Interstellar: Return of the Villain
Chapter 68: She’s Back

Chapter 68: She’s Back

"Sir, the DNA test results are in. They match Miss Lyra Kering’s almost perfectly," Zorion reported, standing straight in front of the screen. "I personally made sure the test was done right. There’s no mistake."

Ansel twisted the ring on his right hand, his mind racing. "So, my granddaughter is still alive?"

"Well, there are two possibilities: it’s either her or a clone."

By this time, cloning technology had advanced significantly. With the right permissions and consent, cloning could be done. However, there were still strong voices within the Alliance that opposed this, so it was mostly limited to animals.

Ansel’s face was tense, clearly unsatisfied with the results. Yet, one thing was certain: this ’Lyra’ was indeed his granddaughter by blood.

"Don’t make any further moves on your end," Ansel instructed.

He then contacted someone else. "How’s the investigation on Voidstar No.2 going?"

"Anything related to Lyra is top-secret. We couldn’t dig too deep, but we did find some records at the hospital..."

Ansel’s brow furrowed, then relaxed slightly, only to furrow again in deep thought.

He stayed in the study for a long while, eventually letting out a deep sigh. "When can I get rid of her completely?"

A knock on the study door pulled him from his thoughts.

"Grandpa, you called for me?" A tall, striking woman entered, bringing with her a slight chill. "Is this about Lyra?"

Ansel pushed a stack of reports toward her.

Erin picked them up, her hands trembling slightly as she read through them. Her knuckles turned white. "Whether she’s a clone or the original, I want to handle this myself."

"Do what you think is best. And find out who cloned her and what their goal is." He was leaning toward the clone theory, convinced that no one could survive eleven years with five Soul Spikes.

Besides, her superpower had even grown stronger.

"Understood... cough..."

Erin quickly covered her mouth, a thin white mist escaping as she coughed.

Ansel’s eyes narrowed. "What did your medical exam show?"

"Everything’s fine," she replied quickly, perhaps too quickly.

The old man nodded, waving her off.

Meanwhile, on Planet Nagano, evening had fallen, and Lyra received a complaint from Snakehead.

"What’s your deal, seriously? Why do people keep digging into your background every few days?" Snakehead squinted at her through the screen, trying to spot anything unusual. "And now you’ve even got the hospital to insert some forged clone record. Seriously, what the f*ck are you doing?"

"I’m just having a little fun," Lyra said with a sly smile. "Isn’t it amusing to watch the Shedd family panic?"

She got up and locked her office door, preparing to head back to school. "Besides, it’s normal for people to investigate me. I am pretty remarkable, after all."

Snakehead had nothing to say. He’d tried several times to dig into her background on Elden Prime, but it was like she didn’t exist.

Now that he thought about it, anyone who could erase their records so thoroughly wasn’t someone with a simple past.

Thinking back to the late Jorath, Snakehead almost choked on his smoke, a realization dawning on him. "You’re not planning to mess with us all until we’re dead, are you?"

"Of course not," Lyra replied with a smirk. "You’re not Blackheart, after all."

Lyra rarely smiled, but when she did, it sent a chill down Snakehead’s spine, even though they were separated by a screen.

If the gap between Elden Prime and Voidstar weren’t so wide, Lyra’s little games would’ve been exposed ages ago, and she’d be long gone. But fortune favored her when Sorren had whisked her away to safety just when she had nowhere else to turn. Passing the Shedd family’s search for her had been a breeze.

...

Before heading back to Elden Prime, Kail made a point to see Lyra.

With his big, innocent eyes, he muttered, "I’m leaving... so could you please..." His confusion was clear: Why was the person before him a clone? Was his sister really dead? What had happened back then? He was lost.

"Take care," Lyra replied, her voice cold and distant. Kail’s heart sank; his real sister would never speak to him like that.

As he walked away, shoulders slumped, Lyra let out a sigh, knowing that her dear brother had a long and difficult path ahead of him.

A week later, Vivian returned. The Mendez family’s influence could only keep her on leave for so long, especially with the freshman mecha tournament just around the corner.

Lyra had expected Vivian to storm in, full of rage, but instead, she walked in with a frosty expression. She ignored everyone, and headed straight to her room.

Mandy, who’d been chatting with Zinnia, felt the tension and quickly stood up. "Vivian, have you eaten since you got back?" she called out. But the door slammed shut before she could finish.

Moments later, Mandy’s opticomputer pinged with a new message: "Weren’t you having fun with them? Then stay away from me."

Not long after, Vivian’s father discovered what she and Alon had been up to, and he gave them a severe scolding.

"Do you have any idea who those Voidstar people might be? And you thought provoking them was a good idea?" he shouted.

Vivian’s mother was equally displeased. The engagement with the Whyte family was called off without any room for discussion. Mrs. Whyte made it clear they didn’t want a daughter-in-law with a reputation for "partying."

With their lives now dangling by a thread, the patriarch of the Mendez family was furious. He ordered his children to stay quiet while he handled the situation personally.

Knowing her father would take care of it, Vivian felt a sense of relief, though her actions had led to Alon being banished to some remote planet as punishment.

The tension between the two sides simmered down in a strange way, but Mandy, caught in the middle, was left miserable.

Vivian continued to ignore her and had thrown herself into dating other men.

Mandy wanted to apologize but couldn’t find the right moment. What hurt her most was losing her part-time job at the library.

"Why? Did I do something wrong?" she asked, her voice trembling as she cornered the manager in the library hall, not caring about the onlookers. Her eyes were red, filled with desperation. "I really need this job."

"You did fine," the manager replied, adjusting his glasses. "We just don’t need as many people anymore."

The excuse was flimsy. The library always needed hands on deck, and cutting one person wouldn’t make a difference.

Mandy knew this but didn’t have the courage to push further. Instead, she broke down, tears streaming down her face.

She knew this wasn’t the end of the world—she could find another job. But in that moment, it felt like everything was crumbling around her.

The manager, clearly uncomfortable, shot her a look and hurried through the crowd, leaving her standing there, shattered.

Just then, Zinnia emerged from the stacks, a book in hand. Spotting Mandy in tears, she didn’t hesitate. She walked over and gently guided her to a quiet corner where students often sat with coffee or snacks to recharge during study sessions.

"Why the tears?" Zinnia asked, offering Mandy a few tissues to dry her eyes.

Mandy shook her head, her voice trembling. "You don’t get it. I really needed this job. It at least helped me cover my food expenses every month. My parents... they’re even considering taking out a mortgage on the house."

Zinnia’s expression softened as she handed her a few more tissues. "It’s that rough, huh?" she said, pausing for a moment before adding, "Why not look for another part-time gig? There are plenty of openings at Lyra’s factory."