Shun POV:

[The Mission Log has been updated.]

[Mission: Reunion with Chloe Ravendawn

Difficulty: S

At long last, your paths cross once more, but in her hands is a child she claims to be yours. Talk with Chloe Ravendawn and find out the truth.

Reward: Verification.

Failure: ???]

The strength in my legs faded. Plan iterations flashed across my mind, yet the backlogged information drew a blank. I gripped the doorframe for support until a deep breath left my mouth.

There were three things wrong with this situation.

The first was The System mission itself. According to Mildred, Chloe had never slept with anyone else besides me. Chloe also verified this claim by admitting I was her first time, and the blood on the sheets confirmed that.

The second was the timing. Phoebe and I were a step away from confirming a serious relationship, yet Chloe appeared when I least wanted her to.

The third was the rape. I... A lot of it... was a jumbled blur, unable to be deciphered in a clear manner due to the stress I was under.

Involuntary twitches accompanied beads of sweat that formed on my forehead; they warned me not to go any further, and I listened. At the very least, I couldn’t remember it ever ending up inside of her.

‘...’

The wide smile etched onto Chloe’s face gave me clarity of mind; I had contradicted myself in my thought process. If I couldn’t remember the outcome, then there were only three possibilities: I never impregnated Chloe, I impregnated her, or...

Everything I experienced in that estate was the result of her ability. Wouldn’t that also explain why Cedric refused to understand my hatred toward Chloe and my desire to leave?

Don’t judge a book by its cover.

If Koli’s intentions were honest in Providence, then her words had a double meaning behind them. The first was to not trust anything at face value. The second was a hint about Chloe’s ability and the high likelihood of her own Cultivation Techniques being able to counter it.

However, Koli found amusement in my suffering and struggles; the way she introduced herself confirmed this. Then... it was more plausible to assume that this was another attempt to manipulate me.

In other words, I needed more information, so I opened my mouth and made a decision.

“5th Floor, Room 35...”

“Good choice, Shun.”

Chloe’s honeyed voice slipped into my ears. Every step she took forward magnified the tremors sprinting up and down my body. Once her feet stopped beside me, I... I knew it couldn’t have been an illusion... Right?

Seconds felt like minutes. Minutes felt like hours until Chloe broke the status quo with a single step forward. She left, but I remained.

The gentle breeze offered no comfort, so the moonlight took its place. Desperation illuminated the surrounding area. Anticipation increased the intensity, but what caused the light to cascade was happiness.

I let the door close, cutting off the connection it thought it had found. The walk back to the party felt never-ending. Deafening thumps eradicated the chatter and clash of glasses. It swallowed the reception until only the wooden floorboards in front could be seen.

The colour of the wood darkened. A slight gleam bounced the light away before carpet concealed some of its surface.

I raised my head to see Phoebe, Aiden, Gerard, and Katherine talking away as if I had never left. The party could go on without me; they always did before, with their meetings and dinners.

I was only a temporary member.

“Shun? Are you alright?”

Cold sweat ran down to my chin; I froze in front of the table, standing there for almost a minute before I took my time to sit down.

‘When... have I ever been alright since arriving in this damn... world?’

Hands rose to cover what was left of a face. Shoulders trembled, unable to carry the baggage of the past. Laboured breaths blurred a vision till it lost sight of the future.

‘...’

As the hands fell, so did my reality. I looked at each of their worried faces before parting my lips.

“I... need to tell you all something... The truth... about me...”

Tension separated the table from Yeongyeol. It wasn’t a secret that I had problems; the obsession—the necessity to improve caused that incident in the Arcane Dungeon.

“Take your time, Shun.”

Soft fingertips slipped past my defence. They pried open a trembling hand before interlocking in between the gaps. Phoebe’s vibrant amber eyes watered. Gerard and Aiden both lowered their gaze while Katherine blinked back the tears trying to escape.

They waited.

A mouth opened, but all it could convey was silence. A tongue moved in tandem with a jaw to form shapes, yet the words failed to travel past the four walls of my mind.

