Chapter 178: Custody Court I

After all four of them were ready, they headed to the court. On the way, Liana made a call to the lawyer August had arranged for them.

"Are you on your way?" a voice came from the other end.

"Yes, we’re on the way right now," Liana replied.

"Good, I’m heading to the courthouse as well," and then the call ended.

It was about a twenty-minute drive from the town to the courthouse. After arriving, they parked the car and got out, but didn’t go inside—they waited for the lawyer.

Daniel glanced at the women. Even though they were trying to appear strong, he could see the stress on their faces.

Which made sense. Today would determine whether Tiana would stay with them or be sent back to her abusive family.

It didn’t take long before their lawyer arrived. After a quick call, they found each other and met at the courthouse entrance.

"Mr. Donald!" Liana raised her hand when she saw the lawyer from afar.

A middle-aged man spotted her and quickly walked over to them.

"Ladies Noir," he greeted all the women and then reached out to shake Daniel’s hand.

"Hello, Mr. Noir. This is the first time we’re meeting—I’m Donald Brown. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you," the lawyer—Donald—said with noticeable excitement in his eyes.

Even though he had never seen Daniel before, he had heard a lot about him. Especially since Daniel was known as one of the personal attorneys of the president of the Awakened Association, and Mr. August had strongly warned him to treat Daniel the same way he’d treat his boss.

"Nice to meet you too, Mr. Donald," Daniel replied with a smile, and then the five of them entered the courthouse together.

"Do you think things will go well?" Alice suddenly asked as they walked.

"Normally, as long as Miss Tiana herself says her family abused her, the court would rule in our favor. But this is an Awakened court, so things are a bit different, and there’s no guarantee. Still, there’s no need to worry—I’ll make sure custody of Miss Tiana goes to your mother," Donald answered.

Soon after, they reached the courtroom door, opened it, and walked in. The rows of seats on either side were empty, and even the judicial officials hadn’t arrived yet.

Daniel and Alice sat in the right section for observers. Tiana took the seat assigned to the minor under custody, and Liana sat in the plaintiff’s seat.

It wasn’t long before Tiana’s mother and father entered the courtroom with their lawyer and two witnesses, heading to their designated seats.

"We’re taking our daughter back from you bastards today," Klein sneered as he looked at Liana and the others.

Tiana felt a strange pain in her chest when she heard her father’s words and saw the expression on her mother’s face.

She wasn’t the only one. Both Liana and Daniel felt something was off as well, but for now, they didn’t say anything and didn’t even respond to Klein’s words.

According to their lawyer Donald, anything said in court could be used against them—so silence was the better choice.

Soon, two court officials entered the room and sat on either side of the judge’s seat.

"How long is it gonna take for the judge to arrive?" Alice, feeling tired, asked.

"I don’t know, but it shouldn’t take long."

Luckily, it didn’t. The courtroom door opened again, and a man around fifty years old walked in. As he entered, the official sitting on the right side of the judge’s bench stood up and said:

"All rise, Your Honor is entering."

Everyone stood up. Once the judge sat down, they all sat back down.

Before speaking, the judge first looked over the case file and its details. He read through everything one by one, and after gaining a clear understanding, he looked at the plaintiffs.

"You may begin. What’s the reason for your complaint?"

"Your Honor, my client is requesting custody of a seventeen-year-old girl named Tiana. This girl has been abused by her family since childhood, and after becoming Awakened, the abuse turned into exploitation," Donald stood and explained.

"Your Honor, he’s lying! Don’t believe a word he says! They’re just con artists trying to steal my precious daughter from me!" Liz suddenly shouted.

Sweat started to bead on their lawyer’s face as he heard her shout. Is this woman crazy? Before coming here, he had warned them multiple times that this court was very different from a regular court.

Just as he feared, the judge gave them an indifferent look—but even that look was enough to send chills down their spines.

"If you interrupt again, I’ll throw you out and end this case in their favor."

"Understood, Your Honor. I apologize for my client’s rudeness," their lawyer bowed and responded respectfully.

’A mid-tier B-rank Awakened.’ At that moment, Daniel sensed the judge’s aura leak out for a brief second and thought to himself.

"You may continue," the judge said to Donald and gestured for him to proceed.

Donald began explaining everything in full detail, including what Tiana had personally told him.

Unfortunately, due to the rapid healing abilities of Awakened individuals, the medical examiner couldn’t find any physical evidence of the abuse Tiana suffered at the hands of her family.

That was one of the biggest problems—it meant most of what they said had no solid proof, and proving anything was extremely difficult.

Still, describing the events in detail could help strengthen the case.

"Alright. Now let’s hear your defense," the judge then looked at Liz and Klein and signaled them.

Their lawyer began his defense, which included a detailed list of all the expenses Tiana’s parents had covered over the years.

He pointed out that Tiana had never faced any financial difficulties and that her family had always done their best to give her a good life.

As Tiana listened to all this, for a brief moment she began to doubt herself. She even questioned if these were really her parents—or if she had mistaken them for someone else.

She couldn’t remember a single time they had spent money on her, other than for private schools—and that had been their own choice, not hers.

After hearing the defense, the judge called in their witnesses and asked them to share everything they knew about the case.

’Uncle Robert and Aunt Emily?’ Tiana frowned.

She had seen them when they first entered the courtroom, but until they stepped up to testify, she hadn’t been able to clearly see their faces—as if a fog had been covering them.

Donald had explained earlier that this was a protective mechanism used to hide the identity of witnesses.

Still, as soon as she saw their faces, she recognized them. One was her father’s driver, and the other was a servant in their household.

’This is bad.’