Two days had passed, and Shiki no longer doubted that she had regressed three years before the teleportation event. The voice she heard just before her death might have been the reason for this phenomenon. However, she neither knew who or what the owner of the voice was nor their intentions. Whether to feel grateful or wary was still unclear. Regardless, Shiki was determined to make the most of this second chance.
Her experiences in the Procession Tower had profoundly reshaped her way of thinking.
"Might makes right."
Though there was a high chance she was merely a pawn of that voice—destined to be discarded once her usefulness ran out, like a spent tool—for now, Shiki had no other choice. Her weakness forced her to accept her situation. For the moment, she could only bide her time, hone her strength, and stay vigilant. When the moment came and her power was sufficient, there would be no secrets she couldn't uncover.
Such is how the world works. The strong always exploit the weak. Even when the weak recognize they are being used for the benefit of the stronger party, they often remain powerless to act. Conspiracy theories about the "1%" who control the world's wealth had long circulated and were even proven. For the nobility, the lives of commoners were no more than those of worker ants—risking their lives and laboring tirelessly to gather resources for their "queen."
Even though commoners understood that their hard work only served the nobles who were fortunate enough to be born into the right families, they could do little to resist. Everyone, in the end, is a slave—to other humans, to money, to power, to carnal desires, or even to their own foolish thoughts.
Shiki, who had spent years in a dark, garbage-filled basement, realized that such a place symbolized true freedom. Yet, there was another kind of freedom—the one possessed by the man with purple eyes. Or was he, too, a slave to something beyond Shiki's understanding?
Shiki didn’t have the answer. The only way to find out was to capture that man and question him directly.
Over these two days, Shiki maintained her usual demeanor—a haughty girl who considered herself the center of the world. She deliberately avoided any drastic changes to prevent arousing suspicion among those around her, especially after noticing Andrea frequently casting her probing glances. Perhaps the oddities of that morning had led Shinsei and Emberlyn to suspect her and task Andrea with keeping a closer watch.
Shiki planned to display changes gradually, ensuring she wouldn't draw undue attention. Although she seemed to be doing nothing, her mind was working tirelessly to recall all the key events of the next three years. Remembering wasn’t a challenge for her, especially with her strong dragon blood that granted her superior physical and mental abilities compared to ordinary dragonewts. Even among dragon descendants, Shiki was exceptional. In addition to her strength and intelligence, she possessed “dragon eyes,” enabling her to recall everything she had ever seen.
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However, this ability was limited to visual perception only, not to other senses. For example, if she overheard an important conversation but her eyes were fixed on a flower in front of her, she would only remember the flower's shape, not the content of the conversation. Thus, this power was better described as photographic memory rather than eidetic memory.
Unfortunately, her past arrogance and egocentrism meant that young Shiki didn’t care much about the words of others. Although she could recall events from three years before the teleportation, she remembered only a handful of them in detail. Yet Shiki had long forgiven her younger self—because that version of her had "died" in the dungeon. Now, she was a new Shiki, reborn after her encounter with the man with purple eyes.
“Is there a specific reason you chose Vespera High School?”
“Hmm, no particular reason. I just know it's the best high school in Ignisira. Besides, whichever school I attend will be the same.”
Shinsei nodded slightly, as if he understood the meaning behind Shiki’s words. At the moment, they were enjoying a rare family dinner. Shinsei sat at the head of the table as the family patriarch, with Emberlyn on his right and Shiki on his left.
The dishes laid out on the table were, as usual, luxurious. Each course was meticulously prepared by the Ganko family’s personal chef, a culinary master with decades of experience dedicated to pleasing the palates of these three nobles.
Meanwhile, Andrea and the other servants stood attentively at the corners of the room, ready to serve and fulfill any command the three nobles might give while enjoying their meal.
For Shiki, it wasn’t the school’s facilities or reputation that made it the best but her own presence. She considered herself special enough to elevate any school’s status to the best in the country simply by attending it. This answer aligned with her outward display of arrogance and egocentrism, which she intentionally maintained to avoid arousing suspicion. While her answer wasn’t a lie, it wasn’t the full truth either.
Although her parents doted on her to the point of near worship, they were not ordinary people. Shinsei wielded immense power in Ignisira’s political sphere, enough to halt the government’s operations without his consent. Meanwhile, Emberlyn was the queen of the global economy, capable of bankrupting small nations with just a word. Together, they had elevated the Ganko family to the most influential noble family in the world, surpassing even their peak in the past.
Shiki knew that with such deep affection, a half-truth would not raise their suspicions. Though she respected her parents, she believed herself clever enough to hide her true intentions from them. After all, she was someone who had climbed to the pinnacle of power in the Procession Tower in just a few years, starting from a position no better than trash.
“In that case, leave everything to me. If you need anything, just let us know. Whatever it is, alright?” Emberlyn said gently.
“Hmm... I know. Father, Mother, you don’t need to worry about it.”
Shiki nodded, looking at her parents with a gaze filled with affection.