"It's nothing. I just zoned out for a second."

Seeing Serena snap back to attention, Maya puffed up her cheeks and continued angrily.

"I just had a huge argument with Fiona and told her to get lost. There are more wounded here than we can handle. Who has time to take care of Amy and her dramatic little illness?"

Serena bent over and used a pair of scissors to cut open the wounded man's clothing while turning her head slightly to talk to Maya.

"You're right. The wounded here are far more urgent. Looks like our little Maya has grown up."

Just as she finished speaking, the tent flap was suddenly thrown open.

Logan stood at the entrance with a dark expression. His face looked grim as he glanced at Serena standing there, stunned, his brows tightening as he spoke in a cold voice.

"I told Fiona to come get you. Didn't you hear? Amy isn't feeling well. Go take a look right now."

Six months of pregnancy made Serena slow to rise. She supported her lower back as she straightened and looked at Logan.

"Logan, there's still a patient here waiting to be stitched up. As a doctor, you should know his condition is more urgent."

"I want you to go now." Logan stepped forward, his shadow falling over her. "Amy can't wait."

The tent fell silent before Maya couldn't help speaking up.

"Dr. Lockwood, Serena is coughing up blood and she's pregnant. Can't you just—"

Logan cut her off, his gaze settling on Serena.

"Serena, are you going or not?"

Serena lifted her head and met his eyes. A wave of exhaustion washed over her. She looked at Logan's face for a long moment before letting out a quiet, helpless sigh.

"Let me finish with this patient. Fifteen minutes at most. If Amy can't wait that long, then there's nothing I can do."

Logan stared at Serena's ashen face for a full ten seconds. In the end, he said nothing. He turned, threw open the tent flap, and stormed out as if venting his frustration, the canvas rattling loudly behind him.

Maya was shaking with anger.

"How can he treat you like this? You're his wife!"

Serena didn't respond. She put her gloves back on and spoke to the soldier.

"This might hurt a little. Hang in there."

Fifteen minutes later, the wound was finally stitched. After giving the necessary instructions, Serena supported her back and slowly stood up.

Her pregnant belly felt heavy, and waves of soreness pulsed through her lower back. She stood still for a few seconds, waiting for the dizziness from standing up to pass before turning back to Maya.

"I'm going to check on Ms. Bennett. Maya, I'll leave things here to you."

"Serena, maybe you should rest for a bit first—"

Before Maya could finish, Serena had already lifted the flap and walked out.

The sandstorm outside had grown even stronger, making it almost impossible to keep one's eyes open.

Serena walked slowly. Six months of pregnancy already weighed heavily on her body, and with days of exhaustion and the persistent coughing up blood, she had to stop and catch her breath every few steps.

Another wave of coughing surged up. She grabbed onto a tent pole and bent forward, waiting for the violent coughing fit to pass. The metallic sweetness of blood spread in her throat. When she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, she saw red staining it again.

The walk usually took five minutes. Today, after nearly twenty minutes, she hadn't even made it halfway.

Sand filled her nose and mouth, making her cough even harder. She had to hide behind a broken wall to shield herself from the wind, clutching her chest as she gasped for breath. Her lungs burned with pain. When another gust hit, Serena coughed so violently she had to crouch down, taking a long time before she could steady herself.

By the time she finally reached Amy's tent, stopping and starting along the way, more than forty minutes had passed. As she lifted the flap, Logan stood there with a dark expression.

"Why did it take you so long?"

Serena said nothing and walked past him into the tent.

The tent was overly warm, a charcoal brazier burning brightly. It felt like a completely different world from the storm outside.

Amy reclined against thick cashmere cushions with a camel-hair blanket draped over her. On the small table beside her sat a white porcelain stew bowl still steaming, the sweet scent of nutritional food filling the tent.

Serena glanced at it and frowned.

Serena recognized it. It was the nutritional food her mother had sent to support her pregnancy, with a letter reminding her to simmer one bowl every day to nourish her body.

She had been reluctant to use it, simmering it only once every three days. Each time she drank just half a bowl and saved the rest to reheat the next day. She had never expected Logan to simply give it to Amy.

A trace of resentment rose in her heart, but Serena simply lowered her eyes.

She was too exhausted to argue about something like this. The war was urgent, the wounded too many. She barely had the energy to deal with her own coughing blood, let alone get angry over a bowl of nutritional food.

She walked over to the makeshift washing station nearby and turned on the faucet.

The water was icy cold, sending a sharp chill through her hands.

She washed carefully, scrubbing between every finger until the bloodstains and medicinal smell were gone.

After finishing, she dried her hands and walked to the bedside.

"Lie down."

The examination was brief. She listened to the fetal heartbeat, pressed gently on the abdomen, and asked about symptoms. The heartbeat was steady and strong, there were no contractions, and the abdomen was soft with no tenderness.

