I was afraid. I was worried that I really had drugged Julianne and would be found guilty. I was also fearful of disappointing Mr. Holland once again.I was so, so afraid.Mr. Holland seemed to have sensed my fear. He gently patted my shoulder, then said, "Don't be afraid, Emilia. I've called in some favors for you! I won't let you be wrongfully accused. You'll be out of here in no time!"His comforting words merely intensified my fears. "But, Mr. Holland, what if… what if I really did do it?""Impossible!" he instantly replied. "I've never met anyone who was a better person than you! There's no way you could have done it, so don't worry!"A lot of time had passed since I had lost my memory. Even so, I had never once been worried. In fact, I was even glad it had happened as I didn't remember that scumbag, Irvin. Yet now, I was panicking because I was unable to recall anything."But, Mr. Holland, it really was me in the video. And I can't recall what I was doing at the time, no mat
These big shots were professors in the law departments of top universities. It could be said everyone in the current legal field had once been their student. No, it wasn't just the legal field. It was likely they had also taught people in other law-related professions. Some of their former students were probably elites in their field.Hence, it likely wasn't an exaggeration to say there wasn't a case they couldn't solve."That's right. There's nothing to worry about." The last big shot reassured me. His name was Jesse Pearson. "Tell us everything. You can trust us. We believe you're innocent."I lowered my head as my tears flowed uncontrollably. No one had ever had such faith in me.I had always been the target of suspicion ever since Julianne entered my life. It didn't matter what happened between us. No one had ever believed me.My family and my beloved husband all treated me the same way. They never asked me or gave me the chance to explain myself. They just assumed I was gui
"Please, Emi." Irvin pleaded. "You're mentally ill. The reason you're certain you're innocent is because you can't remember doing it…""I am not mentally ill!" I argued back. "Just because there's a medical record with my name on it that says so doesn't mean it's actually true. Take a step back and look closely at the incidents and evidence in the file. Once you do, you'll see that a lot of things don't add up."Irvin had left the medical record behind. After Mr. Holland and the legal big shots had left, I had taken a closer look. I kept going over the unthinkable incidents in the record and every piece of evidence attached.I started to see holes in the information presented after thinking it through. Perhaps it was because I was much more level-headed.Not only had I never drugged Julianne, but I also probably never did anything that was mentioned in the medical record. Similar to Julianne's drugging case, the evidence attached must have been carefully fabricated. That was why I
Irvin's eyes narrowed. "Why is Mr. Walker here with you, Lianne? Are you two close?"Travis broke into a cold sweat at Irvin's questioning. His body began trembling against his will.But Julianne—being who she was—quickly regained her composure."Irvin…" she cried as she rushed toward him.She had called him in this manner numerous times since they were young. Perhaps it was due to recent events, but before the video came to light, it had never bothered him. However, now, it did.Hearing it made him uncomfortable, let alone holding Julianne, who had thrown herself at him. Still, he didn't avoid her completely because he knew how frail she was. Instead, he sidestepped her and gripped her arm.The look in her eyes changed when she saw him avoiding her.Before she could say anything, Irvin asked again, "Why are you here, Mr. Walker? Are you two close?"Julianne and Travis usually didn't act familiar with each other. Yet, he was in her home. She had even lost her composure in front
Irvin understood how Julianne felt. Even so, he couldn't reciprocate her romantic feelings."It doesn't matter how much you hate her, Lianne. You can't do something like this," he scolded her. "You know I've only ever loved you like a sister. It doesn't matter what Emi did. We will never be together regardless. Don't hate her even more over this, okay?"Julianne's birth mother was the Sawyers' housekeeper, Diana Sinclair.After Irvin's mother—Lizzie Windsor—gave birth to him, her body became frail. She had been too weak to raise him. Thus, Diana had practically raised him on her own.Diana had raised both Irvin and Julianne. As such, they had done everything together from a young age. So naturally, they had formed a deep bond.For Irvin, Julianne was like his own younger sister. Hence, he trusted her intrinsically and had always been indulgent toward her. It was to the point where he would always look at things from her perspective. When he found out she was behind Emilia's b
Mr. Holland seemed to read my mind."Put away thoughts about your love life from now on," he said as he gently patted my shoulder. "Focus on your studies and research and become someone useful to society and the nation. That's the best way to repay me."I didn't know what to say. More tears welled up in my eyes."You were feeling hopeless and afraid, weren't you?" Mr. Holland continued. "Although you believed in your innocence, you thought this couldn't possibly be solved so quickly. You were even prepared to spend time in prison. Am I right?"I wasn't sure why he was suddenly asking me all this. But I nodded in agreement and replied, "Yes.""You thought that way because you had given up on yourself to support Irvin. This left you with no support and no connections." He pointed out."If you hadn't given up on your studies back then, you would have become an indispensable person in your field," he said with such conviction. "No one would have been able to bring you down so easily.
