Chapter 18 - Gold and Grit

Michael sighed in relief. He was thankful that Alisa was forgiving and didn't take it out against them. However, in order to prevent something like this from happening again, he had to make a decision. Even though she hadn't said it, it was clearly evident in her expression that Alisa was dissatisfied with the way an employee framed her for stealing a black card and repeatedly interrupted the transaction. Seething with rage, he turned towards Anastacia and gave her a violent slap. Her face immediately swelled and blood trickled on the corner of her lips. He then grabbed her hair while glaring at her.

"How dare you accuse someone of stealing a black card? Do you think everyone is as dumb as you? Are you trying to get me fired?!" He shouted at her.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Guzman. Please spare me." She wailed loudly, but her voice was a little bit strained because of her swollen face. Michael only became more irritated as he looked at her with disgust. Greedy and arrogant people could become monsters without caring whose life they stomped on. In a fit of rage, he kicked her in the stomach, causing her to curl on the ground and cough up violently.

"Take her away and throw her out the streets! She's fired." He ordered the guards.

Feeling his raging fury, they immediately did the task and dragged the disheveled Anastacia until they couldn't see her anymore. The rest went back to work since the show was over. Michael went back to his own office with a tired look. 

Alisa thought about many things as she was back in the streets. Now that she bought a house, she needed to buy things like refrigerator, cooking utensils, furniture, and other necessities to fill the large house. She felt she had been impulsive for buying such a big place when she was the only one who would be living in it. She let out a sigh and called for a taxi. A little while later, a cab stopped in front of her.

"To Marbella Mall, please." She politely stated and rode the taxi. 

The driver nodded and silently drove the car. Alisa looked out the window while resting her chin on her hand. Although the place was a bustling small city, it wasn't polluted and too noisy compared to other places. She felt relaxed and smiled while she was engrossed staring at the scenery before her where tall buildings rose up to the sky and people were busy walking in and out, going on with their work as part of their daily lives. It was a starking contrast compared to the life in the battlefield. The colors were brightly mixed together instead of the usual shades of black and red from the blood of her enemies. It was a calming feeling for her.

The taxi arrived in front of the entrance of the mall. She got out and paid the driver the fare along with a few extra tips which made him smile and bowed his head slightly before leaving. 

"Strange... He didn't talk at all for the entire time." Alisa mumbled to herself as he thought about how weird the driver was. Still, everyone has their own preferences. He was probably a shy type and didn't like to interact that much. 

Forgetting her thoughts later on, she strolled over the mall happily with her black card in tow. She looked at the furniture first to examine them before buying a few pieces that would be usable for her. It didn't matter that her house would look quite spacious and empty for a while. She would just slowly accumulate things in the future. Since they were too heavy to pick up, she just instructed to have it delivered at the address of her house and wrote a note of approval to allow the delivery crew to enter her residence. 

Afterwards, she went to the kitchenware section to buy tools for cooking. She was supposed to pick up the usual tools used back in the military camp but felt that it was way too old-fashioned. Also, there were no firewood in the villa. How could she cook without them if she still relied on ancient methods? She frowned for a bit and went to look for a salesperson to recommend her things. 

"Um, hello miss. Can you please recommend me some cookware that would make it easier for me to cook? I really don't understand much of the newer things here." Alisa said to a nearby idle young saleslady who seemed to be in her twenties, currently fiddling with her phone. 

She only briefly looked at her while scanning her from head to toe before focusing back on her phone. "Sorry, I'm busy."

Alisa frowned at her rude behavior. She couldn't understand why everyone loved to look at their customer's appearance first then completely ignore her after seeing that she was only dressed in plain clothes. Was it a sin to be dressed like a commoner? Her clothes weren't cheap at all since it was the same dress she had borrowed from the wardrobe of Meryl back then. Since it was her only clothes, she only washed it repeatedly to avoid getting smelly while she was staying in the hotel, so it looked a little bit older now. 

She was itching to slap this woman's face but held herself. She sighed and tried examining the things on her own. She wished she had a phone so she could just directly look it up on the grooger web.

As she was busy looking at the products, a young salesman saw her and his eyes lit up.

"Oh, what a beauty. Although she is dressed plainly, she isn't that bad. I bet I could make a pass on her." He licked his lips secretly as he said it to his co-worker beside him.

"You really have terrible taste. You always have a lewd look every time you see any pretty woman out there. Well, not that it's my concern." The other one responded while shrugging his shoulders.

"Oh, shut up. I'm going to her and see what she's up to."

The man grinned widely as he went to approach Alisa. She noticed him and raised her eyebrows. His motives were pretty obvious. Alisa sneered inwardly but didn't show it. An idea entered her head. She smiled at him and said, "Hello. Can you please help me in finding the right product to buy?"

"Sure, I can, miss. What are you looking for?" He pretended to be nice and asked her in a gentlemanly manner. It was his game face and he never failed to win a woman's heart with his glib tongue. Little did he know that he was just dancing in Alisa's palms. 

After making him explain the things she needed to know, he asked her to pack several equipment such as a rice cooker, induction stove, an automated dishwasher, a few cooking pans, and several plastic boxes for storing food. She also bought a refrigerator and let him processed everything. He paled after seeing that much orders being dumped on him. He wondered if this woman had the money to pay. Upon going to the counter and processed the order, Alisa took out her black card and gave it to the cashier. They thought it was just a regular card. The cashier didn't think too much about it and swiped it on the machine. She was shocked afterwards after seeing the balance of the card.

"Oh my gosh! Hello, Miss Hayworth. Thank you so much for buying in our store." She handed back the black card with care. 

"Please send all of these to this address." Alisa handed wrote the address of her newly bought villa. The cashier was in for another shocked as she recognized it. All of the people living in Golden Pavilion Gardens were no ordinary citizens. She once again bowed respectfully as Alisa turned to exit the store.

The male salesperson hurriedly caught up to her. "Please wait, miss."

"Do you need something?" Her tone sounded flat.

I haven't introduced myself. I am—"

"Sorry, but I'm not interested in scheming guys like you. Goodbye."

She cut him off with a fierce glare, which made him subconsciously backed away from fear. There were still many things she had to do. She had no time to spare for such unnecessary matters. Alisa left the store with her chin raised proudly, not taking another glance at the poor guy. 

She went to a nearby automated teller machine and looked at her balance. She was shocked and her eyelids twitched upon seeing how much she had spent in just a single day.

"I didn't think I would be spending that much. I really need to find a job soon." She sighed inwardly while muttering under her breath.

While her balance was still slightly above forty million lux, all of the things she had bought today from furniture to kitchenware utensils costed her more than 4 million. What in the world did she buy? She took a look at the receipt and her eyes bulged from shock. The furniture she had ordered like the cabinets, tables, and sofa costed half a million since they were made of sandalwood, a rare and expensive type of wood. 

Not to mention that she still had to buy a car because it was a hassle to keep finding a taxi just so she could travel. Her head ached at the thought of paying so many things at once in a single day. She pushed all of it on the back of her mind and saved the car for later. She still had to buy clothes.

Alisa looked for a clothes shop inside the mall and happened to spot beautiful dresses lined up in a glass window inside a store that was seemingly a high-end one called Soleil Atelier. Her eyes sparkled at the sight of those pretty things. She always had a soft spot for clothes and cosmetics, since she didn't get to experience such luxury in her previous life. She vowed to herself that would satisfy her little vanity this time as much as possible without endangering her savings, of course. 

Fully decided on what she wanted, she strode inside with a smile on her face as she hummed a particular song she knew for as long as she could remember.