My in-laws got lost in the miasma-filled forests deep within Mounscour Hill while on a trip.

As a top-tier explorer, I was the only one who could rescue them within the golden rescue window.

But just before I set off, my wife’s assistant swapped out my specially made gas mask for a sunscreen mask.

“Mr. Haden, you’re always running around all over the place without any sun protection. Your face is so dark now. Even Ms. Laf doesn’t like you anymore.”

I sternly told him I was about to head to Mounscour Hill to rescue people and demanded he hand over the gas mask.

Upon hearing this, my wife suddenly flew into a rage and smashed my gas mask to pieces.

“Who are you trying to fool? Who in their right mind would go in there? You don’t even think before you lie!

“Besides, what’s wrong with the mask? You’re just trying to embarrass Astel on purpose!”

My wife’s assistant glared at me defiantly.

“Ms. Laf, look how anxious Mr. Haden is to leave. He’s probably running off to see another woman.”

I laughed through gritted teeth.

My wife had no idea that the gas mask she had smashed in her rage was the very thing that would save her parents’ lives.

I stared at the gas mask lying in pieces on the floor.

Then, I sat down on the sofa.

“Fine, I’m not going!”

Ilma Laf froze for a moment.

When it came to adventure, I had always thrown caution to the wind.

She probably did not expect me to give in so easily.

She looked me up and down. Then, she frowned and said, “It’s best if you don’t go. Apologize to Astel. You scared him.”

Astel Landau, who was standing nearby, said insincerely, “It’s okay, Ms. Laf. I just gave Mr. Haden the sunscreen mask out of kindness because he’s as tanned as a laborer. Since Mr. Haden doesn’t appreciate it, I’ll just stop from now on.”

As he spoke, his voice was tinged with pity.

Ilma was heartbroken.

“Some people just don’t know how good they have it. Don’t pay him any mind!”

Astel took the opportunity to wrap his arms around Ilma’s waist. “Then, you’d better make it up to me.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll make it up to you!”

As they spoke, their eyes began to grow dreamy. They completely ignored my presence.

I cleared my throat.

Only then did the two of them stop.

Ilma said impatiently, “Gareth, what’s the meaning of this? It’s just a gas mask, isn’t it? Do you have to lie about saving someone on Mounscour Hill? You’ll stop at nothing to make things difficult for Astel!”

I shrugged.

“Astel’s dignity is what matters most. Whether or not we go on a rescue mission is irrelevant.”

Ilma narrowed her eyes. Her tone grew even more contemptuous.

“I’ll give you credit for knowing your place. But if you ever dare treat Astel like that again, I won’t hold myself back!”

I did not want to deal with either of them anymore, so I stood up to leave.

Astel laughed in Ilma’s arms.

“Mr. Haden, you’re in such a hurry! Do you have a woman on the side?”

Ilma looked at me in utter contempt. “What woman would ever want him?”

Just then, her phone rang. She impatiently pressed the speaker button.

“Ms. Laf, your parents have wandered into the miasma forest of Mounscour Hill. They’re in urgent need of rescue…”

Unexpectedly, Ilma flew into a rage.

“How much did Gareth pay you to put on this charade and deceive me?”

No sooner had the words left her mouth than she hurled the phone at me.

Caught completely off guard, the phone slammed hard against my forehead.

I felt a wave of dizziness wash over me as warm blood trickled down my cheek.

Yet, there was not a trace of remorse on Ilma’s face.

She stepped forward and slapped me across the face.

“Gareth, have I been too nice to you? How dare you hire someone to put on a show to deceive me and even joke about my parents’ lives!”

That slap snapped me back to reality.

Whatever lingering hope I had for her was completely shattered.

I had always thought she was just blinded by Astel’s sweet talk. At worst, I thought she was just a bit foolish.

But it seemed like she was hopeless. She lacked even the most basic judgment.

