Micah gave her a cold, dismissive glance. "Do I owe you an explanation?"Freya's heart clenched painfully. She had no claim on Micah, no right to demand anything from him. The realization hurt deeply, but there was nothing she could do. Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at him, her voice trembling. "I know I don’t have the right to ask you this, but... I really want to be with you. If you... If it's true, I could help you. We could pretend to be married. I could help you keep up appearances."She clung to the belief that spending time together could eventually lead to real feelings. She was convinced that if given enough time, she could win his heart.But Micah’s expression remained cold, a hint of disdain curling his lips. "You’re giving yourself too much credit."He brushed past her without another glance, treating her as if she were invisible. Freya stood there, unable to help him with anything. All she could do was watch as he finished everything himself.Micah broug
A hint of crimson tinged with sorrow filled Freya's eyes. She had loved Micah for so many years, and the pain of unrequited love was like a dagger to her heart. Freya believed that by confessing her feelings to Micah, he might be moved by her sincerity, and she could use that to win him over completely. But she had miscalculated.Micah remained as cold as ever. His gaze, filled with an icy darkness, looked at her as if he wished to cut her to pieces."If you can't take my words seriously, don't blame me for being ruthless," Micah snarled, grinding his teeth.In that moment, he truly felt a surge of anger strong enough to kill. He despised anyone who pursued him without understanding their place. He would show no mercy, even though Freya was a woman, because he had already done more than enough for her.Freya let out a bitter laugh, never expecting Micah to threaten her with death. She wanted to say more, but Micah turned his back on her and walked away, leaving her standing there
Otherwise, people would be the ones begging them, not the other way around.Nina gently rested her forehead against Orion's and whispered in a hoarse voice, "I'm sorry, Orion, Mommy's back.""It's okay, Mommy." Orion replied slowly, his eyes shining brightly like stars. He loved Nina so much and wished he could stay by her side forever. How could he possibly blame her? And now, his dad was back too.Orion reached out his small hand to wipe away Nina's tears. Unlike other chubby kids, Orion was thin, with little flesh on his hands. This made Nina think of the antidote Nash had received. She immediately turned to Nash and said, "You should have Father test that antidote right away to see if it's real."If it was, that would be great. If not, they had not fallen for Dominic's trick, and they would not have lost anything. But after that, they needed to focus on treating Nash.Nash nodded. The next moment, he walked over to Nina and Orion, wrapped an arm around Nina's shoulders, an
In an instant, the crowd fell silent. The burly man's eyes narrowed, his drunkenness quickly dissipating as he asked, "You must be Micah?"Micah did not bother with words. He fired the first shot, barely missing the burly man, which only fueled his anger. The man shouted, "What are you waiting for? Kill him!" But Micah and Mr. Joker moved with such elusive speed that the attackers could not track their movements. Growing increasingly desperate, the burly man gritted his teeth, finally spotting Micah and taking aim. A twisted smile spread across his face. He was about to rid himself of this nuisance once and for all. But just as he pulled the trigger, someone threw themselves in front of Micah.The bullet tore through her body, splattering blood everywhere.Freya’s body went limp, and Micah quickly caught her, simultaneously shooting the burly man with deadly precision. Freya looked up at Micah, a faint smile on her lips. She felt content to die in his arms. Micah, however,
Micah remained silent, his lips pressed into a thin line. His usually handsome face was now shadowed with an unmistakable gloom."Do you need me to..." "No need." Before Pharaoh could finish, Micah cut him off sharply."Feelings only get in the way," Micah said firmly. "Especially for people like us. We're not suited for an ordinary life."For others, starting a family, having a wife and kids was normal. But for them, it was not.They had responsibilities to the Yaren Tribe, and their status made it impossible to lead a simple, personal life. Above all, there was the memory of his mother. After she passed, his father had been lost for a long time, and though other women had come into his father’s life, they were all reflections of his mother. She had been the one sacrificed, and now, as the leader of the tribe, Micah knew he was destined to walk the same path as his father. He could not split himself between the tribe and a family. If he had no wife, no children, then no on
Freya's sacrifice to save him this time left Micah unable to remain indifferent.……Meanwhile, Nina heard about what happened to Micah and how Freya had risked her life to save him. Concerned for her brother, Nina wanted to check on him. But Nash stopped her. "If Micah were truly hurt, things wouldn’t be this quiet. We would have heard something by now."He had a point, but Nina could not just ignore Freya after hearing what happened. The two of them had started as rivals, so it did not feel right not to check on her now.When Nina arrived, she found Micah by Freya's side. Knowing Freya's feelings for him, Nina decided not to disturb them and quietly turned to leave.But before she could go, Pharaoh stopped her. "Nina, wait."She turned to see him standing in front of her. "Father," she greeted him, unsure why he had stopped her. Although she had accepted him as her father, their relationship was not like that of a typical father and daughter. Nina rarely sought him out.Aft
