"Ahem!" Francine had entered the room and witnessed the scene before her, and her face was black as thunder. Behind her was the caretaker that she had personally picked out for Stefan.Seraphina was mad that the happy atmosphere had been interrupted, so she was about to give the intruder a piece of her mind. However, when she angrily turned around, she was pinned by Francine's sharp gaze. She jerked away from Stefan immediately and stammered, "M-Madam Francine, why are you here?"She had been feeling guilty ever since she and Jovan had secretly bribed the neurosurgeon to give Stefan that brain surgery. She'd also been feeling paranoid and suspicious of everyone."My son is in a hospital bed, and you ask me, his mother, why I'm here?" Francine demanded, her voice tight with anger. She didn't like how Seraphina had been going about this, so she started lecturing her. "You certainly have your ways, don't you? You hid the fact that my son was injured for a whole week. Do you know that
Layla expertly placed her slender fingers on Stefan's wrist, checking his pulse. After a few seconds, her delicate features wrinkled in concentration."What's wrong? Is my son's condition serious?" Francine stood beside her, feeling worried seeing Layla's expression.After around a minute, Layla finally moved her hand away, and gave a long sigh. "Mr. Hunt's pulse is very chaotic, it was weak yet as fast as a rushing river. It seems like a typical case of cerebral hemorrhage. It's like it has recently been damaged or been through trauma. The situation is dire.""Th… The brain has been damaged?" Francine looked at Stefan with a heavy heart, unable to process what her darling son had gone through.Overwhelmed with guilt, Seraphina snarled at Layla, "You immature child! How dare you say such things when medical experts just reported that Stef's body was in stable condition? Why are you scaring us with all this talk of cerebral hemorrhage? Are you cursing him?"Despite looking young, L
Layla's eyes were bright with excitement, and she was beaming as if she had just found treasure. "Whoever this is, they really are extremely skilled in their craft, even more so than my father. Where is this person? Could you please introduce me to them, Ms. Murphy?""T-This can't be…" Seraphina gulped nervously, not expecting the situation to turn out like this. 'Renee, you sneaky witch… She said she wanted to help improve our relationship, and then left us with a miraculous recipe! She just left without taking any credit!'"How could it be impossible? It must be because of the kindness that Mr. Hunt has shown people throughout his life, which means that he must have met someone who was fated to help him now. Truly, as long as Mr. Hunt drinks this medicinal tea three times, he will recover and become as healthy as a horse." Layla's eyes sparkled, as if the instructions were out of this world.Francine's expression softened, and she flashed Seraphina an appreciative smile. "Looks li
Francine's words nearly scared Seraphina to death. She gulped, trying to explain herself right away. "I-It's not like that, Madam Francine! It's just that the person who gave me this recipe has a… special identity. I don't think she should be near Stef at all…""Really?" Francine asked doubtfully. She wondered, 'The person wants to save Stef, but can't go near him. Isn't that just a contradictory statement?'Seraphina sighed deeply and glanced at Stefan. She then leaned closer to Francine and whispered the truth to her.The mother instantly understood, balling her fists as a conflicted expression appeared on her face. Finally, she said, "Whatever, this recipe came from unknown origins, so we shouldn't put too much effort into looking for that person. If that expert was just trying to reel us in with something good, then betray us later, we'd be in trouble.""You're right, Madam Francine. I was worried that this person might plot against us, so I didn't dare to use the medicinal tea
Stefan frowned deeply. He was slowly feeling more and more certain that he had lost some of his memories, especially those related to his 'afterlife buddy'.Seraphina turned pale, a wave of fear consuming her. "N-No. You just need to remember who I am."Outside the ward, Francine paced about, looking extremely upset. Layla nervously asked, "Madam, are you worried about something?""What do you think? Just look at what my son suddenly became! How could I not be worried?" Francine seemed to be rather disturbed, snapping at anyone she encountered. She rambled on as she stared at Layla. "Did you not notice how weird my son's condition was?""You're right, especially his brain. It seems as though it had taken quite a serious injury. If it's possible, I'd really recommend getting a second opinion and a full body checkup.""Yeah, you think something's wrong with his brain too, huh? I suspect…" Francine paused, scanning her surroundings nervously."What do you suspect?" Layla started