Dad did so to stop Mom from confronting me. According to the fake medical record, I would keep forgetting anything that I had done to Julianne. Therefore, when the drugging video was released, she simply believed I had done it.Because of this, her hatred for me grew despite the fact that I was her own flesh and blood.As for Julianne, she had accidentally discovered that Phillip didn't intend for Irvin to inherit the family business. He also wanted to disown Irvin. Coincidentally, Irvin just happened to be pursuing the person she despised most—me.Because of this, she decided to become the new Mrs. Sawyer. She intended to give birth to a new heir so that she could take over the Sawyer family. She would also make Irvin regret his choice in the process.Thus, she slept with Phillip. She thought he had lusted after her for a long time. Plus, she was also much younger than him. Hence, she was sure he would be in the palm of her hand.However, things went against her expectations. Phi
Irvin's gaze met mine. He looked as though he was in emotional turmoil. It was possible that even he didn't know how to describe what he was feeling at that moment.After all, he had always resolutely believed I had harmed Julianne out of sheer maliciousness. And now, he was experiencing a rude awakening.He also looked like he hadn't rested much these past few days. His eyes were dull and bloodshot. He also didn't look as dashing or energetic as he usually was.The old me would probably be heartbroken at this sight. Unfortunately, I was no longer that person. I didn't feel anything for him. In fact, I thought Irvin owed me an apology.He had marched up to me as this thought came to mind.Gripping my arm, he asked, "There has to be some sort of misunderstanding. Right, Emi?"I couldn't help laughing when I heard his question. I pitied my former self.When Julianne accused me of drugging her, he immediately believed her. When she said I was the reason Phillip had assaulted her, I
These prominent scholars might be able to speak eloquently during academic discussions, but they weren't fond of socializing. Hence, when invited to dinner, their first instinct was to decline.It wasn't until Professor Weiss explained that we would simply be continuing the day's discussion while eating—rather than it being a formal meal—that the scholars finally agreed to join us later that evening.Hungry for more knowledge, my attention was fully focused on these professors. All I could think about was what questions I could ask them over dinner. I was so focused that I didn't even notice Irvin repeatedly glancing at me as we left.We took a shuttle back to the official conference hotel. Then, after saying temporary goodbyes, we headed to our respective rooms to change.Once inside the room, Emma couldn't hold it in any longer."Oh my god!" she exclaimed. "I thought I was pretty smart because I had a high IQ. I had always been a top student and managed to get into one of the to
While I couldn't completely let go of Irvin, I was no longer the person I once was.Back then, I had placed love above all else, so loving Irvin had been the most important thing to me. I'd devoted myself to him and treated him like he was my entire world. He had been the source of all my emotions—from happiness to anger, and from sorrow to joy.Now, my top priority was my studies and research. I would never again give up the academic path I loved so deeply for anyone.…Julianne watched as Mitchell apologized to Professor Weiss and tried to curry favor with him. Then, she saw the way Professor Weiss treated me with warmth and respect. Hatred simmered behind her eyes. She felt life was so unfair. She had to work hard for everything she wanted, and yet those very things seemed to fall effortlessly into my lap. She didn't want to take any more risks. But despite this, she was so furious that she couldn't resist the urge to. She wanted to destroy me once and for all.Grace obse
Mitchell felt humiliated from having to apologize to me so publicly, so he was already in a bad mood. And when he heard the tone Julienne used with him, his expression soured even more."Who told you Ms. Quill is an academic fraud, Ms. Calder?" he shot back.Julianne clearly hadn't expected that. She was caught off guard by the question. Then, as though sensing someone's gaze on her, she turned her head. And when she spotted Irvin, she froze.Julianne had kept tabs on Irvin, but they hadn't seen each other face-to-face ever since she faked her death. So, their sudden encounter shook her.I lowered my gaze when I saw Julianne and Irvin lock eyes.I had recognized Julianne the moment I saw her. My family had too. Thus, I believed it would be the same for Irvin as well.Our relationship problems started because of Julianne, so they should end with her too.Having grown up together with Irvin, she knew she couldn't hide who she really was from him. Regardless, she couldn't admit she
