The next morning, Jade returned to her mother's place. Though her mind was tangled with questions about Vesperis, her mother's well-being came first.
But the moment she stepped into the neighborhood, something felt off.
Their little house—usually modest but warm—now looked abandoned, broken. The front window was shattered, and bits of glass crunched beneath her shoes as she walked in.
"What the...?" she whispered, heart pounding.
"Mum?" she called out.
Inside, Madame Lee was asleep in an armchair, looking pale and worn out. The sight of her like that made Jade's chest tighten.
Madame Lee stirred. "Jade? Why didn't you call first? I would've cleaned up a bit."
Jade didn't answer. Her eyes were already scanning the damage.
"What happened here?"
Madame Lee hesitated, then stood slowly. "I didn't want to worry you."
Jade turned sharply. "Mum."
She sighed. "You remember the bride price Mr. Ooman gave? It's gone. Stolen."
"Stolen? By who?"
"I don't know. Thieves, I suppose. People here aren't exactly thrilled by your sudden rise to the elite. Big cars stopping by, fancy clothes... they think we've changed."
She walked slowly toward the broken window.
"They started throwing stones at night. I guess they wanted to teach us a lesson."
Jade's jaw clenched. "I'll kill them."
"And when did this start?" she asked.
Madame Lee looked down. "About two weeks ago."
That was the exact moment Jade had left to Danie penthouse.
.
.
.
Jade clenched her fists. Two weeks… That was exactly when she left for Daniel penthouse .
"Why didn't you call me, Mum?"
"I didn't want to ruin your happiness," Madame Lee said softly."
"What happiness if you're not well?"
Jade looked around at the broken windows, the scattered pieces of glass, the cold silence that had replaced their once warm home. Her heart ached.
"Don't ever do that again," she said, her voice low but firm. "No matter where I am or who I'm with… you are my mother. You come first."
Madame Lee gave her a weak smile. "You've grown so strong."
Jade hugged her tightly. The hugged ended then;
Jade was furious; she felt her body boiling.
"I will teach them a lesson," she said, moving toward the door.
"Jade, stop! It's okay!" Madame Lee tried to stop her. She knew how impulsive her daughter was.
Jade opened the door.
"Heh! Heh!" she shouted, making sure everyone around could hear her. It had the exact effect she expected.
"Listen! Don't think that just because I'm not here, it gives you permission to mess up my house and frighten my mother!"
"You know me, right? You know how mad I can get, so stop it or—"
"Or what?" someone interrupted her.
"You think that since you're part of the elite now, you can give us orders?" another man said.
"Who do you think you are?" a woman added.
"Get out!" the crowd shouted together.
They started throwing things at her.
"Stop!" Madame Lee screamed.
But they didn't listen.
Soon, they began throwing stones.
"Mum, go inside," Jade said.
"It's too dangerous," she added.
Both of them covered their faces.
As Jade was about to turn back toward the crowd, a stone came flying straight at her.
She closed her eyes—but to her surprise, the stone never touched her.
When she opened her eyes, the people had stopped throwing stones. Everyone was staring at the person who had caught the stone that was about to hit Jade.
When Jade saw who it was, she froze.
"Riguel?"
Riguel stood between Jade and the crowd, the stone still clenched tightly in his hand. His expression was calm, but his eyes were dark and sharp.
"Enough," he said quietly.
The single word carried more weight than all the shouting before. A murmur spread through the crowd. Some stepped back; others exchanged uneasy glances.
"This doesn't concern you," one man said, trying to sound brave.
Riguel slowly turned his head toward him.
"It does now."
He dropped the stone to the ground. The sound echoed, heavy and final.
"You're attacking a woman and her mother," he continued. "Of course it concerne me"
Jade stared at him.
"If you defend them then you will suffer the same fate as them" the man said
When the man said that, Riguel looked at him, then at the entire crowd. His aura turned dark once again—darker than ever.
"If you want to see what hell looks like," he said coldly, "then try again. Try to attack them again."
His presence was overwhelming, his words as menacing as his gaze. Frightened murmurs rose as the crowd slowly began to disperse.He looks was just like those mafia people.
Jade didn't notice how dark and threatening his eyes had become.
When he turned back to her, his aura softened, brightening instantly. He smiled, though concern was clear on his face.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah… but what are you doing here?" she replied.
As he was about to answer, her mother interrupted them.
"Thank you for saving my daughter," Madame Lee said.
He turned to her. "It's nothing, Madame," he said with a gentle smile.
"Please, come inside. I can't leave you out here. Are you hungry?" she asked.
"Very," he replied.
Jade shook her head, already used to her mother's behavior.