They watched water splash against the table; the darkness robbed of his voice once more. None of them spoke... I... I had to be the one to speak.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

“Phoebe... do you... remember the scenario I gave you about if a man approached you?”

“Yes...”

My gaze fell to the abyss below.

“I was that man.”

My eyes shifted back toward the party.

“And that woman was C-Chloe Ravendawn...”

Her name gripped the atmosphere by the throat. Her eyes stiffened the bodies at the table: a revelation that left even Katherine surprised at the... connection I had.

“But... I didn’t know... who she was. I... just tried to be confident. All I did was hold her by the waist and lift her chin up. That’s all it took for my world to change—for my life to be destroyed.”

The strength that seeped back into me came from the desire to rip her heart out, yet the scar ached. The memories flashed forward, swallowing the power I thought I had obtained.

“She made... soldiers beat me to death’s door for weeks. She... r... r...”

The tremors returned. They rushed into quakes, forcing my foot to tap against the carpet. It refused to listen to me, colliding with the surface at a faster rate as the seconds ticked by. Phoebe’s grip tightened; her support was why I could... go on.

“...She raped me every day... for 2 months... She forced... me to do... that... Powerless... No Ki... watch... her... have her way... with me... I laid there... as she peered... down at me... I tried... to kill myself... Several times... I wanted it... to end... But... she saved me.”

I stared at my hands, bound with chains.

“She fed me. She washed me. She healed me. She trapped me in a room. And then... she forced me to marry her... That... That was when... I was forced to take the lead... in our... intercourse... in order to poison her... and escape...”

I looked back into the faces of people I came to call friends.

“She broke me.”

Aiden’s dark blue eyes wobbled. Gerard’s tears spilt over, and Katherine’s light sobs somehow comforted everyone present. Phoebe... she stayed strong, despite the endless streams flowing down her cheeks.

“That... same woman... appeared... where I live... with... my... Daughter.”

I felt the dam burst inside of me. First, Koli. Now, this.

“On the night of the escape, I... made sure not to impregnate her. I-It’s not mine, right? I-I-I’m not a father, r-right??”

Silence answered me instead. When I wanted to hear those voices of reassurance, they were nowhere to be found.

“...Shun, I believe you should talk with her.”

I let my head fall. I didn’t want to talk to her. This was when they were supposed to tell me that the baby couldn’t be mine. They were supposed to give me hope, no matter how unlikely it was.

‘Damn it...’

But they were real friends.

“Shun.”

Phoebe’s hands caressed my cheeks before lifting my head toward her.

“I... We can raise your daughter together. You don’t need to be with Chloe Ravendawn.”

‘!’

An amber light tore through the darkness. Its vibrance overpowered the shadows until a flash of light awakened a scarred heart.

“Phoebe... Do you... understand... what you’re saying... right now...?”

The words croaked out of my mouth. She... would go that far for me? She would raise... a child that isn’t her own to be with me? Is this kindness real?

“I do, Shun.”

Phoebe’s lips spread into a sweet smile. Blood darkened her cheeks, but she refused to look away; she was confident I would understand the depth of her feelings.

I did.

I understood her.

My arms wrapped around Phoebe’s head and buried it deep into my shoulder. I held her as close as I could until her trembling hands pulled my arms down.

A chair slid across the carpet. A floral fragrance bloomed; its depth swiped the scenery away in rhythmic intervals. Each one increased the intimacy of the hug. Each one was accompanied with soft lips pressing against my neck, yet the tears continued to flow into her shoulder.

I cried for a long time.

Every tear reminded me of the torture I was put through, but the comfort I now had gave me the strength... to put it behind me.

“That baby... might not be mine.”

My hand rested against Phoebe’s cheek. Her eyelashes fluttered every time I stroked it. Once she gave me a nod, I got to my feet.

‘...’

Emotions stabilised once a hand ruffled black hair. Koli aside, the source of all my problems was her: Chloe Ravendawn.

