"So that's what truly happened..."
Yian let out a long, ragged sigh, the crushing weight of guilt pressing down on his chest. "She really has suffered."
The more he uncovered about Nina's past, the more a toxic mix of remorse and regret consumed him. If only he had been less rigid back then. If only he had insisted that Setan meet his fiancée in person, rather than relying on cold reports and rumors.
Perhaps Setan would never have thrown away his chance with such an extraordinary female. Perhaps Nina would never have been forced to claw her way through the brutal, unforgiving wilderness alone.
A female once labeled fragile and powerless had survived the impossible, forging herself into the powerhouse she was today. How much agony, blood, and sheer willpower had that transformation required?
Yian silently cursed his past self for blind complacency.