"You're fine." Serena withdrew her hand. "Just normal pregnancy discomfort. Get some rest."

"But it really hurts," Amy said, tugging at Logan's sleeve with a softer voice. "Logan, ask Dr. Hart to check again. I heard stomach pain during pregnancy can be dangerous. What if something happens…"

Logan spoke immediately. "Serena, check again. Amy is fragile. She can't handle any complications."

Serena turned around and looked at Logan with a blank expression.

"I've already completed all the necessary examinations. If you don't trust my judgment, you can ask Dr. William Hayes or Dr. Leo Grant to take a look. They're both in the camp."

After saying that, Serena lifted the tent flap and walked out, ignoring Amy's aggrieved muttering behind her and Logan calling her name.

She walked slowly all the way back. By the time she reached her own tent, dusk was already settling in.

What greeted her was complete chaos inside the tent.

The camp bed had been turned upside down, the pillow lay on the ground, and half of the blanket hung off the side of the bed.

The few spare clothes she owned were scattered across the floor. The metal trunk her father had specially made for her sat crooked beside the bed with its lock forced open, the lid wide apart and the inside completely empty.

The nutritional food, the tiny baby clothes her mother had stitched by hand, and the emergency cash her father had tucked inside were all gone.

Serena stood at the entrance for a long time before finally walking inside. She sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the small succulent plant beside it.

During the days when pneumonia had left her burning with fever, that little succulent had been her only quiet companion.

Half a month earlier, the temperature in the war zone had suddenly dropped, and Serena had developed a high fever in the middle of the night.

Her fever climbed to 103°F, and even the baby inside her grew restless, kicking hard enough to send waves of pain through her lower abdomen.

Through her hazy consciousness, she saw Logan standing there.

Using the last of her strength, she grabbed his sleeve and hoarsely asked him to open the trunk in the far corner of her tent.

Inside it was the only dose of penicillin her parents had managed to send after tremendous effort. There was only one injection. It was her last hope.

"The medicine… Logan… give me the medicine…"

Logan stood at the bedside, silent for a long time. Serena forced herself upright despite the pain in her body and asked him to inject the penicillin. Instead, Logan stepped back a few paces and slipped the syringe into his pocket.

"I'm sorry, Serena. Amy caught a cold and her fever hasn't gone down. Her body is weak. She can't handle it. I'll give this shot to her first."

After saying that, he left with the injection. Serena burned with fever for three days and three nights afterward. Sweat soaked through set after set of clothes, and when Maya came to change the sheets, they were so wet they could practically be wrung out.

Serena survived by sheer luck. On the morning of the fourth day, the fever miraculously broke, but from then on she was left with the lingering problem of coughing up blood.

And what did Logan say after learning about it?

"You're a frontline doctor. You should be able to shoulder more."

Thinking of that, Serena picked up the small succulent in her hands and felt more and more that Richard had been right back then.

Richard had built his business from nothing back in the 1970s. The time Serena met him was when she and Logan were leaving for the airport in the Northreach Hinterlands.

He had already been very old, leaning on a cane. His aged eyes rested on her as if they could see straight through her.

"You and Logan won't last."

After saying that, the old man was helped into the car.

Looking back now, he had been absolutely right.

Hurried footsteps sounded outside the tent. Maya rushed in, and the moment she saw Serena and the wrecked tent, her eyes immediately turned red.

"How could they do this? I'm going to confront Dr. Lockwood!"

Serena lifted her head. Her voice was hoarse, but her tone remained gentle.

"Maya, I'll handle this myself. Could you help me check the medical supplies in the tent? We'll need to restock tomorrow. Another group of wounded soldiers will arrive in a couple of days, so we need to prepare."

Maya bit her lip as tears dropped one after another, but she still nodded.

"Okay… but are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Serena stood up slowly, her movements a little stiff. "You go ahead. I'll be back in a moment."

After saying that, she stepped outside and splashed water on her face at the basin by the entrance. The cold water cleared her head.

It was time to put an end to this. Serena walked toward Logan's office tent. When she lifted the flap, Logan was peeling an orange for Amy.

The bright orange segments were separated one by one. His movements were gentle, even carefully removing the white pith.

Amy leaned back in the chair beside him, wrapped in the camel-hair blanket. In her hand was a small celadon jar, from which she scooped a spoonful of the paste and brought it to her mouth.

That small jar contained the calming herbal paste Serena's father had gathered from pharmacies all over Alderbridge.

The tent was warm, the charcoal brazier crackling softly. Amy took a bite of the paste and smiled with her eyes half closed.

"Logan, this is delicious. Is there more?"

"If you like it, have more. I'll get you another jar when you're done." Logan comforted her softly.

