Chapter 292
Avey sat inside the Kane family manor, idly watching Olivia and Celestia locked in yet another passive-aggressive vocabulary duel, when her phone suddenly rang. Her brows drew together in a light frown. Without saying a word, she picked it up and answered.
But the voice on the other end made her heart stop.
Her face paled.
The frown deepened then shattered into wide-eyed horror.
“What?! What did you say?!” Avey nearly screamed, rising so abruptly that Olivia and Celestia both turned to her, visibly startled.
Olivia was the first to speak, concern flickering in her voice. “Avey? What happened? You look”
But Avey had already grabbed her coat, stumbling toward the door with panic all over her face.
“I’m sorry, Aunt Olivia,” she rushed out breathlessly. “I just got a call from mom. Father he… he collapsed. They said he’s in a coma now. And—and she… she told me she was diagnosed with stage two cancer.”
Her voice trembled. Her eyes were already glistening, but she held herself together just enough to bolt from the room. “I need to go. I’m so sorry—I have to go now.”
And with that, she was gone.
“What…?” Olivia stood up halfway, shocked. “Andrew’s in a coma? And Melodybshe has a cancer? But” She looked toward the open door Avey had vanished through, worry clouding her elegant features. “I just met Melody last week… she looked completely fine.”
Her mind whirled with confusion. Should she go too?
But then her eyes fell on Celestia, who remained seated on the couch, her hands folded neatly in her lap, her expression unreadable. Rose was still resting upstairs. Olivia’s eyes narrowed slightly.
I can’t leave Rose alone with this woman. Not even for an hour.
Lucian might return soon, too and if she weren’t home, Celestia would surely take that chance to sink her claws deeper into him. The thought of her son alone in the house with this venomous, obsessive woman made Olivia’s stomach twist.
She clenched her jaw.
No. Not now. Avey will have staff around her, and she’s strong. I can’t leave this house vulnerable. Not with Celestia still here.
Her gaze lingered on Celestia, who sat with a strange stillness. There was no reaction on her face no surprise, no concern, not even that usual flicker of glee when something unfortunate happened to Avey. She was unreadable, as if carved from ice.
But Olivia knew better. This girl wasn’t heartless just dangerous in a different way.
Still, trying to keep her tone light, Olivia offered, “Has Your Majesty not summoned you back yet? It’s been quite a long time away from the palace, Princess.”
Her voice was polite, but anyone who knew her could hear the subtle push beneath the words a nudge, a hint: You should leave.
Celestia’s lips curled into a smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “It’s alright, mother-in-law. This is my home too Isn’t it?. I actually feel very comfortable here. Ah yes i was also thinking… maybe I can move in here permanently.”
That single phrase mother-in-law made Olivia’s hands clench tightly at her sides. It burned more than she would ever admit.
You have no claim over my son, she thought. You don’t even belong near him.
Olivia swallowed down her irritation and tried again, more pointed this time. “Well… why don’t you go check on your younger brother instead? I heard he hasn’t spoken to anyone since that incident in the Starlight manor.”
She looked Celestia dead in the eye, her words a thinly-veiled attempt to guilt-trip her into leaving.
But Celestia’s smile remained intact, serene. “I appreciate your concern, Aunt Olivia. But Arthur isn’t a child. If he can’t handle something this small, how can he ever hope to become king? Let him experience life.”
Her voice was calm, but Olivia noticed the tiniest twitch in her fingers when she mentioned her brother’s name.
Still, the girl kept smiling like porcelain.
“So you’re not going?” Olivia asked one last time, eyes narrowing.
“Why should I?” Celestia tilted her head ever so slightly. “This is my home.”
And with that, she leaned back against the couch, crossing one leg over the other composed and totally unapologetic as if declaring try me.
“Fine. Whatever,” Olivia said coldly, her voice sharp with restrained anger. Without sparing another glance, she turned and walked off, heels echoing down the hall as she pulled out her phone already preparing to call Lucian. Why hasn’t he returned yet?
Once she was gone, silence fell over the Kane Manor. And at last, Celestia allowed her expression to shift.
A frown crept onto her face.
She sank a little deeper into the couch cushions, her gaze lowering as she pulled out her phone. The screen glowed to life, revealing headlines and live feeds from Wolly City.
Her eyes narrowed further.
Earthquakes. Sudden storms. Fires. Random chaos erupting across the city without pattern, reason, or warning.
This never happened in the past life… she thought, her thumb pausing mid-scroll. No matter how far I reach into my memories, there was nothing like this. Not even a trace.
She locked the screen and set the phone on the armrest. Her eyes sharpened into slits.
Something is wrong. Very wrong.
And then there was Avey.
Even though Celestia had never been closely involved with the girl’s family, she knew the powerful four families well enough. And in her last life, Avey’s parents never suffered anything like this. Andrew Starline falling into a coma? Melody suddenly diagnosed with second-stage cancer?
Impossible. These were not minor details one could overlook. These were seismic shifts. Too sudden.
Is Avey lying? But what for?
The suspicion curled around her spine like a cold wind. But no Celestia paused. She replayed Avey’s reaction in her mind the sheer panic in her voice, the way her hands shook, the tears threatening to fall. That didn’t look like a lie. That looked like pain.
Genuine, raw pain.
So if it wasn’t a lie…
Celestia’s thoughts stretched further, past logic, past surface explanations.
and then also there were her suspicions after incidents with kane womens.
Could Avey be… a regressor?
Her fingers stilled. The silence around her grew thick.
Yes. It made sense. Too much sense.
The way Avey carried herself. The way she spoke her choices, her foresight. She wasn’t the same girl Celestia remembered from the past. And with Olivia and Rose already confirmed as regressors… was it so hard to believe?
Only a fool wouldn’t notice by now. The signs were everywhere. Avey had changed drastically.
Now, all that remained was confirmation.
One straight conversation. That’s all she needs Celestia thought, the cold glint of calculation returning to her eyes.
But for now she just sat there
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