Those cruel truths were uncovered by Ethan Caldwell’s father during his efforts to track down the old research team for his wife. He had weighed the matter heavily, but ultimately decided to tell Ethan’s mother. She was directly involved, she had every right to know these things. Furthermore, Ethan’s father knew perfectly well that his wife was not a fragile woman who needed to be shielded.

Even though Ethan’s parents had learned the truth behind the scenes and identified the mastermind... At first, his father had only investigated the surface, but his influence was not small, and it did not take long to unearth the Central Organization of Ruling Elites, abbreviated as CORE. However, CORE was not an entity they could simply overthrow using their current power.

What good was knowing the truth when, in the end, Ethan’s parents were utterly powerless to act? At that time, their son was only eleven years old. No matter how brilliant Grandpa Arthur was, no matter how deep the roots of the Caldwell family ran, uprooting such a colossal network was nearly impossible. Right when they were biding their time, calculating a way to deal with that terrifying organization, they were ambushed.

The accident involving Ethan’s parents was a premeditated arrangement. In the split second before their car plummeted off the cliff, they likely realized there was no surviving the clutches of CORE.

But they refused to be resigned to their fate!

How could they peacefully close their eyes when the enemies who murdered their mentor and harmed them were still roaming freely, beyond the reach of the law? How could they give up when their only son was still so innocent, completely unaware of the pack of wolves prowling just outside the door?

"And just like that, they lived in a vegetative state. Their consciousness was trapped within their own bodies, while their physical functions deteriorated day by day, growing increasingly worse. The two of them endured the decay of their flesh and the torment of agonizing pain every single day... it was clearly a living hell on earth, yet they could not bear to depart." Ethan Caldwell’s voice began to fracture. Perhaps no matter how strong a man was, whenever he recounted the suffering his parents had to endure, he could not help but reveal his vulnerable side. Ethan buried his face in Julian Sterling’s hair, as if trying to conceal his tear-filled eyes: "They were not afraid of death, rather... they were waiting. They used the most frantic will to survive of a human being to cling to a cruel, lingering breath, solely to wait for the day when the son they protected with their lives grew mature enough, smart enough, to utter the name of their enemy right in front of them."

They were using the most agonizing method imaginable to pass on their final dying wish.

A wordless message: it was CORE. Be careful, and seek revenge.

Julian Sterling had always thought his own life was exhausting enough, that he had grown accustomed to the most painful things. But perhaps... the story of Ethan Caldwell’s parents was simply too heartbreaking, or perhaps because these were the beloved family members of the man Julian loved, he could no longer hold back his emotions.

His heart ached for him. Indeed, not everyone born into the elite upper class was guaranteed a life of happiness.

Julian wrapped his arms tightly around Ethan Caldwell’s neck, gently using his own body heat to warm his man.

It was far too tragic and cruel. Did such profoundly fierce and bloodstained familial love truly exist in this world? The excruciating sorrow in the lives of Ethan’s parents, the unyielding resilience of Ethan Caldwell himself... all of it weighed heavily upon Julian Sterling’s heart, leaving him breathless.

"That day..." Ethan Caldwell took a deep breath, desperately trying to steady the trembling in his vocal cords: "After seeing the frantic spiking of the vital signs on the monitor, I understood everything. The doctors and nurses were in a panic, completely at a loss for what to do. Grandpa Arthur stood beside them, his face deathly pale. I was the only one... I did one thing."

He approached the stark white hospital bed and waved his hand, dismissing everyone from the room.

The secret underground room fell silent, leaving only the urgent, rhythmic beeping of the medical equipment. The twenty-year-old Ethan Caldwell slowly bent down. He brought his lips close to the already cold ear of his mother, and then close to the ear of his father. In the calmest, coldest, yet most resolute tone he had ever possessed in his entire life, Ethan whispered into their unconscious void.

"Father, Mother, I have found the documents you left behind. You wanted to warn me about CORE, didn’t you? Rest assured, your son has grown up, and the Caldwell Empire is now firmly in my hands. I swear upon my very life, no matter what kind of almighty deities they claim to be, I will drag them out of the shadows, flay their skin, and rip out their tendons one by one to honor your spirits. You both have suffered enough over the past ten years. Please, rest now, and leave this battlefield to me."

Julian Sterling held his breath. The entire room seemed to plunge into an ethereal, surreal realm.

Julian looked up with eyes equally brimming with tears, gazing at Ethan Caldwell: "And... and then what happened?"

Ethan Caldwell smiled. It was a smile of profound relief, desolate yet extraordinarily beautiful: "They passed away. I believe they must have felt incredibly relieved as well. The deafening alarms of all those machines fell completely silent."

"The frantic, jagged lines on the monitors gradually smoothed out. Their brainwaves calmed. Their heartbeats... slowly, ever so slowly, decelerated. Slower and slower... until they flatlined into a perfectly straight line." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Beep... a long, unending drone.

Ten years of imprisoned torment within their own bodies, ten years of gritting their teeth through necrosis just to pass on a wordless message. The very moment their only son received the truth, the singular lingering thread anchoring them to the mortal realm snapped. They had smiled in their subconscious, finding peace as they finally let go. Seven years ago, on the exact day Ethan Caldwell officially took command of the Caldwell Empire, it was also the day he personally held a secret funeral for his parents.

The naked truth was entirely exposed. The mysteries regarding the timeline, Ethan Caldwell’s forced maturation, and the helpless reluctance of Grandpa Arthur... absolutely everything revolved around one single word: CORE.

Julian Sterling did not know what words to use to describe his state of mind at this moment. The bitter sorrow had far surpassed the limits of what an ordinary person could endure. Julian only knew to use every ounce of his strength to tightly embrace the man who carried an entire sky of hatred and immense responsibility upon his broad shoulders.

The Sterling family did not need Julian, but this man needed him.

Did those pretentious, so-called elites truly believe they could obscure the sky with one hand and manipulate all of creation? Dahlia Thorne, CORE, or whichever sinister forces lurked in the dark... Julian Sterling blinked back his weak tears. Within his once-clear and innocent gaze, a sharp, unyielding, and equally venomous flame was now kindled.

"Ethan." Julian Sterling suddenly called his name, his voice no longer soft and pleading, but remarkably deep, calm, and resolute.

The man slightly lowered his head to look at Julian.

Julian Sterling’s small hand reached up, gently touching the sharp, angular contours of Ethan’s face. Julian’s thumb softly wiped away the rare trace of a tear still lingering at the corner of the man’s eye.

"From now on, you no longer have to shoulder that vow all by yourself." Julian Sterling looked straight into Ethan’s eyes, every single word struck with absolute certainty like iron nails. "We are married now; you said we are a family. Your Caldwell Empire, your vengeance, are now mine as well. What the hell is CORE anyway? Even if they are gods hindering us, we shall slaughter gods; if they are demons blocking our path, we shall obliterate demons... I will stand by you to dig a grave and bury every last one of them alive."

In the quiet space, the solemn vow of a fragile youth carried a sheer weight capable of shaking heaven and earth. Ethan Caldwell stared deeply into Julian’s stubbornly resilient eyes. The corners of his lips finally, slowly curled into the most genuine arc they had formed all night. Ethan leaned down and fiercely claimed those lush, red lips, using an intensely deep, powerful, and passionate kiss to seal the blood and flesh pact forged between the two of them.

The darkness outside the window seemed to gradually fade away. A storm was brewing and descending upon Saint Lawrence City, but inside this room, two lonely souls had found the most powerful missing piece of their lives.