Astel stepped forward and reached out to gently grasp Ilma’s arm as he urged her in a gentle tone, “Ms. Laf, it’s not worth getting so worked up over this. Mr. Haden probably just wanted you to care about him so badly that he came up with this scheme. He didn’t mean to make a joke out of your parents.”

These words sounded like advice. But in reality, every sentence was pouring fuel on the fire.

Not only did he imply that I was “putting on a show,” but he also painted me as a selfish and malicious person.

As expected, Ilma grew even angrier. He pointed her finger at my nose and shouted, “Astel’s more sensible than you! Besides making me angry and spinning lies, what else are you good for?”

I sneered. “Lies?

“Ilma, if your parents die, it’s all your fault!”

Ilma froze for a moment.

Astel fanned the flames from the sidelines.

“Ms. Laf, even at a time like this, Mr. Haden is still trying to deceive you!”

The fury in Ilma’s eyes intensified.

She grabbed me by the throat.

“Gareth, you’re truly ungrateful! Today, I’m going to teach you a lesson!”

With that, she ordered the bodyguards to restrain me.

“Lock him up and beat his mouth to a pulp. Let’s see if he dares to spout more nonsense after this!”

The bodyguards dragged me down to the basement. They tied my hands and feet. Then, it rained blow after blow across my face.

Soon, I was barely clinging to life.

Just then, Ilma walked in with Astel.

She looked down at me as I curled up on the floor. Her face filled with disgust.

It was as if I were not her husband but merely a piece of trash blocking her path.

“Gareth, do you realize your mistake now?

“Wouldn’t it be better to just apologize? Why put yourself through all this suffering?”

Just then, my phone rang.

I glanced at the message. It was from the rescue team.

[The two people have been confirmed dead. There’s no need for you to come anymore.]

I looked at Ilma and sneered.

“I haven’t done anything wrong.”

Ilma’s gaze turned fierce. “Gareth, you brought this on yourself!”

Just then, Astel pulled a bag from behind him and looked at me in contempt.

“Mr. Haden, don’t you love wilderness adventures?

“We’ve found you some companions to keep you company.”

He untied the bag, and dozens of snakes slithered out.

I spotted that Black Mamba at once.

It was a highly venomous creature. If it bit a person and if that person was not given the antivenom instantly, the poison would take effect and kill quickly.

My whole body trembled.

I never expected Ilma to actually allow Astel to set venomous snakes on me!

For Astel’s sake, she was willing to sacrifice my life.

Luckily, I had years of experience as an explorer.

In just a few quick moves, I untied the ropes binding me.

I kicked and sent the venomous snake slithering toward Astel.

He screamed and dodged, but the snake bit his leg.

Instantly, he grimaced and cried out in pain.

Soon, he began to turn purple. He struggled to breathe.

Ilma hugged Astel and kissed him repeatedly.

“How could this happen? Weren’t these snakes supposed to be non-venomous?”

Turning around, she slapped me across the face.

“Gareth, how dare you harm Astel?!

“I want you to kneel and apologize to Astel! Otherwise, you won’t survive today!”

I let out a cold laugh.

“You brought these venomous snakes here. Yet you’re accusing me for harming him?

“Instead of wasting time, you’d better hurry up and take him to the hospital!”

Seeing Astel’s condition worsen, Ilma had no choice but to call 911.

Just as she was about to get into the ambulance, she turned to look at me with a fierce glare.

“If anything happens to Astel, I won’t go easy on you!”

A chill ran down my spine.

If I had not dodged in time, I would probably be the one bitten by the venomous snake.

But even now, she was still protecting Astel.

A nurse looked at my face and gasped.

“How did you get hurt so badly?

“You should come with us to the hospital for a checkup.”

With that, she led me into the ambulance to treat my wounds.

Faced with such kindness from a stranger, I could no longer hold back. Tears welled up in my eyes.

…

Just as the nurse finished treating my wounds, a commotion erupted at the door.

“I heard these two wandered into Mounscour Hill and were killed by the miasma.

“They had a chance to be saved, but that top-tier explorer was delayed by someone before they could set out.

