Chapter 111: Commander Ashbourne and the Lady

Just now, she had inadvertently lashed out at Jeryon, the very person who had done so much to help her.

"I need to apologize to him," she whispered.

A few minutes later, Shani finished packing and pouring all the energy potions she had purchased into a single small bottle. She also retrieved the artificial egg from her System inventory.

Because the System’s artificial egg box differed from the standard designs on this continent, no one would ever suspect that the large box Shani was holding, which was bigger than her own torso, actually contained an egg.

Once inside the cab, she set the box on the seat beside her and sent Jeryon an apology text.

The earlier conversation about housing reminded Shani of Sky Heart Mansion, the estate that was legally hers.

She quickly searched for information about the mansion online, her eyes narrowing in confusion.

"Why are there two Sky Heart Mansions?" she muttered.

The driver overheard her question and chimed in enthusiastically, "Young lady, both mansions were built by the same person. After he passed away, rumor has it the Aurelis property was sold off. Meanwhile, the one in Nova City remains untouched because no one can access it."

That single answer provided Shani with several key details: the mansions were located in Aurelis and Nova City.

But it still didn’t answer her core question, ’So which mansion do I actually own?’

"Oh, by the way, young lady, your silver hair looks an awful lot like the silver hair of House Ashbourne," the driver remarked casually.

Shani gave a tight nod, her expression clearly showing her distaste for being linked to that family.

Noticing her reaction, the driver quickly added, "I only brought them up because Sky Heart Mansion was built by Commander Ashbourne for his wife. The Lady was a graduate of Nova City and had access to it. Sadly, they’ve both passed away."

Shani’s heart skipped a beat.

’Commander Ashbourne. The Lady who graduated from Nova City. Both deceased... Aren’t those my parents?’

"Young lady, you might not know them since they passed away so long ago, but when they died, all of Argenor mourned. They were heroes who protected us on the borderline," the chatty driver continued.

Shani felt a rush of mixed emotions hearing a total stranger talk about her parents.

’How could two people revered as heroes have a family as rotten as House Ashbourne?’ Shani thought, trying to view the situation as an outsider rather than their only daughter.

The driver began listing the couple’s achievements, from slaying wild creatures at the borderline to hosting annual charity events for orphans.

"Sadly, the social enterprise they built to run those charity events closed down three years after their deaths because the funds ran out."

"Three years after they died? Where did the funding come from during those three years then?" Shani asked, curious.

"Word was that the late Commander and Madam had set up automated yearly transfers so it would keep running on its own."

"Once House Ashbourne caught wind of it, they shut the enterprise down and seized the charity funds. The news didn’t circulate long before every article about it was scrubbed."

The driver added, "Trust me, young lady. You won’t find it on the internet anymore, but if you ask any of the older folk, they’ll tell you."

Shani believed him without a second thought. She had no trouble believing House Ashbourne was capable of something so despicable.

Now Shani understood why House Ashbourne hadn’t gone bankrupt yet. It wasn’t because they were powerful, it was because they resorted to underhanded methods to siphon off her parents’ wealth.

’The public only ever knew about the incident that happened to that one social enterprise, but no one knows if anything similar has happened secretly.’

Shani stared out the window at the passing streets.

’How did they even sell Sky Heart Mansion?’ she pondered. ’Was the deed registered under someone else’s name? Or... did they forge the documents?’

Now Shani was deeply curious, and concerned about what other assets belonging to her parents they might have liquidated.

’Still, they need me to claim the rest of my parents’ inheritance. Does that remaining inheritance have protection strict enough to render their scheme useless?’

Truthfully, Shani had never intended to claim her parents’ inheritance, wanting nothing more to do with the Ashbournes.

But knowing they could squander her parents’ fortune even without proper legal documents, it was only a matter of time before they slipped past those security measures and stole everything.

Shani didn’t care about the money itself, but she refused to give the Ashbournes even the slightest foothold.

’How do I bring them down?’

While those thoughts consumed her mind, the cab pulled up in front of the apartment building.

As she stepped out of the vehicle, Aster appeared right in front of her.

"Let me carry that," he said, taking the massive box off her hands.

When Shani carried it, the box looked monstrously huge, but in Aster’s hands, it looked like an ordinary package.

"How did you know I was here?" Shani asked once they reached the apartment unit.

"I waited downstairs for you after you texted that you were on your way," Aster replied casually.

Shani was left speechless by how attentive Aster was.

Aster placed the box onto the living room coffee table and carefully opened it.

Back at the academy, artificial eggs were always placed on specialized tables designed to monitor energy regulation stability.

Initially, Shani had planned to buy one of those tables, but she remembered that the System could provide far more detailed information, so she ultimately decided against it.

Shani pulled out the bottle of energy potions and handed it over to Aster.

"You know I recently became a Direct Student candidate, right? These energy potions were a gift from my instructor. I’ve already taken my share."

Aster thanked her and accepted the bottle.

For once, he didn’t try to refuse. He knew he needed to raise his rank so that their future baby beast wouldn’t disappoint Shani.

...