Today is my birthday.

But my wife, Talia Ford, tells me that she can't spend time with me today. She needs to accompany her uncle, Adam Ford, to his physical checkup.

I'm about to convince Talia to stay with me when a row of comments suddenly pops up in front of my eyes.

"Stop wasting your breath. Just let her go.

"In your previous life, Talia insisted on keeping her uncle company, so you could only return to your research lab to work. But you predicted that the dead volcano located next to Bareyard Village would erupt tonight. So, you forcibly stopped Talia and made her go back to the village to save her grandpa.

"But when her uncle went for the physical checkup on his own, he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Engulfed by despair, he took his own life by jumping off the hospital.

"After he died, Talia pinned the blame on you. She bought some potent rat poison and poisoned your food, thus killing you."

On the day we were about to register our marriage for the ninety-ninth time, I, Joshua Smith, went rigid as I read those words flickering before my eyes.

Suddenly, a sharp pain tore through my abdomen. It was the memory of being poisoned in my previous life, so vivid it felt as though it had just happened.

Talia Ford, my wife, saw me frozen and snapped impatiently, "Joshua, move! Get out of my way! I need to go to the hospital with Uncle Adam!"

I stared at her face, my emotions tangled beyond sorting out.

Would she really end up hating me because of Adam Ford's death? Would she hate me enough to poison me?

Talia and I had worked together at a volcano research institute for years. Day after day, side by side, we had gradually fallen in love.

But she later confessed that ever since she was young, she had been drawn to her frail, sickly uncle, Adam.

Adam was Richard Ford's adopted son, and Richard, Talia's grandfather, had made it clear that any romantic connection between them was off-limits.

Talia never dared to bring it up again, yet her feelings for Adam still went beyond family but fell short of love.

Because of that, she could never fully commit herself to our relationship.

I loved Talia deeply. I was still willing to marry her, doing everything I could for her and hoping my sincerity would earn her heart.

Not long after, she shockingly let Adam move into our home.

She even arranged for him to stay in the master bedroom and told me to move into the guest room, all because Adam was frail and required round-the-clock care.

I could only comfort myself that no matter what, they were just family.

…

"Are you even listening to me?" Talia's shrill voice cut through my thoughts.

I snapped back to reality and quickly turned on my computer.

I pulled up the volcanic eruption forecast, printed it out, and handed it to her. "Canlis Mountain will erupt tonight at midnight at a level-four intensity. The mountain is right next to Bareyard Village!"

Talia took the report, skimmed it carelessly, and then ripped it to shreds.

She slapped me hard across the face, making my cheek burn instantly. "All you care about is rushing to get our marriage certificate! Just to stop me from going to the hospital with Uncle Adam, you'd even make up a lie about a dead volcano reawakening?

"That volcano near Bareyard Village hasn't been active for thousands of years, and now you're telling me it'll erupt tonight? Do you think I'm an idiot?"

I swallowed the anger surging in my chest and explained as calmly as I could, "I'm not lying. Seismic activity beneath Canlis Mountain has intensified recently. Even a dormant volcano can reactivate—"

She cut me off with a cold laugh, her eyes full of contempt. She said, "Your data is all fake! I have to go to the hospital with Uncle Adam! If you keep spouting nonsense, we're breaking up!"

With that, she took my car and drove off unhesitatingly.

After Talia left, I ignored the pain in my face and sent the report to my superiors. I then hailed a taxi and headed straight for Bareyard Village.

I had to personally get Richard out of there and make sure he was safe.

Just as the car started moving, my supervisor, David Wagner, called.

His tone was sharp. "Joshua, what the hell are you doing? What kind of report did you just submit? A dormant volcano erupting?"

My heart sank, and I quickly explained, "Mr. Wagner, it's real—"

David shouted, "That's nonsense! Talia already told me everything. She's taking her uncle for a medical checkup, and you insisted on getting your marriage certificate today. That's why you made up this lie!

"Joshua, this is completely unprofessional. You're treating work like a joke, and you're even joking about a volcanic eruption. I've withdrawn your report. Go reflect on yourself!"

I explained helplessly, "Mr. Wagner, I'm not joking. The data is real! I ran the calculations several times! Canlis Mountain really is at risk of erupting tonight…"

"Hello?"

David had already hung up.

Unwilling to give up, I called the institute director, Julian Stone, hoping to convince him.

After hearing me out, Julian said coldly, "David has already briefed me. Joshua, this behavior is extremely irresponsible. You're fired!"

I was stunned. My phone slipped from my hand.

Fired? Just because of some words from Talia, all my effort and professional judgment were dismissed?

I never imagined that David and Julian would ignore my data analysis and blindly trust Talia instead.

Richard had worked his entire life providing for his family. He had always treated me especially well. I absolutely couldn't let him die in a sea of fire.

And this wasn't just about him. This involved more than a hundred lives in Bareyard Village.

There was no time to waste. I forced myself to calm down and called Richard. "Grandpa, Canlis Mountain, the one next to Bareyard Village, is going to erupt tonight. It's very dangerous! Please contact the village mayor and arrange an evacuation immediately!"

Richard sounded shocked. "What? Canlis Mountain is going to erupt? That can't be right, can it?"

I replied patiently, "It's true, Grandpa. Trust my professional judgment. Go find the village mayor right now and get everyone to evacuate!"

He agreed, but I still couldn't shake the unease in my chest.

…

Five hours later, the taxi pulled into Bareyard Village.

The villagers were working the fields as usual. Not a single person was evacuating.

Heart pounding, I rushed to find Richard and the village mayor, Vincent Donovan.

To my disbelief, the two of them were casually drinking at the village committee office. I stormed in and demanded, "Grandpa, why haven't you all started evacuating? I told you the volcano would erupt tonight! It's already afternoon!"

