Chapter 255

Tristan?

Damien, Arlo, and the others froze when Tristan suddenly stood up.

Noticing his odd expression, Damien asked, "Is everything alright?"

Tristan blinked, his gaze lingering on Damien and Selene for a moment before shaking his head. "No, it's nothing."

He sat back down.

Giselle hesitated, then said, "Tristan, I—"

But Tristan didn’t seem to hear her. Instead, he turned to Iris and asked warmly, "Iris, are you thirsty? Would you like some water?"

Iris nodded eagerly. "Yes!"

She dashed over, took a few sips from Tristan’s glass, then hurried back to continue chatting with Chloe. Earlier, they had been discussing the small toy Chloe had brought for her.

After drinking, Iris handed Chloe a figurine. "I got this when I went to the movies during New Year’s. It’s for you!"

Chloe’s eyes lit up as she accepted it. "You went to the movies too?"

"Yeah! My uncle and aunt took me," Iris said happily. "After the movie, we played arcade games. My aunt is really good at them! But Uncle Hugo and I had to leave early."

"Uncle Hugo took me to a movie that morning too," Chloe admitted wistfully. "But he was in a hurry to meet his friends, so we went straight home. I didn’t even know they sold figurines there."

Hearing that, Chloe felt a pang of disappointment.

Then, inspired by Iris’s praise for her aunt, she added softly, "My mom is amazing at games too."

"Next time, I’ll bring my aunt, and you can bring your mom! We can all play together!" Iris suggested excitedly.

As she spoke, she noticed Damien watching them.

Chloe followed her gaze. "Dad, what’s wrong?"

Damien smiled faintly. "Nothing. Keep talking."

"Okay!"

After ordering, Arlo suddenly asked, "By the way, Tristan, how’s the collaboration between your company and NovaSight Labs going? Still smooth?"

Tristan replied, "It’s going well."

Arlo raised an eyebrow. "No unexpected issues?"

Selene had been engrossed in her book, but at that, her fingers stilled mid-page-turn.

Having known each other for years, Tristan understood Arlo was subtly asking if Camille had caused any problems.

He noticed Damien was also listening with interest.

Lowering his gaze, Tristan answered, "None."

Arlo looked surprised. "Really? Not even one?"

"Mm."

Selene pressed her lips together before flipping the page.

Damien sipped his tea in silence.

Finding the topic dull, Arlo quickly changed the subject.

About two hours later, after finishing their meal, they left the restaurant. Just as they stepped outside, Camille and Graham’s group descended the stairs to leave as well.

Back home, Camille immediately dove into the materials Graham had given her.

The documents covered cutting-edge AI developments from around the world—most still in the conceptual stage, with no guarantee of becoming actual products.

She read for hours, so absorbed that she didn’t notice the night fading into dawn.

It wasn’t until the sun was high that her aunt, Talia, gently knocked on her door. "Camille, breakfast is ready."

Camille replied, "I’ll be down soon."

After freshening up, she picked up her phone and dialed Gabriel.