Serena stood at the entrance and watched for three seconds before walking in. She stopped across the table, about a meter away from them.

"Who gave you the right to touch my things?"

Logan looked up when he saw her, his brows immediately knitting together again.

"What are you making a fuss about now?"

"My entire tent was turned upside down. I can't even come here and ask for an explanation?"

Amy timidly set the jar down and leaned closer to Logan.

"Please don't be angry, Serena. I just thought the paste smelled nice and wanted to try a little. Logan said it was fine…"

"It was fine?" Serena repeated the words and suddenly laughed. "I wouldn't even use that jar when I was coughing up blood and couldn't sleep, and you just open your mouth and say it's fine?"

Logan stood up, his expression darkening.

"Amy isn't feeling well because she's pregnant. If she used it, then she used it. Just buy another one when you return home. Do you really have to argue over something this trivial?"

Serena looked at the man in front of her. His eyes held nothing but disgust as he shielded the woman behind him.

In that moment, Serena suddenly realized something with perfect clarity. Logan was no longer the man he used to be.

All the vows and promises that had once moved her and convinced her completely shattered in that instant.

The final trace of hesitation in Serena's heart disappeared.

She spoke slowly, her voice calm.

"When I had a high fever, you used my life-saving medicine to please someone else. When I started coughing blood, you told me to keep working. Now even the things my parents sent me, you give away like they mean nothing."

She stepped forward half a step, staring directly at Logan.

"Logan, what exactly am I to you? Your wife, or just a tool you use to repay a debt?"

"Serena!" Logan's voice suddenly rose. "I already told you. Once the war ends and we return home, then—"

"There won't be a 'then.'" Serena said. "Let's get divorced."

The tent instantly fell silent.

The charcoal fire crackled softly. Amy widened her eyes, though she couldn't hide the brief flicker of satisfaction in them.

Logan stood frozen in place, as if he hadn't heard her clearly.

"When the six-month deployment ends and we return home, we'll handle the paperwork on the first day."

Serena turned and walked toward the exit. When she reached the entrance, she paused and glanced back at him.

"Dr. Lockwood, please continue assigning duties according to the schedule. If there are wounded who need stitching, I will still fulfill my responsibilities."

After saying that, she lifted the tent flap and walked out without looking back.

Outside, night had completely fallen. The sandstorm hadn't stopped. If anything, it had grown even stronger.

Maya was checking the medical supplies. When she saw Serena enter, she quickly wiped her eyes.

"Serena, you're back!"

Serena walked over to the medicine shelf and began checking the records—tetanus serum, antibiotics, painkillers, gauze, disinfectant.

"We still have about three days' worth of tetanus serum. The resupply should arrive tomorrow." She closed the notebook and looked at Maya. "If any wounded develop a fever tonight, follow the standard procedure. If you're unsure about anything, come get me immediately."

Maya nodded, hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

"Serena, are you really going to divorce Dr. Lockwood? In our tribe, it's common for men to have two wives. But divorce… I've never seen a woman ask for one in all my seventeen years."

Serena paused, her gaze drifting toward the dark night outside.

"Maya, when a road reaches its end, you have to choose another one. Not everything can be endured and simply passed through."

Maya hesitated, her voice growing softer.

"Dr. Hart… actually, I'm Amy's cousin. But I like following you more. There's a light in your eyes I've never seen before. You taught me how to read, how to use medical equipment, and you told me women can become doctors too. My mother says a woman like you appears in our tribe maybe once in a hundred years."

Serena was momentarily stunned, then she smiled. It was a faint smile, but warm.

"Thank you, Maya."

Maya's eyes were slightly red, but her gaze was firm.

"So no matter what decision you make, I'll support you. You're braver than any woman in our tribe."

After saying that, Maya seemed embarrassed and quickly ran out of the tent, leaving Serena standing there alone.

After a long moment, Serena came back to herself and shook her head with a helpless smile. She sat on the edge of the bed, and after a while, murmured softly to herself.

"It's alright."

Yes. It would be alright.

Her hand gently rested on her belly, where a small life was growing.

More than six months now. Sometimes the baby kicked her, lively and mischievous. When the child was born, perhaps they would cry through the night, or perhaps they would be a gentle baby.

Thinking of that, Serena straightened slightly and spoke softly, her voice filled with gentle apology.

"Baby, I'm sorry. Mommy couldn't control her emotions today. It might have affected you, but I promise it won't happen again."

The child inside her moved gently, as if responding. Serena smiled, yet tears slipped down her face.

She raised a hand to wipe them away, but fresh tears kept coming. Eventually she stopped wiping them and simply let them fall.

Meanwhile, inside Amy's tent, Logan was gently helping her sip some porridge.