Ghost Exorciser: The Oust Fake Heiress Strikes-Chapter 252: Realization

She walked away, resentment twisting tightly in her chest. Lana was simply too lucky.

Not only had she lived in Brenda’s place for so many years, but she had also awakened such an outstanding talent.

As the thought lingered, Brenda suddenly paused.

"That’s impossible," she murmured in confusion. "How could someone from a poor slum family awaken as a mystic cultivator?"

Shaking her head, she dismissed the thought and returned to her own department.

Soon, news spread that the department would be holding a practical training session. The moment Brenda heard this, a smirk crept onto her lips.

’This is my chance,’ she thought confidently. ’As long as I perform well in the practical exam, my parents will praise me even more.’

Just as she was basking in that assurance, faint murmurs reached her ears from behind.

"Did you see Lana? She’s so pretty."

"She used to be the campus belle, you know."

Brenda frowned, irritation flashing across her face. She didn’t understand why Lana’s name kept surfacing.

Pulling out her phone, she checked the campus forum. Her expression froze instantly. Someone had launched a campus belle competition, and Lana was ranked first.

Her fingers trembled as she scrolled down and saw her own ranking. Ninth place.

Her teeth ground together as she muttered through clenched teeth,

"What does Lana have that I don’t?"

With a sharp movement, she locked her phone and shoved it aside, as if avoiding the screen would somehow push the hatred out of her heart. Behind her, the two girls continued chatting casually.

"Even if Lana ranks first now, it doesn’t mean she’ll be able to keep it forever."

The other girl let out a soft sigh, her tone laced with what sounded like sympathy.

"It’s really a pity," she remarked. "Even if Lana becomes the first-ranker, it doesn’t change the fact that she already has a stain on her name."

Hearing that, the first girl turned toward her with curiosity. "What do you mean by that?"

The second girl tilted her head slightly and continued,

"Lana was swapped at birth. She lived Brenda’s life for all those years. Doesn’t that mean she owes Brenda? If I were in Lana’s place, I would’ve stepped aside long ago and let Brenda take first place without fighting."

At those words, the first girl couldn’t help but laugh, the sound carrying a faint edge of irony.

"You really know how to twist facts," she replied. "Have you ever considered that it was the parents who did the swapping, not Lana herself?"

The second girl frowned, clearly unconvinced. "Even so, there’s a high chance that Lana knew the truth all along."

The first girl laughed again, this time more openly.

"If that were true, then how do you explain Lana going as far as taking a DNA ancestry test? Why would she do that if she already knew everything?"

The second girl fell silent, her lips pressed together. Seeing this, the first girl continued in a calmer tone.

"On the surface, it might seem like Lana should be held accountable. But if she truly didn’t know, then she wasn’t the one at fault. The real ones to blame are Lana’s parents and even Brenda’s parents."

She paused briefly before adding,

"Instead of blaming Lana, shouldn’t people ask themselves what kind of parents fail to realize their own children aren’t theirs until they’re twenty years old?"

Brenda, who had been listening quietly nearby, froze in place.

Her chest tightened as those words struck deep. From a purely logical standpoint, it wasn’t just Lana’s parents who were at fault. Her own parents shared the blame as well.

The two girls continued talking, unaware of the storm brewing in Brenda’s heart. The first girl scoffed lightly.

"What I find even more ridiculous is how Brenda keeps crying and painting Lana as the villain. But honestly, even if Lana were a villain, she’d only rank third."

The second girl blinked in surprise."Third?"

"Yes," the first girl replied without hesitation. "First would be Lana’s parents. Second would be Brenda’s parents. Lana doesn’t owe Brenda anything. But Brenda’s parents absolutely have an obligation to take responsibility for their children."

Brenda’s fists clenched tightly at her sides, her nails biting into her palms.

As much as she hated to admit it, the first girl was making sense.

When she looked back now, everyone around her had always told her that Lana was at fault, that Lana was her enemy.

Over time, those words had burrowed into her mind so deeply that she had stopped thinking for herself altogether.

Her mentor, her brothers, her parents... each of them had repeatedly fed her the same narrative.

But now, standing here and listening, she suddenly realized something chilling. They weren’t thinking straight. Or perhaps, they didn’t want her to think straight at all.

’Why is Lana the one at fault?’ Brenda questioned silently. ’Why not them?’

They had played a part in this too. The realization made her chest feel heavy.

If she truly harbored resentment, shouldn’t it be directed at her parents and brothers first?

Remembering how desperately she had tried to please her brothers, how she constantly sought their approval, a wave of disgust rose in her heart.

’Shouldn’t they be the ones making it up to me?’ she thought bitterly. ’Why does it always feel like I need their validation to prove my worth?’

The more Brenda thought, the clearer her mind became. It was as if a thick fog that had clouded her thoughts for years was finally starting to dissipate.

For the first time, she began to question everything she had believed so firmly.

And for the first time, Brenda realized just how foolish she had been.

Meanwhile, far away from all that turmoil, Lana was immersed in her lectures.

By the time the session ended, her shoulders felt slightly stiff from sitting too long.

She packed her things and was just about to leave when Betty hurried over and stopped her, extending an invitation with a small, slightly nervous smile.

Lana glanced down at the card and lifted her eyes again. "What’s this about?"