Celine turned and left, then took a cab straight to the police station.

"Mr. Mercer, I want to apply for the five-year classified training program."

Graham Mercer held his coffee cup in midair, his eyes full of surprise. "Are you sure? You meet every requirement, that's true, but this program is selecting talent for the country. It's brutally demanding, and once you go in, you won't have any contact with the outside world for five years. Weren't things always good between you and your husband? Are you really willing to leave him?"

"Yes. We're already in the middle of a divorce." Celine nodded firmly. "I only have one request. Help me get the divorce finalized as soon as possible."

"No problem." Graham set his coffee cup down hard. "Don't worry. In one week, I guarantee you'll have the divorce decree in hand and be able to leave with peace of mind."

Only after settling all of that did Celine make her way home in a daze.

It was already dark, and the house was silent.

She turned on the light and immediately saw the note on the table.

"I have a business dinner tonight, so I won't be back. There's porridge in the pot. Don't forget to eat."

At the sight of his familiar handwriting, it felt as if an invisible hand had seized her heart and squeezed.

She was always too busy with work to eat on time, and worried she would run herself into the ground, Adrian had taught himself to cook for her.

He had done it for ten years.

She had thought that was love.

But in the end, it turned out it had all been nothing more than wishful thinking on her part.

Her throat tightened. She looked at the pot of cold porridge in the kitchen, and it felt just like their marriage, long stripped of warmth, reduced to something bland and shapeless.

In the end, she calmly reached out and dumped the entire pot into the trash.

It was not until early the next morning that Adrian hurried home, carrying takeout from Celine's favorite spaghetti place.

They had once made a promise that no matter how busy work got, they would still sit down together and have a proper breakfast.

Today was no different. By the time Celine got out of bed, Adrian was already in the kitchen with everything ready.

"You're up? Come eat. I went out to get your favorite spaghetti."

Celine stood in the kitchen doorway without moving.

She looked at Adrian bustling around the kitchen in matching loungewear, dressed like the picture of a perfect husband.

If not for the red mark on his neck giving him away, she might still have been trapped inside the dream she had built for herself.

When she said nothing for a long moment, Adrian frowned.

"Busy with work again?" There was irritation in his voice. "Why didn't you eat the porridge last night? If you skip food again today, your stomach's going to act up."

As he spoke, he stood and reached for her hand.

"Are you done acting?"

Celine stepped aside and avoided his touch, the four words leaving her lips cold and sharp.

"What?" Adrian clearly didn't understand.

"Yesterday... I saw everything."

Celine lifted her head, her gaze locked on him.

Adrian stiffened all over. His expression shifted several times before he finally let out a soft laugh. "Celine, why did you have to drag it into the open? I know this is hard for you to accept right now, but what man in our circle doesn't do this? I've stayed faithful to you for ten years. Don't I deserve a little freedom now?"

"Freedom?" Celine suddenly lowered her head and laughed. "Sure. I'll give you freedom."

But Adrian clearly missed what she meant. Instead, he let out a breath of relief, his face easing into satisfaction. "I'm glad you understand. Don't worry. No matter what happens, you're still my legal wife. That will never change."

There was no need for that. They would be divorced soon enough.

Celine shook her head with a bitter smile, but she never said the words out loud.

She was about to leave for classified military training, and the last thing she wanted was more complications.

Looking at the hypocritical man in front of her, Celine did not want to stay there for even one more second.

She turned to change, but Adrian refused to let it go and caught hold of her.

"Celine, eat before you go. Your health comes first."

Just as Celine was about to shake him off, Adrian's phone suddenly rang.

"Okay. I'm on my way."

After hanging up, Adrian grabbed his coat and rushed toward the door.

"There's something urgent at the office. I need to go deal with it." Even on his way out, he still remembered to say, "Eat the spaghetti on the table. If you really don't have time, take the sandwich with you."

The front door closed behind him. Sitting alone in the empty house, Celine felt utterly exhausted.

She had heard it clearly just now. Lydia had been the one on the other end of the call.

But she hadn't said a word.

What was the point of saying any of it now?

In just one more week, she would be gone.

Celine left the breakfast untouched and didn't take the sandwich either. Remembering there were still things at the station she needed to hand over, she changed her clothes and was about to leave when a call from a colleague came in.

"Ms. Fairmont, get here now. Your husband's in a fight!"

By the time Celine arrived at the hotel where it had happened, the police had already cleared the crowd.

Talia Quinn, the new colleague, spotted her and hurried over at once.

"Celine, you're finally here!"

"What exactly happened?"

Frowning, Celine looked around. Adrian was nowhere in sight. The only person she saw was an injured man sitting off to the side, cursing nonstop.

Talia quickly explained, "That business partner got handsy with your husband's assistant. He couldn't stand it, so that's how the fight started. You should've seen him. He went absolutely savage, like he didn't care what happened to him. I've never seen him hit someone that hard before."

"Where are they?" Celine cut in.

"His assistant got slightly hurt during the fight. Once the lawyers got there, he rushed her to the hospital in his arms…"

Talia's voice grew quieter and quieter until she trailed off, as if she had finally realized something was off.

Looking at Celine's silence, she spoke again, clearly flustered. "Celine, that's not what I meant. Don't read too much into it…"

"It's fine." Celine said it evenly, "We're getting divorced soon."

Talia's eyes widened in shock. "How is that possible? You two were so good together. How could you be getting divorced?"

That was true. In everyone's eyes, they had been the perfect couple.

Rain or shine, whenever Celine needed him, Adrian had always shown up without hesitation.