Nina sat on the couch, lost in her thoughts, until Nash finally woke up. He had not expected to fall asleep, let alone sleep so deeply that he felt as though his body had been taken apart and reassembled. As he sat up, he noticed Nina sitting quietly on the couch nearby. The room was dimly lit, with just the soft glow of an amber-colored lamp on the nightstand.Nash could immediately sense that something was off with Nina. "What's wrong?" he asked.Nina turned to look at him, her gaze meeting his in the warm glow of the light. Yet, despite the cozy lighting, she suddenly felt a strange sense of distance between them.She did not beat around the bush. "When I came back, you were asleep. But I heard you calling out for Miranda."For a moment, Nash did not respond, and silence settled over the room. Nina did not know how to process her feelings. It had been five years, and despite everything Miranda had done, Nash still had her in his thoughts.But then, Nash quickly moved towa
Freya had not seen any signs that Micah was interested in anyone else either. She bit her lip, her heart aching. "You’re not dating anyone. Is it because of your responsibilities?"Otherwise, how could she explain why there was not even a hint of a woman around Micah?"That’s my business," Micah replied coldly. In an instant, his features seemed to freeze over, and his entire demeanor became dark and unapproachable.Freya understood that this was Micah’s way of trying to make her give up. But she was not going to. Shaking her head firmly, she said, "I won’t give up. I just want to be with you. You don’t have to worry. I won’t get in the way of your responsibilities. Can’t you just…""Don’t you get it?" Micah interrupted, his tone icy. "You’re not my type. And your recent actions have made me dislike you even more. I’m not going to be with someone I can’t stand."He was trying to make Freya lose all hope, and she understood that. But she refused to accept it. She was utterly devote
At the time, Wilfred had already guessed that this had everything to do with Harley and his mentor, Professor Zeller. “You and your so-called association don’t focus on benefiting patients. Instead, you spend all your time trying to monopolize everything. And now you want to turn me into one of you? Keep dreaming.” Wilfred’s tone was filled with disdain, his eyes cold with contempt. The smug smile on Harley’s face slowly faded. With a sneer, Harley’s voice turned bitter. “You know what I despise most about you? That self-righteous, holier-than-thou attitude of yours. I was offering you advice, but if you don’t want to hear it, fine. There’s nothing more to say. After all, if the surgery fails—” Before he could finish the word “fail,” the surgical light outside the operating room flicked off. Clack!The sliding doors parted, and Karina burst through, her face flushed with emotion. She didn’t even notice Harley. Her focus zeroed in on Wilfred. “Wilfred!” Her voice trem
As the surgery approached, Karina worked overtime, meticulously double-checking for any possible oversights. Before stepping into the operating room, she took a deep breath."Karina, you’ve got this!" a nurse beside her encouraged.This surgery was particularly significant, and the assistants and nurses weren’t from her hospital. They were brought in by the project, specifically by Harley’s team. Without a single familiar face around, Karina felt a twinge of anxiety. Opportunities to lead surgeries were already rare for her, let alone under circumstances like this, with no one she could truly rely on.But there was no turning back now. Gritting her teeth, Karina donned her gloves. As she was about to enter the operating room, her peripheral vision caught sight of a figure standing silently in the distance. It was Wilfred. His steady gaze met hers, his eyes carrying something profound she couldn’t quite decipher. When their eyes locked, a faint smile curved his lips.In th
“Ava.”A deep voice cut through the air, and Karina turned to see a man in a black suit, wearing a hat and a mask, striding toward them. But the man’s white eyelashes and distinctive eyes were all Karina needed to recognize him. He was her albino patient, Xavier Jasper!Xavier also didn’t expect to run into both Wilfred and Karina here. “It’s you two,” he exclaimed in surprise.Wilfred’s gaze sharpened as he calmly addressed Xavier. “Keep your sister in line. Apologize.”Before Xavier could respond, Ava stepped forward and, to everyone’s surprise, said, “I’m sorry. I was too impulsive. Please forgive me.” Karina was taken aback by how quickly Ava apologized. Even Xavier, who knew his sister’s arrogant tendencies well, looked stunned.Karina nodded, her tone steady but firm. “I forgive you, but that doesn’t mean everyone else will. You should work on your attitude. Stop acting so entitled everywhere you go.” With that, Karina turned on her heel and walked away. Although Xavie
