To the Man Destined to Kill Me - Chapter 29

“I know there’s a secret. I don’t know why you’re hiding it, but if there’s something I should know, please tell me.”

Even at Noah’s request, Julia stayed silent, her thin lips pressed tightly together.

He felt furious, thinking John White and his mother knew something and were mocking him.

A huge secret that only he didn’t know. Even though Noah didn’t know what it was, he was sure things were going terribly wrong.

Ignoring Noah, John said what he wanted to say.

“Julia. I will give you money.”

“Money?”

John took a bundle out of his pocket. Through the slightly open end, gold coins could be seen.

“I’ll give you money, so please leave for another country.”

“Did something happen? Why all of a sudden—”

John cut Julia off. Speaking like a true senator, his clear pronunciation and perfect voice made his reputation as a human rights lawyer shine even more.

“There has always been trouble. But Noah spending time with Scarlett is something that cannot be allowed. And…”

John’s eyes briefly landed on a burning newspaper in the fireplace. But he quickly looked away.

“What’s wrong with siblings spending time together?”

Noah’s sharp reaction was not like him at all, but he didn’t realize it.

John, arms crossed, looked at Noah’s resistance with a blank face.

“Yes. Officially, your mother recognized you as your father’s son, so you could be called siblings.”

The more John spoke in that flat voice, the more Noah’s heart pounded painfully.

“At the same time, you are officially an illegitimate child who can never be accepted in Wifland. I won’t bother with the old saying about how an illegitimate child shouldn’t mingle with the main wife’s children. Honestly, even I’m sick of hearing my brothers’ daily rage about it.”

John waved his hand dismissively like it was bothersome and turned toward Julia.

“Julia. I won’t say much. Take this chance and leave. Wifland can no longer protect you.”

“Protect me? What do you mean, Mr. White? Mother, please, tell me the truth! Have you two met like this before? Have you been secretly in contact? Why is Mr. White supporting you?”

“Noah Ashford. Please step aside for a moment.”

It wasn’t a request; it was closer to an order. But Noah shook his head.

“No. I need to know too.”

“Noah.”

“Mother, I have the right to know.”

After a long silence, John let out a small sigh and gave a slight nod.

“…You’re right. Julia, Noah is an adult.”

“Noah must never know.”

“Whatever you are hiding, I don’t think keeping secrets and making the person more curious is the right thing. How long do you think you can hide it? What are you so afraid of? If I really am Mr. White’s son, I have the right to know too. I’m an adult. I’m not a child who needs to be protected anymore!”

Julia shook her head. But Noah stubbornly stayed where he was.

When the silent battle between mother and son didn’t end, John slowly spoke again in his usual flat tone.

“I’ll say it again. Leave Wifland. This will be the last help you get.”

Julia, clearly frightened, asked, almost shrinking in fear.

“You can’t protect me anymore? Mr. White promised! He said the White family would protect Noah as his father’s son, and that promise would stay even after his death.”

“The White family has expanded greatly. It has become bigger and holds even greater power. My brothers have more now than our father ever had. Thanks to you, they were able to unite when they could have fallen apart over the inheritance. Do you really think they would still protect you? No, they will not.”

He continued speaking.

“I can’t stop my brothers. I don’t have the will or the intention to. I know how much they were hurt because of you and our father. And by supporting you, I am also one of the guilty ones. Leave Wifland. Before something worse happens.”

“John! If not Wifland, where should we go?”

“Anywhere. Hiding on a far southern island would be fine. Wherever it is, I hope you escape from my brothers’ reach and your past.”

Noah listened carefully and then said what he had to say.

“I won’t go anywhere. I have to pay for my sins to Scarlett.”

At the word “sin,” Julia flinched. John’s stone-cold face slightly twitched. In his gloomy eyes, a brief spark appeared.

“Are you sick with a fever or something?”

“Mr. White. Please mind your words.”

“Oh… John… Scarlett… If she said that, then I have no choice but to do what she wants.”

Julia spoke, trembling. Whether it was because of the fever or guilt, it was unclear. But Noah, seeing his mother’s indirect way of saying she wouldn’t leave, showed a much brighter expression.

“She’s innocent. If anyone has the greatest influence over us, it’s Scarlett.”

John realized there was no point in trying to persuade them anymore. He couldn’t hide his tiredness and gave his final words.

“…I’ll leave the money here. Julia, these are turbulent times. Remember, your choice and Noah’s choice could bring about a huge storm.”

“I believe Wifland is still the safest place because of the White family’s influence. At least here in Wifland, the White family is the biggest danger.”

“…”

John gave a small nod and left the crumbling house.

Noah, stunned by John’s final words, couldn’t even think of stopping him.

When he finally came to his senses, Noah asked his mother,

“Protection from what? Who is threatening me? What did Mr. White mean…?”

Noah’s voice trailed off when he saw Julia’s eyes.

