Giselle limped slightly as she followed Karen through the courtyard of the Killian residence.
Aaron’s gunshot had left her with a noticeable limp, and it drew curious glances from the housekeepers. Usually, Giselle would adjust her gait to appear more graceful, but she was too excited to care that day.
She felt like a country girl visiting a grand mansion for the first time, her eyes darting left and right in awe. The Killian residence was even more magnificent than she had heard. It resembled a palace.
She felt that this was her true home. She was a direct descendant of the prestigious Killian family, the head of the four influential families.
She thought any of these homes was far grander and more valuable than the Everetts’ shabby villa.
Giselle seethed at the thought of Hera calling her a fake Everett heiress when it was she who had stolen her rightful life and blamed her for everything.
Giselle vowed to repay this grudge tenfold.
…
Hera woke up at 4:00 pm, roused by hunger. She reached out to find the bed beside her empty. She was alone in the room.
Hera grabbed her phone and saw a WhatsApp message from the Grandmaster of Astral Nova from 11:00 am saying, “Okay.”
Recalling Bernard’s message list from the night before, she wondered if it was just a coincidence.
After switching back to her personal account, Hera ignored all other messages and went directly to Bernard’s chat. There were no new messages. She took a long drink from the cup of water on the bedside table before heading out.
The hall and study were empty, but the door to the east wing stood ajar. Hera made her way over and found that it had been transformed into a chemistry lab.
Inside, she counted 118 transparent glass compartments lining the wall furthest to her. Some of the glass compartments were filled, but most were empty.
Recognizing it immediately as a
periodic table of elements, Hera
approached Bernard, who stood
absorbed by the display with his back turned.
“Is this your collection of elements?” she asked.
“Sweetie, you’re awake. Are you hungry? I’ll have someone bring you something to eat,” Bernard said.
When he turned around, he noticed Hera
Swifth only a thin nightgown. He et
removed his coat and draped
it over her shoulders.
Hera replied, “I’m hungry. I want to eat the steak you make.”
“Okay. I’ll have Douglas send over the ingredients,” Bernard said and texted Douglas on his phone.
Hera examined the wall, noticing
that all 22 non-metal elements were , while the metal elements
were mostly empty.
“When did you start collecting these? Is this all you’ve gathered?” she asked.
“About 12 years ago,” Bernard answered without hesitation.
“12 years, and you’ve only collected these 22 non-metal elements?”
Hera raised an eyebrow, her tone tinged with disdain.
Over a few days, around 90 common metal elements, including gold, silver, copper, and iron, could be collected.
“Yes, I collect two elements for every year.”
“Is there a reason for this particular selection?” Hera inquired.
Bernard gazed at her intensely.
“Yes…”