”Those were her meticulously compiled notes, the result of hours of hard work—and now they were ruined just like that?” Karina thought.“I’ve never wronged you. Why would you do something like this?” she demanded, her voice trembling with indignation. Something about the situation felt off, and Karina’s sharp intuition told her this wasn’t a simple misunderstanding.Under Karina’s intense gaze, the nurse finally broke down, revealing Ava’s role in orchestrating the whole thing. Karina’s anger turned into a mix of rage and incredulous amusement. “Really? Rich people—did they all enjoy throwing money around like this?”All this trouble, just to ruin her hard-earned work over a seat?Her carefully compiled notes were gone, and there wasn’t a second copy. Arguing wouldn’t bring them back, but Ava wasn’t going to let this slide without giving someone a piece of her mind.Finding Ava wasn’t difficult. In fact, Ava didn’t even try to avoid her. She seemed to be waiting, eager to see
Just as Ava was about to cause a scene, the sound of steady footsteps filled the room. Wilfred strode in, his white coat enhancing his composed, almost ethereal aura. Ava shot Karina a glare, silently committing her to memory, then begrudgingly found another seat. Wilfred’s gaze swept across the room, pausing ever so briefly on Karina before moving on. She wasn’t sure if it was real or just her imagination. “Today, we’ll discuss cellular structures. I’ll start with an example from my doctoral thesis,” Wilfred announced, adjusting the projector. To Karina’s surprise, he was an exceptional lecturer—clear, engaging, and far more comprehensible than many university professors. She listened intently, taking meticulous notes. Yvette peeked over at Karina’s notebook, wide-eyed at the densely packed writing. “Karina, when you eventually get promoted, land a big raise, or go for your doctorate, I promise I won’t be jealous. Truly.”Karina chuckled. “If you need these notes, I can len
Karina glanced at the time and quickly gestured for Yvette to sit down as well. However, barely had they taken their seats when a haughty woman marched up to Karina, her sharp gaze fixed on the chair she was sitting on. “You, get up. I want that seat!” Karina frowned, studying the unfamiliar woman. She didn’t recognize her from the hospital, but the designer jewelry around her neck and the branded bag on her arm screamed wealth. She seemed like the kind of entitled socialite who rarely had to fight for anything, let alone a seat.Unsure if the woman was trying to pick a fight or genuinely wanted the chair, Karina pointed to the open seats nearby. “There are plenty of seats over there. Take one of those.”Then, she lowered her head, dismissing the woman entirely.The woman’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Excuse me? I said I want your seat. Get up. Now!” Not content with words alone, she reached out to pull Karina up by force. Karina, now genuinely angry, shook her off. “I was h
Karina looked slightly surprised. She distinctly remembered that Wilfred wasn’t a drinker. “I thought you avoided alcohol?” Wilfred, ever the epitome of control and composure, preferred to steer clear of anything that dulled his sharpness. Back when they worked at the Birkham Central Hospital, she had seen him reject bottles of expensive wine from people trying to curry favor with him. He sipped his tea slowly before replying, “You’ve started at a new hospital. As your former mentor, I haven’t given you a proper congratulatory gift yet.” “This is… for me?” Karina asked, her voice tinged with disbelief. Wilfred’s gaze was steady as he replied, “Don’t like it? If not, I can send it back and we can find something else later.” He raised his hand to call the server over. “Wait! No need. I like it a lot,” Karina interjected hastily, stopping him in his tracks. The idea of going gift shopping with him later felt uncomfortably like a date. And knowing Wilfred’s personality, w
Wilfred’s gaze swept over her without a word, and Karina climbed into the car on her own. When choosing her seat, she instinctively moved toward the back, but before she could get in, Wilfred spoke, “Sit in the front. It’s more convenient.” Karina hesitated briefly. Not wanting to appear overly particular, she complied and took the passenger seat. Although there was a saying that the front seat was reserved for a girlfriend, Wilfred didn’t strike her as someone who cared about such details. She decided to pretend she didn’t know. After buckling her seatbelt, a phone suddenly appeared in front of her. She looked up, her face full of confusion and surprise. Wilfred glanced sideways at her, one hand on the steering wheel, the car still stationary. “I haven’t decided on a restaurant yet. I’ll be driving soon. You pick something.” Karina took the phone. As Wilfred drove, she scrolled through the options, narrowing it down to three restaurants. But her mild indecisivenes
Karina forced a smile. “Really, it’s fine. You all go ahead.”Yvette pouted, her disappointment clear as she relented. “Alright then.”Once the others had left, Karina tried to refocus on work. She pulled out her research materials, determined to get something done. Yet, no matter how hard she tried, her thoughts kept wandering. The cheerful chatter from outside finally snapped her out of it, making her realize just how distracted she had been.Karina gave a wry smile and muttered to herself, “This is why you don’t get ahead of yourself. Seriously, one of life’s biggest delusions.”For a fleeting moment, she had thought Wilfred might feel something for her too. But it was better this way, she told herself—better to wake up now than to fall in too deep later. Romance wasn’t her strong suit; focusing on her career was safer.While others might drown their heartbreak in food or a night out, Karina chose the most grueling outlet: work. It might be exhausting, but it was effective. S