"Ms. Quill, you—" Grace sputtered.From her expression, I could tell she wanted to say, "You really will say anything to save your pride. How will you get in if you won't follow us?"Just then, a few people walked out of the hall. At the lead was an elderly man with white hair.Upon seeing me, the elderly man's stern expression morphed into a smile. "Emilia! You're here!"I returned the smile and walked up to greet him, "Hello, Professor Weiss."I had met several influential figures during the Global Technology Forum in Lestoria. Among them, I had gotten along best with this man, Professor Richard Weiss.After exchanging pleasantries, Professor Weiss turned to Mitchell and asked, "Who is this man? What gives him the right to bar you from attending the conference and call you an academic fraud?"Professor Weiss was the biggest name in the physics field. He was someone everyone respected and dared not offend.Hearing this, Mitchell quickly explained, "It was a misunderstanding! I
"Of course!" Grace said.Moving to my side, she linked her arm with mine in a friendly gesture. It was as though we were on very good terms.She continued, "Not only is she an incredibly skilled researcher, but she's also my sister-in-law—which means she's also a member of the Hardwell family. So, Mr. Slate, any accusations of her being an academic fraud must be a misunderstanding!"Upon hearing how solemn Grace was, Mitchell couldn't help but look at me."If you aren't an academic fraud, then why would Ms. Calder say that about you?" he asked.I coolly returned his gaze. "That's a question for Ms. Calder, not me."Mitchell frowned and looked displeased. He clearly hadn't expected that answer.Grace turned to me and said, "Alright, Emi. Let's go inside together!"Her expression read, "Come on. I'll bring you in."Irvin didn't understand why I hadn't been allowed in despite having an invitation. He also didn't know why I had been mistaken for an academic fraud and was being bar
I looked down at my phone and was zooming in on the image of the data. But before I could even take a good look at it, Emma squeezed my arm."Holy crap! Emilia. Isn't that your ex-husband's brother!" she exclaimed.I instinctively looked up—just in time to see Irvin opening the car door and courteously helping Grace get down.Grace flashed a gentle smile at Irvin, then linked arms with him. To onlookers, that intimate gesture made them look like a loving married couple.I thought back to how Irvin had been near tears when we had met on the first snowfall of the season. Yet now, he was holding another woman's arm and playing the role of her devoted husband.I couldn't even describe how I felt at that moment.Then, I recalled how much Irvin had despised Grace before. Yet, in just a month, he managed to make it look like they were happily married. I feared it wouldn't be long before he began to feel sympathy for her. And then, per Grace's scheme, Irvin would eventually truly becom
William wasn't the type to repay a life-saving favor. So, for the past two years, Julianne had always wondered why he treated her so well and was especially attentive to her health.It was only after she returned to Claudeville that she finally understood.It turned out William had a sickly niece he cherished dearly—one whose survival depended on Julianne. Upon learning this, she suddenly felt she had the upper hand again.While she still couldn't figure William out entirely, she had come to understand him somewhat. She knew he would continue to tolerate her—for the sake of his sickly niece—as long as she didn't do anything out of line.To be clear, Julianne made my life difficult because she hated me. But as long as she didn't harm me, she knew no one would hold it against her. After all, William's niece needed her blood to live.The more she thought about this, the more pleased she became.I could see it plainly in her eyes. Her expression seemed to say that even after all thes
Seeing how determined I was, Emma didn't press any further.Just as we were about to leave in the car, another car pulled up beside ours. When I saw who stepped out of it, my eyes widened in shock.Emma saw them too and tugged at my sleeve in surprise. "Emilia, isn't that your ex-husband's brother and sister-in-law?"I was just about to say yes when Grace suddenly collapsed into Irvin's arms. He picked her up and rushed toward the hospital.Seeing this reminded me of how I had wished that Irvin would come and save me when I was drowning.I chuckled mockingly.Noticing something was off with me, Emma turned to me. "Emilia, what's wrong?"I withdrew my gaze. "Nothing."Then I told the driver to start driving.As the car drove out of the hospital, Emma stared at me. She hesitated at first, but then curiosity got the better of her "Emilia, looking at how you reacted to your ex-husband's brother… Is it true that he's actually not Timothy, but Irvin?" she asked.She had been with
Only after our car had driven far into the distance did William finally withdraw his gaze from Noah's car."Was Ms. Quill's assistant rescued?" he asked.Matthew immediately replied, "Yes, she's been taken to the hospital. She's out of danger."William hummed indifferently in response, then got into the car and left.…By the time I woke up in the hospital, night had already fallen.I was surprised to see Noah sitting at my bedside—surprised that I was still alive and that it was Noah who had come to save me.Seeing me awake, Noah stood up excitedly. "Emi, how are you feeling? I'll get the doctor!"I wanted to tell him I was fine, but my voice came out hoarse when I opened my mouth.Suddenly, I remembered something and quickly reached out to grab Noah before he could leave to call the doctor.Before I could even ask, he already knew what I was going to ask. "Your assistant's fine. She woke up even earlier than you," he said. Hearing that, I breathed a sigh of relief.Noah