She had even momentarily entertained the illusion that perhaps, in this play, he might have had some genuine feelings for her.

But in the end, from start to finish, she was nothing more than a disposable chess piece to him.

The moment he learned of Claire’s accident, he had impatiently tore off all his disguises to draw a line between them.

Intense hatred and resentment churned within Sylvia as she stared at Julian’s back.

No, this wasn't the time to break things off.

Claire was already dead.

What could a dead person do to compete with her?

As long as she waited patiently and stayed by Julian’s side, the position of Mrs. Julian would eventually be hers.

Sylvia forcibly suppressed the viciousness in her eyes and put on a gentle expression.

She retreated silently to the side, accompanying Julian.

After keeping watch by the sea for three days and three nights, the search and rescue efforts finally yielded results.

"Mr. Julian, we have found Miss Claire."

Julian raised his head abruptly, a spark of hope igniting in his eyes.

But it fell into dead silence the moment he saw what was before him.

Chapter 9

Several rescue team members carried a stretcher covered with a white sheet.

Julian’s body froze instantly. He stared fixedly at the white sheet, his feet seemingly nailed to the spot, unable to move a single inch.

With trembling hands, he finally reached out toward the sheet. Someone nearby tried to stop him, "Mr. Julian, the remains have been soaked in seawater for many days and battered by the reefs; it would be better if you didn't look..."

But he acted as if he hadn't heard, stubbornly lifting a corner of the white sheet.

Beneath the sheet was a face beyond recognition, its original appearance long gone.

Julian even felt a sliver of relief, thinking it wasn't Claire.

Until his peripheral vision caught sight of the ring on the ring finger of the exposed left hand...

He recognized it almost instantly.

It was the engagement ring he had bought with all his savings during the difficult early days of their business.

Inside the band, Claire’s name was still engraved.

She had once said she would never take that ring off until death.

His heart felt like it was being gripped by an invisible hand, nearly stopping its beat.

Julian let out a painful roar and collapsed to his knees, on the verge of a breakdown.

"Why?!"

"Why? It was supposed to be me who died—why did it end up like this!"

He could not accept the truth.

He had planned for so long; he had calculated everything.

He had painfully pushed her away, preferring that she hate him to the bone, all because he didn't want her to suffer after his death.

But why did it end up like this?

The massive impact and heart-rending pain consumed him like a tsunami.

Blood boiled frantically in his body, and his throat filled with a metallic, fishy sweetness.

"Pfft..."

A mouthful of fresh blood sprayed directly from his mouth, staining the white sheet.

It stained his eyes red as well.

The world went black for Julian, and he fell straight backward.

He sank into an endless nightmare of darkness.

In the chaos, he was repeatedly haunted by the final scene from his previous life.

He remembered clearly that on the day of the shipwreck, it was supposed to be his and Claire’s wedding anniversary.

He knew she had always wanted to see the sea, so he had prepared a surprise to take her there.

He hadn't expected an accident to happen at sea.

That day, a violent gale rose suddenly, and massive waves, like roaring beasts, surged toward them.

Claire was swept away by a wave, and he jumped in without hesitation, using every ounce of his strength to rescue her.

But due to exhaustion, he was completely swallowed by the next, even larger wave.

When he woke up again, he had been reborn six months into the past.

He was ecstatic, thinking this was a second chance granted by heaven, a way to change the outcome of his past life.

But later, he tried countless methods, avoiding all the times and places where accidents could occur, only to find that no matter what he did, the accident from his previous life still happened again.

Fate had pushed them once more toward their destined ending.

Later, he didn't dare to try again.

He was afraid that this time, he would still die.

Gradually, he convinced himself to accept this ending; at least, as long as Claire was alive, that was enough.

But he knew Claire too well; he knew his death would become a wound that would never heal in her lifetime.

So, he plotted the cruelest play.

He found Sylvia, who had long harbored a crush on him, and asked her to cooperate, to make Claire believe he had a change of heart and no longer loved her.

He humiliated her, pushed her away, and even hurt her time and again, just to make her hate him and leave him.

He preferred that she live well, carrying her hatred for him, rather than spending the rest of her life in the pain of losing him.

He had done so much, even at the cost of letting Claire endure half a year of hurt and humiliation.

But why?

Why was she the one who ended up dead?

"Claire..."

Julian woke up from his nightmare with a jolt, his back soaked in cold sweat.

Only then did he realize he was in the hospital.

There was no one by his side; faint voices of conversation came from outside the ward.

"The DNA comparison results are out. It is confirmed that the remains recovered are those of Ms. Claire."

The sentence struck Julian’s chaotic mind like a thunderbolt.

His vision swam, but he still struggled to open the hospital door.

The assistant hurried to support him.

"Mr. Julian, how are you? The doctor said you must not get excited again..."

Julian seemed not to hear, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the policeman across from him, his voice hoarse. "How exactly did she die? What happened that day?"

The officer in charge sighed and handed over a preliminary investigation result.

"According to the on-site survey, eyewitness testimony, and the surveillance footage we pulled along the route, homicide has been ruled out. Ms. Claire, she..."

"It was suicide."

Chapter 10

"Impossible! It is absolutely impossible!" Julian suddenly became agitated and began to cough violently. "She would absolutely not commit suicide. She was clearly..."

She had clearly tried so hard to stay by his side, even after being treated like that, she hadn't left.

How could she have suddenly committed suicide?

"We understand how you feel, but the chain of evidence shows she booked the ticket to Hong Kong herself, walked to the coast herself, and there were no signs of a struggle. She jumped down of her own accord..."

The police tried their best to be mindful of Julian’s emotions, speaking in a gentle and roundabout way.

But Julian’s emotions not only failed to calm down, they spiraled completely out of control.

He grabbed the policeman’s arm violently, his red eyes almost dripping blood.

"She wouldn't. She definitely wouldn't commit suicide. You need to investigate again! Check her call logs, check who she met—something must have been missed..."

The man opposite sighed helplessly.

"Mr. Julian, we understand your feelings, but we have repeatedly reviewed Ms. Claire's recent itinerary, call records, and social connections. We found no signs of external coercion. All evidence points to her own voluntary action."

"Voluntary action..." Julian murmured the words repeatedly, as if needles laced with poison were piercing his heart one by one.

The intense grief and the unbearable truth made his blood surge; he felt the metallic taste of blood in his throat again and vomited another large mouthful of red.

"Julian..."

Sylvia arrived at the ward just in time. Seeing this scene, she exclaimed and rushed forward to support Julian.

Her voice immediately filled with tears, "Don't be like this. Claire is gone; I know you are sad, but if her spirit is in heaven, she would not want to see you torturing yourself like this..."

"Get out." Julian used his remaining strength to throw off Sylvia’s hand, his gaze icy and piercing. "Sylvia, I told you that we are finished. Take what you are owed and disappear from my sight. Stop interfering with my affairs!"

Sylvia was pushed until she hit the wall, gasping in pain.

Watching Julian go mad over Claire and treat her like discarded trash, the hatred in her heart grew wildly, but she could only bite her lip tightly, not daring to act out at this moment.

...

The next day, ignoring the doctor’s advice, Julian forced himself to be discharged.

His face was deathly pale, his entire being as if his soul had been extracted, his eyes hollow and listless.