Yulia knew that there was no heaven. If they were to go looking for Grandma, it would mean that they would have to lie in the soil forever. But she was not afraid. She nodded obediently and said softly, “Mummy, heaven sounds so nice. I want to go there.” “Good girl,” Xavia choked out desperately. She hugged Yulia tightly, trembling. ‘I’m sorry, I don't have any other option. It’s better to die in my arms than be violated by those beasts. I only have one request… Please don’t be my child in your next life.’ Xavia inhaled deeply, raised the dagger in her hand, and closed her eyes. Ignoring the terrible ache in her heart, she brought the dagger down. After Yulia died, Xavia would kill herself. “She wants to kill her daughter!” “What’s going on?” The group of people were stunned, and could only look on in horror as the dagger descended. No one had expected such an outcome! Right when the dagger was about to pierce Yulia’s heart, a gunshot rang out. Bang!The bullet c
The man’s voice was magnetic and soothing, and his warm jacket was filled with his pleasantly unique scent. Xavia stared at him, dazed. She couldn't believe that he'd appeared right when she needed him the most. “I’m not okay,” she choked out, then threw herself into his arms, sobbing. She had almost taken Yulia's life, and Yulia had nearly been defiled by those men… How could she be okay? Her crying did not stop. All her fear and despair as well as her joy and relief at being saved was bubbling up in her, and she let it all out. Zivon’s clothes were drenched in her tears. He exhaled deeply, his heart aching. “I’m sorry, I should have been here earlier. I’ll take you both away from here.”He gently picked up Xavia and Yulia, and slowly stood up. Both of them weren't heavy, so it was easy for him to carry them. In the dark cave, the two girls looked like fairies, with Zivon carrying them protectively like a strong knight. The sunlight shone on them, and it looked like a s
“Hmm.” Zivon carried the two of them upstairs and instinctively entered the master bedroom. At that moment, he did not remember how he had banned Xavia from entering his room back when he was angry with her. He even stood nearby to wait for updates after he had put the both of them down on the bed. Teresa frowned slightly. “Young Master Burton, I need to examine their bodies. Shouldn’t you go out?”Zivon blinked slowly. She was right. If it was just Xavia, he could stay. However, Yulia was there too, so he had to leave. “I’ll wait outside. Let me know if you need anything,” he said soothingly to both Xavia and Yulia, then left. Once the room door closed, Teresa got to work. She examined Yulia first. The girl’s fair skin was littered with bruises, and it was horrifying to look at. Xavia was filled with guilt and self-reproach. If she had not left Yulia alone when she was sick, none of this would have happened. “I’m sorry, Yulia… I’ll never leave you alone from now on.” “Mum
Teresa replied politely, “There are no major injuries. The little girl has bruises, but she didn’t suffer any internal injuries. I’ve put medicine on her wounds. The woman's hand injury is slightly serious. Her stomach is hurt too so she needs to rest. I’ve also taken care of that wound. “I think that their psychological trauma is much more serious than their physical injuries. I’ve given them medicine to calm their nerves and help them sleep better, so maybe it's best to let them rest for now.” As a doctor, Teresa was used to seeing serious illnesses and injuries, so her tone was calm.However, when Zivon heard all this, he inhaled sharply, his eyes narrowing. Yulia was covered in bruises. Xavia’s hand injury was serious and her stomach was hurt. There was psychological trauma too.It was worse than he thought. His expression was tense. “Please go and rest in the guest room. I’ll call you over if there are any issues.” “Alright.” Teresa turned around and walked to the neig
‘Wicked man! How dare you bully my aunt! You’ll be dealt with suitably, this is just a warm-up. When the truth comes out, there’ll be a more cruel punishment waiting for you!’ As he was thinking that, Maison took out another phone. It was the phone he had taken from the boss that his father had captured. He typed something with his little fingers, then sent it as a text message and quickly looked outside. He watched as the secretary took out his phone. As expected, the secretary had conspired with those bad men! He would be dealt with soon! The secretary stood by the pool, clueless about Maison’s scheme. He looked at his phone screen and read the message on it. [It’s done. Don’t worry.] Done? Did that mean that Xavia and her daughter were dead? How wonderful! Everything has been resolved perfectly! No one would stand in the way of President Harrison and Young Master Burton's relationship now. President Harrison would surely praise him for a job well done! The secreta
It was about three hours later when Yulia and Xavia finally awoke to the sweet fragrance of food… and even before the child’s eyes had opened, her hands were already waving around in the air as she muttered, “Hungry…! Want food…!” Upon hearing that, Maison ran over to her and held onto her tiny hands before saying, “There are delicious meatballs, lobsters, beef, and all sorts of other meats prepared!” “R-really?!” exclaimed Yulia as the excited girl immediately sat up to look around… and sure enough, there was a huge table right next to the bed that was brimming with food! Though all that food certainly caught her eyes, Yulia’s gaze soon fell on Zivon and Maison who were standing by the table. Eyes widened, the overjoyed child couldn’t stop herself from saying, “U-Uncle Burton…?! Brother Maison…?! D-didn’t I get kidnapped…?! A-am I dreaming…?!” Feeling his heart sink, Zivon walked up to the child before patting her as he replied, “The kidnapping part was just a nightmare… You’r
