At the engagement party that had come three years too late, I got accused in front of everyone by my fiancée’s personal assistant.

“Sir, your sincerity still isn’t enough. Better wait another three years for Miss Lizbeth.”

He pulled out a contract, just like he had before.

But this time, I didn’t take it. Instead, I turned to Lizbeth and asked, “Is this your idea again?”

She was tipsy, shaking her head and laughing it off. “Nope, not my idea, but I think Eldzier did the right thing. He’d never do me harm.”

The way she sided with him so easily and the way her face said she didn’t care about me—I couldn’t help but laugh to myself.

Kiss-ass men would just end up broken. I figured I’d just go back to being the heir I was born to be.

——

1

Calvert’s POV

“Hey! Don’t just stand there like a fool! Sign it!”

Eldzier sneered, urging me like a commander.

To anyone watching, they’d think I owed him half a billion.

I took the contract, balled it up in my fist, and slammed it into his face. “Know your place,” I said coldly.

Ignoring his darkening expression, I turned to Lizbeth. “I waited three years for you. And this is what I get?” I asked. “Even your personal assistant dares to climb on my head and shit.”

The hall went silent. Every pair of eyes swung to her, waiting for her to take a stand.

Unexpectedly, she only rolled her eyes at me and replied, “Eldzier has been with my family since he was ten. He’s been with me abroad these past three years, too. He’s my most trusted servant.”

“Everything he does is for my sake. Waiting another three years is nothing. Why must you make such a fuss?” she hissed.

Her words stunned the crowd.

I waited for three years, then I needed to wait another three years. But how many six years does a man get in his lifetime?

It felt like an arrow piercing through my chest, the pain spreading deep inside me. And in my ears still echoed the promises she’d made three years ago.

She once told me, “Calvert, wait for me for three years. Once I come back, we’ll get engaged.”

She had once sworn, “Eldzier always makes you unhappy, and he nearly got you killed. I’ll teach him a lesson these next three years.”

But she hadn’t done a damn thing. If anything, she protected him even more fiercely.

This morning, when I rushed to the airport to pick her up—heart pounding, ready to hold her in my arms—Eldzier blocked me with one hand.

“Miss Lizbeth’s status is different now. She has to maintain her image in public. Oh, and anyone who wants close contact with her must first be fully disinfected.”

At the time, Lizbeth said nothing to defend me. And by staying silent, she approved of what Eldzier said.

Later, Eldzier actually grew bolder. While I stepped away to the restroom, he took my car and left with her before I returned.

When I confronted them in anger later, Lizbeth brushed it off, saying, “Eldzier has protected me since he was ten. He does everything for my sake. Why do you have to be so narrow-minded? Don’t cause trouble before the engagement party.”

I had endured it all for the party.

But this—this was what I endured for.

Eldzier shifted from anger to a smug smile, puffing out his chest. “If you don’t sign, it proves your heart isn’t sincere. Don’t forget, men lining up to chase after Miss Lizbeth could circle the globe.”

Relying on Lizbeth, he thought he could act without limits. He thought I’d keep swallowing my pride and sign that humiliating contract.

But I didn’t.

With one sharp slap, I struck him across the face. “That includes you, too, doesn’t it? That’s why you’re stirring trouble here,” I shot back.

“You dare hit me?” His eyes widened. His fists clenched until his knuckles cracked, as if he was about to tear me apart in a second.

A sudden bang startled us.

Lizbeth slammed her hand on the table and sprang to her feet. In a single, terrifying motion, she drew a gun and aimed it straight at my forehead.

“What are you making a scene for?” she shouted. “Hitting Eldzier is the same as hitting me! You'd better apologize to him right now!”

That was three commands in a row, her authority cutting through the air.

With that, the entire hall froze, as if no one dared breathe.

Calvert’s POV

Eldzier sneered, clearly thinking I would finally back down by now.

But the next second, I laughed.

