"I planned to return to my job after maternity leave. Your father couldn't have stopped me either. But I saw your face red from struggling with formula one night, and I couldn't leave you. "I told myself my career could wait until you were older. Your father was delighted. He said he felt secure with me at home. Later, I discovered that the company had been deciding between your father and me for an overseas position. "I resigned, and your father's career got better subsequently." Lettie's hand clenched. "I was foolish for leaving myself with no safety net. After having you, I grew soft and kept lowering my standards. I thought I could even tolerate a mistress." Tears streamed down Lettie's face. "I've become someone I can't even respect. But I can't take it anymore." She wiped her tears. Holding her stomach protectively, she looked at Daisy and said, "You think I'm shameful and don't want me as your mother, right? Fine. Just stay with the Hendricks family after the divorce. I
Without warning, Lettie slammed her head against the floor with a loud thud. Her forehead split open. Even with Aria's quick reaction, she could only prevent a second strike. "This isn't necessary." Aria smiled softly. "Though I do need something to justify my involvement." Lettie looked up. Aria's fingertips pressed against her wrist. "Would you offer me your devotion?" "Devotion?" Lettie did not understand, but she would agree to anything. "Yes." Aria said, "Good." In the furthest bedroom, the energy flow shifted noticeably. As vengefulness retreated, wind swept in. Nyx watched happily for Aria. For arcane seekers, devotion could forge arcane power and cleanse bad karma at crucial moments. Devotion as pure and intense as this was rare to find. Lettie seemed to see Aria as the only hope in her life. In a way, wasn't Aria a source of hope for them all? Just like its sisters, Nyx, too, was unwanted. Even their birth parents rejected them. After everything they did, th
Someone standing at the side reminded Amara, "Amara, she's made many people suffer. Why are you trying to provoke her? She's the true Carver heiress!" "That's exactly why we must handle her this way." Amara sneered once she was alone. "We might not match her in business, but she's naïve about how to deal with people. "Sure, I do want to please the Carvers. But she's treating me like an enemy. The Hendricks family may not be as wealthy as the Carvers, but we have connections. With Don's position, does she think she can just push us around?" "Money doesn't justify bullying." Amara smiled darkly. "She'll learn at the courthouse. She's just encouraging divorce over some texts. The judge won't grant it, especially with the mandatory reconciliation period." Indeed, it was not simple to get a divorce these days. With her legal studies, Aria knew this as well as Amara did. Her first move after leaving with Lettie was to find a comfortable café and call her brother Percy. "Yes, I hav
Having seen plenty in Southbury, Aria knew this world well. As the Nightshade Queen, she had frequented nightclubs for information. She would see drunk students outside, with some of them being heartbroken and confused. Others were picked up from campus. They were willingly accompanying executives and businessmen. There were many such cases at art schools. Some were just drinking, while others were desperately seeking to seduce someone else's husband. In those kinds of venues, one would see everything. All kinds of cars could often be seen at the campuses at night. People called modern life materialistic, and indeed it was. After seeing so much, Aria understood people's differences. And this had nothing to do with the level of education they had received at school. Morals would only constrain those with morals anyway. "I don't understand." Lettie frowned. "She's wealthy, and her parents are lawyers. Her future's bright. Why choose a married man?" Aria zoomed in on her phone
Aria's eyebrow arched. "That's her?" "Do you know her?" Lettie asked. Aria's eyes settled on a photo of the mistress in a traditional Krowonian outfit. Slowly, she said, "I've seen her posts before." "She's a cosplayer, right?" Lettie set down her milk. "At first, I was shocked too. I thought I was imagining things until she confronted me personally. That was when I confirmed that she's the one." Aria's eyes darkened. "Some people need harsher lessons." Lettie agreed, "I was too cautious before and not confident enough." "Lettie, I wasn't talking about you. I meant myself." Looking down, Aria's fingers flew across the keyboard while typing something. She had not expected one trip through the manifestation to change someone's personality. In the end, the selfish ones would remain selfish. But something caught her attention. The chosen ones in the manifestation might not be what she had thought. If each person there corresponded to those with vengefulness from the present
"A divorce trial is the quickest way there is." Aria scanned her phone. "I've seen your browser history. You've been researching divorce for a while. But you held back because people might gossip about Daisy for having to choose sides in court. "She doesn't understand you, but I do." Aria's smile was genuine. "You remind me of my mother. You're both remarkable women. "You'd never give up despite circumstances, nor would you pass negative values to your children. You'd fight for even the slimmest chance." Aria turned the laptop back to Lettie after preparing the content to post. "The choice is yours. You can keep this as leverage for more power in the Hendricks family or let them have a taste of what you've experienced." Lettie had never expected to regain control. She had thought Aria would judge her weak for not divorcing. But instead, Aria completely respected her choice. Lettie smiled and hit the spacebar. It was then posted on all platforms. "I don't want revenge. I just
