The Return of the Cannon Fodder Trillion Heiress
Chapter 861 Part Of Her Plan

Chapter 861: Chapter 861 Part Of Her Plan

So, when everyone saw all the evidence Hera presented, they finally believed her. The fact that she managed to gather all of it in such a short amount of time was something few could have imagined possible. But of course, that’s exactly why she had asked Sasha for help.

The reason Hera began by presenting her earlier design from the IGI Expressions Competition back home wasn’t just to showcase the design’s personality or to highlight its consistent pattern—it was a strategic move. It bought Sasha and Larry more time to prepare the remaining crucial pieces of evidence, which would have been nearly impossible to secure on such short notice, especially with the significant time zone difference between them.

All in all, Hera was taking a gamble—relying on Larry to expedite the patent process and secure an electronic copy, while Sasha worked on retrieving the deleted footage. Fortunately, Zhane had been watching the competition livestream from back home, and the moment he saw Alice present a design that looked familiar, he immediately contacted Hera for confirmation. As soon as she verified it, Zhane didn’t wait for instructions—he personally went to the hospital’s security office and pulled the footage of Hera sketching in the corridor.

Thanks to this, gathering evidence became much more manageable for Sasha, allowing him to focus entirely on recovering the deleted files as quickly as possible.

And because Hera hadn’t received any updates yet, even after finishing her segment on the previous design, she moved on to talk about the current one. Sure, she was accused of trying to manipulate the audience’s emotions to sway public opinion in her favor—but was that really her goal? Not at all. In truth, she was stalling for time—drawing out the moment, prompting criticism, and provoking reporters to start throwing questions at her, all so her team could buy a few more precious minutes behind the scenes.

So, all in all, everything was part of Hera’s plan. Larry and Sasha proved their competence by delivering exactly what she needed, and she won the gamble—the gamble to clear her name with undeniable evidence proving her innocence, while placing Alice firmly on the pillar of shame where Alice had intended to put Hera in.

But of course, unlike the original script of the novel, where Hera would have come clean to Alexi, revealing herself as the true hidden heiress of the Avery Consortium and sharing her inheritance with him so Alice would know exactly who her real enemy was, this time Hera did none of that.

Alice remained completely unaware of Hera’s true identity and could only speculate, but all her guesses missed the mark by a wide margin. She believed Hera was relying solely on men for financial backing, which is why she constantly targeted Hera on that front, unaware that Hera was fully prepared. Because of this, Alice never even realized where she went wrong or how her downfall would come.

Hera’s smile widened as her eyes crinkled with amusement. At that moment, Alice, finally realizing what was happening and she immediately rushed to the edge of the stage, her eyes wide in disbelief. Hera casually glanced over and caught sight of Alice frozen in place, staring at the screen in shock. Her smile only deepened, becoming even more radiant, before she shifted her gaze to the audience and locked eyes with Mindy’s icy glare.

’Another obstacle, huh?’ Hera thought, meeting Mindy’s cold stare without flinching.

But there was nothing Mindy could do now. The entire competition was being broadcast live across the internet, and Hera had just cleared her name with solid legal evidence. If Mindy tried to make things difficult for her now, she’d only be throwing herself into the fire, earning the netizens’ wrath—and worse, being lumped in with Alice as a possible accomplice.

So Mindy stayed silent. Still, in that moment, she realized something important: Hera wasn’t someone to be easily bullied. She had powerful backing, sharp wit, and wasn’t the soft target they thought she was. But to Mindy, it didn’t matter. In her world, there was nothing that money couldn’t fix.

But now, the daughter of the director who had helped Alice was being heavily criticized online, quickly becoming a pariah alongside Alice. And just moments ago, she had received a furious call from her father. His voice thundered through the phone:

"You stupid, useless brat! Don’t bother coming back to this family. You’re on your own—I’m cutting all ties with you! You’re just like your scheming mother, trying to claw your way up the social ladder by drugging a man while you only knew how to use vile methods to achieve your goals, disgusting! You illegitimate disgrace!"

His words were vicious, every syllable slicing into her like a blade. He had said everything she had spent her life trying not to hear. The truth was, she had always wanted to prove herself because she was an illegitimate child—despised by her father, loathed by his wife, and rejected by her half-siblings. Her very existence was a reminder of a scandal that had nearly destroyed a "perfect" family.

Years ago, her father had managed to prove that he had been drugged and manipulated, eventually sending her mother to prison. But after her birth, and with her mother incarcerated, custody was given to him. From that moment on, she was treated like a stain—unwanted, unloved, a shadow in a home that never accepted her.

Desperate to change how people saw her and to finally prove her worth, she thought helping Alice would gain her leverage, maybe even a step up. Instead, it only dragged her further into disgrace. Now, with her father’s final words ringing in her ears, her knees gave out. She collapsed onto the floor, the phone slipping from her hands and clattering beside her. On the screen, the call log still glowed, the line having gone dead right after her father’s brutal declaration.

But there was nothing she could do now. There’s no medicine for regret. All the girl could do was sit there, sobbing, waiting for the judges’ verdict—and possibly a summons from the police for her role as an accomplice. If Hera decided to pursue legal charges, both she and Alice would be held accountable. And even if Hera chose mercy, it wouldn’t matter much. The damage was done. Their faces, their actions—they were already public knowledge. The court of public opinion was ruthless, and there would be no easy escape.

Watching Alice fall from her pedestal, Hera’s heart, which had been pounding wildly throughout the ordeal, finally began to calm. She let out a slow breath, the weight of everything settling in her chest.

’Does this mean... I’ve finally defeated Alice?’ she thought. ’That I’ve taken her female lead halo for myself?’

The thought brought no satisfaction. Instead of triumph, Hera felt an unexpected heaviness. She had come so far—from a cannon fodder whose life and death were in someone else’s hands, to someone strong enough to bring down the so-called heroine, the chosen one favored by the world itself.

But instead of celebrating, she found herself wondering—’Why must women always be pitted against each other just to rise? Why must one fall for another to climb? Why can’t we grow stronger together, support one another, and rise side by side?’

In that moment, Hera didn’t feel like a victor. She felt like someone who had simply survived... in a world that never gave her a choice.

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