"Zahn Neri, I recognize a disturbed man when I see one," Bryce continued, his tone almost conversational. "Shin won't help you with this. If he even cares. Everyone has someone they'd do anything for… someone they want back. For you, that's your ex-wife, Lianna."
Zahn looked like he was about to respond, but stopped himself.
A moment later, he turned and walked away abruptly.
Behind him, Bryce remained where he stood, a quiet, knowing smile lingering on his face.
----
"Why do I have to come with you? I'm pretty sure she won't be pleased to see me," Yeri complained as they entered the hospital.
Jj simply ruffled her hair. "I know, but family obligations. As much as you two don't get along, she's still your cousin now that she's part of the Zhi family. Venice had a miscarriage and hasn't been herself lately."
Yeri had heard about the stabbing incident, but she hadn't expected that Venice would actually lose the baby.
Still, knowing Venice, she doubted this visit would end well.
When they entered the room, Venice was chatting with two of her friends. The moment she saw them, her expression shifted.
Surprise flickered when she saw Jj, but the second her gaze landed on Yeri, her face darkened.
Yeri: "..."
Venice's two friends, on the other hand, lit up with excitement, especially toward Jj, eagerly introducing themselves.
"Hello, Yeri! I never thought I'd see you in person. You're so beautiful!" one of them blurted.
"Yeah, can you sign an autograph for me?" the other added.
Yeri smiled awkwardly.
Considering Venice's hostility toward her, she highly doubted Venice had ever said anything flattering about her. So why were these two acting like fans?
"Did you take the wrong medicine today? You actually came to see me… why? Here to check if I'm miserable?" Venice suddenly said, her wary tone cutting through the air and turning the atmosphere tense.
"I was the one who convinced Yeri to come with me. Why are you being like this?" Jj said, frowning.
Venice let out a dry chuckle. "So that's it. That makes more sense. But I'm fine. There's no need for this fake concern."
Jj was about to respond, but Yeri spoke first. "It's fine. I'll wait outside."
Before she could leave, Venice laughed softly, as if something about Yeri's reaction had triggered her.
"Yeri, have you had enough? Why don't you just admit you're the happiest to see me suffer? Go on, say it. Say that I could never surpass you, that I'll never stand on the same level as you. Aren't you good at making people feel pathetic about themselves?"
Yeri frowned. The sudden aggression surprised her, but she reasoned it might be an emotional breakdown after the miscarriage.
"V-Venice, you should calm down. Don't agitate yourself," one of the friends said nervously.
Venice shot her a sharp look, making the girl fall silent immediately.
Seemingly realizing she had gone too far, Venice took a deep breath. "You all should leave. I want to talk to Yeri alone."
Everyone was stunned. Even Yeri had no intention of staying, but Venice's insistence left little room to refuse.
Jj glanced at Yeri, clearly skeptical. Yeri gave him a small nod to reassure him.
Once they were alone, Venice's hostility returned almost instantly.
"Go ahead," she said coldly. "Say whatever you want."
Yeri: "..."
With a quiet sigh, she replied, "I honestly have nothing to say to you."
"What? Am I too unworthy to even receive your insults now?" Venice said sarcastically.
"Venice, why do you always assume the worst of me?" Yeri asked, her voice steady. "From the very beginning, you were the one who treated me like your imaginary enemy. Or is it because you've convinced yourself for so long that I want your downfall that now you truly believe you're the victim?"
Venice froze. Memories flashed through her mind, all the times she had provoked Yeri, insulted her, tried to drag her down. And yet, Yeri had often responded with nothing more than indifference, as if Venice wasn't even worth her attention.
And that… was exactly why she despised her. Because indifference felt worse than hatred.
Suddenly, Venice broke down in tears, while Yeri stood there in silence.
"I lost my baby… and Brother Hadi is still recovering," Venice said between sobs. "That murderer Jade wasn't just his ex-girlfriend. He lied to me… I think they're still seeing each other."
Her voice trembled as she continued, pouring out everything she had been holding in.
"You're about to marry Shin Keir, while I chose the wrong path… the wrong man. And now everyone is blaming me. You must be gloating, right? The villain finally got what she deserved."
Yeri's expression hardened slightly.
"Why would I gloat?" she said, her tone edged with displeasure. "Your life has nothing to do with me. No one forced you to be with Hadi Keir."
She paused, then added more firmly,
"If you want to feel better, stop tying me to everything that goes wrong in your life. Your mistakes are yours to take responsibility for. Stop twisting the situation just so you can play the victim."
Another thing Venice hated about Yeri was how her words always struck exactly where it hurt the most.
