Chapter 1 1

Late at night, on the banks of the Royal Port city moat.

Ethan stood with his hands behind his back, watching the crashing waves. His deep eyes were filled with a chilling indifference, letting the cold wind strike his sharp-featured face like blades. He remained as motionless as a mountain.

Beside him stood an old man with a slight slouch, his eyes never leaving Ethan.

After a long silence, the old man sighed and spoke softly, "Young Master, your father had his reasons for abandoning you and your mother back then. In truth, he has been walking on thin ice within the family all these years. Now that he has become the acting head of the family, he wants to make amends to you both. Please, come back with me!"

"Reasons?!"

Ethan sneered, and suddenly he moved. The aura of anger radiating from him was so intense it seemed to make the cold wind veer away.

"For him, my mother didn't hesitate to be cast out of her family and gave birth to me out of wedlock. Meanwhile, for the sake of power, he refused to acknowledge her identity and abandoned his wife and son! Are these his 'reasons'?!"

"When my mother was on her deathbed calling his name, where was he? When I was scavenging trash to earn money for her treatment and accepted the humiliation of becoming a live-in son-in-law, where was he?!"

"He has reasons! Ask anyone in this world—who doesn't have reasons!"

Ethan’s words cracked through the night sky like peals of thunder. Arthur, the old man, trembled; he hadn't imagined that the resentment in the young man's heart ran so deep.

"Young Master, in fact, the Head of the Family has been missing you all these years. From the moment you were born until now, he has always been watching you!" Arthur tried to explain again.

"That’s right!" Ethan interrupted sharply. "Arthur, you are right. If there is anyone to thank, it is you. But for him, there is only hatred!"

He then shifted the topic abruptly. "By the way, it’s been two and a half years. Have you found any trace of my sister's whereabouts?"

Ethan’s sister was not his biological sister. She was a foundling his mother had picked up at the village entrance when Ethan was eight. Since then, the three of them had depended on each other, and Ethan’s bond with her was incredibly strong. However, at eighteen, she fell gravely ill and needed surgery. To raise the medical fees, Ethan had ended up signing a three-year contract to be Olivia’s live-in husband.

But on the night before the surgery, his sister mysteriously vanished from the hospital. For over two years, he had been searching for her without a single lead, as if she had evaporated into thin air.

"Young Master, there is no news yet, but I feel your sister is likely not dead; she is still alive," Arthur said quickly.

Ethan looked coldly at the river water and said faintly, "Even if I have to turn this world upside down, I will find her..."

"Young Master, rest assured, I will continue the search. For now, returning to the Vance family is more important. After all these years, your father truly cares about you. Besides, once you return, you will be the candidate for the next Head of the Family!"

He continued, "Furthermore, your current situation requires his help! You can't just be a useless live-in son-in-law for the rest of your life, can you?!"

Arthur’s words clearly provoked Ethan. A cold hum escaped his lips, and a sudden gust of wind swept past, making Arthur’s body shudder violently.

"Since you put it that way, then today, you shall bear witness!"

"What?!" Arthur’s old face paled as he stared at Ethan.

"To those who sired and raised me, I would give my life in return! To the one who sired me but never raised me... I sever my heart’s debt, and we owe each other nothing!"

As soon as he finished, a cold, bitter light flashed in Ethan’s eyes. He clenched his right fist and slammed it violently against his own chest, right over his heart.

"Young Master, don't!" Arthur cried out, lunging to grab Ethan’s hand.

POV: Ethan

I coughed up a large amount of blood, and my body collapsed weakly toward the ground. Although Arthur had caught my hand, he was half a step too late.

"Go back... go back and tell him that from now on, he and I owe each other nothing. The affairs of the Vance family have absolutely nothing to do with me!"

---

Arthur hurriedly carried Ethan toward a nearby car.

On the other side of town, Olivia was sitting in the living room chatting with her best friend. Suddenly, hearing the thunder outside, she frowned and said with annoyance, "That bastard Ethan, I don't know where he’s run off to. It’s this late and he’s still not back!"

"Olivia, if you ask me, a loser like him might as well be struck by lightning and die!" her friend Clara said.

Olivia gave Clara a look. "Clara, stop it. No matter how much I dislike or resent him, I don't wish for him to die."

Seeing Olivia like this, Clara frowned and looked at her suspiciously. "You haven't actually fallen for him, have you?"

"What are you saying?" Olivia denied it immediately. "You, of all people, know exactly what the deal is between us."

"That's for the best. Don't forget how much you've lost because you married him! I’m your best friend, and I won't let you end up with nothing because of some poor, useless kid!"

Suddenly, Olivia’s phone rang.

"Hello... your husband Ethan has been in an accident. He’s currently being resuscitated at Royal Port First Hospital..."

"Resuscitated?" Olivia jumped off the sofa in shock, startling Clara.

"Clara, drive me to the hospital, now!" Olivia shouted as she ran toward the door.

"What happened?" Clara asked, stunned.

"Something happened to Ethan..."

"Oh... I didn't actually call it, did I?" Clara exclaimed.

"Oh, stop talking and let’s go!"

Clara finally snapped out of it, grabbed her coat and bag, and followed. "That bastard really never gives you a moment of peace... I’m telling you, hurry up and divorce him. There are so many guys chasing you; any one of them is better than him."

Clara ranted while driving, but Olivia remained silent, her brow furrowed with deep tension.

At the hospital, Arthur had made the call to Olivia and was staring gloomily at the emergency room. Luckily, he had caught Ethan’s hand in time to sap some of the force; the young man’s heart was only slightly damaged. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

The old man called the Head of the Family. "Sir, the Young Master refused."

"What happened?" a deep voice came from the other end.

"He refused to return, and he even tried to destroy his own heart to sever ties. I couldn't stop him in time; his heart has sustained some damage."

The phone fell into silence. After a moment, a sigh came through. "Proceed with Plan B."

"Understood, Sir."

Arthur

edged, and hearing the hurried click of high heels in the hallway, he quickly vanished from the hospital.