Chapter 3

Before?

That was when I chose to be a full-time housewife after marriage, supporting him wholeheartedly.

Every day, I'd wait at the door to greet him, cook for him, with three different meals each day.

At night, I'd smile innocently while we made love, acting coquettish at every opportunity.

But unfortunately, there was no going back.

Vivian clicked up the stairs in her high heels.

Before Airs could pull me into his arms, she wrapped herself around his arm.

"Airs, why don't you just drive us there?"

He nodded, and I consciously gave up the passenger seat.

As the scenery outside the window changed, my heart suddenly tightened.

This road... it led to the cemetery?

Before the car had fully stopped, I hurriedly opened the door and rushed out.

The tightly packed tombstones that used to be there had disappeared, replaced by crops covering the ground.

Workers in the distance were watering with hoses.

I stumbled forward, my throat hoarse and swollen with pain.

"Excuse me, wasn't this a cemetery?"

"Why does it look like this now? Where were the people who were buried here moved to?"

The man frowned in confusion, then his brow smoothed as he pointed to a small hill in the distance.

"This used to be a cemetery, but Alpha Airs surveyed the land and found it had good soil quality, so he used it to grow rare medicinal herbs."

A girl weeding nearby looked up, her eyes full of envy.

"That's right. I heard it's because Vivian's health isn't good, so Alpha Airs did this."

In the distance, Airs guiltily looked away.

Vivian's eyes crinkled with a smile as she kindly reminded me.

"Don't worry, I was afraid you wouldn't be able to find your parents' ashes, so I specifically had someone put them on top of the mountain."

My mind went completely blank, my legs heavy as lead.

I ran up the mountain without looking back.

But somehow it had started to pour.

The raindrops hit my body painfully. I collapsed to my knees in the mud, powerless.

Shattered stone tablets covered the entire mountain—I couldn't make out any of the blurred names.

Out of the corner of my eye, I suddenly glimpsed a character. I frantically clawed at the sharp broken stones.

Excruciating pain shot through all ten fingers, and every wound on my body burst open.

The bone-deep pain spread through my entire body. I cried until my voice was hoarse, my eyes blurred.

I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, Mom and Dad...

It's all my fault, all because I misjudged people...

The rain grew heavier, and thick fog rose in the mountains.

Airs's worried voice came from behind me.

"Sera, where are you?"

Vivian found me first, unable to hide the venom in her eyes.

Her sharp nails dug into my wounds as she viciously grabbed my throat and shook me.

"Sera, why the hell did you come back?"

"If you just died, Airs would mark me, make me the new Luna, and I'd be all he sees, all he thinks about!"

I couldn't breathe as Vivian dragged me like a dead dog to the edge of a slope.

Suddenly, I saw Airs. He hadn't seen me yet—he was still calling my name while anxiously searching for me.

In my field of vision, Airs drew closer and closer.

Vivian leaned close to my ear and whispered provocatively.

"Sera, guess who he'll choose this time?"

Before I could react, Vivian held me tight and rolled down the slope.

She pinned me down, flipping over to use me as a human cushion as we landed.

The countless wounds the witch's potion had created instantly burst open and bled again, agonizing pain spreading throughout my entire body.

The taste of blood surged into my throat.

As my consciousness grew hazy, I saw Airs tenderly gather Vivian into his arms.

He gently wiped the dirt from her body as if caring for a child.

Just like before, when the Rogues attacked, he still chose Vivian without hesitation.

And I was forgotten by him, besieged by Rogues, nearly crippled.