Richard put down his glass, shot me a sideways glance, and said with disdain, "Evacuate? What for? Stop spouting nonsense here. Talia called me and said you're lying and using this to scare us!"

Vincent snorted beside him. "Joshua, you shouldn't act like this. Just because you're jealous of Adam, you make jokes about something like this?

"You could've made the villagers panic and disrupted everything! Do you know how much manpower and money it takes to evacuate everyone? What you've done isn't right!"

Just like Julian and David, they didn't believe me either.

I was about to explain when Richard suddenly lifted his foot and kicked me hard in the calf. Pain shot through me, and I nearly fell.

Pointing at me, he thundered, "Get lost! Stop embarrassing me here!"

I clenched my teeth, forcing myself to endure the pain in my leg, and tried once more to convince them.

"Grandpa, Mr. Donovan, I'm not lying. Canlis Mountain really is going to erupt tonight. I work at the volcano research institute. I've run the numbers myself. The eruption will start at midnight. I'm estimating at least level three, and it could reach level four!"

Vincent hesitated when he heard how specific I was.

Richard uttered, "Talia studies volcanoes, too. She said it won't erupt. Would my granddaughter lie to me? You don't want her to go to the hospital with Adam, so you made up this nonsense. Canlis Mountain has been dormant for thousands of years. What makes you think it's going to erupt?"

I took a deep breath, then dropped to my knees in front of Vincent. My voice shook as I said, "Mr. Donovan, I've loved nature documentaries since I was a kid. I studied geology in college, and upon graduation, I joined the volcano research institute.

"I'm 30 years old, and I've spent more than 20 years studying volcanoes. I know what I'm talking about. I'd never be wrong about this! If the volcano doesn't erupt tonight, I'll answer for it!"

Vincent frowned, clearly wavering.

But Richard let out a cold laugh. "I know you've just been fired for filing a false disaster report! Talia already got the notice, and she told me herself!"

Vincent's face darkened immediately. "Get out! Leave! Stop causing trouble here!"

I made a split-second decision. Pulling a bank card from my pocket, I shoved it into Vincent's hand. "Mr. Donovan, take it. There's 50 thousand dollars in the bank account. Use it to evacuate everyone.

"People, livestock, and anything valuable. Get everything out now. There's still time. If the volcano doesn't erupt, 50 thousand dollars is more than enough to cover the round trip, and no one will face any losses."

Vincent froze, staring at the card with a conflicted expression.

Richard grabbed me, trying to drag me outside.

I clung desperately to the doorframe and shouted at Vincent, "Mr. Donovan! If the volcano erupts, Bareyard Village won't have a single living thing left! Everything and everyone here will be gone! Are you really willing to gamble all their lives?"

Vincent stood up and looked at the card before saying, "I'll trust you this once. This money counts as a loan. But if the volcano doesn't erupt, Joshua, you'll be in trouble!"

Richard stared in disbelief as Vincent strode out of the room.

I let out a sigh of relief and urged Richard, "Grandpa, hurry. Let's get you home and pack up!"

Richard reprimanded me for embarrassing him in front of Vincent. I endured every insult and every curse and followed him home in silence.

However, at the entrance, he shut his door in my face and locked it.

I stood outside, shouting and trying to convince him, but he ignored me completely.

Hours dragged by, and my throat grew dry. With no other option, I called Talia, hoping she could convince Richard.

The call connected, but before I could speak, Adam's voice came through, "Talia's busy. What do you want?"

I forced down my anger. "Adam, something catastrophic will happen to Bareyard Village tonight. Grandpa has to evacuate with me. Put Talia on the phone, or you call Grandpayourself!"

Adam sneered. "Joshua, stop playing tricks. Talia already told me. You're a liar! Want to guess where we are right now?"

I didn't care where they were.

Adam continued, "We're staying at a hotel near the hospital. Talia's taking a shower. The checkup isn't until tomorrow, but she insisted on staying with me at a hotel tonight. She said it wouldn't be convenient for us to go home. Do you know why?"

With that, he hung up the phone.

I stared at my phone, my fingers white from gripping it.

It was already past 9:00 pm.

I looked toward Canlis Mountain in the distance. Darkness had fallen, and a faint, ominous red glow shimmered near the summit.

There wasn't much time left.

Fortunately, Bareyard Village was remote, and there was only this one village at the foot of the mountain.

In the distance, the last group of villagers had finally evacuated. Now, only Richard and I remained in the village.

But that isolation also meant the nearest town was dozens of miles away.

If I didn't leave by 9:30 pm, I wouldn't make it out either.

I turned on my camera, pointed it at myself, and shouted, "Grandpa! The sky is already turning red! Look for yourself! If you don't believe me, can't you at least believe what you're seeing—"

Before I could finish, a massive flowerpot flew out from the yard and smashed into my head.

Pain ripped through me. Blood blurred my vision, everything a wash of red.

From inside the yard, Richard cursed at the top of his lungs, as if I were a villain.

"How did Talia end up with a liar like you? My family has farmed Bareyard Village for generations! That mountain has always been dormant! Why would it erupt now? Why are you doing this? Screw you!"

The blood kept pouring, and I couldn't hold on any longer. I turned off the camera, staggered to the village entrance, and found the driver waiting.

When I got into the car, he stared at me in shock. "What happened to you? You're bleeding all over! Hey! Don't get blood on my seats!"

I forced a weak smile. "It's fine. I'll pay for it. Let's go. Head toward the town. Don't stop until we get there."

The driver agreed and sped off.

My vision blurred in the backseat, and I blacked out.

I had no idea how long I was out for, but I remembered hearing a deep rumble roll through the air.

The volcano had erupted.