That afternoon, Livia was bored. The phone she had found in the drawer was completely useless for helping her do anything that might improve her situation. In the end, she still needed money.
As she thought about how to get some, she left her room and headed straight for the stairs to go downstairs and leave through the first-floor exit.
It was already 4:30 p.m., and the expansive grounds of the Quincy family residence were filled with tall trees. It was the perfect time and place to train.
Livia had changed into sportswear so she could move more easily.
“Miss Livia, where are you going dressed like that?” Beki hurried over from the dining room, approaching Livia with a worried expression.
The wound on Livia’s head had not healed yet, and she was worried that Livia might worsen it.
Seeing the concern on Beki’s face, Livia said, “I want to train my body. Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing, and I know my body well. I won’t hurt myself.”
Beki wanted to stop her, but she did not dare say anything more. After all, Livia was her employer.
“In that case, I’ll follow you, Miss.”
Livia did not say yes, but she did not refuse either.
As Livia walked across the grounds of the Quincy family residence, her eyes settled on a tennis court equipped with a tennis ball machine.
An idea popped into her mind, and the corners of her lips lifted into a smile.
Being in this body has disrupted my instincts. I have to train them so my body and soul can achieve perfect harmony.
As a member of the special forces who had walked along the edge of the river of death, she had possessed incredibly sharp instincts. They had allowed her to evade attacks from her enemies. However, she had failed to avoid Bella’s attack, letting the music box strike her head. She had also failed to detect Zoe’s sudden appearance behind her. This showed that the cooperation between her soul and the body she inhabited was still imperfect.
She walked onto the tennis court and began adjusting the tennis ball machine. Then she stood in the middle of the court.
“Miss Livia, please be careful,” Beki warned anxiously. She had never seen Livia play tennis before and was afraid the fragile woman would get hurt.
Livia merely smiled in response. At first, she made ordinary movements, hitting the balls that came toward her. Seeing her return every ball accurately without difficulty, Beki felt relieved.
Then Livia asked Beki to help her set up some targets.
Beki was not sure what Livia wanted to do, but she still helped her, asking several bodyguards to assist them.
Soon, several empty bottles were placed on a table on the tennis court.
The bodyguards who had helped set up the targets were curious about what Livia intended to do, so they stayed to watch. They were also afraid that Livia might injure herself. Since they were the ones who had arranged the bottles, Ethan would be furious if anything happened to Livia.
Just then, several young female maids walked past the tennis court. When they saw what was happening, they began whispering to one another.
“Look. What does that traitor think she’s doing?”
“Does she want to play tennis with that weak body of hers?”
“What else? Obviously, she’s trying to cause more trouble for the Quincy family. She’s probably planning to injure herself with those bottles so Mr. Ethan will sympathize with her even more.”
“I never thought she’d stoop so low as to take advantage of Mr. Ethan.”
Those maids dreamed of getting into Ethan’s bed and had always looked down on Livia. In their opinion, Livia was not worthy of becoming the young Mrs. of the Quincy family. That was why they did not bother lowering their voices. Besides, there were only a few maids and low-ranking bodyguards there.
Livia heard what they said, but she did not care at all. She gripped the tennis racket tightly and focused her concentration. Once she was ready, she signaled one of the bodyguards standing near the tennis ball machine to turn it on.
The machine had been set to maximum speed. The moment it started, several balls flew straight toward her.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The sharp sound of impact rang out several times. In a matter of seconds, every ball had been hit toward one of the targets. The onlookers did not even know how it had happened, but all the glass bottles on the table had shattered just as the machine stopped firing. Not one of Livia’s shots had missed.
None of them missed. But the force behind my shots is still lacking. I have to improve it.
While Livia calculated the weaknesses in her movements, everyone stared at her in disbelief.
“Am I dreaming? How is that possible?”
“I can’t even do that! I had no idea the young Mrs. was so amazing!”
“Yeah, you’re right. It looks like she’s been hiding her abilities all this time.”
The bodyguards who had witnessed it were utterly amazed. They immediately approached Livia and praised her.
“Mrs., teach us! That was incredible!”
“Mrs., where did you learn a technique like that?”
As the bodyguards crowded around Livia, the female maids who had just insulted her remained stunned.
“You’d better watch your words from now on. Otherwise, your heads might be the next targets.”
Beki’s voice brought the maids back to their senses. They hurried away at once, afraid that their heads really would become Livia’s next targets.
Beki was impressed by what Livia had done as well. But she was starting to get used to the surprises Livia revealed. In fact, she hoped Livia would show even more improvement.
Just then, a car drove in through the main gate. It should have stopped in front of the house, but instead it came to a stop on the road not far from the tennis court.
When the car door opened, a pair of small legs climbed out. Sofia did not bother taking her bag and ran straight toward the tennis court.
