Chapter 264: Chapter 264: Goddess Blood

With nowhere to sleep and no one else to turn to, that money felt like salvation.

’This is already too much,’ Lana had thought gratefully, her eyes burning as she stared at the transfer notification.

She used the money to rent a small room in the suburbs.

By sheer coincidence, she managed to find a house willing to rent to her. Even then, she had been stunned by her own luck.

’The Almond family wants to crush me completely, yet I can still find a place to live,’ she had thought in disbelief.

To her, securing a house in the suburban area was already a massive achievement.

For a while, she lived peacefully there.

That fragile peace lasted until Selena approached her again.

This time, Selena’s attitude was different. She smiled warmly and said,

“I’ll definitely take good care of you. As long as you agree, I’ll make sure you never have to struggle in the suburbs again.”

By then, Lana had already suffered enough to remember how comfortable life had been in the Almond family mansion.

The contrast between luxury and hardship was too sharp. Without hesitation, she agreed.

When she was brought back to the mansion, Lana slowly relaxed.

She even began investigating matters related to Cassandra again, trying to piece together truths she had once ignored.

However, before she could reach any conclusion, Selena proposed something else.

“I’ll take you to a business dinner,” she said casually. “You should learn how business conversations work.”

Lana, still young and eager, agreed immediately. She followed Selena to the dinner, unaware that her fate was quietly being rearranged.

At the banquet, she met that Phoenix man.

To be precise, he was the CEO of a rapidly rising company, someone with countless connections, striking looks, and immense wealth.

The only problem was his temperament.

He was notoriously ruthless, and anyone who offended him or approached him carelessly often met a miserable end.

Even so, Lana went along with the arrangement.

In the end, both she and the man were drunk.

As a result, Lana had no choice but to spend the night with him.

When Lana finished recounting this part of her past, Mr. Crow’s fury erupted.

His expression darkened instantly, and his claw clenched tightly against Lana’s shoulder.

“How dare that b*tch even think of harming you to this point? I will kill her!”

Lana burst out laughing instead, the sound light but tinged with bitterness.

“This is the first time I’ve ever heard you curse like that,” she said, amusement flickering briefly across her eyes.

Mr. Crow’s fury did not subside. “And you still have the mood to laugh?” he snapped, his anger rolling like thunder.

Lana only chuckled, her shoulders relaxing slightly. “That’s because I already took my revenge,” she replied calmly.

“I made sure that cousin of mine, the one who married into high society, lost everything.” Her eyes darkened as she continued,

“All the things she schemed for, all the reasons she trampled over others, they’ve already turned into nothing more than dust.”

Even as she spoke, Mr. Crow remained furious.

“That doesn’t change anything,” he growled. “No matter what you did afterward, what she did to you was irreversible.”

Hearing those words, Lana fell silent.

Indeed, for a long time after that incident, she had avoided contact with men altogether.

To the point that even the faint sound of footsteps behind her would make her flinch, her muscles tensing instinctively.

To outsiders, it might have sounded like a romantic trope, a night with a powerful CEO, waking up to discover she had slept with a rich man, and eventually becoming a kept woman bathed in luxury.

But if they looked at it from the perspective of the one who never wanted it in the first place, they would realize the truth.

It was nothing romantic at all. It was molestation. It was sexual harassment, raw and irreversible.

The more Lana thought about it, the heavier her chest felt, as though something cold was pressing down on her lungs.

“Let’s not think about this anymore,” she said quietly. “Dwelling on it will only make us more miserable.”

Mr. Crow fell silent for a moment before asking cautiously, “Then is that woman here again because she wants to drag you back into the same trap?”

Lana let out a bitter laugh. “This time, she probably changed her tactics,” she replied. “She wouldn’t approach me without a reason.”

Hearing that, Mr. Crow grew curious. “If that’s the case, why don’t you take revenge on her right now?”

Lana chuckled softly, shaking her head.

“Even if I wanted to, she’s far too paranoid.” Her tone turned calm and analytical. “If my paranoia could be considered that of a beginner, then hers is on an entirely different level.”

She paused, recalling fragments of the past.

“She wouldn’t even drink wine handed to her by someone she trusted, because she knew betrayal could come at any moment.”

Her eyes narrowed. “She was ruthless enough to kill her own husband. Ruthless enough to kill her own children once she suspected they intended to poison her.”

Lana did not need to imagine how terrifying Selena could become when cornered.

“That’s why I stay away from people like her,” she continued. “At least until I have absolute strength.”

Her voice hardened. “Once I have power, influence, and connections, I can deal with her with equal ruthlessness. But right now, I still have too much to lose.”

Mr. Crow clicked his tongue. “At the very least, I can curse her.”

Lana fell silent before replying softly, “If cursing her makes you feel better, I won’t stop you.” Then she added, “But it won’t work.”

Mr. Crow stiffened. “Why?”

“Because she has goddess blood.”

Mr. Crow’s eyes widened in shock. “How is that possible?” he exclaimed.

“She’s such a despicable person. She schemes against everyone. Is the goddess blind to give someone like her blood?”

Lana shrugged lightly. “Even I don’t know how she has it.”

She continued, “But one thing is certain. With goddess blood, a person becomes immune to all kinds of curses.”

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