In the middle of the night, a black luxury car drove fast across the winding mountain roads, as if it were a phantom. It seemed to be heading towards the deepest corners of the forest.Renee was holding the steering wheel with one hand, drifting through a 90 degree curve perfectly with ease.She then looked at the rear view mirror, staring at the man laying in the back of her car. He seemed to be heavily affected by the sedative, remaining fast asleep despite the speed and bumps throughout their ride.'Tsk, tsk, Francine sure is cruel. How could she give her son such heavy drugs? Isn't she afraid that it might affect his brain?' Renee thought to herself, then called the dean of Greenwood Sanatorium, Sebastian Walker. "Mr. Walker, I'm almost there. Sorry for the trouble, we might occupy the sanatorium for quite a while."Sebastian, who was on the other end of the line, was warm and friendly. "Hey Ren, why are you being so polite with your old Uncle Walker? I was best friends with
However, Margaret never would have expected everything to turn out so smoothly, with so many coincidences on their side. 'I guess it's their destiny. The gods knew that they still had unresolved fate with each other, and forced the two together in their own mysterious ways.'Sebastian chimed in warmly. "Ren, I heard about your situation from Margaret, and rest assured that the sanatorium will provide everything you need to help Mr. Hunt recover as soon as possible.""Thank you! Thank you so much!" Renee was so touched that she teared up, and bowed to everyone deeply."It's getting late, so why don't you and Mr. Hunt go get some rest for now? We have arranged the west wing suite for you—it has the coziest environment we can provide. Not only can you cook, rest, read freely, you can even take a hot bath under the beautiful night sky while listening to streams of water gushing gently. It is truly a place for relaxation." The vice dean, also known as Sebastian's wife, Yulia Norris, intr
"Dang, your face is smooth as usual. How can you have better skin than most women? I'm honestly impressed!" Renee murmured appreciatively as she touched the man's face.Stefan normally would act like a ferocious beast, refusing to allow anyone into his heart. Yet now, he just seemed like a tame little kitten, and wouldn't fight back no matter how she caressed him.Just as she was getting addicted to it, Stefan suddenly opened his eyes and jumped up, pinning Renee under him in the blink of an eye.His long, slender fingers wrapped around the woman's neck harshly. As he continued tightening his grip, he growled, "I'm a weakling to you, huh? And you could just shove me into a bag after knocking me out, huh?! You damned woman, how dare you?!""You…!" Renee coughed and choked. Her lovely neck looked rather fragile, as if one could snap it if they used just a little force.The man was using so much of his strength that it was starting to suffocate her. Her face was flushing dark red, an
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt
"I…" Renee paused. For a moment, she had no idea how to answer that question."Don't put yourself in a difficult position. Just follow your heart," Justin said calmly. "If you want to stay, my family will still welcome you readily. If you want to leave, I'll come up with a way to help you leave smoothly."After listening to Justin, Renee answered honestly, "Maybe it's better for me to leave, though I know this choice will hurt you."She could choose to stay to protect Justin's dignity and give Austin a good explanation. It would be more relaxing and steadier for her. However, Renee knew that it could only last briefly. She would cause Justin greater harm. She might as well be decisive and stop the damage in time. "Don't say that." Justin cracked a bitter smile and said with relief, "I've stopped taking things too seriously. If you like me, you won't stop loving me even if we're apart. Similarly, you'll think about another man if you don't like me, even though you're always b