Before she could even end her sentence, Zivon pulled her into his strong arms before whispering into her ear, “…You’ll have to pay for seducing me.” …Was he telling her to sleep with him? Even if that was the case, she wasn’t going to back down! Staring straight into his eyes, she was quick to reply, “…I’ll do it. Also, I’m spending the rest of my life with you…!” …Seriously, what was this woman saying? Just as the frowning man was about to get her to clarify things, his phone suddenly began ringing… As it turned out, it was a call from Sophia. Letting go of Xavia, he was prompted to say, “…Continue eating for now.” Following that, he left the room to answer the call, prompting Xavia to raise a slight brow. In a way, it was almost as though he didn’t want Sophia to know that she was with him… Come to think of it, he had been living with Sophia here this entire time… Hell, they even appeared close enough to purchase household items together… Had he truly fallen for her…? And had
Looking incredibly flustered, the smiling man was quick to say, “Y-Young Master Burton and Little Young Master! Are you finished yet-” However, before the man could even finish his sentence, his eyes had already widened by the sight of Xavia and Yulia standing there! “W-what are they doing here…?!” exclaimed the pale-faced secretary. Xavia herself was surprised to see him there. What was this person who had previously helped them so much doing here? And why did he look so… strange? Before Xavia could even think of a reply, Yulia was already hugging her leg while exclaiming, “Mommy! He’s the bad person! He’s the one who tried selling me off…!” “…W-what? What are you talking about Yulia? Are you sure?” asked Xavia in disbelief. Nodding confidently, Yulia replied, “Yeah! I earlier overheard him talking to another bad man to kidnap me! Basically, I was supposed to be kidnapped while I was at the supermarket! Though I wanted to run with Mommy after hearing that, Mommy simply would
Staring in shock at the kneeling man, Yulia mustered her remaining sanity as she replied, “B-but you’re younger-” “Even if that’s the case, doesn’t that mean that I’m much more ‘capable’ than your older pursuers…?” …Why were his words so suggestive all of a sudden?! Forcing herself to calm down, she took a deep breath before saying, “…Elliot, I’m not sure what spurred this decision, but… I’m not the one for you. Please find someone your age. I’m sorry.” After saying that, she strode straight for the car… but before she could start the engine, she couldn’t help but notice how desolate he looked standing under the pouring rain… Clenching her fists, it took her a while to finally sigh and walk back to him… “…Are you really sure about this?” asked Yulia, much to Elliot’s delight. “I am! Please! Give me a chance! You won’t regret it!” …When he put it that way, all Yulia could do was help him up before finally deciding to return his kiss… Sure, things had taken a sudden, unex
She stared in horror as he removed his shirt right there and then! “W-what are you doing?!” yelped the startled woman as she quickly looked the other way. “…Huh? I mean, I’m drenched, so…” “E-even so, you shouldn’t change right in front of me!” “…Yulia, we bathed together as children… It’s not like you haven’t seen everything already…” “Y-you can’t compare that to this situation…!” “Fine, fine, I… Um… Go cook, I guess… I’ll go get a change upstairs first…” muttered Elliot as he headed upstairs. Yulia herself had to try her best to calm down! After all, Elliot had been plaguing her mind in the past few days, and… she even had dreams where he had… …No! She couldn’t be thinking about such things! She needed to cook! Maybe that would help get her mind out of the gutter! Once that was done, she’d leave and finally start devising a plan to get rid of him…! As Yulia scurried off, Elliot himself was currently staring at an old photo that showed him eating some candy in Yulia’
Just as she had arrived at her car, the president of the Halls Group suddenly walked up to her, a bouquet in hand! The Halls Group had collaborated several times with the Burtons before, and because of that, she was well acquainted with the man. Sadly, he had also proposed to her on multiple occasions… and though she kept rejecting him, he never seemed to get the hint! “There you are, Miss Burton… Since you’re off work, I was wondering if you’d join me for dinner tonight…” asked the charming man. Feeling awkward, she was just about to come up with an excuse when Elliot suddenly grabbed her by the waist and said, “Oh? Another one of your admirers, Yulia…? Sorry, but she already has a boyfriend, my man. If that doesn’t deter you enough, then you should know that she prefers her partners younger. Now please leave.” Startled to hear that, the man glanced at Yulia, his eyes begging for an explanation… Yulia herself was eager to just escape this embarrassing situation, but before s
