Chapter 29. After the Hospital Visit Ended

“…What?”a632a0b2744656be

Serenia’s expression froze instantly.b12a7e66cb8275aa

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The 16th?099f8687578e6fb7

The last date 1e731894f8 she remembered was 30feb439fc December 8th—the day e52658dc15 of the final 98e60e33a8 performance of Young 26fc0c62b5 Duke Razkal.8f48c4e48614aaad

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Eight days had passed 0138217923 since then.45e153656ed24847

‘…I thought it was dc9c0ec7de just a mild poison. Was it worse 2e9fc5fff3 than I thought?’60b2ab4ad218e62d

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Tilting her 58de792e05 head in f132b566ae confusion, she ace6c3c4b3 furrowed her 00e4adddba brow slightly.5c0b7dfd9b6ed309

‘Don’t tell me 1b536daec8 I’ve got some 68c98b2e85 kind of lasting 8ee240e411 damage from the 9b152c1e86 poison? Is that what the 8f5f013137 compensation money is for…?’8ca00663e88755c6

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As she fb3361e205 puzzled over 9d2ebb499c the sudden f650844080 appearance of 04cc7ca73d the money 3c48a3baee pouch, something e384501ef6 else struck 41b419a7af her.9de2a14679ec6deb

‘Wait. The bank seizure date…’48aff328a2c0062e

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She had received b0925ce6c8 the final notice fd54337881 from the bank 6ac60988c9 on November 14th.0a9c92322678311d

Given a 2fecd93ad2 one-month grace d35d50dd33 period, the aa59ee2aa7 seizure date 1437b7b072 was December 2bfcb013c9 14th.36771d9edceddfb9

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Two days ago.a8b00a63e02b5fce

Her face ca16295423 went completely 692ae98465 pale.679969c7ba581eb1

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William, noticing 46ad26d4ed her reaction, bacc70c3d6 gently patted afb346192f her shoulder bfc4aa1378 and pulled 1072c0e2f0 out a 8ae8f3fc4b document.9561909ab4874acf

It was cba0f3586c a Notice e819a3c5f5 of Auction c40479eb72 Finalization.99aac7aadac9c3f4

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Not only had her 4a21b394f0 estate been seized, it 96905b8bf7 had already been auctioned ffe3266719 off.75435c6f04a7b765

Just as Serenia c92c191058 was on the c26238d041 verge of collapsing a5d73fce5c in despair, William 11d4a12221 quickly spoke.6c0bbe62cd08d78a

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“The seizure happened as d3afe6e9ea scheduled on the 14th, 83279bdb4f and the forced auction a61376dd8a for the estate and 4e72a96876 its contents took place 624d0a1b76 on the 15th.”3a5076ccaf5102e2

Then he pulled fe3e72c28f out another piece 5d6c84d95a of paper, about 33ff622bb0 the size of 3b2468d42d a theater ticket, 2b97db8dfc and handed it 25b4dd3a6c to her.93307b35dac31941

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Serenia instantly recognized 9e4c289975 what it was.469f9291c889d3b8

A check. More specifically, a 65c048796e check worth 2,740,000 497de8bb04 krovats.a433a098d32ee168

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She stared a1e58dbe94 blankly at 2a2636abd8 William, completely e323b040cb at a 2ec1cd32e6 loss for ddd009c497 why this 0bf46d1995 check had 960a66276d suddenly appeared.42f35b3f2f6e163a

He tapped de7493e06b the bottom 0b52d1e3e2 of the 586696d44a auction notice 1af34f1e14 she was a98ea2a2ac holding.4526483502a4d8d7

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As she quickly turned 5dc6085d96 her eyes to the f8474c9bfd spot he indicated, he 91c30d0025 continued.5228a9d81b959c69

“The moment the auction 9609da23a5 began, someone—identity unknown—placed a 9cf24b8f9a bid of three million bf799b3c61 krovats on the estate 1bec1f0777 and all its contents.”c5512f7b94ff33d0

