To the Man Destined to Kill Me - Chapter 68

Scarlett cried as if she would die. It was so hard to accept her true feelings now that she finally realized them. More than anything, she couldn’t bear the thought of leaving behind her family. She felt so sorry for them.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Isaac.”

Why did love have to come with guilt? Noah bit his lip because Scarlett’s crying sounded sadder than any sorrow he had ever known.

He hugged her as she cried like a child. It felt like she might stop breathing at any moment.

I’m even more sorry, Scarlett.

Even though she was suffering so much, he still felt satisfied that her heart was leaning toward him. He could no longer give her up.

Noah felt like he was as evil as a snake. Like he had lured a helpless being into ruin.

“Noah, Noah, what do I do? What should I do now?”

He loved feeling her weak breath rise and fall in his arms. Seeing her suffer because of love strangely made him happy.

At the same time, he felt so sorry that his chest ached. It was suffocating to think he was always the one causing Scarlett pain.

Scarlett’s crying slowly faded. She didn’t even have the strength to cry anymore. As her breathing weakened, Noah spoke calmly.

“You have to take your medicine, so let’s eat first.”

Without waiting for her answer, Noah lifted her up and carried her to the dining room. After seating her at the table, he went to the kitchen and prepared a simple meal. While Noah busied himself in the kitchen, Scarlett sat blankly, staring down at her hands.

The hands that couldn’t bring themselves to shoot Noah.

Would there come a day when she regretted today, this moment? If that day came, the regret would be so terrible she would rather die.

I’m sorry.

That thought filled Scarlett’s mind. She had cried so much that her head hurt, and she couldn’t think of anything else.

The only thing clear to her was that she couldn’t kill Noah. Even if her feelings of love weren’t clear, she knew she couldn’t harm him. It was as certain as the sky being blue.

Just then, Noah brought the food. When Scarlett just stared blankly at the plate without moving, Noah gently placed a fork into her hand. His large hand was rough with calluses.

“Whose side should I have taken?”

Her voice was hoarse and barely there, like a candle about to go out. She wiped her swollen eyes. Her eyelids trembled before slowly falling.

“It was shocking that Scott did such a thing, and that you broke his arm. I’m sad that my family did wrong, and I’m sad that you were hurt too. It breaks my heart that Scott won’t be able to use his arm for a while.”

As long as she was a White and loved Noah, she could never fully take anyone’s side. It was a truth she couldn’t deny.

Noah endured the pain in his chest. Without showing it, he calmly picked up a piece of meat with the fork and held it up to Scarlett’s mouth.

She needed to eat. She needed to take the strong medicine and survive today’s shock. He spoke softly.

“Eat.”

“I don’t want to.”

“You have to eat.”

Scarlett pushed away Noah’s hand and took the fork herself. Though she barely nibbled, Noah looked slightly relieved. After eating only a few bites, Scarlett spoke again.

“Scott was right. I’m the one who needs my brothers more. They are everything to me.”

“I understand.”

“Even so, I like you. I’m crazy, aren’t I?”

Scarlett lifted her head and looked at Noah. His eyes widened at her calm confession, and he blushed, not knowing what to do.

Her gray eyes, steady and unwavering, held him. She looked terribly sad, like she was forcing herself to accept something she didn’t want to.

Noah understood her. Scarlett had no parents, and her older brothers had filled that role. Of course, her siblings meant more to her than an ordinary family. He asked her,

“If we hadn’t gotten tangled like this… If you were Scarlett White with your parents alive, and I was just one of many sons of a single mother, not a White bastard, what would have happened?”

Scarlett thought for a moment and answered without hesitation.

“Then I wouldn’t have loved you.”

Only Noah Ashford, who had killed her, could save her from her nightmare. Only this Noah, who had come close to her in this twisted fate, could make her fall in love.

“I would have loved you no matter what.”

Noah showed no sign of embarrassment. Even though his answer could have been cheesy, to him, it was so natural that he didn’t even blush.

Scarlett spoke.

“The reason I came to like you is a miracle made by countless coincidences and fate. Love… you call it love, but I’m not sure. If this feeling that calms the burning anger inside me is affection, then maybe… Should I call this love? Is this really love?”

Or was it a punishment?

I like you. I love you. And I hate you. No, I hate and despise you. And yet I love you.

Scarlett held her forehead. Her head ached. But even through the pain, she could see Noah’s faintly smiling face. He looked truly happy. It was the first time she had seen him smile so brightly.

That smile, which she had never seen before, was a joy that only she could give him. That thought made Scarlett smile back at him.

