The headache was excruciating, as if an electric drill was tearing at my temples.

I snapped my eyes open, inhaling air that didn't have the moldy smell of a cheap rental, but rather the gentle, soothing fragrance produced by the scent system unique to my childhood bedroom. I blinked in disbelief, my vision focusing on the familiar yet strange domed ceiling above, embedded with micro-fiber optics simulating starlight.

This wasn't the cramped, suffocating apartment where I had died.

This was… my room in Cloud Peak Apartments in Radiance City.

I had been reborn. I had returned to when I was fourteen, back to that afternoon that determined the fate of both my mother and me.

Just then, there was a gentle knock on the door.

Butler Allen's perpetually meticulous face appeared outside the door, his electronic eyes flickering with a faint blue light.

"Miss Elara," his voice was synthesized and perfectly smooth, without a hint of inflection, "the master requests your presence in the study now."

Here it comes.

I took a deep breath, digging my nails hard into my palm. The subtle pain helped me suppress the turbulent waves and bone-deep hatred surging in my chest. I walked to the large floor-to-ceiling mirror.

The girl in the mirror wore an expensive silk nightgown, her face young, but her eyes no longer held the innocence typical of her age. They were filled with shock, pain, and a cold determination that had been tempered by fire.

This time, I will not make the wrong choice again.

The study was astonishingly large, with floor-to-ceiling windows spanning an entire wall overlooking the breathtaking skyline of Radiance City, where luminous flying vehicles silently glided by. My father, technology and financial titan Cassius Vance, sat behind that enormous desk crafted from a single piece of polished dark metal.

He wore a perfectly tailored dark gray suit, looking less like a father and more like a commander about to issue orders.

"Elara," he began, his voice gentle, yet carrying his usual, formulaic detachment, "Sit."

I sat down in the floating chair opposite him, my spine ramrod straight.

"Your mother has been… emotionally unstable lately, and her symptoms of 'Heartblight' have somewhat recurred." He carefully weighed his words, his slender fingers lightly tapping on the smooth desktop, bringing up a holographic protocol glowing with faint light that hovered between us.

"You need to make a choice. Stay in Radiance City with her, or go to Mount Covenant Academy in the Europa Federation for advanced studies." He paused, those sharp eyes observing my reaction, then cast the bait.

"If you choose Mount Covenant, I will establish a 'Starlight Trust Fund' for you, worth three hundred million credit points. Additionally, you will be granted access to learn about your grandfather's unfinished 'Dome Project' in advance."

Starlight Trust! The Dome Project!

My heart contracted violently. In my previous life, I was blinded by guilt toward my mother and anger at my father's heartlessness, never carefully considering the implications behind these words. Now I understand that this fund is intimately connected to that mysterious project that the family kept so secretive!

Before my eyes flashed images of mother Sophia in her later years, emaciated and tormented by "Heartblight," that hereditary neurodegenerative disease that seemed to devour her radiance and soul bit by bit. I also saw the smug smile of my father's mistress, Chief Innovation Officer Leila Croft, and her pair of illegitimate children, Caleb and Isabella, who despite their young age already displayed astonishing talent.

Stay with mother? And then repeat the tragedy of my previous life? Watch mother exhaust her life in pain and betrayal, while I get banished to the ends of the earth with nothing to my name?

No.

Absolutely not!

I raised my head, my face showing none of the struggle, pain, or tears that Cassius had anticipated, only a coldness and calmness beyond my years. I even slightly tugged at the corner of my mouth, displaying an expression that couldn't quite be called a smile.

"I understand, Father." My voice was so steady it surprised even myself. I reached out and took the sleek electronic stylus beside me, without the slightest hesitation, smoothly signing "Elara Vance" on the signature line of the agreement.

"I choose Starlight Trust and Mount Covenant." I put down the pen and looked directly into his eyes, deliberately emphasizing, "As your 'legal' heir, I believe I do need to thoroughly understand the 'Dome Project,' don't I?"

Cassius Vance's eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly. He seemed to be truly, seriously examining his daughter for the first time. Her eyes no longer held their usual dependence and timidity, replaced instead by a calmness he couldn't comprehend and… an almost ruthless sharpness?

He chuckled softly, his laughter sounding somewhat hollow in the spacious study, as if covering up his momentary surprise. "Very good. As expected of my daughter from the Vansta family, you have courage and vision. The funds will be transferred to your personal account soon. Get ready, Leila will help you arrange everything at Mount Covenant."

Leila. Hearing this name, an icy hatred welled up in my heart, but my smile remained flawless: "Thank you, Father. I will certainly 'learn' well from Ms. Croft."

Leaving the study, I didn't immediately return to my bedroom. Instead, I walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the bizarre and dazzling futuristic city below. Radiance City, the symbol of the Vansta family's power and wealth, and also the gilded cage of my mother, Sophia.

I raised my wrist, opened my Personal Terminal, and the cold blue light illuminated my expressionless face. The screen displayed the astronomical balance of the Starlight Trust Fund that had just been deposited. These numbers brought no joy, only a heavy weight.

This money was no longer a guarantee of a comfortable life. It was my weapon, my ammunition, the seed money for my path of revenge.

I quickly created a heavily encrypted document with a cold and resolute title—"Estate Liquidation List."

My fingertips danced rapidly across the light screen, listing the first item:

"Investigation target: Leila Croft and her children (Caleb and Isabella Croft). Focus: Their potential connection to 'Omega Genesis' and the 'Dome Project'."

Second item:

"Medical objective: In-depth research on 'Heartblight.' Trace back mother Sophia's family genetic history, secretly investigate the Vance family and 'Omega Genesis' related biomedical research, seek treatment or relief methods."

Third item:

"Business objective: Infiltrate the Vance Group, with particular focus on its collaborative projects with 'Omega Genesis.' Target project codename speculation: 'Prometheus' Child'."

Fourth item:

"Ultimate objective: Within four years, gain control of power sufficient to change destiny. Reclaim everything that belongs to mother and me. Settle accounts with all traitors."

The neon lights outside the window flickered, reflecting in my cold pupils.

Cassius Vance, you taught me that in this cold house, emotion is the most expensive luxury, and also the most useless weakness.

From today onward, what you lose will be more than just a daughter.

You will personally nurture the returning heir who comes to collect debts, and the reckoner for all of you.

Cast Out by Family, Returns as a Billionaire Queen — Chapter 9

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