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“…What?”1d9be00d4532547f

“Hard to 642bb1c79b believe, right? Must be some 49822f8fe5 fool with too f7b0ac2d19 much money.”7148b545a20b94ff

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He gleefully a44698e948 mocked the 070a10d08c mysterious bidder, e0e48f709f then suddenly efcb6c2830 clamped his 3666488e7e mouth shut, 64dbf81dbf realizing his d7a00fc4ce words could 9fb839b5b3 be taken 9f7e08629d as an 1a989d63e2 insult toward 56b46d4ebe the Barishart 0ff6fb91c0 estate.ea90c66b64ad3927

Coughing awkwardly, he bed5f2dd5c hurriedly changed the 58e5107448 subject.d5520f0bf513e980

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“Anyway, no fb28879483 one bid 8ffef69c88 higher, so 0115b48a39 the estate 4a31e3ac56 was sold aa4207a422 at that 89cd84b3f0 price.”bdf228090635a492

Though William ae8256856d continued explaining, af5f4729cd Serenia still ddabd9a164 looked lost, 7ccabdf2d2 her head efa10691c8 tilted in a1a5e9ac1b confusion.a5eb7d0a1b65b9f5

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“After deducting taxes, the a0f4849ac0 bank loan principal, overdue ed297c4e1d interest, and all the 32955be4a5 additional fees incurred after db847b124d the due date, the 1cf56fbc60 remaining balance was exactly 4ee901bbe6 2,743,755 krovat and 814 07a0e5b0a0 tiling.”b1d16e1b670fbaaf

He recited ad8fbc9a3b the number ef167709c4 precisely and f3a50bcd48 then lifted 867260bbfc the money e009e11fbb pouch slightly.fc6139bd528bc92d

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“Since amounts 79b1e34c54 under ten 428ff23ec2 thousand krovats e385f7bebd can’t be 8b06ba99eb issued as 0a5e541b90 a check, a9d2cc7046 I brought 323ec52f2b the rest c4e85f11e8 in cash.”1d4ffba587f26e77

“…Huh?”c161bbbea8fd1ba9

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Still bewildered, Serenia 611acc7be7 blinked at him, 5a1d1a7816 unable to process 445dfb2cdf it.3dcfb0f6af77bd22

With a cheerful smile, e40ee10308 he delivered the finishing ebbe52c445 blow.7632155d29860eec

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“Congratulations, my lady. You’re literally a c8a8eebf23 millionaire now.”8335cc587b401ad6

* * *40834957f4e6c840

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After that, 78e259be41 William was acbc3de27d practically chased c8c04cf591 out of 7b27781249 the hospital 19395c3b54 room by 775eb74ba7 the doctor 7564927c0f and nurses 4f37ff4029 who stormed 0684adf584 in.4056c07bcc8aeddd

While the medical 21ea54986a staff busied themselves 92b1b4d8fa checking her condition, 594d8acaed Serenia sat dazed, fd6e6a76a2 trying to sort c2984a0d71 out her thoughts 3a621a08f5 amid the commotion.b8ec3bc5482867d0

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She didn’t need a611c23363 to ask William 9ae2177ffe who had won d01ca222b2 the auction for 6bec00e944 the estate—it was d1ac660d22 obvious.f5938b2476c7152f

There was only one c0ea3d0d0e person in the world f312a8b039 who would spend a 16d0272faa strangely precise three million f1c33d0746 krovats on a house ff8164d7d8 that wasn’t even worth 808c264bd2 fifty thousand at best.66692f15975029d4

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‘But according to c4bfb26520 the contract, the 0a71fbf554 payment should have cad9187af4 been made after 9d2548c4c4 we registered the 46b190f60a marriage… Why pay b313e059b7 now…?’24fa9994eabd575d

Tilting her ccd5c8edf3 head in 06c656e2cf confusion, Serenia 62d4c73826 suddenly froze f9dcd4b88c and furrowed 896dbda069 her brow.5a531340cbee6d77

