forehead.

Slowly, she sat down at the dining table. Layla immediately brought over a glass of water. "Drink this."

Lana accepted the glass. After resting for a few moments, she finally looked toward Layla. "Speak."

Layla blinked. A smile appeared on her face. "Nothing escapes your eyes, does it?"

Lana chuckled softly. "Of course not."

She leaned against her chair. "You’ve been looking at me as if you’ll explode if you don’t tell me something."

Hearing that, Layla laughed. "Fine."

She exhaled slowly. "Then I won’t hide it from you."

A determined look appeared in her eyes. "I’ve already made my decision."

In fact, ever since Lana had spoken to her previously, Layla had spent days thinking about the matter.

Eventually, she decided to confront Betty directly. The confrontation had happened earlier that day.