"Haha, I am not just Nancy," she said.
"You are here! Let me tell you, when I was young, I could not go to bed without listening to the instruments of this young soul," Eller said.
"Do you know that your music changed the lives of many?"
"If you insist," she replied.
"But those were the days when my mother could train me. Since she died, I decided to play the musical instruments just for myself."
"Oh, we are sorry," Drake said.
"If you will excuse us, we have to go now. Thank you, and we hope to see you soon."
"Haha, I will be traveling and won't be back soon, but my friend will always be around to welcome you guys," she said.
"Then say 'hi' to her when she comes back," Lee said.
She waved goodbye to them.
Meanwhile, at Edward's Castle
"There is something that's not adding up here," Carl said.
"Now, is that young lady connected to the netherworld and the Dark Organization? Black-market technology is installed in her house—the three robots, the scanning system?" Drake asked.
"Leave that aside. The architectural design is incredibly unique," Eller noted.
"I think she has something to do with them."
"These two technologies she possesses were both developed by Ghost himself, and he said they were not for sale," Edmond added.
"Whether they came from the Dark Organization or the Netherworld, both of these robots are from Ghost. Ghost is currently in the Imperial City, and she has suddenly occupied that house. I think Ghost is either staying with her, or she is Ghost."
"You get it, brother," Edward agreed.
"It's either she is Ghost, or she's his friend or assistant."
They could not bring themselves to understand anything that was happening.
Back at the University
The weekend ended quietly, and Jessy prepared herself for school as usual. She quickly made friends with the lecturers, and the students grew to love her even more; she was like their destiny helper. She taught them while simultaneously training them, and the medical students loved every bit of her experiments.
. The engineering department was no exception—her mathematics lectures were fantastic. As great a student as she used to be, she was an even greater lecturer.
Eller Gray could not help but come to the university to pay a visit to this genius. She wanted to get a closer look at this young lecturer, so she enrolled herself in one of her classes in the Mathematics department. Even she couldn't help but praise the young girl.
When Vero realized that Eller Gray had returned to the university and was taking pure mathematics, she was overwhelmed with happiness. She knew this was her opportunity to strike and meet the family of the man she had loved all her life. They had attended the same kindergarten, so she was sure Eller would recognize her.
She made her way to the School of Education and the Mathematics department.
"Wow, who is that beauty?"
"I don't think she belongs to this school."
"Yes, that's Veronica. She comes from one of the top ten wealthiest families in the Imperial City. She is always down-to-earth and not easy to recognize. Most of her peers like her, but her sister is the exact opposite." This bystander knew her all too well.
Veronica made her way into Eller's classroom, walked straight up to her side, and spoke in a sweet, innocent voice.
"Excuse me, Eller?"
"Oh, sorry, I didn't see you. As you can see, I was focused on solving this problem," Eller said.
"As always, Eller, you haven't changed a bit—still taking your studies so seriously and working on samples taught by the teacher," Vero joked, smiling warmly.
"You seem to know me too well. Tell me, who are you?" Eller asked.
"I'm Veronica Storms, your old classmate," she said.
"Okay, I remember you now! I can't believe we're meeting today, and in my classroom of all places," Eller said. However, Eller was highly skilled at reading people, and she could easily tell that Veronica was not being genuine.
"I will go straight to the point," Veronica said.
"I have wanted to be your friend for so long, but I never found the right opportunity."
"Apart from wanting to be my friend, what else do you want?" Eller asked bluntly.
"Eller, I need nothing else! Just having someone as straightforward as you is cool enough. At least, apart from my sister, I will have an extra friend," Vero replied.
"Okay, we are friends," Eller said. "But I do not like friends who nag me to do what they want. We are friends, but only when we happen to run into each other. That's it. For now, I have to leave. I'm going to look for my sister-in-law. I don't want to keep her waiting, or else my brother Edward will kill me for making his little wife wait."
"See you soon, Veronica," Eller added before walking away.
Veronica stood frozen. What did she just say? she thought angrily. And how did she know I was after her elder brother?
"Veronica, that's because Eller studied psychology," one of the nearby students chimed in.
"Everyone with bad intentions always gets exposed right in front of her."
"And besides, we heard that the Grays have already found a wife for Edward and he is married, so stop daydreaming," another lady added.
"I hate two-faced women," a third lady whispered loudly.
"They always pretend to be completely innocent, but look at her—she couldn't wait to force a friendship on Eller just to get close to Edward."
This was deeply humiliating for Veronica. Why did these women have to speak so loudly for everyone around to hear?
