Under the Veil of Night

"Neo, what happened to you? You seem extremely tired," Kanae was startled to see Neo walking out listlessly. From his expression, it seemed as though he didn't sleep at all during the night.

Neo smiled bitterly. He had spent the entire night looking up information about Kanae. He had to make sure that the information he got was true. After all, it was rather shocking that no one knew that the incident actually involved them.

"I'm just trying to become better at what I do."

Kanae looked at the other party suspiciously, but she didn't try to pry deeper. "It's already time for us to go. I think Mike will be a more suitable driver compared to you."

"With the current me, that's indeed the best option."

As they got into the car, Neo was still looking at his laptop. His eyes were tired, yet he couldn't bring himself to believe at all the news that he got. He didn't want to accept it. It was simply too disastrous.

Hours passed, and they soon arrived back at the office. Kanae got out first. "I'll go home first. My sister must be worrying about me."

Mike smiled. "Just go, we can wrap up the rest by ourselves."

"Thank you all."

Kevin glanced towards Neo. "You have been looking at me for some time now, Neo. Is there something you want to talk about?"

Neo's face held a complicated gaze as he thought about what he found out. Clearing out his mind, he made his resolve. Kevin had to know about this; no matter how much he cared about and didn't want to hurt him, Kevin had the right to know. So, before everything was too late, he had to tell Kevin.

"Boss, can we talk upstairs?"

Kevin could guess that Neo wanted to talk about something secretive. It wouldn't be suitable to talk about things like that here.

"Sure."

…

Kanae and Laura's Mansion

When Kanae returned back to the mansion, she saw an expensive car parked right outside the gate. She frowned. Their small family weren't close with anyone rich. The only one that she knew was Jason. This car didn't belong to him.

Taking out a key, Kanae entered the mansion. She faintly heard her sister's voice from the hall.

"Like I said, this mansion is ours now. There's nothing that you can do to us even if you belong to the main family."

"Everything that belongs to a member of the Nali Family has to be made known to us!"

"Let me repeat myself. The owner is someone that we got acquainted with. The owner of the mansion doesn't belong to the Nali Family," Laura sneered.

It was a story she and her sister they agreed on together. The owner of the mansion would be some unknown man without any relation to the Nali Family. This would be the best reason they could give to avoid the Nali Family from trying to take the mansion back from them just like in the past when those shameless people claimed that this mansion belonged to them.

The girl in front of her, Sheila Nali, was feeling rather pissed off by Laura's attitude. It seemed that this girl didn't care about her at all. If talking about status, she already held a higher position than the two of them in the Nali Family. Yet, they didn't seem to care in the slightest.

"How did you convince the officials to acknowledge the transfer of the mansion's ownership?"

Laura shrugged. "I don't know, why are you asking me?"

The legal procedure required certain papers, one of them being the mansion's deed. Before the transaction, Frank's assistant was planning on scamming the buyer, but with the legal papers ready and the copy of the land deed, he couldn't do anything.

Even though he was suspicious of how the mansion's deed could be in the other party's hands, it was too late. He could only hand over the mansion to them.

"How did you get the money to buy this mansion?" Sheila continued with her interrogation.

After the incident on Sakura's birthday, she received a higher position in the family as the inheritor of a massive business. Using this and the tasks she completed, she climbed her way up to become an important member of the Nali Family. She did this as covertly as possible to not invoke Sakura's suspicion.

This time, she was tasked to investigate the two siblings. Frank received news that the two of them were living in the mansion again, so she came to make sure. The news was true, but it seemed that these two were hiding something.

Whatever it was, she wanted to find out more. If she could present important information to Ferdinand, her way up the ranks in the family would be much easier.

"Shall I repeat myself? The owner is not me," Laura answered calmly. It belonged to Kanae, but she didn't voice that out.

Sheila frowned. This girl was surprisingly hard to talk with. She thought that Laura would be easier to talk to since she was far younger and inexperienced. Yet, this high school student didn't seem to be a pushover.

However, she didn't come here without any preparations.

"Why is that man so kind as to give this mansion to you?" Sheila asked again.

Laura frowned. "How should I know? The mind of a rich person is always so hard to guess. I guess, a rich lady like you should know that, right?"

Sheila's face turned ashen when she heard that insult. How dare this little girl insult her right to her face! She truly wished that she could just slap her for good because it was clear that she didn't have it easy in the household.

"Are you sure that it's not because your sister sold herself? In this city, it's easy to find a rich and perverted man," Sheila smiled sinisterly.

Laura wouldn't mind if Sheila insulted her, but she couldn't take it when someone insulted Kanae. Her sister was someone she respected and cared for the most. No one was allowed to insult her!

Before she could lash out, a cold voice sounded from the front door.

"Oh? I thought that's what you've been doing, Miss Sheila. If my memories don't serve me wrong, the man who stayed by your side at the party that you claimed to be your husband, has quite a reputation for being a drinker and a womanizer," Kanae retorted with a calm voice, yet it was tinged with an icy tone.

Sheila's eyes narrowed when she recalled that man. He was an ugly man in her eyes. She hated him a lot and felt disgusted by him. But since she could get a lot of money just by sleeping with him, she felt that it was worth it.

"I'm the one who does the asking. Lowlives like you don't deserve to ask someone like me," Sheila sneered.

Kanae laughed. Who does Sheila think she was that she could do something like that? The princess of this country? It was a foolish thought that this girl has about her own status.

"Let me tell you this, even if Sakura were standing here, I'll treat her all the same," Kanae answered calmly. Now that she already got what she wanted, she didn't have to treat them with much hospitality anymore. Besides, Frank couldn't do anything to her anymore. She had already prepared for everything to counter any kind of scheme that man could possibly cook up.

"You!" Sheila spat out angrily. Kanae's words were the same as telling her that she was still beneath Sakura. Although in terms of status that was correct, she really hated to be reminded of the fact that she had to be under someone.

"Please get out. My place doesn't welcome anyone from the Nali Family. If you dare to come again, I'll call the police with the charge of trespassing," Kanae pointed to the door.

Sensing Kanae's cold aura, Sheila was unable to refute back. She was getting close to making Laura angry which would possibly make her slip out important information. Now, her chance was ruined. She could only walk out despondently.

Kanae turned her head to Laura. "Are you alright?"

Laura nodded. "Yes. Welcome back, Sis. Are you hungry? I'll make your favorite dishes."

"…Why are you acting like a housewife?"

Laura laughed. "I'm just happy with how you dealt with that annoying woman. It gives me a sense of satisfaction."

Kanae was amused. "Let's just eat. I'm already hungry from clashing with that woman."

"Okay! Wait for a minute. I'll get the food ready very quickly."

After Laura disappeared into the kitchen, Kanae's eyes turned rather cold. From Sheila's attitude, she could guess that this girl has changed a lot. There might come a time when they clash again in the future.. At that time, their fight wouldn't end as quickly as the ones in the past.