(Hydra Star System – Planet Ankupra)
(Ugrora Gated Community- House # 305)
"Astrid! Emma took my phone!"
"No, I didn't! Stop lying or I'll hit you!"
"Big sis I'm hungry.... when can we get some food?"
Astrid placed a hand on her temples and then sighed in frustration as she exited the kitchen to deal with her younger siblings.
She had to raise three naughty little cubs by herself as it had been a few years since the accident that took her parents' lives.
"Emma Lockhart and Jackson Lockhart stop fighting this instant!" Astrid called the two squabbling children by their full names and both fearfully ceased all movement.
Big sister was scary when she got mad.
"Sister give me a hug!" came a cheerful voice from the remaining sibling who tried to provide a distraction.
Astrid kneeled down and tightly wrapped her arms around Isla who smiled sweetly back at her.
The bad mood from earlier vanished completely and Astrid returned to the kitchen but not before shooting the two naughty brats a look of warning.
"Thanks Isla, we owe you one," Jackson whispered once Astrid left the room.
"I know…. you can pay me back in either cash or credit," the sweet look on Isla's face disappeared instantly as she eyed down her two siblings.
A new quarrel soon erupted but it died down quickly once Isla reasoned gently with the power of her fists.
Astrid was listening to the noises coming from the living room and felt a warmth in her heart.
It was good that her younger siblings had such a strong bond with one another.
Charlie and Tia Lockhart were the names of Astrid's parents.
They were ordinary folk who jointly ran a small real estate business that had become profitable thanks to the increase in property value in major cities.
They had four children with one elder daughter, two younger girls and one boy.
The younger ones were triplets and were inseparable since birth although they did like to argue regular with one another.
The family may not have been wealthy enough to break into the upper society circles, but their home was filled with warmth and love.
Astrid grew up an innocent and carefree girl as she was treated with envy and awe from her peers due to her natural magic talent.
It had been years since a Mendolesa warrior had mana talent above grade B and Astrid was treated as a precious seedling by her teachers.
This happiness all changed with a single phone call.
One day was enough to shift the course of her life forever.
Astrid could still remember getting that fateful phone call from the police and numbly going to the hospital to identify the bodies of her parents.
She vividly recalled just throwing up constantly when she saw that the corpses of her parents were not even in one piece.
After that…. everything just became a blur.
The police said that her parents were driving while under the influence of drugs and had gone off a cliff.
Their bodies had been recovered by a passerby who had seen the accident firsthand and then messaged the police.
Astrid could not understand the report as her parents had never shown any signs of substance abuse, but the police declared the case as closed.
Relatives and family friends appeared seemingly out of nowhere and quickly divided up the profits of the company that her parents had painstakingly built.
Astrid was still in shock at the time and could not stop them until more than half of the assets had already been stolen.
Her siblings were only ten years old at the time and Astrid was a pampered girl at the age of thirteen.
It was sudden how the looks of envy towards her had turned into gazes of pity and even some delight from those who were jealous of her potential.
Everyone thought that it was the end of the Lockhart family, but Astrid made a series of decisions that shocked the curious onlookers.
Mendolesa society promoted values of self-reliance and independence which Astrid took full use of to put her plan into effect.
Mendolesa warriors could seek adulthood status at the age of twelve through legal channels and Astrid resolutely applied and was approved.
Astrid sold all the remaining shares of the company in her name and just managed to raise a fund of around one million Enas.
She hired a team of lawyers and sued all of her greedy relatives for compensation money.
Her aunts and uncles could not believe that a young girl would be so ruthless and intelligent.
Naturally, her actions painted a target on her back and Astrid was afraid that her greedy family would hire someone to target them.
Astrid dropped out of the top high school she was attending and took her siblings with her to a tier two planet on the outskirts of the Hydra Star System.
She broke off all contact with everyone she knew and disappeared silently overnight.
No matter how hard her relatives looked, they could not find her.
A two-bedroom house in the Ugrora gated community was within her price range so Astrid took her three younger siblings and settled down permanently.
Online classes were available through the virtual net and Astrid enrolled herself in one to have a flexible learning schedule and still finish high school.
There was also a competition for available public spots to the university entrance exam so Astrid never stopped training her combat skills.
She sent her siblings to a private school and Astrid had to work at various jobs to make ends meet.
Astrid spent the next three years raising her younger siblings and trying to fill the roles as both a mother and a father figure.
It was difficult and at times she would break down and cry in the bathroom when no one was watching.
But she would look at the peaceful smiles on her siblings faces and carry on.
Astrid made sure that none of her siblings knew the enormous amounts of pressure she was under.
They deserved to grow up without worry or concern, but she made sure to teach them all the skills necessary to survive if something were to happen to her.
"Alright you little monsters, lunch is ready!" Astrid called out and immediately three figures dashed towards the dining table.
"Wow this looks so good," Emma couldn't help but drool at the delicious feast before her eyes.
"Big sis is the best!" Isla praised.
"I call the steak on the right," Jackson hurriedly spoke.
A bountiful feast of well seasoned meat dishes, steamed vegetables and fried rice that would not look out of place when served in a restaurant.
Takeaway meals were delicious but after one month of adding up all the money she had spent while feeding four people made Astrid immediately look up cooking videos on the virtual net.
After a lot of practice and small burns from using the stove for the first time, Astrid was now confident in her cooking skills.
Heck if she didn't like fighting so much…. culinary school wasn't a bad idea.
"Thanks for the food!"
"Big sis you're better than the cafeteria ladies!"
"I love your cooking!"
Three voices spoke one after the other and Astrid was pleased to watch her siblings eagerly bite down on the food she had prepared.
"Do you see this mom and dad?" Astrid closed her eyes and whispered to herself.
"I kept the family together."
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