At the bottom of the file, I saw something that stabbed straight into my heart. It was Clara and Marvin’s wedding photo.

There they stood, an entire family of eight, with my in-laws and even my own parents in the picture. All of them were smiling and glowing with happiness.

I had taken the fall for her, carried the burden of a criminal record and willingly given up my freedom, only to become nothing more than a stranger, left with absolutely nothing.

I closed the file, my heart completely numb. At that moment, I finally made up my mind.

"Theo, help me overturn my conviction."

"Not only that, I'll go to the Stargazer Continent."

Theo had been a businessman before his arrest. He was imprisoned for excessive self-defense. Even back in prison, he had tried to recruit me multiple times.

However, at that time, my entire world had revolved around Clara.

Now that I had finally come to my senses, he was nothing but thrilled.

"It took you long enough! Women, especially the difficult ones, are the most worthless things in the world!"

On the day of my younger brother’s wedding, Marvin and all six of his children showed up.

He was dressed in a navy-blue suit. He looked energetic and proud.

His children were also wearing formal clothes. The girls were like miniature versions of Clara, while the boys bore an uncanny resemblance to Marvin.

Even Clara was wearing a luxurious apricot yellow evening gown. Her gown perfectly matches Marvin and the children's clothes.

I laughed bitterly to myself.

Clara had always claimed she hated wearing a luxurious evening gown. Now, I just realized that she did not hate it. She actually did not want to wear a matching outfit with me.

My in-laws hovered around the children, their eyes filled with love and affection.

They fussed over them because they worried the children would trip or bump into something. Although they were so tired that sweat covered their body, they kept making sure that the children stayed safe. However, it was clear, they enjoyed every moment of it.

Marvin handed my brother a bank card and said, "There is one hundred and forty-eight thousand and five hundred dollars in the card. I wish you and your wife a lifetime of happiness."

My mother’s eyes lit up as she quickly accepted the card on my brother’s behalf. "You're so generous! No wonder you were able to give the Jameson Family six grandchildren!"

As she spoke, she shot me a disdainful glance and snorted. "You're so different with someone. Although he had the same blood running in his veins he only gave the bride and the groom thirteen hundred and thirty-three dollars. He even said the important thing is the attention. What a cheapskate!"

My brother smirked, then pulled the money out of my red envelope right in front of me and after he tossed the empty envelope to the ground, he stomped on it a few times. "What’s this supposed to be? Do you take me as a joke?"

Their behavior chilled me to the bone.

Although thirteen hundred and thirty-three dollars was not much, it was everything I had secretly saved up through hard labor in prison.

Now, aside from that, I had barely fifteen dollars left to my name.

I frowned but said nothing.

Just then, the oldest boy walked up to me, stared at me for a full minute before letting out a mocking snort and said, "So you’re that ex-convict? You’re so ugly and you still had the nerve to steal my mom? Outrageous!"

Then he turned and waved at the other children. "Come quick! This is the bad man who made everyone call us bastards at school!"

Marvin crouched down. He used his hand to cover the boy’s mouth and chided, "Robert, don’t say that! Hurry! Apologize to your uncle!"

Though he rebuked the child, there was no sincerity in his expression at all.

Instead, his reaction only triggered the elders’ protective instincts. They immediately jumped in, pointing fingers at me as if I were truly the villain here.

Hearing the commotion, Clara, who was chatting with the other, finally walked over.

She stroked Robert Jameson’s head gently, her face filled with heartache as she apologized, It’s Mommy’s fault, sweetie, for making you go through this."

"However, from now on, in the eyes of the law, Uncle Luke will officially be your father. No one will ever dare call you an illegitimate child again!" she added.

A slightly smaller boy than Robert suddenly burst into tears.

My in-laws rushed to his side and their voices filled with affection. "What’s wrong, my precious baby? Grandma’s little Colin? Are you feeling sick?"

Between sobs, Colin Jameson pointed straight at me and said, "Our teacher said that only bad people go to jail."

"I don’t want a bad man as my dad! I want my real dad!"

When Colin started crying, the younger children immediately followed.

The scene instantly turned chaotic and filled with the piercing cries of children.

My in-laws scrambled to calm the children. They tried frantically to move from one kid to another.