“Go on then, pull the trigger,” I taunted Lizbeth. “Let everyone here see how, for the sake of your personal assistant, you spilled your fiancé’s blood all over your engagement party.”

Her eyes trembled. Slowly, she lowered the gun and said, “You know Eldzier only spoke harshly because he cares about me.”

Her voice hardened as she added, “But you did go too far when you hit him, so you have to apologize!”

She delivered the command like a queen, deciding everything on her own.

Compared to three years ago, she had become a completely different person. She had lost all her gentleness, all her sense of mutual understanding.

“Apologize?” I repeated. “Don’t forget—he owes me a life!”

I stared straight at her. “Three years ago, he got into a fight with others, and you were dragged into it. They cornered you in an abandoned factory. I was the one who saved you both—and I was stabbed eight times for it! And let’s not forget—he mixed mango juice into my milk. I went into anaphylactic shock because of that!”

The words weren’t loud, yet they carried across the entire hall. Everyone heard.

One by one, people turned to Eldzier with eyes that said, ‘How ungrateful can you be?’

And the truth was that those were just the big things. On top of that, Eldzier’s smaller mistakes were endless—he smashed my computer, lost my research files, and once, drunk, leaked my client list.

The moment he saw the crowd’s reaction, Eldzier switched his expression in an instant. He snatched the gun from Lizbeth’s hand and pressed it to his own temple.

“Don’t make things harder for the young lady!” he cried out. “One man takes responsibility for his own actions. You want my life? Fine, I’ll give it to you!”

For a moment, Lizbeth’s eyes flickered with guilt. But the instant she saw his performance, she rushed to stop him and then turned her glare back on me, frowning.

“You really had to bring up every petty little thing from the past? Do you have to drive Eldzier to his death before you’ll be satisfied?”

She really had changed. That single sentence froze half my heart. My molars ground together as I bit down hard.

Eldzier carried on with his drama. He grabbed a fruit knife from the table and suddenly stabbed it deep into his own palm.

“Mr. Rubenstein,” he hissed, “consider it paid back. Now, can you finally sign the contract?”

The blood from his palm gushed violently. Lizbeth’s beautiful eyes flew wide in shock. Tearing off a strip of her gown, she bound his hand and then turned on me in fury.

“Look at what you’ve become!” she shouted. “Always so aggressive, always so unreasonable! Why can’t you be more like Eldzier and think of me first?”

Her gaze was sharp enough to cut flesh, as though she wanted me hacked into a thousand pieces.

But from beginning to end, I hadn’t forced Eldzier into anything.

We both knew it was the two of them who had pressed me gradually.

We both knew it was she who had changed.

And yet, somehow, it was all my fault?

Hadn’t I considered her enough, not to mention taking the knife for her back then, even in the little things?

Back when we were still dating, she said she didn’t like apples. I, who had loved them since I was a kid, never bought one again.

She wanted homemade lunches, so I made whatever she liked.

She once forgot her documents; I ran them to her in the middle of a storm.

And what about the three years I spent waiting for her?

It was a long-distance relationship.

She was busy, barely able to call me more than a few times a month.

Yet, my heart never wavered.

How many people could endure that? Was that still not enough sincerity?

“All right, all right, tonight’s an engagement party. Stop arguing,” someone nearby said, trying to smooth things over.

But Lizbeth refused to let it go. She snapped at me again.

“You’re getting more and more out of line. Tonight, you must apologize to Eldzier. Otherwise, what will stop you from turning the sky upside down in front of me tomorrow?”

I looked at her, and suddenly, I was at a loss for words; my throat tightened until I could barely breathe.

For the first time, I felt that I myself and this whole relationship had become more and more ridiculous.

“Say something!” she pressed. “Can’t you see how much blood Eldzier has lost? Is an apology really so hard for you, Calvert?”

Her brows knit tightly as her voice rose louder and louder.

Calvert’s POV

Those words sounded all too familiar.