Her eyes had clearly changed before from blue to ordinary brown. But now, the brown had turned back to their original deep blue.

No one in the world can change their eye color naturally. Noah opened his mouth but then realized.

“You’re a magician.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I don’t know how, but you must have changed your eye color with magic.”

“You’re just imagining things.”

“I don’t trust Mother anymore. Since you won’t tell me the truth, I have no reason to trust you either.”

“Noah, please… I’m doing this for you.”

Julia’s voice sounded desperate, but Noah shook his head coldly.

“If it’s really for me, then you should tell me. Do you want me to go digging around everywhere? Please understand that I’m no longer a little boy hiding in your arms. I’m old enough to protect myself, and ignorance can be the most dangerous trap.”

“Alright. Fine. I’ll tell you a little, just a little. Not everything. For now… I need some time to sort out my feelings.”

Julia was trembling. Her voice shook so much that Noah swallowed hard without meaning to.

“Noah… you are a magician. You’ve inherited magical powers from your parents. From me, or maybe… anyway, ‘the me of now’ is no longer a magician. I must not be one. Because…”

Julia swallowed, wetting her dry lips, and finally confessed. Noah could hear his heart pounding loudly in his ears.

“When I was still a magician, I committed a terrible sin. A sin so great it could never be forgiven. If I were still a magician and you learned everything, it would chain you down forever. You would never be able to forgive yourself, just as much as the Whites hate us.”

“What was the sin? It’s okay, I can handle it.”

His throat felt dry and his mouth stiffened with fear.

But Noah truly believed he could endure it. He had already killed someone before.

So he believed he could accept whatever sin his mother had committed.

“Noah. I know I’m not a mother you can be proud of. But at least, I don’t want to become someone you hate. Please understand me, even just a little.”

If Julia hadn’t looked like she was burning in pain as she confessed, Noah would have yelled at her to stop tormenting him with secrets. But she looked like she might collapse any moment.

Someone chained down by the past can be swallowed by darkness even if they stay still. Noah could smell the hidden pain Julia had been holding inside.

“Alright. For now… let’s stop here. Just this much…”

Still, Noah knew he had to find out the truth. For his own future, to understand who he was, and to move forward.

Above all, he could wait—for the relief of knowing it was okay to keep loving Scarlett.

Scarlett was too busy to even notice Noah’s absence.

Since the night Sophia Loren had visited, Isaac’s fever had gotten worse.

Scarlett, who had secretly planted someone in the house, rushed back to the mansion the moment she heard the news. Despite her brothers trying to stop her, she and Susan took turns personally caring for Isaac.

The next afternoon, when his fever spiked again, she burst into tears out of fear.

“Why Isaac of all people?”

“Isaac will be fine. Oh, Carly…”

Aaron whispered, trying to comfort Scarlett. His broad shoulders and deep, beast-like voice shook with worry. Seeing his youngest sister cry, he stomped around helplessly.

“What if something happens to Isaac? Why can’t I do anything when it matters?”

“That Sophia Loren magician is treating him. He’ll get better soon.”

Why Isaac?

Why him, of all people?

Scarlett felt like her mere existence was changing the future and causing Isaac to suffer. Even though she had no control over returning to the past, she blamed herself. She thought it was all her fault.

“Hey, Carly. Carly.”

Aaron snapped his fingers in front of Scarlett’s face.

Snap. Snap.

The sharp sound brought Scarlett back to her senses. Aaron looked into her eyes and spoke gently.

“When you were little, you were even sicker than Isaac. But look at you—you’re alive and well now, aren’t you?”

“But Isaac is so young.”

“You were even younger. You were just a tiny baby crying for milk, but you grew up fine. Even today, remember what you said? You scolded Sophia Loren so hard, threatening to report her to the Magician Association if she didn’t heal Isaac properly. Said you’d accuse her of fraud and ban her from ever calling herself a healer again. You were amazing.”

When Aaron teased her about cursing at Sophia Loren, Scarlett couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

“I was impressed, you know. The only things you used to cry about were being hungry, needing a diaper change, or wanting someone to carry you. Oh, and more toys, more toys!”

Scarlett giggled, shaking her head like she couldn’t believe it.

Scott, who had just come out of Isaac’s room after giving him treatment, saw them and frowned, looking like he’d seen something unpleasant.

Just a few days ago, the two had nearly come to blows. Their eyes met, and Aaron awkwardly cleared his throat and looked away. Scott called out to Scarlett.

“Carly. Come in. Isaac is okay now.”

Scarlett quickly went into the room.

Isaac, surrounded by Sophia Loren and Susan, beamed brightly when he saw her.

“Carly Auntie!”

Isaac’s eyes found Scarlett right away.

The future had completely changed.

Scarlett thought that maybe even her fate of being killed by Noah had been shaken.

And that feeling… was about to come true.

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