That voice. The sa deep tone that had once made her heart flutter now made her chest tighten painfully.
A mont later, Ryan appeared behind the blonde woman, a towel slung around his neck and his hair damp, as if he had just taken a shower. The mont his gaze landed on Ophelia, his expression twisted from surprise to irritation.
"Oh. It’s you," he said flatly.
Ophelia’s breath hitched. "Ryan... what is this? Who is she?"
Ryan sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as if the sight of her was nothing but an inconvenience. "You heard her. She’s my wife."
"What? But... but weren’t you assigned by my mother to complete a task in order to get married to ?" Ophelia questioned in a trembling voice. Even under the strong sunlight, she felt her body turn cold.
"Eh? Oh, that... she did. She asked to arrange a dowry of 1000 kg of rice. Do you know how much that is? At first, I thought of accumulating it, but as ti passed, I realized how unrealistic the situation was. Not to ntion, you looked fine without , so I figured you would forget soon."
The utter nonchalance on his face and the smirk on his face made Ophelia’s blood boil while her hands and feet turned cold.
"You... how can you... Don’t you feel even a hint of remorse? I was waiting for you!" Ophelia shouted and was about to slap Ryan when Ryan’s wife interrupted her and gripped Ophelia’s hand.
"Whoa! Woah! Calm the fuck down, Ophelia! If you truly loved him so much, you could have begged your mother or even run away from your ho for him, but what did you do? You stayed on the sideline and watched everything like a bystander!"
Ophelia froze, her raised hand trembling midair as the blonde woman’s grip tightened. The mocking gleam in the woman’s black eyes sent a chill through her veins.
"I agree with her!" Ryan grinned.
"See?" the woman sneered.
"You talk about love, but you never fought for it. You just waited for him like so pampered princess expecting the world to bow at your feet."
Ryan chuckled lowly, his tone dripping with disdain. "Now leave before I lose my patience!"
"I am pregnant with your child!" Ophelia blurted out in a hurry.
Ryan’s smirk faltered. His hand, which had been resting lazily on his hip, froze midair. The playful mockery in his eyes vanished, replaced by sothing colder.
The blonde woman blinked, her confident smile wavering for the first ti. "What... did you just say?"
Ophelia’s knees nearly buckled under their gazes, but she stood her ground, clutching the hem of her dress tightly.
"You heard . I’m carrying your child, Ryan. You can deny everything else, but not this."
A heavy silence hung between them, so sharp that even the sound of distant birds felt muted.
Then Ryan scoffed, a bitter, humorless sound. "You’re lying."
"I’m not!" Ophelia’s voice cracked, her eyes brimming with tears. "You think I’d humiliate myself by coming here, by saying this in front of her, if it wasn’t true?"
The blonde woman stepped closer, crossing her arms.
"Even if it is true... what do you expect from him? To abandon and run back to you?" Her voice dripped with venom, but her eyes betrayed a flicker of insecurity.
Ophelia looked directly at Ryan, her trembling replaced by quiet fury. "I don’t expect anything. I just thought you deserved to know before I disappear for good."
Ryan’s jaw tightened. "Disappear?"
"Yes." Her voice was soft now, almost like a whisper.
"You’ve already made your choice, Ryan. I won’t beg for a place in your life. I’ll raise this child on my own, away from you, away from all this."
For a brief second, sothing flickered in Ryan’s eyes, guilt, or perhaps fear, but it vanished just as quickly. He turned away, refusing to look at her.
"Do whatever you want," he muttered coldly. "It’s not my problem anymore."
The words sliced through Ophelia’s heart like glass. She felt her breath hitch, her vision blur, but she forced a small, broken smile.
"Right," she whispered. "I understand... I will leave then."
Watching her shrinking figure, Ryan’s heart trembled while he heard the woman say, "Do you want to tell her the truth?"
There was pity in her eyes as she looked at Ryan.
"No." Ryan sighed softly, "It’s better if she forgets . With this strange illness... I will soon transform into a zombie... It’s better if she forgets as a bitter mory."
"But cousin..." the woman began; however, Ryan just shook his head and said, "Don’t. It took a lot of strength to return to this place, and when I got to know that Ophelia was going to arrive... I kind of wanted to see her for the last ti..."
"Then your child..." The woman sounded concerned.
Ryan’s eyes turned bloodshot red as he closed the door and murmured, "I wish I could see him or her before I... transform into a zombie completely..."
The woman’s eyes softened as she watched Ryan’s trembling hands. He pressed his palms against the door, his shoulders hunched as though the weight of the world rested on him.
"Ryan..." she whispered, but he didn’t look back.
Tears pooled in Ryan’s eyes, and he sobbed uncontrollably. "My Ophelia... my child... sister, please take care of them after I leave."
Feeling his heart breaking apart and a lump in his throat, Ryan closed his eyes in dismay.
"I will try." The woman closed her eyes in dismay.
"Thank you, and if possible, help her move on, alright?" Ryan gave an ugly smile. The reality was... a part of him selfishly wished Ophelia wouldn’t move on.
"Brother, I can’t... originally, you could have lived a good life inside the base due to your water superpower. But it was because of her mother’s task that you had to leave and get bitten by a strange animal. Now you are neither human nor zombie!"
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