On the day of my wedding, my fiance suddenly announced that he had already registered his marriage with my sister.

The system declared my mission a failure and sentenced me to be erased in a car crash. Just as despair closed in, Wayne Kinsey threw himself in front of me to save my life—and lost the use of his legs because of it.

Later, I was given another chance to choose a new target, and I accepted his proposal. But five years into our marriage, I overheard a conversation between him and a friend.

"Wayne, your crush already has a husband and children. Your legs are healed too. Aren't you going to come clean with Arden?"

"No. Arden will always be a risk. Only if she keeps feeling guilty will she stay away and let Naomi have her happiness."

As his familiar but cold voice echoed in my ears, my tears fell like beads of a broken string, and that was when I finally realized the so-called salvation Wayne had given me had been nothing but a lie through and through.

In that case, there was no reason for me to keep holding on to this sham of a marriage.

The Shattered Illusion

The moment I got off the plane, I clutched the hard-won medicine and hurried toward the VIP lounge. But just as I reached the door, I overheard something that made my blood run cold.

"I heard she went abroad herself to get you this medicine. Don't you think sending someone to stop her was going too far? Arden gives you everything she has. If she ever found out…"

There was a brief silence inside before Wayne Kinsey spoke in a casual tone. "She'll never know. And even if she does, I'll just spend the rest of my life making it up to her."

I lowered my gaze to the cut on my arm, the one I had taken while protecting the medicine. So the men who tried to rob me at the airport had been sent by Wayne himself. That was when the pain of the half-healed wound finally burned through my numbness.

The sensor doors to the lounge slid open, and Wayne rushed toward me in his wheelchair.

As he drew near, he immediately caught the metallic scent of blood on me. Panic flashed across his face, and in his haste, he nearly toppled from his chair. Without a thought for himself, he grabbed my hand and inspected it with trembling urgency. "Arden, are you okay? Where are you hurt?"

His eyes brimmed with concern, his touch as gentle as it had always been. Yet I no longer felt even the faintest trace of love in it. I quietly pulled my hand away. "It's nothing, just a scratch—"

But before I could finish my words, my vision went black. Days of exhaustion and running around had finally caught up with me, and I fainted.

When I woke, I was lying in Wayne's private lounge. My wound had already been bandaged, but he was nowhere to be found. I sat up to grab my phone, and my eyes fell on a notebook on his desk. Curiosity made me flip it open. Every page was filled with Wayne's handwriting.

'Naomi likes sour food. After meals, take her for a walk to help with digestion.'

'Prenatal class on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Accompany her to yoga on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.'

My hands trembled as I turned page after page. From every checkup to every craving, from the smallest detail to the biggest event, Naomi Sharpe's pregnancy was documented in meticulous detail. Each line was brimming with hidden affection, stabbing into my chest until my heart ached. Wayne, her brother-in-law, was more attentive than her real husband could ever hope to be.

My mind flashed back to that day five years ago, when the system had declared me doomed. Wayne had appeared out of nowhere and saved me, trading his legs for my survival.

I had been so naive then, believing him to be my salvation. I never realized he was the one pushing me into the abyss all along. Even the love he had once seemed willing to give his life for was nothing but an act. And I had been foolish enough to feel guilty, desperate to cure his legs as if I owed him everything.

The tears I shed now washed away the last fragments of attachment I had for him. This false marriage, carried on for five years, needed to end here.

As I closed my eyes and finally let go, a cold mechanical voice rang through my mind. "Host, the system has detected a second mission failure. Do you wish to terminate it?"

A Marriage of Lies

I thought for a moment before nodding. "Alright, I choose to die in a car crash three days from now."

Forcing my emotions into order, I walked out of the lounge only to hear the nurses chatting in the hallway.

"Dr. Kinsey treats his wife so well! He's been with her through every checkup during her pregnancy, and after the birth, he hasn't left her side for even a moment."

"He really is the perfect husband. I heard that the day Mrs. Kinsey gave birth, Dr. Kinsey was crying with worry outside the operating room. And when he learned it was twins, he nearly jumped out of his chair from excitement."

Their words followed me as I stopped outside the VIP ward.

Through the door, I saw Wayne cradling a baby carefully in his arms. The overflowing love in his eyes nearly blinded me. His friend's words echoed in my mind—Naomi now had both a son and a daughter. But because of that car accident, I would never have children of my own.

After soothing the baby, Wayne turned back to the woman in bed with all the tenderness in the world. "Naomi, does your back still hurt? If you feel any discomfort, you have to tell me."

"Thank you, Wayne. The medicine you brought really helped. But… it was Arden who went through all that trouble to get it. She won't be angry with me for using it, will she?"

Naomi had always been like this—effortless with her words, quick to reap every benefit, then acting the perfect innocent, throwing sly little barbs my way.

Wayne looked at her gentle expression, his voice full of pity. "Of course not. If it helped you, Arden's effort wasn't wasted."

Just then, the nanny arrived with a tray of food. She opened the door wider, and Wayne and I locked eyes. A flicker of surprise crossed his face. "Arden, your arm is still injured—what are you doing out here? Don't get the wrong idea. Naomi is being discharged today, so I came to see if she needed help."

I clenched the empty medicine box in my hand and forced my voice steady. "I'm fine. I just came to ask how the medicine worked."

