MTLNOVEL Chapter 940 Not Paying
Her voice was calm, almost helpful, but the subtle amusement in her tone revealed the truth: she was toying with Silvia.
Hera knew exactly what she was doing. Silvia might be pampered like a princess, but she didn't have the financial freedom to back it up. She didn't even own a black card, and her allowance was strictly controlled, just enough to maintain the illusion that she was the Avery heiress.
A million a month might sound grand, but Silvia burned through it like water, splurging on luxury and status instead of investing wisely. If she'd used her money properly, she could have built something of her own by now. But vanity had always been her downfall.
The reason Silvia was given such a large allowance wasn't just to maintain the illusion of her being the Avery heiress; it was also because Old Master Avery hoped she would eventually wise up and use the money to invest, build her own income stream, and secure her future.
After all, he couldn't support her forever.
But unfortunately, Silvia completely missed his intention. She squandered the money recklessly, believing she was entitled to it simply because so many around her insisted she was the rightful heiress.
In time, she began to believe it herself. Hera, however, who had experienced the world and understood her grandfather far better, could only shake her head in quiet dismay, disappointed by how shortsighted Silvia had become.
Hera had heard stories about Silvia's parents from her own, and she had even met them once or twice when she was young, and they left an impression on her, which is why she could still remember them up to this day.
They were a kind and highly competent couple. Though they hadn't started as lovers, working closely alongside the Avery couple every day eventually brought them closer.
Over time, their mutual respect and admiration, especially for the Avery couple's steady relationship and the way they kept personal and business matters separate, inspired them to start dating.
Eventually, they married. Coincidentally, Silvia's mother became pregnant just before Hera's, but due to complications, she gave birth prematurely, and both girls were born in the same week.
That shared experience brought the two couples even closer, and they often talked about their daughters with affection. In fact, Hera and Silvia could be considered baby playmates.
However, as both couples were busy with work, Silvia was left in the care of her relatives. At first, her extended family treated her well, mainly because her parents were successful and generous.
They wanted to stay in the couple's good graces and enjoyed the benefits of caring for Silvia. Sadly, everything changed after Silvia's parents died in the plane crash.
Silvia's parents were truly kind people, warm and dependable, especially around Addison. Whenever Addison's parents couldn't make it home, Silvia's mother would step in, bringing small gifts and staying to keep Addison company until the mansion staff arrived.
Then, she would quietly leave, while her husband took on the workload of two people, assisting the Avery couple with their responsibilities. Those were some of the busiest times, as the Averys were in the midst of expanding the Avery Consortium to even greater heights.
Now, looking at Silvia, Hera couldn't hide her disappointment. Silvia didn't seem to reflect the competence or character of her parents, and Hera found herself subtly shaking her head.
Silvia had been handed every opportunity to excel. She never had to fight for her place; the path had already been paved by her parents' sacrifices and years of hard work in service of the Avery family.
And yet, instead of building on that legacy, Silvia treated her resources as if they were limitless and guaranteed, wasting the very foundation her parents left behind.
But Hera didn't have the time nor the patience to coddle the girl in front of her or indulge her fantasies. For now, all she could do was show Silvia the stark difference between them, without prematurely revealing her identity as the true Avery heiress.
Maybe, just maybe, a part of her pettiness was still holding a grudge. Silvia had dared to covet Leo, her man. And pettiness, after all, ran in Hera's blood. Now that she had acknowledged her love for Leo, there was no way she'd let anyone take him away.
More than that, once Hera officially took over the Avery Consortium, Silvia's role as her stand-in would come to an end. She would finally be free to start her own life.
When that day came, Hera would make sure Silvia received her rightful starting capital, along with the inheritance her parents left behind, carefully preserved by Hera's grandfather all these years.
But for that future to happen, Silvia needed to wake up from her delusions. And if that meant putting her in her place now, then so be it.
Unfortunately, instead of waking up, Silvia only took Hera's actions as a direct challenge to her authority. She glared at Hera, fury radiating from her eyes.
"Are you messing with me?!" she nearly roared, her body trembling with anger. "You want me to pay 120 billion for this penthouse plus the renovation fees? Are you insane?! Where am I supposed to get that kind of money?!"
Her voice rose to a near shriek. To her, it felt like open extortion, Hera standing high and mighty, acting like she was above everyone else. The humiliation stung, and Silvia found herself hating Hera even more. Or maybe... it wasn't just hate.
Maybe it was envy.
Because, despite being the same age, Hera had access to wealth that Silvia could only dream of. Silvia's own savings barely scratched a few million, and even if she included the inheritance her parents left behind, it would only amount to a few hundred million, a safety net for emergencies.
And even that wasn't truly hers yet. It was still under the control of Old Master Avery, meaning Silvia had no real access to it.
What Silvia didn't realize was that the only reason her inheritance had grown to several hundred million was because Old Master Avery had invested the money on her behalf. He believed it would be wasteful to let it sit idle in a bank account, earning minimal interest while the bank used it to profit from investments of their own.
So instead, he hired a financial expert to grow Silvia's funds through careful investments.
This was his way of repaying Silvia for acting as Hera's stand-in all these years.
And once Hera took over, she was planning to give Silvia an additional sum, enough to further increase her wealth. With the combined amount, Silvia wouldn't need to work another day in her life and could still leave behind a sizable fortune for her future descendants.
But that was only if she wised up and learned how to manage her finances. Because no matter how much Hera gave her, if Silvia didn't learn how to take care of her money, she would still end up broke eventually.
"Well, no one's forcing you," Dave finally interjected, arms crossed and one brow raised. It was almost like the word 'Stupid' was flashing in bold letters across his face as he stared at Silvia. "She was just explaining how much you'd need to pay if you're dead set on forcefully taking over her penthouse."
After all, no one had invited Silvia up here, and certainly no one told her to try and evict Hera. Did she really think Hera would just walk away from a penthouse she spent 9.6 billion on, without compensation?
And while Dave looked all smug and sarcastic on the outside, inside, his stomach was twisting. 9.6 billion—just for a penthouse.
That kind of money could fund multiple government projects across the country! The realization made him feel like choking on his own saliva. He had always thought his family was wealthy, but today?
Today he'd been hit with one shocking reality check after another—and he wasn't entirely sure his heart could take much more of it.
Xavier, who had already seen Hera's online banking app the other day when she transferred money to the criminals who tried to hurt her, wasn't nearly as shocked as Dave. He'd already had his moment of disbelief back then, and more than that, he'd caught a glimpse of just how much money Hera actually had in her account.
Enough to send Dave straight into cardiac arrest if he ever saw it. After all, Dave was the "poorest" among the six of them, and didn't even have a few hundred billion to his name.
Still, even though Xavier wasn't as stunned as Dave, hearing that this penthouse alone cost that much made his throat tighten. He swallowed hard, trying to stay composed.
Meanwhile, Rafael just stood to the side, silent and unmoving, like a statue, offering no reaction at all.
Rafael, of course, loved money. Why else would he have tried to recruit Hera the first time they met? Sure, he found her interesting, but more than that, he saw potential in her… as his personal money tree.
And to think she really turned out to be one, wealthier than the five of them combined, left Rafael so stunned he couldn't even move. He just stood there, frozen in disbelief.