Chapter 870 Emotional Manipulation
Chapter 870 Emotional Manipulation
Seeing that Anthony didn't speak, the group of people had no intention of letting him off the hook just like that.
“Why aren't you talking?” Thalia asked.
Denise crossed her arms. Although she didn't know what was going on at the moment, she couldn't shake the feeling that they were the ones who did everything, yet Anthony had taken credit for it.
Leaning back lazily, Denise adopted a questioning stance and said, “Yeah, Tony, why don't you tell us?”
Benjamin was definitely siding with the majority, and he said directly, “You've upset two girls. If you don't explain yourself, I'm afraid you won't get through this!”
At this table, besides Miguel, three people were looking at Anthony with the same expression in their eyes.
Anthony was definitely the type who refused to give up until he was facing irreversible defeat. Looking at the others, he stubbornly refuses to admit anything. “You should ask Magus about this. How would I know?”
“You can just explain it!” Thalia insisted on making Anthony confess.
Anthony replied, “Or maybe Magus has a keen eye and thinks I'm the smartest? So he treats me a little differently?”
The other three people were speechless.
Miguel, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but speak up. “Master, aren't you just invoking resentment from the others by saying this?”
Anthony turned to look at Miguel. “This is the best answer I could think of!”
Thalia sneered, “Anthony, it seems like you're itching to be taught a lesson!”
Anthony responded, “Thalia, a gentleman settles a dispute through communication instead of a fight!”
“What a coincidence! I'm not a gentleman; I'm a lady!” At that, Thalia stood up and walked toward Anthony.
Anthony was most afraid of this. Seeing her making a move, he immediately spoke up, “All right! Fine! I'll tell you! Okay?”
Seeing that Anthony was about to confess, Thalia looked at him and said, “You're always like this! You never confess anything until you're being cornered!”
With that, Thalia sat back down in her seat, her gaze fixed on Anthony. She opened her mouth and said, “Go ahead!”
Anthony thought for a moment. “Let me organize my words!” Content held by NôvelDrama.Org.
“All right, you have ten seconds!”
Anthony was rendered speechless. She originally wanted to retort, but seeing Thalia looking like she could get up at any moment, he simply gave up.
Anthony thought for a moment and gathered his recent experiences. Then, he finally spoke up just before the ten seconds were up. “Actually, it's not a big deal. We offered to help him, and in return, he gave me some food and chatted with me for a bit. Personally, I don't think it's too much. What do you guys think?”
“Don't you think it's strange that we did all the work, but he never treated us like this?” Thalia asked.
“Yeah, it was me and Ben who accompanied Lina and made her happy, and it was Thalia who went to help Magus find Lina. Why didn't he treat us the same way?” Denise asked.
Benjamin agreed and nodded from the side.
When it came to confronting situations, it was better to let the girls handle it. Their somewhat aggressive demeanor was just right to handle someone with Anthony's personality.
“That's because you didn't have the need back then. If you were in the same situation, how would you know if Magus wouldn't do the same?” Anthony retorted.
Even so, it still sounded like Anthony was trying to talk himself out of this situation.
Thalia couldn't out-talk Anthony, but she had the advantage of understanding him well.
Moreover, Denise was quite a talker. She wasn't inferior in any conversation or argument, and she never seemed to be at a disadvantage. However, when it came to facing Anthony, she found it hard to argue her case. Perhaps it was due to the absolute authority of Anthony's identity as her older brother.
At that moment, Thalia and Denise exchanged glances.
Thalia looked at Denise and asked, “What do you think?”
“He lacks sincerity!” Denise shook her head.
“Shall we take action?” Thalia raised an eyebrow.
Denise nodded with a serious expression. “You do it. After all, he's my own brother, and I can't bear to attack him!”
“All right, leave it to me!” Thalia said, flexing her wrists and preparing to stand up.
Upon seeing the situation, Anthony immediately spoke up. “Is it possible that Magus has a preconception because of his first impression of me and assumed that I am the one behind all these actions?”
After Anthony finished speaking, both Thalia and Denise looked at him.
“Right? I think he might think that way!” Anthony said.
As Thalia and Denise were deep in thought, Benjamin, who was beside them, spoke up. “Yeah, so that's what you're thinking, which is why you're beating around the bush like this. We will do the work, and you will get all the credit, right?”
Upon hearing this, Thalia and Denise instantly understood. They turned their heads to look at Anthony and said, “That's right! Among us, Magus considers you the 'boss'. So, no matter what we do, he thinks it's all arranged by you. It turns out that we're the ones doing all the work, while you're the only one enjoying the benefits!”
“Well... I didn't expect this either!” Anthony still refused to admit it.
Perhaps others might be deceived. But as someone who was the same type of person as Anthony, Benjamin instantly understood what was going on at this moment.
Benjamin moved closer and looked at Anthony. “Tony, are you trying to 'emotionally manipulate' him?”
As soon as Benjamin finished speaking, Anthony was stunned.
Benjamin noticed Anthony didn't move. Raising his eyebrows, Benjamin continued, “Are you really doing that?”
Anthony immediately denied, “I don't know what you're talking about!”
Regardless of whether or not Anthony admitted it, Benjamin continued, “Actually, ever since you came here, you knew Lina was Magus' soft spot. You also knew that Lina had a child before, but you didn't know whether it was a boy or a girl. So you sent both of us, just to awaken Lina's will to live. No matter if her child is a boy or a girl, one of us would definitely be the one. I believe that when you did this, there was an element of sympathy, but there is also definitely a secret plan behind it. Am I right?”
As soon as Benjamin finished his analysis, Thalia was stunned!
Her gaze turned to Anthony, and seeing his expression unchanged, she instantly became convinced of Benjamin's statement.
“Anthony, is that really what you think?” Thalia asked in surprise. If it were true, she would feel like a complete sucker!
How could I not sense anything at all before?
“I...” Anthony spoke.
“That's right!” Denise spoke up. She stared straight at Anthony and said in a resentful tone, “Tony is different from others. If someone guesses what he's thinking, he has a habit of pausing when he looks at them. No one else knows this, only Ben and I do!”
Upon hearing this, Benjamin nodded in agreement once again.
Thalia was rendered speechless. The gaze toward Anthony was instantly filled with murderous intent.
As soon as Anthony caught Thalia's gaze, he was instantly rendered speechless.
What should I say?
Anthony maintained his usual grace while watching Thalia approaching him bit by bit. “D-Don't be impulsive! Being impulsive leads to evil!”
However, Thalia was laughing while gritting her teeth and approaching Anthony. Her delicate features carried a subtle threat. “Anthony, do you want to explain to me the meaning of the phrase 'emotional manipulation'?”
Watching her eerie smile, Anthony responded with a flattering grin. “In my opinion, those two words aren't quite appropriate. I used my sincerity to influence him. The reason Magus is slightly different must be because he was touched. How could this be called emotional manipulation? Am I right?”
Thalia smiled awkwardly and asked, “So, you admit that all of this was done on purpose by you?”