Mate I never wanted

Hades

Vivian

My mind was running wild as I tried to get the approximate amount I owed the Cliffwinds for raising me, and the amount would be over a hundred million-star coins. It was quite a large sum, especially now that I did not have the support of the Cliffwinds .

Making calculations for how much I would also need to live comfortably until I finish school and I had an approximate number in mind.

So I guess it's time for Hades to drop some of his designs on the dark market.

Hades was the name I used to sell my ship designs.

Designing ships was not something the Cliffwinds would have approved of, so I did it undercover.

Selling designs to the emperor's family was not very profitable, and it was more or less considered an honor, but I did not care for fame and honor. You could make a lot more money on the dark market. There was the tiny problem that it was illegal to sell ship designs there, but that did not really bother me, because it was not me who was selling them, but Hades. I had the security of anonymity by using Hades instead of my real name. Other than that, using a male name instead of a female one makes me sound more legit and trustworthy. For some reason, a lot of the rich people on the dark market were very sexist, but as long as they paid me well, I did not really care for their moral compass,

Those were the few things that Camden taught me, well, other than basic design techniques.

Camden lived in an elderly home where I volunteered for school when I was thirteen. Volunteering with retired people was one of the few school activities that the Cliffwinds approved of. They picked the place where I could work. They chose one that would look not only on my resume, but also in their image. Mostly their image, but I was happy to help the family name shine... it made me feel like a part of the family more than anything else.

Camden was a retired war ship designer. Almost everyone at the retirement home thought that he was crazy and, don't get me wrong, he was crazy. Completely crazy, but I guess all geniuses are.

I was cleaning the main room when I found one of his unfinished designs. I was fascinated by it. He saw me looking and started to explain the basics to me. We met like that up until the end of my volunteer time at that elderly home. He taught me the basics, and apparently I had a natural talent for design. We figured that out when I managed to fix some of his designs that he had for years. I tried to brush it off as nothing, but he insisted that I had talent and I had to continue to design ships, so that my talent wouldn't go to waste. He was so happy to see me design and so proud of me that he even gifted me the designs I fixed. He then put me into contact with one of his buyers. It was an unspoken understanding that my family would never approve of this, so he designed me a persona to work under. He created me a way to design while not losing the life I already had.

So, with his help, I sold my first designs and I became a quite sought-after designer. I did not do order designs, just my own creations, and they were very popular.

The last one I sold went for a few million-star coins.

Sadly, I wasn't able to find Camden after I left the elderly home. I wanted to believe that he left it to live somewhere warmer, as he dreamed of… but I knew it was more likely that he had passed away...

Three ship designs, each starting price starts at one hundred million.

I texted the auctioneer with the design samples attached.

Happy to hear from you, Hades. I will let you know when I sell them.

The auctioneer was not a very good person. I know that it was not his real name and I also know that he had his fingers in many many pots that were very dirty, but he never f****d me over and always got good prices for me. There was also the little fact that he made a s**t tone of star coin from commission on the deals he made for me, so it is a win went for each of us. I guess that is why it worked so well.

I made my way to my dorms, thinking of what else I needed to do before school started. I was right next to my room when I walked into a familiar chest.

"Brother... John"

"Sister..."

His strong hands wrapped around me and, for the first time in what felt like an eternity, I felt at home.

"I got a call from mother. She is hysterical. What the hell happened?"

Heavy tears started to roll down my cheeks as I buried my face in his chest.

"It's your sister..."

I felt his chest harden under my cheek.

"What happened?"

"A lot, but the short story is that your mother plainly chose her. It's clear that I am no longer part of the family... I am no longer wanted there..."

A loud, shocked sigh left his chest.

"That can't be true, this has to be a mix-up... mother would never..."

I shook my head against his chest.

"But it is... she didn't even listen to me. She had no wish to hear me out... she was just upset that I distressed Margaret... but it is just the tip of the iceberg. Ever since Margaret returned, they started to push me away... out of the family... they do not want me there... I was just a replacement and now that their real daughter is back I'm just..."

I couldn't finish as the heaviness of the last few months broke out, and uncontrollable tears ran down my cheek.

"Sister... that is not true... I want you there. You are not a replacement for anyone. You are my sister. I do not care if our family thinks differently, you are and always will be my sister."

He kissed my forehead.

"You are the girl that baked me cookies after I won my first spacecraft race. You are the girl that patched me up after I got into a fight so that our parents wouldn't find out. You are the girl that I protected from those stuck-up bullies at school. We may not have the same blood running through our veins, but you are my sister, and nothing can change that."

His words reminded me of all those little moments that I stored in my heart. He was right… John is and always will be my brother. We grew up together, and nothing can change that or take it away.

"Margaret may be my blood sister, but you are my heart sister..."

"Okay now, that is a bit too sappy even for you."

I chuckled as I pulled away from him.

"Ah, you wound me, sister."

His dramatic, hurt tone made me roll my eyes as I heard the door to my room open behind us.

"Darling? Why does that man have his hands all over you?"

The silver-haired fox's voice sounded threatening and almost like a growl. In the doorway of my room there stood Lucien. His ears standing, every muscle in his body showed that he was ready to attack at any moment. He looked like a wild beast ready out for blood. Just from the way his eyes were darting between us I could tell that he took my relationship with my brother a bit differently.

His silver hair messy, eyes shining with intent to kill.

"Lucien, calm down, he is not just some man, he is my brother..."

The low growl in his chest filled the room, it made the air in the room vibrate with tension.

“Lucien…”

Before I could finish calming the sliver-haired fox, so he wouldn't attack John, because no matter how much I love my brother, there was no chance he could beat the fox hybrid with his badger. I felt John's hands release me as he fell to the ground, dragging me down with him.

What the hell?

"Your highness..."

My brother's head dropped to the ground, and I was too shocked to do anything... did he just say Highest? As in the emperor's family? Could Lucien really be a royal?