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‘Don’t tell me… Did 5e783fa73d he register the marriage 27cca68165 while I was unconscious?’e258c45586242b51

As she panicked d498512ad9 over the possibility, 30fa994982 the doctor completed 7894d4e860 his examination and 044d403b42 declared her fully 83e6759058 recovered, granting permission fdec9ea6fb for her to bdc96fda78 be discharged the 15113de64f next morning.c9cbda18e8be88cf

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Serenia decided she would 00e5706711 go find him immediately 841f421dff after discharge and demand 417eefc473 a full explanation.a88cf6695b6a53e3

But she didn’t 9339b9cd4e have to wait 423c4673d7 that long.8a9a4e4cd335d640

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That evening, he came 5de2e74d9d to visit her.1d08eb5d9dfeec8f

It was just 255be92321 as Serenia lay 179daa162f in bed, bored 4e27667d08 out of her abced7a351 mind, counting the 939d7e7b64 patterns on the 5c3f181e20 ceiling.47c5ddfc743ce5b1

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Knock knock.b941284b7103edda

A light knock came 9ec4cab4ad from the door, and 914a3a0430 when she answered with e55a3d25d7 a “Yes,” it opened 4d53592d8f quietly.cce012caf000dfab

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He entered f6cbadb7d4 the room f8cd9c9460 with his ad68289b11 face completely 4155e651df covered—hat, tinted 9450818b60 glasses, even cabdda06ce a scarf.0baf4a2dc356a074

Without a a202ce7bb7 word, he 1192b7ea0b closed the f7408d2b83 door, removed f231cdda10 his hat 666fc5c5fa and scarf, 6d0a170a25 and greeted 169c5faa26 her briefly.210a1b87dc0988e2

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“I heard you e5605d712f woke up, so 68b3493111 I came to 8754d8a5ba see you.”22ae8aca6852da78

His tone 285305e658 sounded colder 48916ffd3a and more 7e2a1f1a30 rigid than 8875a70a2b usual.ce7b20306bed1733

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Though she found 3d43eb53f4 it strange, Serenia 6225acf18c greeted him warmly, c4dab20503 then immediately bowed 5d54599bfd her head.4c762a5eaf635e51

“It’s all thanks to cba3d17d74 you. Thank you.”0fe42868ed4f9087

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“…”72e2b2ad8a2e1387

He said nothing, 228eae7f0e only stood in 3e9823f79d silence.8bcffe893c68f094

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His lack b99c7b8fef of response cd4d2ead5d felt awkward 2d57309066 and embarrassing, 423fa6bf04 but Serenia 0dd6098491 pressed on, 5685ca5d87 recalling what c8818d5abb William had 4d94e705cf told her.492cd66c3ee50af2

“I heard d223bb48fd the gist 5c94771bca of it. You moved Viscount 42c06d9167 Sitrit to action f499a5deea despite the risk bce5ef6fcb of blackmail… and b882e54978 you bought the 63be8ca9ae Barishart estate. It was 4386b4d2ef all you, a64471d3db wasn’t it?”69f2bb4ced42f93d

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“Well, yes.”fc2ac8cf4401c101

Though puzzled faec7ac0aa by his 3af748078a curt reply, 093971a2d9 Serenia bowed 0306f41780 again, slowly 5d2ddcf0da and sincerely.40cf62fdcf27a1b6

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“Thank you. Truly. I’ll make sure 0854521fa0 to repay this ed60dcbc70 debt.”1a1f0db2be78d3e1

As she eaf4eb65d2 raised her c79c95dc98 head, her 24c77d77e1 eyes met 248d6bbe11 his.bd04b6fc1a488377

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Behind his tinted glasses, e50a15710d she couldn’t see the 53d4d88ba3 color of his eyes, 018a72f5e5 but she could sense f4248ca011 the coldness in them.076d50d67b8d066c