Back when I’d been stabbed eight times, drenched in my own blood, it was exactly what Lizbeth had screamed at Eldzier.

But now, she was using the same words to condemn me.

When I still didn’t answer, Lizbeth’s fury reached its limit. She snatched up the wine glass beside her and hurled it at me.

“Apologize!” she demanded, her voice sharp as a whip. “Otherwise, forget about marrying me! I’ll even cut you to pieces!”

The glass shattered on impact.

In an instant, blood trickled down from my forehead, running to the tip of my nose.

The entire hall fell into stunned silence, and then a wave of murmurs and whispers rippled through the crowd.

Only then did Lizbeth seem to realize how reckless she had been. She stood frozen for over ten seconds, lips pressed together as she lowered her head slightly and bit down.

“Miss Lizbeth…” Eldzier’s voice slid into the tension like oil on water. “Let’s just leave it, alright? There’s no need to make such a scene. Everything tonight was my fault. Let me apologize to Mr. Rubenstein.”

At this moment, he suddenly began to take the blame. Even now, there was a flicker of sly amusement deep in his eyes.

That bastard really was a cunning fox, pretending to smooth things over, yet secretly fanning the flames.

“Oh, Eldzier, you’re always so sensible,” Lizbeth praised him softly.

Then, she turned back to me, her expression softening a little. She let out a faint sigh. “Calvert, you know, as long as I’m happy, everything can be negotiated.”

Of course, I knew that. That was why, for the five years we’d been together, I had always behaved, always tried to keep things in line.

But… did my feelings not matter at all?

I drew a slow, steady breath and finally tore the mask off. My voice was cold as I replied, “Tonight, between Eldzier and me, you can only choose one.”

For an instant, the light of expectation in her eyes went out, replaced by disappointment and rage. And then, in a heartbeat, she became the haughty queen once more.

“Calvert!” she snapped. “If you won’t sign the goddamn contract, if you won’t apologize, then live on your own from now on!”

With that, she seized Eldzier by the arm and stormed away.

He glanced back at me, wearing the expression of a victor.

This time, I had truly lost miserably.

Watching my fiancée’s retreating figure, I muttered under my breath, “From this day forward, Lizbeth and I are nothing to each other.”

“Everything ends here,” I announced.

Her steps faltered for a moment. But in the end, she didn’t turn back.

The room erupted into gasps. Clearly, no one had expected it to come to this.

When the last of the guests had left, the hotel manager hurried over.

“Sir,” he said softly, dabbing at the blood on my forehead as he handed me my phone, “your father’s on the line.”

“Word is you and Lizbeth have broken up?” my father asked the moment I picked up.

“Mm,” I admitted with a nod. “I don’t want to be with her anymore.”

For the first time, when it came to something involving Lizbeth, my tone was utterly calm.

“You loved that girl to death, my boy. You’d give up so easily?” Dad’s voice was grave. “Once you two separate, I’ll pull back every resource, and she’ll lose everything.”

He paused, his tone still sharp. “I’m giving you one night to think about it, son. If you truly want to give up, then cut all ties completely.”

With that, he hung up before I could answer.

Honestly, I couldn’t really blame him for thinking that way.

After all, I had spoiled Lizbeth far too much before. I couldn’t bear to see even a trace of unhappiness on her face.

I would rather swallow my own grievances than see her upset.

I’d do everything just to make her happy.

Now, I shook my head hard, trying to cast off these thoughts.

I told the hotel staff to keep the dishes coming and invited the manager and servers to eat and drink with me.

Not long after, Lizbeth’s father, Morris, arrived at the hotel in a hospital gown.

I had assumed he’d come to comfort me after rushing from the hospital.

But the moment he opened his mouth, he was full of accusations.

“Calvert!” he barked. “You’re out of your mind! What’s another three years when you’ve already waited three? Is my daughter not worth waiting for?!”

I downed another glass of wine and asked back, “Is that really the point here?”