Austin was having breakfast in the dining room. When he saw Justin and Renee walk over intimately, he finally believed that they had slept together. They seemed like a real couple."Good morning, Grandpa Baldwin!" Renee obediently greeted Austin just like before. She acted normally."Good morning." Austin nodded, unable to suppress his smile. After sizing them up, he calmly said to Renee, "We know how apologetic you are after you toasted to us last night. We'll forget about the past. You're still a part of my family." "Grandpa!" Justin interrupted Austin; he was very protective of Renee. "She's a woman, and we're not married yet. Please don't say that. A woman's reputation is the most important thing.""You…" Austin wanted to refute Justin, but their conflict was just resolved so it would be bad to pressure them more. He shook his head and said, "Fine. You two always have a bland romance. Finally, you've made some progress. I'll let you two decide what to do next.""Got it, Gr
"Hey, Haze! What are you doing? Get off of me!" Renee struggled in confusion."Hush!" Justin gestured and stopped her.In a while, someone unlocked the door of the room."Mr. Baldwin, let me help you and Ms. Everheart change your clothes." A kind middle-aged woman walked into the room casually. When she found them sleeping together intimately, relief washed over her. "Oh, you guys are still sleeping… Fine, I'll leave you be." Then, the woman exited the room.After that, Justin stopped hovering above Renee, looking awkward. "I'm sorry. It happened all of a sudden. If I hadn't done that, they wouldn't let us go. I just did a small thing to resolve the issue." Justin was fully aware of Austin's thoughts. Although Austin was still angry at Renee, he was satisfied with her and wanted to see her get into a real intimate relationship with Justin. If that did not happen, Austin might tie them up together since the drug had failed. Justin could only act with Renee to avoid the in
Renee grinned, satisfied after a long rest. "Why didn't you sleep a bit longer? This bed is comfortable and fluffy." While talking, she behaved like a fish as she extended her limbs and rolled around in bed childishly. In comparison to her calmness and ease, Justin behaved gingerly and did not dare to move as he lay in bed."Do you have any idea what had happened? We aren't dreaming. We're lying in the same bed," Justin said.He was certain that Renee was not fully awake. It explained why she was that composed. Otherwise, any normal woman would get out of bed with a start and keep screaming if they found herself lying in a man's bed."I know!" Renee said. After having a great time rolling around, Renee faced Justin with her head on her arm while lying on her side. "I wanted to drink wine to say sorry to you guys last night, but your family drugged the wine. You drank the same wine when you tried to stop me. We were controlled by the drug and were locked up in this room. T
Renee instantly understood what Justin meant by that. It turned out that the incident was just a part of the Baldwin family's plan. If she left, the Baldwin family would not easily let her off the hook.Justin still cared about her at a time like that, which moved her. "Thank you. You're great." Renee cried; she had no idea how to repay him. "You don't have to thank me. I'm not so great, either. I just hate that they always pester me." Justin purposely sounded relaxed. He finally calmed himself down as he casually grabbed some bandages to bandage his wound. Then, he lay in bed.He slept on one side of the bed and said to Renee, "It's late. You should rest early. This bed is large enough. If you don't mind, you can lie in bed too."The bed was large. It was more than enough even if Renee and Justin lay there."I…" Renee hesitated briefly before she finally got in bed. She trusted Justin. If he wanted to do something indecent to her, he would have long done that. He would no
"I don't know how to tell you. I'm sure you can understand." Renee could not bring herself to say more because it was a humiliating privacy. She might as well keep it to herself."Let me guess…" Justin's gaze grew sharp as he went straight to the point. "The man in your story is Stefan, isn't it?" Silence washed over Renee as she kept her head bowed. It was a silent approval.Justin burst into reckless laughter, which was scary. He looked down at his cut wound and laughed pathetically. "This is why he could make you fall in love with him, and I couldn't. I'm too cultured compared to him.""Don't say that, Haze!"Seeing how defeated Justin was, Renee became uneasy. "It isn't written in the stars for us. Plus, I've fallen in love with Stefan a long time ago before I even got to know you. I also rely on him physically and psychologically. I can't control my feelings. It's not something we can change. We…" "Stop!" Heartbroken, Justin pushed away everything in front of him and s