“I’ll be back.”

I turned away from the party, unable to hide the irritation swirling inside of me. It spiralled into anger, then rage at how this sick woman still had a hold over me.

I pushed the door open when my feet came to a stop. I wanted to kill her. I wanted to make her suffer, yet the moment she raised her head to lock eyes with me, my... pace slowed.

I trudged forward.

Her lips curved into a smile that arched her eyes toward the ceiling. Chloe peered down at me from the bottom of the stairway till she shifted her gaze to the baby in her arms.

“That is your daughter, Shun.”

It echoed.

It bounced off the four walls and speared through my heart. She remained silent, but her voice assaulted me. She remained distant, but her eyes were always beside me.

Cold sweat drenched the Genuine Sentri attire. Muscles stiffened before squirming in all directions, begging me to turn around and run.

“Ugh...”

The mind resisted the body until it couldn’t. My eyes rolled into my head, taking me back to the void. The last thing I remembered was crashing against the ground, trembling in... pain.

***

A soft touch comforted me in the darkness. Fingers caressed my cheek with a warmth that rippled forward like a gentle wave. The blinds parted, and the hazy vision soon cleared.

‘!!!’

I smacked Chloe’s hand away and tripled the distance between us. Breaths forced their way past clenched teeth, but Chloe remained still. Her gaze fell to the hand I denied before swivelling back toward me. Fuchsia eyes almost seemed to glow with the rise of her cheeks.

“Shun, even for Ravendawns, having a child out of wedlock is an embarrassment. Furthermore, we never received the Family Head’s approval for our marriag—“

“I don’t care. All I want to do is ki...”

A baby appeared in her arms again. Chloe held the child close to her chest: an action that made my eyebrows curve upwards and my lips plummet to the floor.

[The Mission Log has been updated.]

[Mission: Bittersweet revenge, but at what cost?

Difficulty: A+

The die has been cast, and you have the power to choose what number it shall fall on. To kill or to save? To marry or to abandon? Make a choice, Shun Kurosawa.

Choice 1: Marry Chloe Ravendawn (Gain nobility + Wealth + Chloe’s Connections).

Choice 2: Deny Chloe’s marriage proposal and sentence her to death.]

‘...’

The System window stared at me. For once in its useless existence, it was on my side. The reason the difficulty wasn’t lower was due to the ‘Reunion with Chloe Ravendawn’ mission still being active. In other words, verification didn’t matter when I could just execute this sick psycho instead.

The corners of my mouth rose. Lips elongated over time until they touched the edges of my eyes.

Justice had arrived.

“You’re pathetic.”

I peered down at this small woman sitting on the bed. Chloe’s eyes widened; her smile was still present, but I would change that soon.

“I would rather die than marry trash like you.”

Her eyebrows quivered. Chloe’s mouth opened when a hysteric laugh silenced whatever words she wanted to say. The delight I felt in watching these chains brea—

[The Mission Log has been updated.]

[Mission: Bittersweet revenge, but at what cost?

Difficulty: S

You have chosen to deny the marriage proposal, so the die has been cast. However, time is needed for it to fall.

Outcome: Chloe Ravendawn and your daughter will die. Their carcasses will be fed to monsters in a public execution.]

‘...What?’

My heart sank to the pit of my stomach.

‘This... DAMN SYSTEM!!!!’

I collapsed against the door, unable to stand straight any longer. Koli knew from the beginning what the outcome was because she... saw it all happen.

“I know you’re overjoyed to see me again, my Shun. As urgent as this matter is, we have time to think things through.”

I raised my head to see Chloe peering down at me with a twisted smile. All I could do was look to the side and bite my trembling lip.

“...Get out. I need... some time alone.”

“Yes, Sweetheart.”

I got to my feet and moved away from the entrance. Her gaze never left me till the door closed shut. I sat on the bed, ignoring the tears that splashed against the floor.

“...This is my reality. I’m... a Father.”

I gripped my head with both hands and cried alone, locked away in a small room.