"Don’t cry, sweethearts. That bad man won’t be your daddy. Grandpa and Grandma promise!"

The eldest, Robert, shot me a defiant look before pretending to be upset and said, "Grandpa, Grandma … but you can't make the final decision."

Robert sniffled and squeezed out a few crocodile tears. "I heard people say that all these years, Daddy hasn’t been able to officially become the head of the Jameson Family because Mommy wouldn’t allow it."

My in-laws froze as if suddenly realized something then turned to glare at Clara and yelled, "Clara! Say something! I'm warning you, if my precious grandson cries himself hoarse, I’ll make you pay for it!"

Clara hesitated and locked eyes with me for a brief moment before sighing as if making a difficult decision.

After a pause, she finally spoke, "Stop crying. Mommy will give you the answer you want. A real man doesn’t cry so easily. You have to set a good example for your younger siblings."

Her words were like a magic spell that instantly silenced the children.

The only one left overwhelmed with emotion was Marvin. His eyes glistened with unshed tears as he said, "Clara … do you mean it? I'm not dreaming, am I?”

Clara automatically glanced at me again but said nothing.

Suddenly, Colin charged at me with a clenched fist while screaming, "I'm going to beat up the bad man to death! How dare you try to steal my mommy! I’ll kill you!"

He wasn’t even nine years old yet, but the boy weighed a solid ninety kilos.

Instinctively, I stepped aside.

He stumbled forward and crashed headfirst into the wall. Blood gushed from his nose and he immediately burst into earth-shattering sobs.

"My baby!"

Marvin let out a sharp cry before he turned on me, his face twisted in anger. "Mr. Stevenson, I know you must feel uncomfortable that I replaced you by Clara side, that I had children with her. However, if you have a problem, take it out on me! Colin is just a child! How could you take it out on him?"

For a moment, I was dumbfounded.

When I was about to speak, Clara slapped me hard with a resounding crack and said, “I thought you just needed time to adjust after getting out of prison but to think you’d actually lay a hand on a child!”

Clara had hit me with full force, her face was dark and stormy, her eyes were brimming with contempt.

Her voice was cold as ice when she talked again, "Let me make something clear to you. Robert and his siblings are the future of the Jameson Family. They are the true masters of this house. As for you? You’re just a useless man who still needs me to support your parents. What right do you have to lay a finger on them?"

Her six-year-old daughter, Ann Jameson, waddled over, sniffing back her tears as she hugged Clara’s leg. "Mommy, don’t be mad. Ann will help you beat the bad man."

She raised her tiny fists as she put on a show of bravado.

Clara cooped her up and planted a kiss on her cheek. "My little princess, fighting is beneath you. A real princess doesn’t get her hands dirty.

With that, she gestured to Marvin to take the children away. Their family of eight walked out together. They were a perfect picture of unity.

My in-laws hurried after them, but not before spat at me. "You're disgusting! You don’t even deserve to be scolded, you worthless piece of trash!"

As soon as they left, my parents' faces darkened and they scolded, "You just had to ruin a perfectly good wedding! You should’ve rotted in prison for the rest of your life instead of coming out to bring us shame!"

My brother was even more furious as if I had personally destroyed his wedding. He rolled up his sleeves and started throwing punches and kicks at me as he growled, "You piece of trash! Why don’t you just go die?"

As he shouted, he grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the door.

Back in prison, I had suffered a serious injury that left my arm weak. So, the more I struggled, the worse the pain became.

Hearing the commotion, Clara and the others stopped in their tracks. The children clapped their hands in excitement.

"Daddy, look! The bad man got beaten up!"

"Uncle is amazing! He’s a hero!"

My in-laws chimed in and encouraged the children's sneer. "That’s right, babies! You’re so smart! You know the difference between heroes and villains!"

My head throbbed from the beating, my body ached all over and everyone around me watched as if it were some kind of entertainment.

Clara’s cold gaze was the sharpest knife, that stabbed deep into my already bleeding heart.

My brother showed no signs of stopping. As I curled up on the floor, I shut my eyes in despair while hatred surged inside of me like a tidal wave.

Just then, the front doors swung open.

A familiar, commanding voice echoed loudly through the room, "Who the hell gave you the guts to lay a hand on him?"