Of All Sorrows, Love Is the Deepest

Despite being married for five years, Nicholas Shaffer and Karina Fleming have never registered their marriage officially.

Nicholas keeps telling Karina that he's too caught up with work, so he can't squeeze out any time from his busy schedule. He also claims that a marriage certificate is optional.

Unfortunately, Karina believes his lies. But everything ends today when she witnesses Nicholas and her older sister, Rowena Fleming, who has gone missing for five years, emerging from the city hall together after they have registered their marriage.

With red-rimmed eyes, Rowena rushes into Nicholas' arms, her marriage certificate still clutched in her hand.

"It was my fault for abandoning you at the altar back then, Nicholas," she says in a choked-up tone. "I know you only agreed to register our marriage because of my cancer. But I still want to ask you a question…

"Have you truly forgotten about me and fallen in love with Karina after all these years?"

Nicholas Shaffer stayed silent for a long time, so long that Karina Fleming dug her nails into her palm, drawing faint traces of blood.

"No," he finally said, his voice low and firm. "Never."

Rowena Fleming's tears instantly gave way to a radiant smile, and she rose on her toes to kiss his lips. Nicholas' hand hovered in the air for a moment before slowly settling at her waist as he deepened the kiss.

Standing not far away, Karina felt as though her world had shattered in that instant.

If Nicholas had never forgotten Rowena, then what did that make Karina?

A harsh blare of car horns snapped Karina back to reality. Trembling, she turned her head and saw three black Maybachs parked by the roadside. The three Fleming brothers, dressed in crisp suits, stepped out of the vehicles.

"All done with the marriage license?" one of them asked. "We've already booked a restaurant to celebrate."

Karina's entire body shook.

These were the same brothers who had personally made her breakfast just this morning.

"Clarence! Irving! Luther!" Rowena cried. She rushed forward and threw herself into their arms. "I thought you'd never acknowledge me again."

The three brothers exchanged a glance, their expressions complex. In the end, it was Luther who gently ruffled her hair. "Idiot, since you were little, haven't we always been the ones cleaning up your mess every time you cause trouble?"

Rowena smiled through her tears. She linked arms with her brothers just like she did when she was little.

The four of them got into the car happily. No one noticed Karina standing across the street, her face deathly pale.

It wasn't until the convoy disappeared from view that Karina staggered, bracing herself against a tree. The rough bark scraped her arm, but it was nothing compared to the searing pain in her heart.

Ever since they were kids, Rowena had been the one everyone adored. They were twins, yet in the eyes of their three brothers, only Rowena ever seemed to exist.

When Karina lay in bed burning with fever, they were at the amusement park with Rowena. On her birthday, she waited alone late into the night, while they were all celebrating Rowena's.

For ten years, she held a secret crush on Nicholas, only to watch helplessly as he proposed to Rowena.

Karina once believed no one loved her, and that this was simply her fate.

But then five years ago, Rowena ran away in her million-dollar wedding dress and disappeared with a lowlife named Dwayne Berger. Both the Fleming and Shaffer families were left utterly humiliated.

Clarence, Irving, and Luther Fleming declared furiously on the spot, "From now on, Karina is our only sister!"

That night, Nicholas stumbled drunkenly into Karina's room and pinned her against the wall. As he stroked her cheek, his eyes bleary, he murmured drunkenly, "You look just like her."

Then, he slid the wedding ring meant for Rowena onto Karina's ring finger. "Since she ran away, will you marry me instead?"

Karina knew she should've refused, but she simply loved him too much.

For the past five years, Nicholas had pampered her, turning her into the most envied woman in the city.

He would spend a fortune at an auction, all to secure the blue diamond necklace she had merely glanced at. He would reserve the entire top-floor restaurant of Alderstone Tower and lit up the night sky with a city-wide fireworks display just for her.

On nights when she was haunted by nightmares, he would set aside international conference calls to hold her close and whisper words of comfort into her ear.

Clarence, Irving, and Luther had changed too.

Clarence showed up outside her office building every single day, rain or shine.

Irving remembered her seafood allergy and would even scrutinize the ingredients in condiments.

Luther would stay up late to help her revise design proposals, smiling as he said, "Your matters come first."

Naively, Karina began to believe she was finally loved.

That was, until Rowena returned today, and all that love vanished in an instant.

Watching the cars disappear into the distance, Karina suddenly laughed.

At first, it was a soft sound, then it grew louder and louder. She laughed until she bent over and tears fell in heavy drops onto the ground.

Passersby turned to look, but no one knew why this beautiful woman was weeping so bitterly.

All those years, Karina had been nothing but a thief. She had stolen the love that rightfully belonged to Rowena, and now that Rowena had returned, it was time for her to leave.

"Since all of you only love her…" Karina took a deep breath. She felt as if her heart were being brutally squeezed, the pain nearly robbing her of her ability to breathe. "Then I don't want any of you either."

She flagged down a cab. "Take me to the International Private Island Trading Center."

Half an hour later, she pushed open the heavy glass door and said to the receptionist, "Hello, I'd like to buy an uninhabited island."

The receptionist was visibly taken aback but quickly called for the manager, Craig Wallace.

Dressed in a tailored suit, Craig was a man in his 40s with sharp, discerning eyes.

"Ms. Fleming, the island you've taken an interest in is quite special. While the scenery is breathtaking, there's no signal or regular shipping routes, and the nearest supply ship only goes once every three months."

He paused. "Once you decide to go to the island, it's essentially complete isolation—a total disappearance from the world. Are you certain you want to purchase it?"

"Yes."