CHAPTER 19: CHAPTER 19 BUYING LAPTOP

The bodyguards followed silently behind her, their presence a quiet shield as Isabella walked through the halls of the mall.

But she wasn’t looking at the jewelry stores anymore.

She wasn’t distracted by the expensive dresses or glowing cosmetics.

Her feet carried her straight straight into an exclusive computer and electronics store.

The moment she stepped inside, something about her changed.

Her wide, innocent brown eyes sharpened.

The soft, shy aura she usually carried faded away like mist.

Instead, her eyes gleamed—bright, focused, full of a quiet kind of confidence that only comes when you truly know something. The kind of power you have when you’re in a world where you belong.

The entire store was sleek and high-end, lined with glowing screens, powerful processors, top-grade tech. Only the best. The kind of place where ordinary customers barely dared to enter.

The salespeople noticed her immediately.

A small, pretty girl in a flawless designer white dress, escorted by serious bodyguards, holding a black card..the kind of card they only saw with billionaires and royalty.

Their eyes widened slightly before quickly hiding their surprise under professional smiles.

One young salesman approached her, straightening his tie nervously, plastering a flattering smile on his face.

"Good afternoon, miss! How can we help you today?" he said with a slight bow.

Isabella looked up at him, her back straight, her chin lifted slightly. Her voice was soft but carried an unmistakable authority.

"I’m looking for a high-performance laptop," she said clearly. "Something built for intense programming, multi-layered encryption tasks, security bypass simulations, and data-heavy projects. It should have a fast processor, maximum RAM upgradeability, discrete powerful graphics, and a durable cooling system. I also want to customize the internal security layers and have full administrative access to BIOS settings."

The salesman blinked rapidly, stunned for a second.

This delicate-looking girl had just spoken specs faster and sharper than half of their corporate clients.

"A-Ah, yes! Please come this way, miss," he stammered, leading her quickly to the back office where they displayed only the exclusive models—usually reserved for tech giants, security firms, or CEOs who actually understood what they were buying.

Isabella followed, her steps steady, her eyes scanning the models on display with a professional gaze.

As they showed her the best options, she didn’t hesitate.

She asked for customizations: stronger security architecture, double-layer encryption, invisible browsing protocols, anti-tracking shields, specialized hacking tools installed but hidden inside a basic system profile to avoid detection. She even asked for an unregistered serial coding.

The sales team quickly realized...this wasn’t some rich man’s clueless daughter.

This girl knew exactly what she wanted and exactly what she was doing.

By the time the conversation ended, Isabella had selected the perfect laptop.

She handed the black card with a polite nod, her heart beating steadily, a little smile curving her lips.

This was her world.

Here, she wasn’t a helpless bride, or a girl forced into marriage.

Here, she was Isabella.

Confident. Quiet. Brilliant.

And no one..not even Leonardo Moretti knew just how dangerous she could truly be.

However, as the transaction was being finalized, Isabella’s smile dimmed a little when the staff politely informed her,

"Miss, the custom build will take about three days to complete. Once it’s ready, we’ll deliver it directly to your home."

Isabella froze slightly.

Home?

Her chest tightened with worry. She didn’t even know if she was allowed to give out Leonardo’s address to strangers.

Would he be angry?

Would Lina mind?

Her hands fidgeted with the fabric of her dress. She didn’t want to create any trouble, especially not when she had barely earned a little peace in her life.

"Isn’t there any way... I could get it today?" she asked carefully, her voice soft but firm.

The salesman gave her a regretful look. "I’m really sorry, miss. The customization process is complicated. It’s not possible to complete all the setups and installations within an hour."

Isabella bit her lip, thinking fast.

Then her eyes brightened with a small spark.

"What if I help you?" she said, tilting her head slightly, her voice calm but full of quiet confidence.

The staff blinked at her.

Help?

They exchanged skeptical glances.

How could a delicate girl who looked like a young heiress possibly help with custom-building a machine that took their senior engineers hours to complete?

But before they could protest, Isabella had already stepped behind the counter where a dismantled laptop lay open for repairs. She pulled her hair into a loose bun with her fingers, tucked the sleeves of her white dress higher up her arms carefully, and knelt by the workstation.

"Just... give me permission to modify the basic software layers myself," she said sweetly.

The senior technician, curious but wary, handed her a work laptop. "Be careful," he warned.

In seconds...seconds Isabella’s fingers were moving fluidly across the keys.

She bypassed the system’s restrictions, rewrote the internal encryption mapping, layered custom security protocols, and installed hidden applications—all without using any external drive. She adjusted the BIOS, cloaked the tracking serial number, and even updated the cooling system’s fan curve manually.

The staff members gathered behind her, jaws slowly dropping one by one.

"...She’s faster than our senior engineer..." someone whispered in awe.

"She’s not just fast—she’s smart," another added under their breath.

Isabella finished her work calmly, locking the system with a custom security code. Then she stood up, dusted off her dress gently, and smiled.

"All done. Now it’s ready."

The entire team just stared at her like she was a rare gem they accidentally found lying on the street.

One brave technician cleared his throat. "Miss... are you perhaps from the Cyber Security Department?"

Isabella tilted her head innocently. "No... I just like computers," she said with a soft smile.

The staff couldn’t believe it.

Rich, beautiful, polite and she worked on encryption like it was brushing her hair?!

They quickly packed her newly customized laptop carefully, adding a few extra accessories as a ’thank you’ gift without charging her.

The bodyguards who had been following Isabella silently all morning watched the entire scene unfold.

At first, they had thought it was just another casual shopping trip—another spoiled rich wife buying shiny toys.

They had believed, like most people did, that their boss, Leonardo Moretti, had been forced to marry a weak, innocent girl. A naive child who wouldn’t survive in their brutal world.

But now?

They stared at Isabella in stunned silence, exchanging quick glances between themselves as they carried her shopping bags and newly packed laptop gear.