Paxton received a call from Amara. Puzzled, he answered. Amara screeched, "Your ungrateful wife wants a divorce!" "Really? Did she say this herself?" Paxton was not stupid—something just felt off. Amara put her hand on her hip. "She's gotten bold and somehow managed to latch onto the Carvers! Not just divorce, she's claiming she wrote those novels too!" Alone at home, Amara dropped her usual façade. "Ridiculous! Everyone knows that's your work. This little tramp needs a lesson. Call her! "Stop asking me to play nice for appearances. Make her beg for my forgiveness on her knees. Paxton, you should see how arrogant she's gotten with that Carver girl backing her." Of everything said, only one thing caught Paxton's attention. "Carver girl? Isn't that the richest family in Janovin?" "Yes, Lettie's left with her." Amara fumed. "They showed me zero respect! You should just divorce her outright. Since you and Celestia are so good together, just let her give the Hendricks family a
"You'd handle it? You promised to confront her last month, but did you?" Celestia scrolled through her phone. "I'm an influencer with two million followers! What will happen to my job if people find out about my complicated love life?" Her eyes reddened. "My parents keep asking about this too. My family's well-off, and I'm an art school graduate. We could go back to my home if we don't want to stay in Janovin. But you still won't divorce her. What am I supposed to tell my parents?" Hearing that, Paxton pulled her close. "I know you've suffered a lot. Let's buy you another bag. It's not that I don't want to divorce. Something's odd here. Lettie's not the concern, but I don't want to offend the Carvers." Celestia dabbed her barely wet eyes. "The Carvers wouldn't care about things like this, would they? It's got nothing to do with them. But you're right to worry. Maybe you should ask around." "My thoughts exactly." Paxton's face hardened. "And the novel must be credited as mine. I
With Landon monitoring the stock market, Aria could walk right into Orion's trap. This way, Orion would let his guard down. When people felt confident, they invested more. Aria, well-versed in the stock market, understood this all too well. She had never intended to get rid of Lily. However, things were different this time. There was a limit to how much one could withstand another's viciousness. Aria doubted Lily could predict the market flawlessly—it was impossible, just as it was impossible for her to know everything.The logic was simple. If something fell outside one's area of expertise, even the most attentive observer would only grasp the outcome, not the details. Thinking it over, Aria realized Lily only knew about major events. The smaller ones seemed to escape her notice.If she put herself in Lily's shoes, it was like remembering which lottery would have a winner but not the exact numbers drawn.After all, no one knew when they would be reborn. The only way to acce
Malcolm did not know why Aria was asking, but he remembered the details clearly. "It was after that day." Aria tapped on the desk. "No wonder the Draycotts suddenly changed their market strategy. I get it now." What was she talking about? Before Malcolm could ask, Aria continued, "Some people are trying to cheat the system. Keep an eye on things, but stay safe. If anything happens, come to me first. "Like you said, they've got deep connections. Don't bother with the police—just keep the evidence." "Got it." Before hanging up, Malcolm asked, "Should we still watch the stock market?" Aria smirked. "Yes. They're not the only ones who can play dirty." Lily had probably been reborn too. But whatever Lily knew, Aria knew as well. She had never thought to use that knowledge this way before since it hadn't seemed necessary, but things were not the same now. If her dreams were real, then in her past life, Lily had only made it to Janovin. She had played the star medical student at
After being together all this time, Aria suddenly had a thought. Were she and Landon too distant from each other? No, "distant" was not quite the right word. It was more like they did not know each other well enough. Landon always felt just out of reach, like there was a fog between them. Simply put, he was not being straight with her. The thought left her feeling uneasy. Before she could say anything, her phone rang. It must be news about the Draycotts. It had to be something big for them to call so urgently. Aria glanced at the pair. Landon smiled. "If you have questions, Jett, feel free to talk with my manager, Ms. Virelle." Manager? Seraphina caught on quickly. "Mr. Grisham, shall we step outside?" Jett was still trying to process everything. "Wait." Balancing business and personal matters as usual, Aria held her phone up and said, "I heard Ms. Virelle used to work at the Draycotts' club. Let's have a chat later." Seraphina froze, glancing at Landon. Seeing his bl