"Hey guys, just like everyone else here, I didn't know that old man was married! That's cool too," Veronica said, trying to smooth things over. Unfortunately, she didn't realize her choice of words only made things worse.
"Are you calling Master Edward Gray an 'old man'?" a socialite snapped. "That man is only thirty years old! How does that make him old?"
The local socialites all held a massive soft spot for Edward. How dare this woman call him old?
"Sorry guys, my bad," Veronica said, quickly escaping the room before those furious mathematicians could throw any more harsh words her way.
The Shopping Trip
Meanwhile, Eller caught up with Jessy and greeted her warmly.
"Good evening, Lecturer Jessy. I truly admire you. You are so young, yet you have accomplished so many things," Eller said, her voice dripping with sincerity.
"Haha, thank you. Just call me Jessy," she replied. "After all, you are my first real friend since the day I was born."
"Oh, then I am incredibly happy! My mother suggested that I take you shopping, so I hope you can come with me. Afterward, we can either head to your place or mine. What do you think?" Eller asked. Deep down, Eller really wanted to find out where this mysterious, tough lady lived.
"Okay, I won't reject my first-ever friend. I will let you stay at my place after we shop," Jessy agreed.
"Awesome, let's go then!" Eller was thrilled.
The two ladies drove out of the university campus and headed toward the most expensive mall in the Imperial City. What Eller didn't know was that Jessy's family was just as wealthy as her own. As they browsed the luxury boutiques, they bought the latest high-fashion designs.
To Eller's surprise, Jessy only picked out conservative, official clothing. This lady is way too reserved for her age, Eller thought.
"Hey Jessy, why are you only buying so many official clothes?" Eller asked. "You are a beautiful young lady! You should be buying some elegant dresses, designer handbags, and high heels."
"I honestly don't care much about those things," Jessy laughed.
"And where would I even go wearing stuff like that? I'm a lecturer, not a socialite or a model. Besides, my body... haha, it's definitely not as stunning as yours."
"Haha, hey, stop that! Miss, bring us all the most beautiful and elegant clothes that suit her perfectly," Eller commanded the store clerk. Turning back to Jessy, she said.
"You are still so young—only eighteen! You need to dress sharply. That way, you'll find a handsome young man... like my brother, for instance."
"I don't know what I would even do with someone like your brother," Jessy teased.
When their purchases were finally tallied up, the items totaled a staggering four million dollars.
Eller watched as Jessy reached into her simple handbag. She expected a standard credit card, or perhaps a basic student debit card. Instead, Jessy pulled out a card that seemed to literally absorb the luxury lighting of the mall. It was crafted from solid gold, but embedded directly in the center was a translucent sliver of white jade that pulsed with a faint, royal glow.
The cashier's knees actually buckled.
"M-Miss... this... this is the 'Heavenly Tier' card. Only three of these exist in the entire world."
Eller stood completely frozen, her phone halfway to her ear. White jade? The exact same jade her brother had found in the penthouse? The same jade belonging to the mysterious 'Ugly Woman' and the 'Royals'?
This golden card with embedded white jade was a Global Royal Card—a tier vastly superior even to the standard Gray family card. It proved that this young lecturer wasn't just wealthy; she sat at the very pinnacle of the world's hidden hierarchy. Eller felt a sudden wave of terrifying awe.
Staring at the legendary card, Eller swallowed hard, her mind racing. With trembling hands, she quickly typed a text to her mother.
Eller: Mother, just how much wealth does someone need to possess to get a Golden Card?
Mrs. Gray: Oh dear, that person's wealth would have to be on par with your brother's and our entire family's fortunes combined. And so far, no such person has ever been found.
Mrs. Gray typed her reply with a deep sense of pride in her family's status.
Eller: Haha, Mom... I just saw another real golden card. But this time, it has a piece of white jade embedded right in the center.
Mrs. Gray: Who holds that card?! That person must belong to the supreme Royal Family!
Eller: Mommy, it's Jessy Williams, the lecturer. We went shopping together and she just used it to pay.
At home, Mrs. Gray nearly fainted after reading her daughter's text message. So that young lady is not simple at all? She has such a terrifying background!
"Good heavens, my days ahead are going to be filled with anxiety," Mrs. Gray muttered to herself.
Eller: Mommy, I think Jessy is some sort of secret queen. The cashier explicitly called it a "Heavenly Tier" card.
Author's Note / Acknowledgments
Hello everyone! Thanks so much for all your incredible support: @Sandra_Ishimwe @Xferrilis @Sonia_Brophy_1616 @Onz28
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Thanks to everyone who has added my book, and a massive thank you to my number one fans! I love you all so very much.