Leaving You in Regret Is Your Punishment

Edward Gravemont was caught in a mudslide.Liora dug through the rubble with her bare hands for three days and three nights,sobbing uncontrollably.

When she finally found his body,battered,broken and full of wounds,she slit her wrists,determined to die beside him,to be buried in eternal sleep together.

It was the child growing inside her that gave her the will to live.

Wiping her tears,Liora got up,ready to share the news.However,just as she approached the study,she overheard a conversation between Edward’s older brother and his assistant.

"Mr.Gravemont,your brother is the one who died in the mudslide.Are you really planning to keep using his identity and let your wife live in a lie forever?"

Liora’s hand froze mid-knock.

Her face,already pale,went completely still.

Then came the familiar low voice from behind the door.

"Callista is fragile and now pregnant.I can’t leave her alone right now."

"As for Liora,I’ll stay with her for now as her brother-in-law."

Callista Ravenshade was the wife of Edward’s older brother,Edmund Gravemont.

The assistant hesitated a hint of guilt in his voice."But to win your wife,you staged a kidnapping just to play the hero."

"And to keep her tied to you,you got her pregnant and brought her back into the family."

"She lost her child once.If you abandon her now,she might break down again...she could try something dangerous."

"You said it yourself,that was in the beginning."

The man’s tone turned lazy,even cold.Not a trace of emotion.

"It’s been five years.Liora is no longer young."

"But Callista is different.She’s vibrant,clever,soft but cunning.The moment I laid eyes on her,all the inspiration I’d lost as a painter came flooding back.I knew she was the muse I’d been searching for."

"But don’t worry.My faked death is only temporary.Once this international art competition ends,I’ll bring Edward Gravemont back to life."

"By then,Liora will just be glad I’m still alive.She’ll never know Edward and Edmund were both me.She won’t know about Callista and me...not ever."

A searing blow hit her heart.

Liora hunched over,clutching her chest as her breath grew ragged.Tears streamed silently down her cheeks.

It felt like thousands of blades were slicing through her chest,so painful it robbed her even of the strength to breathe.

In a daze,her mind drifted back five years.

Back then,he was a world-renowned painter and she was the youngest prima ballerina in a century.

He pursued her for three full years.He never missed a single performance,always sitting front and center in the first row.

Extravagant gifts,endless love letters,bouquets beyond counting...all offered to her with the sincerity of a devout believer.

However,what moved Liora Wrenford the most was the day she was kidnapped.

Edward shielded her in his arms without hesitation,taking a blade for her and,later,giving her almost all the blood in his own body to save her life.

It was at that moment that Liora had completely given her heart to this man.

Five years into their marriage,he had done everything he promised,showering her with love and spoiling her beyond reason.

But now,the truth was echoing in her ears like a cruel joke.

The kidnapping.The sudden pregnancy.All of it had been orchestrated by Edward himself.

All those heartfelt declarations that she was his muse,his love at first sight,the woman he would cherish forever,he could say the exact same things to someone else.

He even planned to"bring Edward Gravemont back to life"later,to keep both women in his life like trophies,expecting her to keep orbiting around him like nothing had happened.

Why?

Liora collapsed to the floor,helpless,her tears spilling out uncontrollably.

The heart she had once offered him so completely was now crushed into dust.The pain was so intense that she nearly blacked out.

Suddenly,footsteps echoed down the hall.

Panicked,Liora stumbled to her feet and darted into the nearest room.

But before she could make sense of what had just happened,she realized where she was.That room was Edward’s private studio.

What she saw made her freeze in place.

Dozens upon dozens of explicit photographs were plastered across the walls.Edward and Callista were together in bed,in every possible pose.There were 520 photos in total.

The largest one hung in the center.Edward was kissing Callista’s pregnant belly.

Scrawled beside it,in bold handwriting,were the words,[Mother and baby are healthy.]

So,the child in Callista’s womb…it was Edward's.

Ha.Haha.

Liora tried to laugh,but her emotions were all gone.

Her eyes stared blankly and her breathing turned sharp and shallow.Every scream trapped inside her chest scraped her lungs like broken glass,but no sound came out.

After what felt like forever,she turned on her phone and booked an abortion appointment.

Then,with a hoarse voice,she made another call.

"Mrs.Gravemont,canceling personal accounts with death certificate takes about two weeks.Are you sure you want to proceed with this for your deceased husband?"

"Yes."

‘Edward Gravemont…you once told me that if you ever betrayed me,you would rather die.’

‘So now,I’m giving you what you asked for.’

In two weeks,the legal accounts of Liora’s husband,Edward Gravemont,would be officially erased.

And there would be no tie,no name,no bond left between them.