เข้าสู่ระบบDamien realized he had put too much pressure on Ethan's wound and quickly pulled his hand back. His brows furrowed with deep concern. "Sorry. Are you okay?"It was Ethan's turn to be completely stunned. In fact, the sudden shock of hearing the terrifying billionaire actually apologize to him made him forget all about the physical pain.Damien snapped him out of his daze, asking, "Does it still hurt?"Ethan nodded absentmindedly, still processing the apology. Seeing the nod, Damien withdrew his hand fully and went to stand up. "I'll call someone else to treat it."Before he could step away, Ethan quickly grabbed his hand. "No, wait! I meant it doesn't hurt. It's okay, you can continue."Damien paused, looking at Ethan with a confused expression. As usual, though, he didn't demand an explanation. He simply returned to work, cleaning the wound with immense gentleness this time before preparing the fresh bandage.To wrap the gauze properly around Ethan's torso, Damien had to lift him slig
Ethan's eyes widened as he realized exactly what Damien was asking. Finding it hard to believe, he stammered, "Wait, you mean I should call you by your first name?"Damien wanted to roll his eyes at how long it took Ethan to process the request, but he maintained his patience and nodded. "Yes. Is there something wrong with that?""Ah, no, nothing is wrong," Ethan replied, looking worried. "But aren't people going to suspect our relationship if I just call you by your first name?"Damien’s brow relaxed, and a slow smirk crept onto his face. "What relationship?"Ethan quickly looked away, unable to hold Damien's intense gaze. He gestured vaguely with his hands, his voice dropping. "I... I don't know."Damien chuckled softly at Ethan's flustered reaction. He didn't know why, but Ethan always managed to amuse him, even with the smallest gestures.Feeling embarrassed that he was being laughed at, Ethan muttered defensively, "Stop laughing."The laughter stopped instantly. Damien's expressi
Damien stood there, hands akimbo, completely clueless about what to do. People rarely cried in front of him.Ethan sat on the edge of the bed staring out the window, his back turned to Damien. He didn't hear Damien walk up to him, but suddenly, he felt a small, awkward, continuous patting on his shoulder. It was accompanied by a deep, stiff voice that was clearly trying its best to sound comforting: "Don't cry. It's okay."In reality, Ethan had stopped crying a while ago. In fact, it couldn't even really be called crying—a single tear had just slipped from his eyes because he was emotionally overwhelmed by the series of tragic events he had gone through. With no one to talk to about his feelings, the emotions had simply boiled over.He certainly hadn't expected his momentary vulnerability to evoke a sudden "mother hen" instinct in Damien. The way the powerful commander was stiffly patting his shoulder was hilarious, like a mother hen trying to comfort a chick.It was so funny that Eth
Ethan was practically pressed flat against the headboard, his hands raised protectively in front of his face as he stared at the gleaming silver blades in Damien’s hand. He was breathing heavily, his chest heaving painfully beneath his loosened shirt.Damien stood frozen by the side of the bed, the medical scissors still held mid-air. He looked at Ethan, then down at the scissors, and then back at Ethan’s terrified face. A heavy, awkward silence stretched over the room.Slowly, Damien lowered his hand, placing the scissors back into the open first-aid kit on the nightstand. He let out a long, slow sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose in sheer frustration."I am not going to kill you, you idiot," Damien said, his voice flat and thoroughly unamused. "It was sarcasm."Ethan kept his arms up, his eyes darting suspiciously toward the nightstand. "Sarcasm? Who jokes about murder with a straight face while holding sharp scissors?""I do," Damien replied coldly, adjusting the cuffs of his fr
Elijah led Ethan back toward the manor, exactly as Damien had instructed. As they walked, Elijah tried to lighten the mood. "He really beat you up good. At least you won't have the energy to call me old anymore," he joked.But Ethan couldn't even manage a comeback. He was completely drained, dizzy, and a pounding migraine was blooming behind his eyes. Seeing Ethan too weak to trade insults like he usually did, Elijah let out a worried sigh.They finally reached the Blackwood manor and stepped inside. However, the moment they tried to head upstairs, Elijah ran into trouble. Ethan was too weak to even lift his legs to clear the steps, resting his entire dead weight against Elijah. There was no way Elijah could pull him up the staircase like this.Griting his teeth, Elijah struggled to keep them both balanced. "Come on, raise your leg a bit higher," he urged.Ethan tried, but his body simply wouldn't listen."I'll take it from here."The deep voice cut through the stairwell. Damien had j
Lync scrambled backward on the mats, his hands trembling as he stared up at the man who had just launched him across the room. "Senior... Senior Commander Damien? You're here?"Damien didn't answer immediately. He stood with his hands loosely in his pockets, his posture relaxed, yet the air in the arena suddenly felt suffocating. His dark eyes locked onto Lync, filled with a freezing, dangerous mix of disappointment and anger. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Ethan's badly injured state."You are abusing your power, Lync," Damien said, his voice smooth, low, and dangerously calm.Lync gulped, quickly trying to defend himself. "No, sir! I am doing exactly what you taught me. I am teaching him. A Blackwood soldier must learn through blood."Damien tilted his head, a ghost of a mocking smile on his lips. "Oh, really? In that case... get up." He smiled coldly as he stepped back, removing his tactical jacket and throwing it to the ground. "Let's battle. Come teach me."Lync’s fac
Ethan heard Stephen's voice behind him the very voice he had been trying to avoid.Then he turned back."I knew it!" Stephen exclaimed, his face lighting up with polished warmth. "I knew I’d recognize that golden hair anywhere."The hair again, Ethan thought bitterly. First thing tomorrow, I’m dyin
Damien got into the car, aware that Ethan was behind him. Earlier, he had spoken with Elijah and made it clear that Ethan was to be taken elsewhere after the press conference, Damien had other matters to attend to. When Elijah relayed this to Ethan, Damien caught the flicker of disappointment on hi
The interior of the SUV was a silent vault, but inside, Ethan was a storm. His palms were slick against the fabric of his school trousers, and his heart felt like a trapped bird beating against his ribs. He had been informed that he was going to the press conference."Don’t say anything irrational,
The car glided toward a towering structure of glass and chrome that seemed to pierce the very clouds. Sky Mall.It wasn't an ordinary shopping center; it was a shopping mall where the rich shopped, a place where the air itself smelled of expensive perfume and old money. Ethan stared out the window,







