Chapter 12: A New Path
Couples with high grade beast genes like Mrs. Barlow and her husband usually had only one or two children, and even then, only after years of effort.
One thing was certain. Children born from such unions were treated as precious long before they entered the world.
"How could House Kestrel not know that one of their descendants was being raised in an orphanage? And as for the Night Panther beastmen..."
"Although their family has declined over the past ten years, they should still be among the top ten prestigious houses in Argenor because of their achievements in the past."
Mrs. Barlow simply couldn’t figure out the story behind Shani’s birth. Even though Shani was only F-Rank, if she chose to rely on both of her birth families, she could achieve much more.
Unfortunately, Shani had no intention of doing that.
While Shani was filling out the admission forms earlier, Mrs. Barlow had spoken with her privately and told her everything she knew about the girl’s biological family.
For reasons she couldn’t understand, Shani had asked her to keep everything a secret.
Mrs. Barlow respected Shani’s decision. The girl looked calm, as if she already had a plan.
She opened her smartwatch and put on an earbud. A moment later, the voice of an adult man sounded in her ear.
Mrs. Barlow cleared her throat before speaking.
"I’ve sent you the profile of the new student who entered through a former instructor’s direct admission slot. She’s... a little unusual. Please do your best to keep her beast gene from becoming public."
"Yes, that’s right. She’s a Night Panther beastman." She nodded as she listened to the man on the other end.
"I don’t know the full story, but she has no ties to any family in Aurelis. She’s from here, Zephyria."
Mrs. Barlow fell silent after hearing his next question. "Why am I paying so much attention to her...?"
To be honest, she didn’t know either.
Perhaps it was because her maternal instincts had flared up when she saw a child who had grown up without parents, while so many people desperately wished to have children of their own.
...
On the way back, Nevie was much quieter than before.
Her eyes drifted toward Shani in the passenger seat several times. She couldn’t hide her disappointment that Shani wouldn’t be joining Avian Tower.
Although Zephyria was an avian-based kingdom, Nevie knew not everyone living here was an avian beastman.
Since ordinary people whose Beast Energy ranked below D no longer checked their Beast Genes, it had become difficult to determine whether avian beastmen still made up the majority of the kingdom’s population.
Many commoners had stopped checking their Beast Genes because of the law stating that children must inherit the surname of the family whose Beast Gene they shared.
Rather than let that law dictate their lives, they simply chose not to check their Beast Genes unless a dispute arose between the two families.
Shani, however, didn’t notice Nevie’s unusual silence. She was too busy making new plans.
’I didn’t want to return to Aurelis this soon. How am I supposed to face Vivienne and Nora?’
The thought of those two filled her heart with both anger and fear. She took a deep breath to calm herself.
’Let’s avoid getting involved with them. Silver hair isn’t unique to the Ashbournes. I’m a Rowan now, not an Ashbourne!’
As they approached the apartment building, Shani turned to the visibly distracted Nevie.
"Since I have to leave for Aurelis, could we buy my uniform, books, and other supplies tomorrow?"
Nevie jumped slightly before nodding. "Of course. We’ll have a girls’ day before you leave."
After dropping Shani off, Nevie left to visit the baby beast still staying at the clinic. Shani had considered going with her but decided against it.
Back in the apartment, only Shani and Ollie remained.
The little owl was still asleep inside his wooden birdhouse.
Shani had never actually seen him awake. Apparently, even though he was a baby beast, he was still nocturnal like an ordinary owl.
She checked her smartwatch and started a voice call with the contact named Aster.
"Can we meet today? I probably won’t have time the day after tomorrow..." More accurately, she would likely have already left for Aurelis by then.
Aster agreed almost immediately. "I’ll come to your apartment."
An hour later, Aster arrived at Shani’s apartment building. They met on the tenth floor, which was filled with cafés and food shops.
Since Shani was practically broke, she didn’t enter any of the stores. Instead, she led Aster to a public seating area in the center.
The young man arrived dragging a suitcase that looked more suitable for moving house.
He pointed at it with a cheeky smile. "I brought food from Galesend."
"You didn’t give it to your uncle’s family?" Shani asked in surprise.
Aster shook his head. "Of course not. I prepared all of this for you. You can’t go hungry at the academy. If you run out, I’ll bring you more."
Shani had already asked Nevie about the academy’s rules regarding food.
Students were allowed to bring food from outside, as long as it stayed within the permitted limit.
She could have taken Aster’s food into the academy. The problem was, she wasn’t in Lunarion anymore.
Shani explained everything that had happened today, including her Beast Gene and the decision that she would be joining Feline Tower.
Of course, she left out the part about having dual Beast Genes.
The smile on Aster’s face gradually disappeared.
After a moment, he steadied himself and spoke firmly. "Alright. Take these with you for now. I’ll come to Aurelis later."
"Don’t be ridiculous, Aster! You can’t just decide to move to another kingdom like it’s nothing."
"I am serious—"
"Then what? Do you even have your own money? Can you support yourself over there?" Shani asked sharply.
"If you’re just planning to live off the money your older brother worked so hard to earn, then give up on the idea."
The light in Aster’s eyes dimmed. He knew she was right. He was being unreasonable.
But only a few seconds later, determination returned to his eyes. "I’ll earn enough money here first... then I’ll come find you!"
...