Seraphina could not let her mind go there. Maybe she should've stayed in Netherrealm for a few more years. It was not so bad down there anyway. Landon barely spared her a glance, keeping his eyes on Jett with polite interest. "Won't you sit, Jett?"Sit? Jett could barely remember why he had come in the first place. Landon's voice snapped him back. "I... Mr. York, excuse me for asking, but what's your relationship with Ms. Virelle?""She works for me." Landon glanced at Seraphina. "Ms. Virelle? That's a new title."Jett stumbled over his words. "She works for you?""Yes," Landon said casually, like it was the most obvious thing. "Isn't it obvious?"Jett could not imagine the Yorks being in that kind of business. From Jett's expression alone, Landon could guess what kind of mess his people had made in Ludwiten. Since he had been dragged into it now, he figured he owed the Grishams an explanation. "I planted her in the Draycott family. The Yorks need a foothold in Ludwiten."So
Getting out of there wasn't going to be easy. Aria did not waste any time. She moved fast behind the suite divider, her laugh carrying a different note than usual. "What a shame."Landon's hand paused as he fixed her hair, his voice as smooth as ever. "I could have them leave.""Bad timing. My cousin's out there." Aria glanced at him, taking in that perfect collarbone of his. No wonder they used to call him the untouchable one, with all those socialites dying for just a smile.She had never given much thought to that kind of thing before. All those times working with patients, she had kept things strictly professional. But things felt different now, and she couldn't quite put her finger on why. Her gorgeous fiancé had a way of making her lose her head.Landon pulled his hand back while looking down. "We should meet with your cousin. I hear the Grishams like to evaluate their in-laws.""Huh?" That had not crossed her mind. He did not seem like someone who would care about app
Aria felt something wild coming off him. It was not hatred, but something close. She was too caught up to figure out what it was. She had never felt anything like this before; it was like she was floating. Her eyes were open, but she could not focus. Even his breathing felt like an invasion, starting at her ear and spreading through her whole body. When his fingers pressed into her waist, instinct made her try to push him away. That was a bad move—it only made things more intense. He lit her up like a match, heat spreading from her neck downward till she had to tilt her head back just to breathe. It reminded her of that hazy dream, the one in which she had been caught between sleep and waking, her pulse racing and her skin on fire. But it did not feel exactly the same because what she was feeling now was real. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught glimpses of the river through the massive windows. The view was blurry, but it was enough to remind her where she was. Unable t
Landon's warm lips brushed against Aria's. The touch was light as a feather yet utterly captivating. His kiss was so delicate it seemed to awaken every memory stored in her body. In that moment, Aria could swear she caught that same sandalwood scent from her dreams. Black mist and countless indiscernible inscriptions appeared, but he paid them no mind, gripping her waist as he whispered low in her ear. When he kissed her wrist without looking away from her face, his presence was impossible to ignore. His black leather gloves lay discarded to the side. To Aria, every place his hands touched felt like it was on fire. The sensation intensified when his fingertips traced the black mark on her neck. Something inside her screamed to take control, which made her grab his hand. He seemed to smile with his lips by her ear. "So, are you ready to pay the renewal fee?" Aria had never thought anyone could enchant her like this. But this was different. It felt just like seeing a fallen g
Landon asked, "You're getting water?" As his gaze drifted down to where Aria's hair fell, his voice turned rich and low. "Then why are your ears turning red?" Aria's hand froze mid-air. "It's hot in here." "What?" He raised an eyebrow. "It's only 70°F here." Aria wanted to tell him to stop talking so much. It was all because of what he had done in her dreams, making her imagination run wild now. Did he think having a handsome face meant he could do whatever he wanted? He even used all that binding stuff on her too. But she couldn't be sure it was even him. And even if it was, it must have been from a past life. As an arcane seeker, Aria knew what recurring dreams usually meant. But she had pushed those thoughts aside. A past life should not dictate their relationship in this one. At the very least, he wouldn't try anything like putting her in chains and locking her up now. That would be illegal. She would have him arrested and be done with it. Besides, her handsome fi
The atmosphere inside the room was totally different from the outside.Aria did sense the strange aura around Seraphina just now. Her beauty was otherworldly, almost supernatural. And there was something familiar about her presence—Aria felt she had encountered it before but couldn't remember where. Given how quickly Seraphina had withdrawn her hostility and turned gentle, Aria saw no point in making an issue of it. Besides, the way Landon was massaging her neck felt too good, making her mind feel hazy. As her blood flow slowed, she started to feel drowsy. The trio hiding in the copper coin did not dare show themselves; they were probably not even there. They had been especially quiet since arriving in Ludwiten, as if something here affected them. This was one of the things Aria wanted to investigate. The Wagners had used some unknown method to hide themselves after reaching Ludwiten. Even the Special Missions Unit failed to track them. All they had was that initial contact