At my words, Wayne dropped his gaze, unable to meet my eyes. Naomi, on the other hand, sipped her soup and smiled smugly."Arden, you came just in time. I was about to thank you. It must've been exhausting to travel so far abroad to get this medicine, but it worked wonderfully!"

Naomi's back had been injured giving birth to twins, and the medicine was known to be especially effective for healing bones and easing pain.

Ignoring her triumphant expression, I pretended nothing was wrong and nodded. "Good to hear that it worked. I only came to get some air; I won't disturb you two."

Wayne, thinking I was upset, wheeled himself after me to explain.

Seeing the panic on his face almost made me laugh. His legs had long been healed, yet he paraded his devotion to Naomi with the medicine I risked my life to find—only to turn around and act so tender with me. It was sickening.

"Don't worry. I'm not unreasonable. Go handle your work."

Relief washed over his face as he pressed a kiss to my forehead. "You really are the best, Arden. As long as you're with me, I don't care if my legs never recover."

But Wayne, I no longer wanted to stay by your side.

…

After Naomi's discharge, we returned home. I took my medicine and fell into a heavy sleep.

Wayne never came back that night. Gareth, his father, had called him to the family home, and he stayed there. The next morning, he picked me up to attend the banquet celebrating Naomi's return.

The moment I stepped through the Kinseys' doors, Elena's expression turned cold. She was Wayne's mother. "Hmph. To think you, a barren woman, have the audacity to show yourself! What an eyesore!"

The rest of the Kinsey family, who had never liked me, joined in with their sneers.

"That's right! Both daughters of the Sharpe family, yet your sister gave us children while you did nothing!"

"You not only ruined Wayne's legs, but you can't even bear him a child. You're nothing but a curse to this family!"

Their words, dripping with malice, were nothing new. This was how the Kinseys had always treated me.

The Fall Into the Abyss

From the moment I married into the Kinsey family, Naomi and I had always been compared. She was hailed as the family's blessing, while I was branded the woman who brought only misfortune.

After the wedding, Wayne went through a period of deep self-doubt. He became sensitive, paranoid, and reluctant to leave the house or speak to anyone. So I quit my job at the company and stayed by his side every day, helping him with his rehabilitation.

Meanwhile, my half-sister Naomi became the project lead at Sharpe Corp. Today, she had both a successful career and two children, while I could never hope to measure up. That was what Wayne must have wanted—to make me nothing more than Naomi's shadow.

With his brother, Enzo Kinsey, still abroad, Wayne had been pulled away to entertain guests. The sneers around me grew louder until I could no longer bear it, and I slipped away under the excuse of needing air. Naomi, of course, followed me out with triumph written all over her face.

"My dear sister, are you heartbroken? I almost pity you," she said, flashing a taunting smile as she lifted the Kinsey family's heirloom necklace resting at her throat. "Sharpe Corp. belongs to me now, and the Kinseys are all on my side. Your ex-fiance and husband both love me. Whatever once belonged to you, I'll take it all for myself. Oh, and by the way—Wayne pretending to be paralyzed to win you over? That was my idea."

When I was 18, my mother died of an illness. Only then was Naomi, the love child, brought back into the Sharpe family. I had never liked her, and she had always resented me for taking our father's love. Father, feeling guilty toward her, made me yield to her in everything. First, it was the CEO position at Sharpe Corp., then the fiance who had been promised to me.

"Arden, after all these years, you're still the same useless girl. You couldn't protect your mother, and you can't keep your man. You're nothing but a joke!"

Her words dragged me out of my memories and lit a fire of anger in my chest. I couldn't hold back anymore—I raised my hand to slap her. But before it landed, she grabbed my wrist. Just as I tried to break free, a twisted smile appeared on her lips.

Before I could react, she screamed. "Arden, don't push me—!" And in the next instant, she yanked me down with her as she fell backward.

"Naomi!"

The moment I hit the water, Wayne abandoned his wheelchair and rushed forward, pulling Naomi into his arms. Meanwhile, I, who couldn't even swim, had been shoved straight into the pool. My body flailed in the freezing water as I reached out, desperate for help.

By the time the guards dragged me out, I was barely conscious. But before I could speak, Naomi beat me to it, her voice trembling with practiced tears. "Wayne… don't be too hard on Arden. She didn't mean to push me. After all, Enzo breaking off the engagement back then was already my fault to her. Let this be her way of venting her anger. But she hates me so much… maybe I should just take the children and move out."

As expected, Wayne's face darkened with anger at her words. But when his gaze turned to my dripping, pitiful figure, and he caught the mocking look in my eyes, guilt flickered across his face. "Arden… it must have just been an accident. What matters is that you're both fine."

Naomi froze, clearly displeased with his response. This wasn't the outcome she had been aiming for. With a sharp glare at me, she allowed the doctor to lead her away for a checkup.

Wayne draped a towel over my shoulders and waited until the crowd dispersed. Then he lowered his voice. "Arden, even if you're jealous of Naomi, you shouldn't think about harming her."

Realizing how harsh he had sounded, he quickly tried to soften it. "She's still weak from childbirth. If something really happened to her, neither of us could bear the consequences."

I drew in a deep breath, my chest aching as I looked at the man who had forgotten his own performance in his rush to save her. Curling my lips into a cold smile, I said…