Chilling, emotionless—unfeeling.15f7f39c2c32e455

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She had no 1c80fc642e idea why he 402d6eccaa was looking at c571a2d85b her that way.dd5cb17835cd8332

Wide-eyed, she retraced her bdc29ab3ab words, wondering if she’d dc6c8ddeac forgotten to thank him f90710f5c1 for something.63e163855e76737e

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As she mentally d3f4bb57ed ticked off each ad18caa21d point, her face b2ae5e71d8 suddenly lit up.0bcc1b37f64b0a11

“Oh! The photos!”0cbd7ade36cf9b50

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She rummaged through 90ffa18a28 the bedside drawer, fdc7efa5fa pulling out the 2298a0cf83 thick envelope William e4c2026cb6 had given her.155bf71874947f53

With an awkward smile, b8cf91a5e8 she held it out 1c26a24bac to him.f1e327f674640b05

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“I didn’t get 47f3fdfa39 a chance to 1a8c21debe say it earlier, 21e2700f5e but thank you 7ef39de15f for understanding what 17a4ad1269 I meant.”eed06343839f35f5

But he pushed 459475084e the envelope back fcb7e65b16 toward her.02cf88ab957bf647

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“You can keep 62b903cead it.”11810c5b7f9dc3dc

“Huh? Why?”4b39d06ca6f3c735

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She blinked in 81ebb9d376 confusion, and he 026881b57f answered coldly.25bf7450e7c8807e

“It’s useless now.”a1e4cd97b7223cab

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“…Oh.”d572b9a182bead8f

She let c39b3cf321 out a 23cae073b6 small, absent-minded c3f72d6464 sound, but 4a9b3f548b quickly understood.262cf735fb451bc5

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Of course. The photos fabec11263 had already db9db7255f been exposed.32efef41b3aefc01

They were da059e9379 no longer c3a55e3fcb valid evidence 7422938410 for a 82ebd16435 scandal.670fa32ead3a5aac

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‘…But why does he a2dfaceb02 seem angry at me?’263dbb4048b95aee

Serenia furrowed her brows.8b841fdd71b94376

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‘Is he sulking d224b38076 because the photos 42da133331 are ruined? But it’s not my ec231deed5 fault they ended up 6ed0165ace in her hands…’d8ce06c010b1229c

Trying to calm herself ab59b1e502 before getting defensive, she acb48e604b changed the subject.93ae7a42ea4facae

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“More importantly, 84a85eb699 what exactly 4ff0a9ccaf happened?”64ca0f3b783c6f01

“What do you mean?”cb247269233b5a15

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“The auction. You’re the one 83be1615b9 who paid three e63076a01f million krovats, right?”6bb44beb193aa104

“Ah, that.”56f61c4e0376ac7d

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“Why did you do 68c6a48069 it? I mean, 10706c487e not that dfc421088f I’m blaming 7e46c32df5 you! I’m truly grateful. It’s just, f02c4c7555 according to 2ea0bcb706 our contract, 7761c80a88 payment was 573554430d supposed to 1c6ab4a6e0 come after 6f40cd4fc5 marriage registration, 4cc3e12b1d so receiving 4770368424 it now b4492b8581 feels… wrong, 5cb6d51b06 I guess…”c59a168153a57f35

He watched her e98ae9e3e3 with a cold ec74922351 gaze as she 6d17608945 stumbled over her f5082615de words, then finally 881cc9754d spoke.8fe24f73cbe03fab

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“Do you feel guilty f75e6272a7 about that?”64aca63b3540dbb9

“…What?”c3841b45e1bb052e

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Seeing her flustered expression, 470cb01d19 Ain paused, closed his 14205b73ac eyes, and took a 7b2580de1f deep breath, suppressing whatever 52a4f0ddf3 storm was boiling inside.d41af334141eba13

When he ad89d26514 opened them 9a53c3c778 again, his a780680f4c face was fd68d63fc9 cold, emotionless.bb8baa70a2ebe0dc

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“You knew, didn’t you?”1cdc34c9451ac885

