The house itself had the complete farmhouse look, with earthen walls, wooden windows, and even green tiles. It truly was crafted as traditionally as it could get. As for the yard, multiple beautiful plants filled the area—that was surrounded by wooden fences—, with even an ancient-looking well located near the corner. Everything seemed extremely lively… However, the most eye-catching thing there was the thousand-year acacia tree that grew on the right side of the yard… Despite its age, its leaves grew prosperously, and its trunk was thick. The fact that the tree’s branches even extended over the house truly gave the place a unique and rustic appearance… It all just felt like a hidden land where everything was perfect… And that was no exaggeration. Xavia herself finally understood why Bianca kept insisting on gaining access to this house… Xavia’s train of thought was cut short when she heard a polite voice say, “Miss Jourdain… Miss Lockhart…” Turning around, Xavia saw that the
To think that she had assumed that he had a reason for suddenly agreeing to give her the house… In the end, to him, not only was she a woman who didn’t deserve to be saved, but she was also a wh*re… Realizing that there was no point in getting angry with someone like him, she then looked him in the eye as she replied in a frigid tone, “I apologize, Young Master Burton, but Keith can give me things that you can’t. That aside, you have no right to tell me to do such a thing, and if that’s all you wanted to say, then I guess we have nothing else to discuss.” With how raw her emotions had been as she said that, Zivon walked up to her… and once he was mere inches from her, he stared at the Heart of Blossom hanging around her neck. A brief silence later, he then asked, “What exactly can he give you that I can’t? A million-dollar necklace? Sweet words? Or perhaps his body…?” His final sentence was so sarcastically suggestive that Xavia’s expression instantly stiffened. How… How dare he
Keith, for one, was really glad that she had decided to come to him. Walking over to her, he then asked in a gentle tone, “Are you sure you want to meet Cara…?” “I am,” replied Xavia, who knew that Cara was perfect for the job. After all, Cara had grown up in the countryside, which meant that she was familiar with everything there. That aside, Xavia was aware that Cara was acquainted with several ancient teachers, which further increased the odds of her restoring the farmhouse to perfection… What more, since Cara had been in the detention center for a while now, Xavia figured that she’d be desperate to leave, just like how Xavia had felt back in prison. Her devastation would surely prompt her to agree! Regardless, Xavia then said in a serious tone, “…Bring me in.” “Right on it,” replied the smiling Keith as he led the way… After having some formalities with those in charge, Xavia was finally able to meet Cara. The old lady herself was crouched in a deep, dark cell—along with
Xavia, for one, knew that they hadn’t done anything bad to warrant a spot on the trending tab… So why did Ava need them to return? Keith himself simply replied, “No idea, though let’s just head back to see what’s wrong…” “Got it…” muttered Xavia. No matter how much she despised Ava, she didn’t want to argue with a sickly old woman. Fast forward to half an hour later, Keith and Xavia found themselves entering the Burton residence… To their surprise, even Herschel, Zivon, Jenna, and the Dylans were there. Everything seemed rather formal and serious… With that in mind, Xavia inched closer toward Keith’s back to lessen her presence. Noticing this, Zivon simply sneered at her actions. Not only had she previously argued with him because of Keith, but she was now by his side again? What's more, she was even at the family meeting! It truly seemed like she really cared for Keith. Jenna herself—who was standing beside Zivon—didn’t seem too happy either. Even so, she kept her gentle f
Though Xavia hadn’t planned on going on the trip, nor had she wanted to take credit for her actions, Helen’s sharp words and temperament ultimately disallowed her from denying either. To everyone’s surprise, Keith suddenly held onto Xavia’s tiny hand before leading her out… With how matching the two looked together hand in hand, Zivon couldn’t help but stare at their leaving backs with darkened eyes, almost as though he had some secrets up his sleeve… Regardless, by the time they arrived at the North Court, Xavia turned to face the gentle-looking Keith before saying, “…I’m sorry, Young Master Keith, but I… I’m currently busy working with Binaca, and the period after the next ten days will be particularly important to the house. That aside, I have to take care of Yulia as well… Can’t I be excused…?” “I understand, but grandma thinks that this trip will be her last, so I can’t really reject her request… That aside, it’ll only be a few days, and it’ll be the perfect opportunity for
With their eyes now meeting, Xavia couldn’t help but feel her heart tighten. After all, his eyes were as dark as black holes, ready to suck her in…! Quickly looking away, she then called out to Yulia, “Yulia, come back, quick. We need to get you to school.” Shaking her head, Yulia then grabbed onto Maison’s hand before saying, “I want to head there with Brother Maison, Mommy…! Didn’t you say that you needed to go to the hospital? You can just go ahead with Uncle Keith while I follow Brother Maison to school!” Upon hearing that, Maison—who didn’t seem too happy to be within Jenna’s presence—was prompted to say, “…Or Yulia and I could follow Aunt’s car…” Their responses caused Xavia to go silent. Those two were really from the same mother… What a headache! Regardless, after a brief silence, Keith was prompted to say, “…If that’s the case, then let’s just have Uncle and Auntie Zivon fetch them while I bring Xavia to the hospital. Are you fine with that, Xavia…?” ‘Like my option
“You’re rather close to Keith… What exactly do you like about him? He doesn’t really have a good character either, so you should just leave him.” …What the hell? Why was he saying all this? And what did he mean that Zayne’s character wasn’t good?! Slightly irked, Xavia quickly replied, “Compared to Zivon, Young Master Keith is a saint.” Raising a slight brow when he heard that, Zayne then began unraveling the bandages on her arm while saying, “I simply said that Young Master Keith’s character wasn’t all that good. I never mentioned a thing about Zivon…” His statement instantly startled her. She had somehow compared the two! Now grinning, Zayne then teased, “Seems that the Third Young Lady is troubled…” Blushing, Xavia then retorted, “As if! I’m not a monk, nor do I have any intentions of going to a temple! That aside, are you going to treat my wound or not, Dr. Xenos? If you aren’t, then just get another doctor for me!” Tossing her old bandage away, he then began cleaning h
Xavia’s eyes were momentarily clouded in darkness as her legs went weak. Upon seeing that, the doctor quickly added, “Calm yourself. His life isn’t threatened. That aside, after suffering that head injury, his brain was hurt, and he’s bleeding a bit too quickly. With that in mind, he needs an emergency blood transfusion. You’re his family member, right? I need you to sign this surgical sheet as soon as possible.” …An emergency blood transfusion? After thinking about it for a bit, Xavia quickly grabbed the doctor’s hands before saying, “Please, just use my blood! My blood is special since it can be used with and treat all other blood types!” “…Come again?” replied the doubtful doctor. After all, such blood was extremely rare, so what were the odds that this skinny woman possessed it? Taking her cell phone out, she then showed the doctor the information—that Matthew had previously sent to her—before saying, “Just have a look at my private medical history. If you need to, feel fre
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