The One to Blame… Is You

Ethan Cross finally pieced the whole thing together.

"Ah, I see now. That's what you believed."

He nodded slowly.

"But... maybe there's been a misunderstanding?"

He lowered his eyes, locking onto Linda's furious gaze.

Then his voice dropped, soft and chilling.

"You know, people always say I'm cold-blooded… but truth is, I've got a soft spot."

"You think I could just let a child die in pain?"

He sighed dramatically.

"That's why I brought you the medicine."

Linda's eyes widened in disbelief.

"You're lying!"

"No, no, not at all. I really came to your apartment. You must've been… distracted. Forgotten, maybe."

Ethan's expression grew somber.

"Little Tiger was still breathing when I arrived. I saw his chest moving."

"But you… you'd already given up on him."

"He could've lived. But you took that chance away."

"You really are a loving grandmother."

His gaze darkened.

His tone turned to ice.

Linda's face twitched. Her broken mind already teetering on the edge.

A glimmer of panic flickered in her eyes.

No... could that be true?

Did I... kill him?

"No! He was dead! You killed him!" she screamed.

Ethan laughed and pointed toward Dr. Chloe.

"Why don't you ask our doctor?"

"Dr. Chloe, was the boy savable?"

Linda's head snapped toward the stairwell.

Dr. Chloe hesitated—then gave a slow, cold nod.

"Yes. He was."

"I asked Ethan to bring medicine. He agreed."

"But you didn't wait. You thought he was dead already."

"If you had waited… he might still be alive."

The words hit like bullets.

Linda clutched her head, howling in agony.

"No! No! That's not true! I didn't know!"

"I thought he was gone…"

Her voice cracked.

She had survived all this time on hatred alone.

Now?

That hatred collapsed.

Had she really killed her grandson with her own hands?

Ethan leaned in, voice booming.

"This is Linda, the perfect grandmother."

"Says she loves her grandson—then kills him herself."

"Your son and daughter-in-law entrusted their only child to you."

"You proud of what you did?"

Linda trembled violently, shrieking in denial.

"No! No! It wasn't me!"

"Yes, it was."

"NO!"

"YES!"

Ethan's voice echoed like a judge handing down a sentence.

Linda crumbled. Blood poured from her mouth. Her breathing grew shallow.

She was unraveling.

Dr. Chloe stood frozen, shaken to the core.

This man... this terrifying man…

He doesn't just kill people. He rips out their soul first.

Suddenly—

"AAAGHHHH!"

Linda screamed and hurled herself toward the wall.

Intent on smashing her skull.

But at the last second—

Ethan shouted, > "No!"

And kicked her mid-air, sending her crashing down the stairs.

THUD. THUMP. CRACK.

She tumbled to the landing below.

Ethan walked to the edge, looking down.

"Don't give up so easily, Linda."

"You made it this far—don't waste it all now."

"After all, you traded your grandson's life for your own."

"If you die now… how will you face your family in hell?"

Linda could no longer speak.

She was coughing blood, eyes begging for mercy.

"Please... stop... no more..."

Residents from nearby floors had gathered.

Ethan turned to them and pointed.

"Look! Linda tried to kill herself!"

"Strange, isn't it? She's survived this long. Maybe she still has food hidden?"

The crowd recoiled, faces twisted in disgust.

No one—not even the worst of them—could forgive someone who betrayed their own blood.

Linda was already broken.

Now?

She shattered completely.

"She's not gonna last long," Dr. Chloe whispered.

"She's bleeding internally. Probably frozen solid in half an hour."

Ethan frowned.

"Freeze to death? In this weather?"

"That's just cruel."

The neighbors looked confused.

Was Ethan… feeling merciful?

Dr. Chloe narrowed her eyes. > "What are you planning now?"

Ethan sighed dramatically.

"She's an old lady. Let's at least keep her warm before she goes."

He reached into his coat—actually into his dimensional storage—and pulled out a bottle of alcohol.

Uncapped it.

Splashed it all over Linda's crumpled body.

The onlookers went wide-eyed.

They finally understood.

This was Ethan.

He never spared.

He just did things his way.

After dousing her, Ethan pulled out a lighter.

Lit a cigarette.

Took two long drags.

And flicked it down.

WHOOMPH.

A fireball erupted in the stairwell.

Linda's screams echoed, horrific and inhuman.

Ethan turned and walked away.

Didn't even glance back.

Everyone moved aside.

No one dared block his path.

And every pair of eyes?

Filled with terror.