The emergency room corridor echoed with hurried footsteps. A female doctor raced down the hallway, pushing a gurney alongside two men. Eric lay on top of it, his face covered in blood. His right arm was bent at an unnatural angle, his breathing was faint, and the monitor beside the gurney kept emitting sharp, urgent beeps. The two men were Dominic and Andreas. Dominic, Eric’s neighbor at the boarding house, had found him lying unconscious by the side of the road. He had immediately called Andreas, Eric’s only friend on campus. Seeing his friend in such a terrible condition, Andreas clenched his fists. Without hesitation, he took a picture of Eric and sent it to the faculty group chat. ‘To hell with all of you! I’ll make sure everyone involved in this ends up behind bars! You call yourselves college students, yet you ganged up on an innocent man and destroyed his life. You’re all trash! If anything happens to Eric, you’ll regret it!’ The group chat, which had been buzzing

Two days passed quickly.During that time, Eric’s hospital room was rarely without visitors.Students from his faculty came one after another to see him. Some brought fruit, while others stayed only a few minutes before leaving.But Eric knew not all of them were genuinely concerned about him.For most students at Astraea Vellora University, visiting a hospitalized classmate was merely a matter of social etiquette—and a way to protect their image. This was especially true now that Eric’s case had attracted public attention. Not visiting him could easily make others think poorly of them.Astraea Vellora University had long been known as a gathering place for children from elite families. Most of its students were the sons and daughters of tycoons, government officials, and owners of major corporations. They had grown up surrounded by luxury.Students like Eric were rare exceptions.The only reason he could stand among them as an equal was the full scholarship he had earned through his

The corners of both men’s mouths slowly lifted. There was no trace of surprise on their faces, as though they had been waiting for Eric to open his eyes all along. The younger man slowly shook his head. “Finally tired of pretending to be asleep?” Eric didn’t answer. His gaze shifted between the man and the elderly gentleman beside him. Silence returned to the room. The elderly man was the first to rise. “My name is Noah Brown. I’m seventy-two years old.” He then glanced to the side. “And this is Liam Baker.” Liam gave Eric a slight nod. “It’s good to finally meet you.” Eric responded with a small nod of his own. After several seconds, he repeated his earlier question. “Who exactly are you?” Noah didn’t answer immediately. He walked slowly toward the window and looked at the buildings outside. Reaching for the cane that had been resting beside his chair, he tapped its handle twice with his fingers. Only then did he turn around. “Are you hungry?” The question caught Eric

The moment Andreas’s name was mentioned, Eric stopped walking. His gaze dropped to the stone path beneath his feet. Meeting Noah, learning about his parents’ secrets, and discovering the existence of the Brown family had all happened so quickly that he had only now realized there were still two people he hadn’t contacted. Several seconds passed before a bitter smile appeared on his face. “You’re right… I haven’t told them anything.” He turned toward Xavia. “If it isn’t too much trouble, could you tell Andreas that I’m all right? I lost my phone at the hospital.” Hearing such a simple request, Xavia nodded. “No problem. I’ll let Andreas know.” Eric breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you.” They continued walking. A few steps later, Eric spoke again. “And thank you for everything you’ve done for me.” Xavia looked slightly surprised. “I don’t feel like I’ve done much.” “If it weren’t for you, I might have ended up in a much worse condition.” Xavia slowly shook her head. “I o

The more Eric connected the events, the clearer the answer became in his mind. The corner of his mouth slowly lifted. He raised his teacup and murmured inwardly, Grandpa… it seems you already made the first move. Their conversation continued until late afternoon. Just before Andreas and Dominic were about to leave, Robert arrived carrying several gift boxes that had been prepared for them. The two exchanged glances before accepting the gifts with delighted expressions. “If we receive gifts every time we visit, we’ll feel bad about coming here too often,” Andreas said with a laugh. Dominic immediately hugged his gift box tightly against his chest. “If you feel bad about it, then I’ll be the one who visits often.” All three of them burst out laughing. Before long, Andreas and Dominic said their goodbyes. After seeing them off at the front of the mansion, Eric went straight to Robert’s office. The middle-aged man immediately rose when he saw Eric enter. “Is there anything I