With that tale done, it was now time to return to Yulia’s story… Ever since she was a child, she had undergone countless hardships with her mother… and even after she was able to reunite with her father, things didn’t go much easier from there. To make matters worse, Fabiola ended up getting kidnapped for the longest time, resulting in Frank ending up the way he was today… Because of all that, it only made sense that she’d mature much sooner than others her age, and unlike the naïve girl she used to be, she was an extremely competent woman today. Alas, because of how used she became with working, she soon lost the urge to find herself a romantic interest… Things continued that way until… Well, that time that Elliot… …Wait, what was she thinking?! He was younger than her, for heaven’s sake! Quickly shaking her head, she attempted to force herself to concentrate on work again… But before long, a knock was heard on the door. After being allowed in, the department manager entered t
Knowing that there was no point in keeping things a secret anymore, Rea took a deep breath before saying, “…Alright, so… The truth is, I’ve always been highly competent, but… I’ve been pretending to be useless just so that you’d eventually marry me… The trip my parents are taking… That was my suggestion too…” Feeling speechless, it took Frank a long while to reply, “…So you weren’t really drunk when you did all that last night?” Pursing her lips, Rea awkwardly muttered, “…I wasn’t… Luna suggested it, and since it sounded like a good idea to accelerate things…” …Fucking hell, to think that he had fallen straight into her trap without even putting up a fight! Watching as he glowered at her, Rea gulped before adding, “A-anyway, now that we’re married and there’s potentially a baby in my belly, you won’t divorce me, right…?” “…Oh, believe me when I say that divorce is the easy way out! From today onward, I’m making you pay for your actions for the rest of your life!” Fast forwa
Fast forward to the next morning, Rea awoke with a yawn… What a nice sleep… Wait. Why was she naked? And why was Frank…?! Her following scream immediately woke the icy man up… and upon looking at her, he was immediately reminded of what had transpired last night! Essentially, Rea ended up clinging to him, and though he initially wanted to just carry her to bed to let her rest… Damn it! Had she really been that sensual?! How had he lost control so easily?! His train of thought was cut short when he realized that Rea was bawling her eyes out… and after rubbing his temples, he was prompted to say, “…Why are you crying when you’re the one who initiated this? I’ll have you know that I never forced you-” “I-I know, but…! I’ve just…! This is my first time…!” whimpered the quivering woman, prompting Frank to purse his lips. As if he wasn’t in the same situation… “…You’re not alone there.” “It’s not the same! Men are free to sleep with whoever they want but when it comes to women, I’l
“Say, wouldn’t you agree that the food smells delicious…? Why don’t I teach you how to grill, Rea…? Oh, but make sure to take your clothes off first before we start! Wouldn’t want them to get dirty…” With how drunk Rea was, she wasn’t able to fully register his words… and just as he was about to touch her clothes, an icy voice roared, “Stop right there…!” Instantly feeling a shiver run down his spine, the man turned around… and to his horror, it was Frank! Young Master Burton’s perpetually icy son…! Why the hell was he here?! Before the frightened intern could think of how to even react, Frank walked up to him and growled, “Leave now before I chop your hands off…! Don’t make me repeat myself!” Nodding in terror, the man frantically bolted off… and once he was out of sight, Frank glared at the tipsy Rea before adding, “This is what you meant by learning how to be more responsible…?!” “Huh…? But the food really did smell super good… I want to learn…” mumbled the drunk woman.
After leaving his office, he headed off to look for Rea. She had said that she wanted to use the bathroom, but… It had already been half an hour since she disappeared. What trouble had that idiot gotten herself into this time? Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he found her laughing along with some of his interns… When the interns saw him, they were quick to bow and say, “Good morning, Mr. Burton.” Barely even glancing at them, Frank looked at Rea and said, “It’s time to head home.” “I… Won’t be following you back…” “…And why is that? Are your parents back?” “No, it’s just… These are my good friends back from school, and they’ve been staying together to learn to be more independent… With that said… I think that staying with them will be a good start for me to learn more about how the world works. Thank you for taking care of me up till this point, Frank… I won’t bother you anymore.” Raising a slight brow, Frank then looked at the interns for a while before saying, “…Are you
Regardless, after leaving her in the room, Frank returned to the shower to cool himself off… but no matter what he did, he simply remained irked. It got to the point where he couldn’t relax at all, and after wrapping a towel around his waist, he grabbed his phone to send his father a text. ‘Was there really nobody else who could’ve taken care of Rea?’ ‘What? Can’t even care for a woman properly.’ ‘I’m a busy man.’ ‘I trust in your time management skills.’ …Though he really wanted to tell Zivon that he had misplaced his trust in him, he didn’t want to disappoint his father either. With that, all he could do was clench his fists before giving Rea’s parents a call… “Hello? Frank? Why are you calling at this time of night?” “…When are you and Uncle Saltman returning, Aunt?” asked Frank who wanted them to take back their idiot already! “…Huh? What was that? Sorry, the line isn’t very good… I hope Rea isn’t giving you too hard a time! Don’t worry, we’ll be back after about a