“This is just tragic! Two lives, cut short, just like that!”

I got up and walked toward the door, where I saw several police officers briefing Ilma.

“We’re handing the victims’ bodies over to you. Please have the family sign here.”

Ilma looked at the officer in disbelief, shaking her head the whole time.

“No, it can’t be…”

When she saw me come out, she snatched the death certificate from the officer’s hand and flung it to the ground.

She pointed at me. “He’s the one who ordered you all to do this, isn’t he?”

As she spoke, she began shoving the officer in front of her.

“How much did he pay you to put on this show in front of me?!”

The officer was enraged by her actions and grabbed Ilma’s arm.

“Ma’am, we understand you’re grieving, but that’s no excuse for assaulting a police officer!

“If you keep this up, we have the right to arrest you!”

Seeing that her resistance was futile, Ilma broke free from the officer’s grip and lunged at me.

“Gareth, you’re really something else!”

She stepped forward and slapped me hard across the face.

My cheek, already swollen and red from previous blows, instantly burned with a searing pain.

I grabbed her wrist as she swung at me again, gripping it so tightly that she winced in pain.

“Ilma, snap out of it!

“Those are your parents’ bodies. You’re the one who cut off their only chance at survival!”

Ilma suddenly clutched her stomach and burst out laughing.

“Gareth, could you at least put some effort into your lies?

“My parents just video-called with me last week and said they were staying in Sitzerland for a full month. How on earth would they end up in a dump like Mounscour Hill?

“They love you more than they love me, and yet you make up such elaborate lies about their death! Don’t you have a conscience?”

Just then, Astel shuffled out of the ward, leaning on his crutch. His face was pale, but it was unable to hide his smugness.

He reached out to wrap an arm around Ilma’s shoulder. His words were light and airy, yet cut like a knife.

“Ilma, don’t let this upset you so much. Gareth just can’t stand seeing us happy. He’s deliberately bringing up your parents to try and drive a wedge between us.”

He paused as he glanced at the two hospital beds covered in white sheets. A sinister smirk curled his lips.

“Who knows? Maybe those two corpses are of some homeless people he dug up from some back alley. He did all this just to put on a charade and fool you!”

Ilma seemed to snap out of her daze. She rushed toward the beds and reached out to pull back the white sheets.

“I’ll see for myself what kind of fakes you’ve brought in to deceive me!”

The onlookers gathered around as well.

“What on earth’s going on here?”

“Could it really be a charade, just like they said?”

“Hurry and pull the sheets back so everyone can see if these are really this lady’s parents.”

As the crowd grew larger, an elderly police officer reached out to stop her.

“Everyone, please respect the deceased and be mindful of your words”

Astel snorted derisively from the side. “Ilma, Gareth’s just putting on a show. Otherwise, why wouldn’t he let you see him?”

Ilma shot me a resentful glare. “Gareth, you’ve really gone all out for this charade!”

She yanked her hand away from the old police officer’s grip. Her eyes brimmed with contempt.

“Why won’t he let me see them? He’s just lying! I’m going to expose his tricks!”

With that, she yanked the white sheet off the first bed.

The face beneath, ravaged by the miasma, was unmistakably my father-in-law’s.

Ilma’s hand froze midair. Her arrogant face froze, and the color drained from her cheeks.

She staggered back two steps, muttering to herself, “It can’t be… This isn’t my dad… He video-called me just last week…”

Astel was panicking too.

Leaning on his crutch, he took two steps forward. Upon seeing the dead person’s face, a flicker of panic crossed his eyes.

But he forced himself to remain calm. “Ilma, don’t panic. Maybe he’s just a look-alike… Let’s check the other one!”

Ilma clung to that excuse as if it were a lifeline. She reached out with trembling hands to lift the other white sheet.

When her mother’s face, with its familiar wrinkles, came into view, she could no longer hold herself up. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground. Her tears finally broke free.

“Mom… Dad… How could this happen…”