Chapter 2

Elara glared at him with a dark expression: "Enough! What nonsense are you spouting? Get out of here now!"

Her face was flushed with anger, as if she was truly indignant on my behalf.

Earlier, Elara had solemnly promised me that she wouldn't let others mention her surrogacy for her male best friend in front of me, to avoid embarrassing me.

At this moment, she was frantically pushing Alec away.

Alec nearly lost his balance and almost fell.

With reddened eyes and a choked voice, he said, "Elara, I'm telling the truth. If you're not having a baby with him, why did you bring him to the hospital?"

"He came here specifically to see you. Didn't you say I could stay in your master bedroom for 10 days? You didn't even drive over to help me move my stuff."

Elara's brow furrowed even deeper as she shouted, "Shut up! Go home right now!"

Alec meekly complied, but before leaving, he shot me a resentful middle finger.

Elara hastily tried to explain to me, "Martin, Alec didn't mean any harm. He just speaks without thinking. Don't take it personally."

I coldly interrupted, "I understand. When we get home, I'll clear my things out of the master bedroom. Don't worry."Elara hadn't expected me to be so accommodating. She said with concern, "Martin, I'll have the driver move your things to the guest room downstairs in a bit. You've been with me all morning, don't wear yourself out."

I didn't say anything more, silently accepting it.

Back home, the driver was trembling as he held our wedding photo that had been hanging above the bed. He immediately apologized to Elara.

"Ma'am, it's all my fault for being careless. When I was taking down your wedding photo just now, I accidentally let a nail scratch the picture. I really didn't mean to, I..."

As he spoke, he was on the verge of tears.

Elara, who had just finished replying to Alec's text message, walked straight into the master bedroom.

She sternly questioned the driver, "What's going on? I notified you early on, so why haven't you moved my husband's clothes from the closet to the guest room yet? So what if the photo got scratched? It's not a big deal! If it's ruined, just throw it out! Can't you be a little more efficient?"

I, who didn't know how to leave, suddenly smiled.

Even damaging our wedding photo wasn't a big deal. It seems I was just as dispensable.

Clutching my work laptop, I told her I had to go to the office for overtime, and that I probably wouldn't be home for the next few days.She saw my calm demeanor and didn't think much of it, instead smiling as she put me in a taxi.

"Martin, after these ten days are over, we'll go back to how we were before. I'll make it up to you properly, I'll give you a whole litter of sons!"

As the car door closed, a cold voice appeared in my mind.

"Host mission failed, pregnancy and child task incomplete!"

"In ten days, you will receive the system's ultimate punishment. You will die in an explosion at the laboratory where you work!"

Two years ago, Elara and I encountered robbers while camping in the wilderness.

During the struggle, I was brutally murdered.

As I lay dying, I wasn't ready to just die like that.

Because I couldn't bear to leave Elara, I wasn't at peace leaving her alone in this world.

Suddenly, a cold mechanical voice rang out.

"Do you want to live and reunite with Elara? If you agree to bind to the pregnancy and child assistance system, successfully have a child with Elara, you can stay with her until you're old. Do you accept binding to the system?"

For a dying person, I had no reason to refuse.

But I never expected that just as I was about to complete the task, Elara would insist on having a child with Alec.Perhaps it's the repeated disappointments that have numbed my heart.

I know the fate that awaits me is to accept failure, my soul scattered to the winds.

On my way back to the company, the entire night sky was filled with a romantic atmosphere.

520 drones were confessing across the city: "My darling, we'll have the most adorable child in the world!"

The image in the sky showed the silhouettes of a couple in an intimate embrace.

Though it was just their profiles, my sharp eyes still recognized them as Elara and Alec.

Once upon a time, she showered me with the same affection.

In that first year we met, when I was feeling down, she would dress up in a mascot costume in the sweltering 102-degree heat just to make me smile.

When I was exhausted from work, she'd drive two or three hours through winding mountain roads to bring me my favorite homemade chicken soup, just to give me an energy boost.

I was grateful for fate's arrangement that brought her into my life.

Elara knelt down passionately, holding out the wedding ring as she proposed: "Martin, let's get married. I want to tie you down for life; you can only be my love!"

Back then, I was so happy. I firmly believed we would grow old together.

But reality slapped me hard in the face.