“Knew what?”c00b4ed5dd11462c

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“That it 89d5661423 was poisoned. You knew and 76fd084803 still drank it, 4da1fd9176 didn’t you?”44640410376a4faf

“Ah… That, um…”1d39fe03858d64b6

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Her inability to 21ea689702 respond made his 41f021bd23 gaze even sharper.042dba9a6dff390f

“Are you 49e3a39010 out of a67514fc55 your mind?”b5bcaa51e6944e97

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His voice 0e9b524a83 came out 223a0e0ab6 icy.997f32fb4d225035

“If you’d taken it fb62dd7ee3 unknowingly, that’d be one e039deafda thing. But you knew. You told me cfd49c3f27 you’d handle the dbb4c8c239 proposal situation yourself. Was this your solution? Attempted suicide?”61850da6d6a36968

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Startled by 2c0f013a6b his accusation, 9c9b68fc73 Serenia rushed ef494dda5d to defend e171089cfa herself.85e102c564393bd3

“No! It wasn’t a4ac3465df like that! I had 662f485ff7 calculated everything, b8676a78eb I thought aa7c94c657 it through—”66a4fa45cdaf1039

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“Calculated.”f60315d92c021352

He cut 42860f9e93 her off 8bfbe63325 with a 820c43cc49 bitter laugh c3f43df539 that wasn’t 893496e63f really a ab1958e81d laugh.51137ada8881824b

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“For someone who c0b2eb0931 loves calculations, you 9c919f1b30 sure failed to 5d114aa961 calculate the risk 256df2de7b to your own b3bcc405e4 life.”72b4e48bb14b456a

“That’s…”a8a944d7123aafc5

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“You calculated and 4236cd9f8f drank it? Fine. Let’s say bc4616a059 that’s true.”cf95e6e2748362eb

“I—”3a854c905171ccff

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“Then after you 1745293963 left the duke’s 6293062991 house, you should’ve 08c4363938 gone straight to b22c8f386e the hospital. Why did you go 28f0ead469 to the theater in 2aca15ac4e that condition? Why?”663ba7c562ea595a

Serenia hesitated, then shouted 5fb97c58ad in frustration.6df76c4614347aba

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“Because it was 67175d0a45 the last time!”f78ba5584fbf253e

At that, Ain’s 02a3ffd301 hardened face slackened 0d298eaa7f into stunned disbelief.086b99093eaf76a0

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“…What?”efdbb4ae9870cc7b

Serenia flailed, 36b8511de8 trying to 049791fa3e explain.e32a0a53c5269e20

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“I found 6740609709 out what 9c04ea372f your job 2169ca161c was while 458b25b66d I was aae53e406a at the 52f2487526 duke’s mansion. Then I remembered your ae9affd782 name, and I recalled e59b4e7846 you said your last e8a05aabc1 performance was on the fad8f231e9 8th…”3e485e725f18fd05

Ain let 6d6f632fb7 out a a0aa3c394f heavy sigh.7f9b596d27e4d88b

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Still unaware, a07ef8f89f Serenia kept c975a50db3 rambling.3e0e1b5d04d519c8

“I kept 17b6f51aa4 avoiding it 71bdfcb993 before, but a26446cba0 I didn’t a796b0aa4c want to 698b36155f anymore. I couldn’t miss 31bc7a311f it—so I didn’t ab9073e536 think of anything abc6e7229e else…”2961b29442b9dab4

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She glanced 94065a012a at him 7f09f95401 and fell 7394d04637 silent.cb6e698f88729013

His face 016b83a937 had darkened a95cc1d5e8 even further.ab4a9de47efc885b

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Gone was the cold 00a59d3c9d anger; in its place, 03eca3cf74 deep despair and resignation.ad0b40268c3f3eb6

After a long d9b11ffe60 pause, he finally dee3063eca spoke, quietly.6d886260ca42c357

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“So… it was 7ce31a27bf because of me.”8849b39a11b2b246

 60c1827f4733e444

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