The Heiress's Comeback-Chapter 384: [ Volume 1] Chaper - Hope or dust?

This wasn’t just any pressure. It was the unmistakable weight of a beast’s power, a force that could only come from a beast owner whose strength could command the very elements themselves. Panic rippled through the room, and the employees scrambled to find the source, glancing frantically outside, knowing that only one thing could create such an aura.

But no one had an answer.

They could all feel it—the crushing weight of beast power pressing down on them, unseen and unrelenting. It was raw, oppressive, and yet... elusive. They couldn’t pinpoint the source. It wasn’t coming from above, nor below, nor any one direction. It was simply there, surrounding them like an invisible force, seeping into their very bones.

They had felt this kind of power before, but never like this. This wasn’t just the presence of a beast—it was something greater, something ancient. And that realization sent a fresh wave of dread through them.

Esme, standing untouched by the chaos, finally curled her fingers shut. In response, Beom took a step back, his glowing eyes dimming ever so slightly.

Silence fell.

The pressure eased, but its presence still lingered like a whisper against their skin. Esme turned toward Beom, her gaze sharp, calculating. A slow smile curled on her lips.

Beom was no longer just a white tiger. The golden plate embedded with a blue ruby on his forehead gleamed under the faint light, and his half-covered golden armor shimmered with a quiet menace.

He had changed.

And so had the game.

Esme’s fingers twitched at her sides, her nails digging into her palms as she forced herself to remain still. The desire to go down there and rip them apart burned in her chest like an untamed wildfire.

Before, she had been restrained—held back by fear, by caution. Her hands had been tied, not by weakness, but by the love she had for her family. When Ray was pregnant, she couldn’t afford to make a wrong move. Before that, when Aron was carrying life within him, she swallowed her rage, choosing silence over vengeance. For their sake, she endured.

But now?

Now, there was no reason to hold back.

These people—the ones hiding behind their organization, believing themselves untouchable—seemed to have forgotten something crucial. They were not gods. They were not invincible. They had survived for too long under the illusion of power, convinced that they could act without consequence.

Esme exhaled slowly, her golden eyes narrowing as she stared down at the building below.

Esme exhaled, a slow, measured breath as she took in everything—her husbands, her family, the undeniable sense of security that had always been just out of reach. For the first time in a long while, she wasn’t worried. She knew they weren’t completely untouchable, but the knowledge that her father and mother were alive gave her absolute certainty.

Her children and her husband would be safe.

Because if there was one thing the world never understood, it was that her father was a maniac when it came to his family.

She could still hear his voice from when she was a child, the warmth of his embrace as he held her close, whispering in her ear—If you marry one day, and if that person is truly good to you, then I will care for them even more than you.

And she knew he meant it.

Esme’s gaze darkened as she looked down at the organization that had dared to touch what was hers. They had attacked her once, and that was enough. If they had the audacity to do it once, they would do it again. And she wasn’t foolish enough to believe that she could survive every time.

She had no more time. No other choices left. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

This would end now.

She would wipe this organization off the map before they even had the chance to think about striking again.

Ray clutched the phone tightly, his knuckles turning white. His breath hitched, stuck somewhere between disbelief and hope—a cruel, fragile thing that threatened to shatter with the wrong word. They had barely begun to process the possibility that Esme might still be alive, and now Helga was saying this.

And she sounded so sure.

"Are you... are you sure about this?" His voice was barely above a whisper, yet it carried the weight of a man teetering between desperation and fear.

On the other end, Helga smiled, though there was something sharp beneath it. Standing by the window, she watched the city below, her gaze distant but unwavering.

"Brother-in-law," she murmured, her tone laced with quiet certainty, "I am never wrong about these things."

The wind rustled the curtains as she continued, her voice softer now but no less resolute.

"And I know that fool has come back."

A pause. A knowing smirk.

"You see, some pests have become quite... unstable because of it."

Ray’s heart pounded against his ribs. The air in the room suddenly felt thinner, tighter. He swallowed hard, but the lump in his throat wouldn’t go away.

And then—click.

The line went dead.

Kai’s gaze softened as he looked at his brother, trembling, his eyes distant and unfocused. It was as if he wasn’t standing here anymore but trapped in the past, drowning in memories that never let him rest.

For three years, he had wasted countless nights clinging to hope—desperate, relentless hope—that maybe, just maybe, God was playing some cruel joke and that Esme would return. In the beginning, he had searched for her, combing through every lead, every whisper, first for a year, then two. But no matter how hard he tried, he found nothing.

And when all hope had turned to dust, when he had finally accepted the unbearable truth... she came back.

The weight of it crashed into him, shaking him to his core. The thought that she might be out there, watching them, watching him, sent an uncontrollable tremor through his body. He was terrified. Terrified that this fragile hope would collapse again, just like it had so many times before.

Kai clenched his fists, his own chest aching as he watched his brother unravel. He hadn’t heard everything, but he had caught the most important words—Esme is back.