Hoping that small happiness could grow into something real. Hoping desperately that the terrible fate between Noah and the Whites would somehow be healed.

Scarlett had a heart attack just as the sun was setting and Noah was reading to her by the fireplace. It was a surprisingly late reaction, considering the shock she had been through.

Noah, pale with fear, rushed her to the hospital. Even after chewing medicine and getting injections, the attack wouldn’t stop. Scarlett was dying every moment. Her pale skin turned blue like a corpse, and her whole body was soaked with cold sweat.

“Please, I’m begging you. Please save Scarlett.”

Noah knelt before the medical team, who had rushed over. If she died, he would live forever in hell.

Tears streamed down his face. He watched as a medical mage cast complicated spells over Scarlett.

Thick magic power pressed against her heart. Every time the magic burst, it made a loud sound like an explosion. Terrified, Noah trembled all over as he watched her.

He prayed and prayed. Begging her to stay alive, even just a little longer. But reality was cruel. After finishing the emergency treatment, the medical mage gave the verdict.

“The only thing we can do now is life support.”

“W-what? But Saint Bernard Hospital is the best in the country! Please, please, I’m begging you!”

“I’m sorry.”

The mage could only apologize to the sobbing Noah.

Not long after, Scarlett’s brothers arrived. They didn’t even glance at Noah. They were too shocked by the news that their youngest sister was terminally ill.

“This can’t be happening! Fire this quack and get a real doctor in here!”

Aaron grabbed the mage by the collar and shook him. Susan and John hurried to stop him.

The one who accepted the situation calmly was Scott, who had come down from another floor after hearing the news. He asked in a steady voice, as if he had expected this.

“How much time does she have?”

“One month. At most, one month.”

“…When Scarlett wakes up, we’ll take her home. There’s a healer from Natalia at our house. We’ll leave life support to him.”

“Scott, what are you doing!”

“Let’s face it. Scarlett is going to die.”

“Scott White!”

It was John who screamed. He, who was usually calm, had completely lost control. His face was red, and his voice, unlike the one he used when speaking at the council, was full of fear and instability.

“Face reality. What’s important now isn’t forcing her to live one more day. It’s making sure she has a peaceful death.”

“What? A peaceful death? You crazy bastard!”

Aaron lunged at him again, but John grabbed him quickly.

“Let me go! I’ll kill him today!”

“Stop it. Scarlett is sleeping just beyond that door.”

At Susan’s shout, the brothers stopped and tried to calm down. But Aaron was still fuming, and Scott quietly touched his arm in sadness. And John…

“John.”

He sobbed like a man who had lost everything. John was the one who had lost his composure the most.

He felt like everything was his fault. He had thought he was ready for this day, but all he had done was imagine the future to keep his present from crumbling.

“John…”

John cried in Aaron’s arms.

Just as Scarlett thought of John as a father, John thought of Scarlett as his daughter.

They were seventeen years apart. He had changed her diapers himself, raising her with deep love even if he didn’t show it openly.

Just as he had loved his brothers even while deceiving them, his feelings for Scarlett were the same.

Noah watched the grieving White brothers with a blank mind, then suddenly ran out of the hospital.

He rode his horse like a madman back to his old house, where his mother, Julia Ashford, lived. He burst through the door. Startled, Julia asked,

“Noah, what’s wrong?”

“Mother. You were a first-class mage. You must know. There’s a way to save Scarlett, isn’t there?”

She carefully studied her desperate son’s face. Just from his urgent voice, she knew how deeply he loved Scarlett. A sigh crossed her face.

She slowly shook her head, and Noah collapsed with a scream.

“There’s no magic that can save someone who’s dying.”

“But magic is supposed to be like a miracle!”

“Miracles belong only to God.”

So let’s pray. Pray that Scarlett White can live.

But Julia couldn’t say that. Noah looked too close to breaking.

“I love Scarlett. If I lose her, I’ll be alive but dead.”

“Noah…”

“Why did you do this? Why did you make things this way? Why did you ruin her… for someone like me?”

“Please, don’t say that. Calm down first.”

Julia realized the time had come.

If Scarlett died, the White brothers would come for them. They would have to flee while the Whites were still distracted.

Julia brewed tea for her sobbing son. She knew that even if she told him to run now, he would stay to protect Scarlett. So she had to make him disappear another way.

“Drink this tea and calm down. Then I’ll tell you everything. After that, you’ll see that none of this was anyone’s fault. It was just the flow of time.”

She would rather be a shameful mother than a grieving one. Better to die biting her tongue than lose her son. That’s why Julia handed Noah a cup of tea laced with paralyzing poison.

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