<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Tiffany was momentarily stunned.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">She had known for a long time about June’s feelings for James.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">After all, loving someone wasn’t something easily hidden–the way their eyes glow and shine when looking at each other always gave it away.</font></font>All content is property ? N?velDrama.Org.
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">But June had buried her feelings too deeply. Only when she gazed at James‘ back, the love and despair in her eyes betrayed the truth.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">The word love was the most hurtful of all.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Tiffany opened her mouth to speak but finally sighed instead, softly murmuring, “James, wake up!</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">What should really be cherished isn’t the person who doesn’t belong to you, but those who are by your side, she thought.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">James let out a quietugh at her words, a flicker of meaning light surging in his eyes.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">After a long pause, he looked at Tiffany and said, “If you knew the story of your mother and me back then, maybe… you wouldn’t say that.”</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">‘Ever since we first met in our youth, I have devoted myself to her with unwavering passion,‘ he thought.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Time had passed, and it had changed everything.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Selfish or not, despicable or not, he only wanted to hold onto that unfulfilled dream from years ago.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">That was all.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Without another word, James gently pushed June aside, refusing her assistance. Turning away, he walked off, his tall figure gradually disappearing beyond the dark stone door.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Garry and the others arrived just in time to catch sight of his retreating silhouette. They were about to give chase when June stopped them.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“You’re just going to let him go?” Garry asked incredulously, exchanging puzzled nces with John.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Tiffany didn’t respond. She stood frozen, staring in the direction James had gone, his words echoing in her mind:“If you knew the story of your mother and me back then, maybe… you wouldn’t say that.”</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">‘What had happened back then?‘ she thought.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Narrowing her eyes, Tiffany resolved to ask the older generation about it when she returned.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Garry, still reluctant to let the matter rest, opened his mouth to press further. But under Richard’s piercing, ice–cold re, he fell silent, swallowing any objections.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“Let’s go,” Tiffany said calmly, taking June’s arm and walking away at an unhurried pace.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">As for the altar behind them, Richard smirked and, with a flick of his hand, set it aze, leaving nothing but ash.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">They exited the ancient building, retracing their steps back to their vehicle.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Then they left behind the so–called forbiddennd.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">On the way back, June, her injuries severe, copsed as her knees gave out.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Tiffany carefully cased her into the car, instructing her men to take June to the hospital immediately.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Thankfully, Tiffany had already fed her spirit herbs. With the protective properties of the spirit herbs, the wound wouldn’t be life–threatening.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">The henchman nodded and immediately carried out the order.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Tiffany got into another car.</font></font>
On the way back to the Azure Sea Pce, Garry couldn’t help but ask, “Tiffany, why did we let that man go?”
He didn’t know the man’s identity–only that he was more likely a foe than a friend.
Without hesitation, Tiffany replied, “I owe him.”
After so many years of learning under him, even if there were ulterior motives involved, the sentiment couldn’t be entirely erased.
But she would only let him go just this once, and from now on, they owed each other nothing.
Garry still didn’t fully understand her words. Hesitating slightly, he asked, “By the way, Tiffany, didn’t you say you were looking for something? Did you find it?”
Tiffany opened her palm, revealing a small, transparent ss bottle. Inside, a colorful spidery dormant.
The red threads on her grandpa’s body originated from this spider.
It had been thrown to her by James just before he left.
This spider was the antidote.
Once they returned to the pce, Tiffany hurried inside, her steps brisk.
Richard raised an eyebrow and asked, “In a hurry?”
“A bit,” she admitted with a small nod.
Before she could react, the air around her seemed to ripple. In the next moment, Jeremy’s surprised voice echoed, “Miss Kelley, you’re back?”
Blinking, Tiffany realized they were already inside the king’s inner sanctum.
Stunned, she turned to Richard, surprise and shock shing in her eyes.
Richard merely spread his hands innocently, a low smile curling on his lips. “Weren’t you in a hurry?”
Tiffany was speechless.
‘Okay, fine,‘ she thought.
Tiffany collected herself, deciding not to exin to Jeremy how they had entered. Instead, she moved directly to therge bed, casually rolling up her grandfather’s sleeve. She opened the ss bottle, releasing the red spider.
The spider, drawn by the scent of its preferred prey, immediately leapt onto the king’s hand. Its tiny, sharp spines pierced his skin as it began to consume the red silk threads, devouring them little by little.
In mere seconds, all the red threads covering the king’s body were gone, and his skin returned to normal, as if the deadly threads had never existed.
Seeing this, Tiffany let out a soft sigh of relief.
Jeremy, standing nearby, seemed to grasp the situation and asked cautiously, “This is… Venom Spider?
“Uh–huh,” Tiffany confirmed.
Tiffany nodded, swiftly cing the red spider back into the ss bottle in one smooth motion, then looked up. “The people around my grandpa need to be thoroughly investigated and cleared out. If not, there will be another time–possibly more times–when lethal tactics like this are used.”
“I understand. Jeremy nodded, taking her warning to heart before asking, “What about you, Miss Kelley?
He hesitated, unsure if he should ask whether she would stay or if… she had no intention of staying in Azure Sea Royal Family.
“I’ll stay here until my grandpa wakes up,” she replied.
It didn’t take long. Within half an hour, the king opened his eyes.
The first thing he did upon waking was call out, “Tiffany… Where is my Tiffany?”
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“Grandpa, I’m here,” Tiffany said, stepping forward to check him with practiced ease.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">It was hard to detect the impact with the existence of the red threads, but it was clear that, after the Venom Spider had removed the red threads, her grandpa’s heartbeat had grown stronger.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Judging by his current condition, with proper recuperation and a regimen of spirit herbs to strengthen his body, her grandfather could easily live long without worry.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">A weight lifted from Tiffany’s heart, and even the smile on her face seemed a little brighter.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“Grandpa, you’re going to be fine. But from now on, you have to listen to me–you can’t overwork yourself anymore,” she said.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“Alright, alright. I’ll listen to you,” the king said, grinning and nodding repeatedly.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">In the past, he might have thought that he was already old enough to soon meet his day. But now, everything was different. Tiffany, the little granddaughter he had longed for all these years, had finally returned. He hadn’t even seen her get married yet–how could he possibly leave the world now?</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">The king gazed at Tiffany with a mix of relief and determination before turning to Richard. “When’s the wedding?”</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“Half a month from now, on the eleventh,” Richard replied.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">“Good, good. That’s an auspicious day. I’ll make sure to recover and attend in person!” the king dered, hisughter hearty and his once–clouded eyes regaining rity and sharpness.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">With his spirits so high, there was little doubt his body would recover well.</font></font>
<font style="vertical-align: inherit;"><font style="vertical-align: inherit;">Tiffany nodded in agreement, then dismissed the nearby servants. Propping her chin in her hand, she asked, “Grandpa, can you tell me about my mother?”</font></font>