Anger surged within her as she shouted, "What do you know?! It's easy for you to say all that when you've lived your whole life like a princess! You have everything at your fingertips, and there's always someone to do the things you can't. Have you ever starved? Lived in a cramped, moldy apartment? Watched other children go shopping happily with their parents while you could only look at your father from a distance? Not understanding why you couldn't call him 'Dad' in public… or why he barely visited you?"
Listening to her, Yeri felt a wave of exhaustion settle in. Not again.
This was exactly why she never wanted anything to do with Venice.
"And what have you learned from all that?" Yeri asked, her tone edged with irritation.
Venice paused, caught off guard by the question.
Yeri raised an eyebrow. "Wow. You really are something. There are countless children out there who grew up in worse conditions than you. Orphans have it even harder. Are you saying I'm responsible for all their suffering too? Was I the one who starved you?"
Venice: "..."
"Besides," Yeri continued calmly, "I gave you sincere advice before, remember? I said that more than anyone else, you should understand the consequences of being the child of a mistress. So why are you choosing to walk the same path as your mother? If anything… isn't it a blessing in disguise that you lost the baby? Or were you planning to bring that child into the world just to live the same life you did?"
Venice's eyes widened, her expression twisting as conflicting emotions tore through her. Then she exploded.
"A blessing in disguise?!" she screamed. "I knew it! You are happy to see me miserable! Yeri, how can you be this despicable?!"
Yeri: "..."
There was no point arguing with someone who refused to listen.
The door suddenly burst open as Jj and the two friends rushed in, drawn by the shouting.
"Did you hear what she said?!" Venice cried, pointing accusingly at Yeri. "She said it's a blessing in disguise that my baby died!"
Yeri simply shook her head, already done with the situation, and turned to leave.
"That… don't you think that's too cruel to say to someone who's grieving?" one of Venice's friends said hesitantly.
They had heard Venice's version of Yeri before, and now, seeing her detached reaction, their impression only deepened.
The other friend nodded, looking at Yeri as if she had gone too far.
"Venice, will you stop?" Jj snapped, frustration evident. "Yeri isn't that kind of person. She's younger than you. Why can't you act like an older sister instead of constantly competing with her?"
Venice let out a bitter laugh, accusing Jj of being one of the people who spoiled Yeri, which was why she had become so unapologetic.
Soon, the two were arguing, while the friends chimed in uselessly, only fanning the flames further.
Yeri, meanwhile, walked over to the coffee table.
She picked up a glass of water, then turned and poured it straight over Venice.
The room went still.
Before Venice could react, Yeri spoke, her voice cold and unwavering.
"I'll say it again. It's a blessing in disguise that the child is gone rather than being used for your selfish motives."
Both of Venice's friends gasped, as if that single act confirmed every terrible thing they had heard about Yeri.
"In case you didn't know," Yeri continued, her tone turning sharp, "there's no divorce in the Keir clan. Did Hadi Keir ever bother telling you that?"
Venice's expression faltered. Clearly, she hadn't known.
"Figures," Yeri said with a faint sneer. "I don't know what promises he fed you, but he's never lacked women. The only reason you don't hear about them is because the Keirs keep everything buried. You're not even the first woman he got pregnant. Have you ever wondered why he doesn't have a single child yet? Those women either met with 'unfortunate accidents'… or ended up like you, attacked by one of his other lovers."
Venice's expression was of disbelief.
"So even if you hadn't miscarried today… who knows what kind of accident you might have faced?"
Venice was clearly shaken. This was information she had never heard before.
"You're lucky you survived," Yeri went on. "But you're not the only one desperate to marry into the Keir family. Three years ago, one of his exes drowned. Half a year later, another died from poisoning during a vacation. It's practically a battle royale among his women. Do you really think they would let you give birth to his child so easily?"
This was something Yeri had uncovered after hacking through secured networks.
The air turned heavy. Even Venice's friends looked uneasy now, as if they had accidentally stepped into a world far darker than they imagined.
"And you're only telling me this now?" Venice demanded, her voice trembling with accusation.
Yeri pressed her lips together, unimpressed.
"Would you have believed me if I told you before? No. You would've just said I was jealous… that I didn't want you to succeed."
A faint, tired sneer crossed Yeri's face as her gaze shifted to Venice's friends, who now couldn't even meet her eyes.
With that, she turned and left the suffocating room.
Jj didn't follow immediately. He stayed behind, clearly intending to say a few words to Venice.
Outside, Yeri turned a corner, planning to head toward the hospital lounge.
A hand suddenly grabbed her wrist.
Before she could react, she was pulled into an empty room, the door shutting with a soft but final click.
"Finally got a chance to have a moment alone with you," Bryce said, a slow smirk spreading across his face.