More than once, when Celine ran into danger on an assignment, Adrian had thrown money, influence, and every resource he had at the situation to get her out.

To support her career, he had even gotten a vasectomy so she could focus on her work without worry.

And yet even a man who seemed that devoted could whisper forever-promises to another woman behind her back, and trick her into signing divorce papers.

Celine said nothing more. She only let out a self-mocking laugh. "People change. Nothing is impossible."

After wrapping everything up, Celine took a cab to the hospital alone.

In the hallway outside the VIP hospital room, Adrian was standing there, his face dark as he gave orders to one of his men. "Blacklist that partner. No company connected to Lennox Group is to do business with him again. I want him wiped out of this circle completely."

The man bowed his head at once. "Yes, sir. I'll take care of it right away."

Standing at the corner, Celine watched his fury with numb eyes.

So he was capable of throwing everything aside for another woman too.

The next second, the door to the hospital room was pushed open. Lydia was leaning weakly against the headboard, her face drained of color, her eyes rimmed red.

Adrian immediately reined in his anger, walked over, and took her hand. "How are you feeling? Does it still hurt?"

Lydia's eyes brimmed red as her voice caught. "It's all my fault. I ruined such an important deal. You should just stop worrying about me and let me deal with this on my own…"

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Adrian scolded her in a low voice, but his tone was unbearably gentle. "Right now, you're what matters most to me."

What mattered most to him...

Celine froze where she stood, her chest prickling as if pierced by countless fine needles, a dull, relentless ache spreading through her.

So in his heart, Lydia had already become the one who mattered most.

Before she could even process it, she saw Adrian remove the jade piece he always wore and gently place it around Lydia's neck.

"This is a family heirloom. Keep it close, and no one will ever dare to touch you again."

Lydia's eyes turned red with emotion as she threw her arms around him.

Standing outside the door, the world spun violently in Celine's head.

The Lennox family had a tradition. Any woman who wished to receive that jade had to pass eighteen trials, a ritual symbolizing unwavering loyalty to the family's heir.

Back then, she had secretly attempted those trials for Adrian.

She had endured every kind of ordeal—pain, humiliation, and punishment—yet she still failed in the end.

In the end, she had collapsed and been carried home.

When Adrian saw her covered in injuries, his eyes had reddened instantly. He pulled her into his arms, his voice shaking. "Celine, who told you to do something like that? Jade or not, you're my wife. My only wife."

Later, he had indeed kept that promise.

He gave her a grand wedding and a kind of devotion others envied.

He had gone down on one knee and declared before everyone, "Celine, in this life, you're the only one I want."

And now, that same pendant rested effortlessly around another woman's neck.

It felt like her chest was stuffed with damp cotton, suffocating, leaving her unable to breathe.

So his "lifetime" had only ever meant ten years.

Celine could not take it anymore. She turned and rushed into the restroom, retching violently.

When she finally lifted her head, she realized Lydia had followed her in at some point.

The moment she saw her, Lydia sneered. "Followed us all the way here? I'll make this clear. The one Adrian loves now is me. No amount of playing the victim will change that."

Celine let out a faint laugh. "I've never seen someone so proud of being the other woman."

"Drop the Mrs. Lennox act. You've already signed the divorce papers." Lydia suddenly snapped, her voice rising. "Adrian said you're nothing but work, that you can't even satisfy him. You don't even count as a real woman!"

Celine hadn't expected Adrian to share something that intimate. It felt as if her heart had been thrown into a freezing abyss.

Lydia smirked, even more smug. "Oh, and one more thing. Adrian already had the reversal surgery. His parents have been dying for a grandchild. If it weren't for you, why would he have gotten that procedure in the first place and let people laugh at him?"

"Lydia? Who are you talking to?"

Adrian's concerned voice suddenly came from outside.

A flicker of panic crossed Lydia's face, but she quickly composed herself.

She shot Celine a vicious look and sneered, "Let's see who Adrian believes."

With that, she slapped herself hard and screamed, "Don't come any closer! I won't do it again!"

"Lydia! What happened?!"

Adrian panicked and kicked the door open, rushing inside.

Caught off guard, Celine stumbled back from the impact, her lower back slamming into the sharp edge of the sink, pain flaring instantly.

But Adrian, holding Lydia, didn't even look up. He didn't spare Celine a single glance.

"Lydia, what happened?"

Lydia burst into tears at once. "It's all my fault. I made her upset. Please don't blame her…"

Only then did Adrian lift his head and notice Celine standing not far away.

"You followed me?"

Celine laughed scornfully. "Do I need to follow you? Everyone already knows you threw a fit over a woman. It'll probably be on every front page by tomorrow morning."

"We'll see who dares," Adrian snapped, cutting her off.

The air went tense. He looked at Celine for a long moment, his tone softening again.

"Did one of your colleagues say something to you?" He sighed and added, "On paper, Lydia is still my assistant. Taking care of her is part of my responsibility. Don't make a scene."

Making a scene?

A bitter smile tugged at Celine's lips.

In the past, worried that having women around him would make her uneasy, he had insisted his personal assistants be male.

And yet later, he had promoted Lydia against all expectations and even fought for her.

And now, he was saying she was just making a scene.

Even though Celine hadn't actually said anything at all. She was completely, utterly done with him… and with everything they had.

She watched Adrian carry Lydia away, watched Lydia glance back at her with that smug look in her eyes.

There was nothing left in her but numbness, as if a piece of her heart had been slowly peeled away. And after enough pain, even that stopped mattering.