Interstellar: Return of the Villain
Chapter 101: Chance Or Trap

Chapter 101: Chance Or Trap

After Kail left, Zorion, who was walking behind, suddenly moved closer to her and sneered, "Lyra, your grandpa said that if you still care about your younger brother, you’d better behave."

He saw the look of anger and restraint on Lyra’s face.

Lyra replied coldly, "Tell Ansel that I won’t return to Elden Prime, and I won’t go around shouting about my identity. If he dares to harm Kail, I’ll let him pay a heavy price!"

Zorion chuckled, "You’re a smart girl."

With that, he boarded the spaceship and reported to Ansel.

No matter how tough Lyra was, she couldn’t ignore Kail. In the end, she still had to obey.

As the spaceship took off in the distance, Lyra turned her gaze back, her eyes cold as a frozen lake.

Just like when she stayed with the Shedd family for Kail’s sake, this time, she had to give Ansel another piece of leverage so he would think he was holding the reins to tame her. But who really had control of that rope would be revealed in time.

Since there was still some time before school started, Lyra headed straight to the factory.

She hadn’t been back for over a month, and her private opticomputer had been out of reach due to being outside the Alliance network, so many things needed her decision.

While going through the new contract orders, she unexpectedly found one from a Mendez company and called Morrison over.

"What’s going on?"

The Mendez family was indeed powerful, placing a massive order so large that even opening a new workshop wouldn’t complete it in time.

Lyra knew this was too good to be true.

"The order came in a week after you left." Morrison wiped the sweat off his forehead. His boss seemed even more dangerous after her trip.

"Who handled the negotiations?"

"The eldest Mendez son, Alon."

Now this was truly interesting. Lyra raised an eyebrow, "Did he come with a smile?"

"He was smiling, but it seemed like he wanted to bite someone," Morrison shrugged, joking.

So, who had forced Alon to come and make peace with her? "Was the contract signed?"

"Boss, this is a big deal, and the contract was solid, so I took the liberty of signing it." Morrison didn’t seem afraid of her anger, "I figured, we’re in business for profit, no need to overthink it."

He then waited quietly for her reaction.

"Heh, you did well."

Whatever the Mendez family’s intentions, they should take the money that was offered. Even if they wanted to back out later, they’d have to pay the penalty first.

Lyra swiftly dealt with other matters, working overtime for three days straight to review all the reports and contracts.

It’s a good thing Morrison was capable, or everything would have fallen apart.

When Sean found out she was finally back, he hurried over with a man in tow. "Boss, this is my senior, Koros, the champion of the Alliance Youth Intelligent Machinery Competition ten years ago. He was the one who turned the tide in the mecha contest..."

But the man cut him off, "I want to work with you. How much can you pay me?"

Honestly, if Sean didn’t respect him so much, Lyra would’ve thought this guy was just a homeless man from the street.

His messy, medium-length hair, unshaven face, and ragged clothes seemed to attract flies. Only his hands were clean, and his eyes, though appearing unfocused, held a defiant arrogance, as if there was nothing in the world worthy of his attention.

Lyra blinked, taking in Koros’s excitement. "I can provide you with all the research funding you need, but only if your results are worth it."

She shifted her gaze to Sean. "I’m sure Sean’s talked up the benefits of working here, but let’s be clear—I don’t have time or resources for anyone who can’t deliver."

Koros wasn’t the least bit offended by her straightforwardness. Instead, he grinned with barely contained excitement. "What if I want to research mechas? The kind with serious firepower!"

Morrison’s face immediately paled, and Sean, looking exasperated, yanked Koros aside, hissing, "Dude, we agreed not to mention that! You know mecha research is banned for private entities. If you’re set on this, go back to the Mecha Association!"

Even for non-military robots, the central intelligence systems were strictly regulated, with a hard limit at Class C. Getting caught pushing those boundaries could lead to massive fines or worse—jail time.

"I can allow it."

Those simple words from Lyra made everyone in the room freeze.

Lyra leaned back in her chair, eyes half-closed as if considering a routine matter. "I’ll supply the materials and funding for your research, but there are three conditions. First, no finished products. Not until I say so."

No finished products meant no evidence. Even if they were caught, they’d still have a way out.

"Second, you must back up all research data and give it to me. Sharing it with anyone else is strictly forbidden." She raised a third finger. "And third, you let me place a psychokinesis mark on you."

This condition effectively meant Koros would be binding himself—and his talents—entirely to her.

Morrison couldn’t help admiring Lyra’s ambition and ruthlessness.

"Perfect!" Koros didn’t hesitate, rushing to her desk. He pushed his hair back, and pointing to his forehead. "Do it now! Mark me!"

Sean looked like he wanted to object but realized it was useless. These two were trouble—one driven by ambition, the other consumed by his obsession.

The next day, after Lyra had handed Sean various minerals from Wyrmtrace for analysis, a young man with glossy black hair showed up in front of her.

He was slim and good-looking, but he approached her like a beggar, hands outstretched.

Sean’s jaw dropped as he clutched the rare materials protectively. "Who are you? How did you get in here? Where’s security?"

The young man gave Sean a look that clearly said he was an idiot.

"Koros?" Lyra recognized him instantly, thanks to the psychokinesis mark, and glanced at Sean. "You didn’t recognize him?"

"What?" Sean was flabbergasted, fumbling to take off his electronic glasses for a better look. "It’s really you, dude? So this is what you actually look like."

"..."

Koros’s eyes locked onto Lyra as he thrust his hands out further. "I heard there are high-grade energy minerals from Wyrmtrace. Can you spare me a few for my research?"

"And where did you hear that?"

"From the secret files sent back from Wyrmtrace." He paused briefly before adding, "But don’t worry, no one knows I accessed them."

’So, he hacked into the military’s internal network?’ Lyra thought, both impressed and amused, as she handed over some energy minerals from her Space Button. ’What a pity that the Alliance’s secret archives were still on paper’

Once all the factory matters were under control, Lyra received an invitation from Alon.

"Mr. Alon Mendez has invited you to dinner at the Ciel Hotel tonight to discuss the next phase of the cooperation," Morrison announced with his usual calm, reading from the dinner invite.

"If it’s about business, you can handle it," Lyra replied without even glancing up.

"But they specifically asked for you to attend."

’Here we go,’ she thought, setting her pen down. "Is that so? Then tell him to come to me personally."

If someone as high up as Alon was taking the first step, it meant they had something big in mind. She turned her attention to Morrison, her trusted right hand. "Have you figured out what this is about?"

Morrison met her gaze, steady as always. "I’ve heard that recently, the Mendez family patriarch has been running things. The old man is suffering from a severe genetic disease."