"Dad, I get it. I'm not stupid."
"Besides, what do I have to be jealous of?"
"She might be excellent, but it's not like I'm useless."
Sloane spoke with total conviction.
Lawrence breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as you understand that."
Lawrence had been genuinely terrified that his daughter would let jealousy consume her.
He knew exactly what his daughter was capable of; she was merely excellent among ordinary people.
But Claire was completely different. She was a once-in-a-generation genius.
She learned faster than anyone else, excelling in both modern and traditional medicine from a very young age.
The Sterling family might boast a proud legacy, but Claire's mentors descended from legendary royal physicians.
She had her own formidable pedigree!
Not to mention, her mentor in modern medicine was Mary.
Mary was one of the most elite surgeons in the entire country, attracting high-profile patients from across the globe who begged for her to operate on them.
There was absolutely no way his daughter could ever compete with a girl like that. He just hoped Sloane wouldn't let her ambition blind her to reality.
"Dad, at the end of the day, Claire is still just a student. Don't you think you guys are putting her on an incredibly high pedestal?"
"Grandfather even pulled her away from my birthday party last time. Where exactly did he take her?"
If Dr. Sterling Senior needed an assistant, surely her own father was infinitely more qualified.
Or, at the very least, one of her grandfather's official students.
It shouldn't have fallen on Claire.
"Your grandfather had his own reasons for taking her."
"Why are you prying into things that don't concern you?"
Sloane couldn't hide her bitter dissatisfaction.
Lawrence firmly told her to focus on her studies and stop obsessing over her grandfather's affairs.
"The nature of your grandfather's work is highly classified. Stop obsessing over it."
"And pay close attention to the company you keep. You need to learn how to distinguish between people who are genuinely interested in you, and people who are just trying to use you to get to your grandfather."
"Don't let yourself get played and end up putting your grandfather in danger."
Lawrence was genuinely deeply terrified of his daughter doing something foolish.
"Keep a particularly close eye on this Meiko Fujii who just showed up out of
nowhere. Do not discuss family matters with her."
Despite her internal rebellion, Sloane knew she had to maintain a compliant facade for her father.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Lawrence didn't push it any further.
He knew that if he lectured her too much, it would only trigger her rebellious streak.
Sloane was thoroughly annoyed.
Anyone would be irritated if
own family constantly permet
Someone else's kid to the heavens.
Her foul mood did not go unnoticed.
Meiko spotted it immediately.
"Sloane, is everything okay?"
Meiko acted as the perfect, empathetic confidante—the kind who naturally drew
people in without ever seeming overbearing.
But because she was a foreigner from Sundara, Sloane didn't dare vent to her freely.
"It's nothing. My dad just gave me a lecture."
"You know that underclassman who got caught up in all those rumors because of me recently?"
"My dad was just reprimanding me over it."
Meiko pretended not to know the full story and offered gentle comfort
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"Did this underclassman actually go and complain to your father?"
Meiko's Solenian was incredibly flawless.
Only the faintest trace of an accent separated her from a native speaker.
"She didn't complain directly, but the incident blew up everywhere. My dad just thinks I hold some of the blame."
Sloane didn't mention her father's blatant favoritism toward Claire, but her resentful expression made it entirely obvious.
Meiko gently coaxed her. "Don't be
so upset. Maybe your father is jet
looking out for you, and didnt mean
aputhing else by it."
"I am incredibly curious, though. What kind of magic does this girl possess to make your father regard her so highly?"
Sloane had no idea if Meiko had already looked into Claire's background, but she admitted the truth anyway. "She's a prodigy."
"Our medical faculty actually poached her from the math department. My dad probably just values raw talent."