“Mom! Mom! What are you doing?”
Livia felt awkward facing the male bodyguards who kept praising her, and Sofia’s arrival only made her more uncomfortable.
It looks like I won’t be able to continue. That’s enough for today.
Livia was about to leave the court, but Sofia tugged on her clothes.
“Mom, wait here. I’ll be back after I change. We can play together!” Sofia looked excited.
But Livia was still not used to having children around her, so she said, “No. I’m going inside now. I’ve played enough. You can play with your brothers if you want.”
At those words, the excitement immediately faded from Sofia’s face, replaced by a pout.
“Am I bothering you, Mom?” Her eyes glistened with tears as she spoke.
A bad feeling immediately washed over Livia when she saw Sofia’s expression.
No… no… Is she going to cry? No! No! Anything but crying children…
Thinking that, Livia quickly said, “All right, all right. I’ll wait here. Go change quickly.”
Sofia’s face lit up at once. “Really? Okay! I’ll be right back.”
The little girl then ran toward the house.
Colton looked hesitant, but he still approached Livia and asked, “Can I play too, Mom?”
Livia gave Colton a brief glance. Although she wanted to avoid the children, she still could not bear to see the pleading expressions on their faces.
Ugh… why did I have to come back to life as a mother?
“All right. Go change your clothes.”
Colton formed a stiff smile on his hesitant face. Then he followed Sofia into the house.
Axel, on the other hand, did not say anything. As the oldest, he was more sensible. He calmly carried Sofia’s bag into the house.
Since the children wanted to play, Livia asked the bodyguards to help clean up the broken glass bottles.
A short while later, all three children returned to the tennis court. When Livia saw that Axel was not wearing sportswear like his younger siblings, she asked, “Why are you dressed like that? Don’t you want to play?”
Axel looked at Livia and shook his head in response.
Seeing that, Livia did not ask any further questions and returned to the middle of the court.
With the children around, she did not do anything dangerous. She merely hit the balls casually.
Sofia and Colton seemed accustomed to playing tennis. With their tiny rackets, they moved nimbly around the court.
But then Sofia stopped playing and approached Livia.
“Mom, I saw you do something amazing from far away earlier, but I couldn’t see it clearly. Can I see it now? It must be so much fun!”
Livia had just been about to refuse when several male bodyguards spoke up excitedly.
“That’s right, Mrs. We want to see your hitting technique again too.”
“Mrs., you’re amazing! We might be able to learn something from you!”
“Mrs., do it again!”
Sofia beamed when she heard the bodyguards. She tugged on her mother’s clothes and urged her, “Come on, Mom… just once.”
Livia felt helpless. If she refused, the little girl would surely pout. She would rather hit tennis balls all night than deal with crying children.
“All right. Fine.”
With the children present, Livia did not use the targets again. Instead, she decided to close her eyes. She planned to guess the direction from which the balls were coming.
“Miss Livia, this could be dangerous,” Beki warned.
Livia smiled. “No. It’s fine.”
Livia knew it was dangerous, but this method could train her instincts.
With that, Livia readied her racket and closed her eyes. Then she asked a bodyguard to choose a position from which to throw the ball.
Of course, the bodyguard chosen to throw the ball was terrified. If he hit Livia, his life would be ruined.
“M-Miss… I can’t do it.” Even his voice trembled as he spoke.
“Just do it. Weren’t you the one who asked me to do something? Why are you scared?” Livia sounded casual.
The bodyguard began regretting what he had said earlier. Since Livia had no intention of backing down, he had no choice but to throw the ball. Trembling, he raised his arm. He even closed his eyes as he released the ball.
Thwack!
Livia successfully hit the ball, and the tension in the air immediately faded. The next second, cheers of praise rang out from the onlookers.
“Mom, you’re amazing!”
“Mom, you could become the greatest tennis player in the world with skills like that!”
“Young Mrs., you’re truly amazing!”
“Young Mrs. is the best!”
As the cheers of excitement and admiration continued, Livia felt relieved that she had guessed correctly. Although her response had been slightly delayed, she was still grateful that her instincts had not truly deteriorated. Otherwise, she might have seriously worsened her injury.
The light training earlier has already begun restoring the harmony between my soul and body. With more intense training, I’m sure my abilities will return to their peak.
Meanwhile, a pair of eyes stared sharply from behind the car window. Ethan had just returned home when he saw what was happening on the tennis court. He was shocked and worried to see Livia hitting the ball with her eyes closed. But that was not the main reason the atmosphere inside the car had become so tense.
Ethan saw Livia’s lips curve into a faint smile as she responded to the bodyguards’ cheers. Although it was only the slightest smile, Ethan still felt bothered.
That woman… it looks like she’s enjoying being surrounded by the bodyguards.
With that thought, Ethan unconsciously opened the car door and walked toward the tennis court.