"Aria?!"
Oscar Bennett quickly put her down and finally saw the mess in the room-his face darkened in an instant.
"Oscar, that witch Serena-she stopped Grandma from giving me a bone marrow transplant and hurt my mom too! You have to shoot her, now!"
Tears streamed down Aria Douglas's face, making her look pitiful, but that sharp glint in her eyes, exactly like Esther, gave her away.
Oscar believed her without hesitation and immediately pulled out his gun, aiming it at Serena. "How dare you attack your own aunt?! Let her go, now! Or I swear I'll shoot!"
But even with a gun pointed at her, Serena didn't flinch-if anything, the pressure of her grip intensified.
The needle sank even deeper. Blood was smeared across Esther's face, and her scream had changed pitch from the pain, but she still grit her teeth and refused to give in. "Oscar, it hurts like hell! Kill that ungrateful brat right now!"
"Bang!"
Before Oscar could even aim, his gun was shot right out of his hand.
He whipped around, heart pounding, only to see a tall man in full combat uniform standing at the door. The insignia on his shoulder shimmered, almost blinding.
It was the captain of the Lone Hawk Squadron!
"Oscar Bennett!"
The man's voice was deep, laced with unmistakable authority.
Oscar froze on the spot, instinctively snapping to a soldier's stance. "S-Sir!"
He'd trained for a few months under Eliot Barrett in the Lone Hawk Squadron. That voice-he couldn't possibly forget it.
Even though he didn't last long in the unit and eventually got cut, it was still the highlight of his resume and the envy of every soldier he knew.
But what on earth was Captain Barrett doing in Draco City-or more specifically, at the Douglas household?
"Sir, what brings you here?"
"If I didn't, I wouldn't have seen you acting like such a clown."
Without sparing him another glance, Eliot walked right up to Serena, gave her a sharp military salute, and said with utmost respect, "Captain Eliot of Lone Hawk Squadron reporting to Your Highness!"
"Oscar Bennett trained under me. His recklessness is my failure. I ask for Your Highness's pardon."
"Y-Your Highness?!"
Oscar's brain short-circuited on the spot-eyes wide, heart pounding.
Your Highness?
Did the captain just call Serena Her Highness?!
Weren't the records showing that Serena was just some random nobody? Some toy protected by someone powerful?
But Eliot was a top-tier military man!
Then it hit him-he recalled what higher-ups said during a recent military conference.
The Scarlet Valkyrie, the war heroine who had led countless victorious battles, was returning from the border.
Wait... was Serena actually... that Scarlet Valkyrie?
Those so-called "prison records"? Total fakes?
Of course-Gavin Moore, famous for avoiding women like the plague, protected her like his life depended on it. And Oscar had actually believed it was because she was his plaything?
His back was instantly drenched in cold sweat. With a loud "thud", Oscar dropped to his knees and started kowtowing. "I-I was blind and ignorant, Your Highness. Please forgive me!"
Esther, bleeding from her nose and ears, her eyes covered in blood, couldn't see a thing. But when she heard Oscar say that, she froze.
Your Highness?
No way.
She refused to believe Serena could have such terrifying power behind her.
Her mind spun, trying to make sense of it.
A child she abandoned in the mountains, who'd been adopted from an orphanage, framed and thrown in jail-how the hell did she climb so high in just a few years?
This had to be fake. Probably just actors hired to fool them!
"Oscar, help me!"
Serena snorted and flung Esther to Oscar's feet.
"Go ahead, let's see how he plans to save you now."
Oscar Bennett dropped to his knees again, smashing his forehead on the floor twice in a row, trembling all over.
Esther was drenched in blood, her voice shaky and slurred. She clung tightly to Oscar's sleeve, relying purely on instinct. "She's faking it-she has to be! How could she possibly be anything like a war god or whatever?"
"And that 'Lone Hawk Squadron'? She definitely hired some actors just to scare you! Can't believe you bought that!"
Oscar felt like his scalp was about to split open.
Others might not recognize Eliot, but how could he, Oscar, not know the squad leader personally?
Before Esther could say another word, Oscar slapped her hard across the face, blood spraying as the impact echoed.
"How dare you disrespect Her Highness?! Are you looking to die?"
Then, when he spotted one of the black-clad men inching toward the knife at his waist, Oscar didn't hesitate. He kicked him hard in the stomach. "Wanna die?! You dare offend Her Highness too?! Get down on your knees!"
The men exchanged panicked glances. If even the police chief was this terrified of the woman, there was no way they could afford to cross her.
One by one, they dropped to their knees facing Serena.
Esther stared in disbelief. "Oscar!"
"You said you'd protect the Douglas family forever! And now you hit me-for that little tramp?!"
She couldn't see Oscar's horrified expression. In her head, he'd clearly been bewitched by Serena's looks.
Oscar was scared stiff, worried that any association with Esther might drag him down too. He slapped her again with all the force he had left, screaming, "Hell yeah I hit you! Her Highness is royalty, and you dared to insult her! I'll kill you myself!"
Esther collapsed, dazed and buzzing in her ears, unable to speak.
The way Oscar, once the Douglas family's strongest backup, was now bowing and scraping like a beaten dog in front of Serena made Aria Douglas realize something, even in her panicked state.
Serena wasn't someone they could mess with.
And today, she wasn't here for a nice visit-she was here for revenge. Against Esther.
Aria was only fourteen. She didn't want to die.
Ignoring the blood pooling around her legs, Aria crawled over to Serena's feet, her lips white as a sheet, her expression desperate and sincere. "Serena, please. We're cousins-I'm begging you, don't kill me. It was Esther who crossed the line, not me. I didn't do anything!
"I'm just a kid... I'll cut ties with her from now on-she's dead to me. Just let me go, please?
"I'll follow your lead in everything. I swear I'll never cross you."
To show her loyalty, she crawled forward and slapped Esther hard in the face.
The fear flashed across her eyes for a split second, but the instinct to survive quickly overwhelmed any guilt.
Serena chuckled, amused. She never planned on doing anything to Aria.
But wow-didn't expect her to throw her own mom under the bus so fast just to stay alive.
Esther clutched her bruised cheek, looking shattered.
"Aria... you hit me?!"
She reached out blindly to grab her, but her hands flailed in the air, coming up empty every time.
Aria stared back coldly, watching her tears drip like broken pearls. "You deserve this. Crocodile tears won't save you. Having a mom like you is just embarrassing."
Serena looked at Esther with scorn. "How's it feel, Esther? Getting thrown aside by your own daughter just so she can save her own skin? Must sting, huh?"
Esther's face turned ashen, and her strength drained out of her all at once as she crumpled to the floor.
Why?
Why did those timid fools Serena called parents manage to raise a daughter who came back for revenge, while she got stuck with this ungrateful brat?
She'd pampered Aria all her life, fought tooth and nail for the Douglas family's fortune just to get Aria the best medical care...
And this is how it ends.
Esther burst into laughter, but her tears had already turned red with blood. Her eyes burned with bitter regret.
