Dora stared at Williams as though he had just uttered something obscene. Her lips parted only slightly, then pressed together again. "Have you lost your mind?" she asked at last. The question surely carried heat, but beneath it ran something colder–relief.Williams saw it instantly–the way her shoulders loosened, and how her feigned outrage arrived a second too late. "I'm very clear-headed, ma'am," he replied evenly. "Clearer than I've ever been." Isaac Amante, who had been standing quietly near the window, finally turned. He was a tall man with prematurely silvering hair–one that had the habitual expression of someone accustomed to being respected without effort. He studied Williams for a long moment, not with anger, but surprisingly with something closer to appraisal. As their eyes met, Williams almost shrugged his shoulders as he remembered how Isaac had watched Dora throw him out to die in the coming apocalypse."This isn't some kind of joke," Isaac said, eyes still fixed on

For a moment, the entire street seemed to fall silent. Snow drifted slowly through the cold night's air as Dora stared at the young man standing beside the car. "Williams..." she repeated, her voice trembling slightly. "Oh no. This can't be." The surrounding neighbours who were also outside gathered closer, whispering among themselves. "So it's him?" "Of course! That's Amante's adopted son." "Oh, it all makes sense now." Mr. Coleman chuckled with realization. "Well now! No wonder such a wealthy man bought the mansion right next to the door of the Amantes. Family ties remain family ties after all!" Several others nodded enthusiastically. "That's right. Even the wealthy don't forget their roots." "He surely came back to take care of the Amantes." One elderly neighbor turned to Dora with a smile. "You must be very proud, Dora Amante! Your son has returned incredibly successful." Another chimed in. "Well, why are you just standing there? Go welcome him already!" "Yes! Your b

Williams stood beneath the floodlights, the icy wind tugging at his coat. Vera remained clung to his arm, her fingers digging into his sleeve as though she could keep him from slipping away. Tears glistened in her eyes, and her lower lip trembled with carefully rehearsed desperation.“I’ve always loved you,” she whispered, loud enough for the nearby neighbors to hear. “Frederick forced me. You have to believe me.”A short distance away, Frederick pressed a hand to the red mark on his cheek, still too stunned to respond. Dora watched with undisguised fury, while Isaac remained at the edge of the crowd, his narrowed eyes quietly assessing the situation.Williams lowered his gaze to Vera’s hand. Without a word, he wrapped his fingers around her wrist and calmly removed it from his arm.His movements were measured and indifferent, as though her touch had become nothing more than an unwanted intrusion.“You made your choice,” he said calmly. “You left when I had nothing. So don’t expect me

Williams drove a vehicle equipped with winter tires and an independent heating system. Even with those precautions, the journey quickly became treacherous. Ice coated the asphalt, visibility dwindled beneath the swirling snow, and intersections were clogged with abandoned cars.At one corner, a delivery truck skidded sideways and slammed into a parked sedan with a deafening metallic crunch. The driver scrambled out through the passenger door, shouting in alarm, while two nearby pedestrians finally rushed forward to help.Williams tightened his grip on the steering wheel. The System’s interface pulsed again, reminding him that Elena’s condition was deteriorating. He pressed on, determined to reach her before it was too late.By the time he reached a narrow street lined with small shops, the road ahead was completely blocked. Vehicles stood bumper to bumper in both directions, leaving no room to maneuver.He pulled into the nearest sheltered gap, grabbed his pack, and stepped out into t