From childhood to adulthood, her dream had always been to become Mitchel's bride, so she arrogantly drove away every girl around him.

She only waited for her 23rd birthday to marry him. But no matter how much she tried to guard against it, she couldn’t prevent Malva.

Malva was a poor student sponsored by the West Family. She resembled Mitchel’s late younger sister, which earned her his special affection. Livia, loving everything related to Mitchel, tried to be kind to Malva as well.

When Malva wanted the birthday gift Mitchel was supposed to give her, Livia gave it to her.

When thunder struck and Malva wanted to sleep in Mitchel's arms, Livia endured.

Until one day, after getting drunk, she lay on top of Mitchel, her clothes disheveled, twisting and turning, Livia could no longer hold herself back.

In the midst of their heated argument, she was hysterical and Mitchel slapped her.

"If you can't stand it, then break off the engagement!"

As her thoughts returned to reality, she trembled.

During her near-death struggle, her mind was filled with a vast emptiness, when suddenly, a woman who looked exactly like her appeared.

The woman took her hand and said she would save her, as long as she agreed to marry someone else in her place.

In that life-and-death moment, she agreed.

Seeing her dazed and silent, Mitchel rubbed his forehead, his tone impatient. "Are you even listening to me?"

"Yes," Livia bit her lip and nodded. "Okay, I agree."

Mitchel was confused. "Agree to what?"

Malva also glanced at Mitchel nervously. "Livia, do you want to go rest for a bit?"

With a subtle shake of her hand, Livia looked up at Mitchel, speaking each word with utmost seriousness. "I agree to break off the engagement."

As soon as she opened her mouth, a metallic taste of blood flowed out. She wiped it with the back of her hand, revealing a hint of seductive red at the corner of her mouth.

Mitchel was momentarily stunned, seemingly not hearing clearly what she had said.

It was only that day, because of Malva’s injury, that he had been so angry and said he would break off the engagement with her.

But now, hearing her agree to it, an inexplicable bitterness rose in his heart.

He furrowed his brows, his face stern as he asked her, "Are you really willing to?"

Livia tugged at the corner of her mouth, but didn’t reply.

Mitchel frowned. "Actually, everything I said that day was out of anger. You don't have to take it seriously..."

"You don't need to comfort me," Livia interrupted him. "I'm not saying this out of anger. I'm serious. I'll break off the engagement and I'll bear all the consequences alone."

What Mitchel didn’t know was that she could no longer marry him. According to the agreement, she had to marry another man.

From now on, Livia and Mitchel would have no more connections. He could be with whoever he wanted and it had nothing to do with her anymore.

"You’re just throwing another tantrum!” Without giving her a chance to protest, Mitchel picked her up and carried her to the infirmary.

By the time the ship's doctor arrived hurriedly from the banquet, she had already developed a high fever.

Before administering the fever-reducing injection, the doctor asked if she was allergic to penicillin. She opened her mouth, but instead of speaking, a gush of blood poured out.

It turned out that, while immersed in the freezing cold water, she had bitten her tongue to stay conscious.

When she was standing, she could still swallow. But now, lying on the bed, the blood in her mouth was nearly suffocating her.

"You... you're so badly hurt, why didn't you say something earlier?" Mitchel seemed frantic with worry.

Livia suddenly let out a mocking laugh, but as she tugged at her mouth, blood spilled over her.

She had wanted to speak, but had anyone ever given her the chance?

Previously, he had always been annoyed by her chatter when she was by his side, yet now, when she said she wanted to break off the engagement, he was suddenly so concerned for her.

Mitchel furrowed his brows, feeling a twinge of regret. He lowered his head and sat by her bed. He took her hand, trying to reassure her.

"Don't worry, I'll have the captain turn the ship around right now. We'll head back immediately and once we reach land, I'll take you to the best hospital!"

After saying that, he instructed the ship's doctor to give her the fever-reducing injection and immediately contacted the captain, commanding him to change course.

This cruise was chartered by him specifically for the New Year's Eve gathering and suddenly turning back in the middle of the event left everyone astonished.

"Mitchel, I feel so dizzy," Malva swayed a little, struggling to stay on her feet.

Mitchel quickly released Livia's hand and rushed to catch Malva, his eyes instantly reddening.

"Malva, are you feeling seasick?"

Malva looked up, forcing herself to meet his gaze. "I'm fine, Mitchel. It's just that after having a fever for a month, there are some aftereffects."

Mitchel's eyes dimmed, filled with deep concern. "I told you not to come, but you insisted on coming anyway..."

"But I wanted to spend New Year's Eve with you..." Malva's face grew increasingly flushed. "Mitchel, don’t worry about me. There’s just one fever-reducing injection on this ship. Please give it to Livia first. I’m not important."

Mitchel quickly stopped the ship's doctor. "No, give it to Malva first!"

The doctor explained that Livia’s condition was much more serious than Malva’s. "The patient’s fever is almost 40°C. If we don’t inject now, it could cause brain damage!"

But Mitchel didn’t care. "She’s faking it. She’s always pretended to be sick before just to get my attention! Now, I order you to treat Malva first!"

He yanked Livia off the bed and picked Malva up, placing her on the bed instead.

"Now, treat Malva immediately!"

Livia was thrown onto the floor, her head hitting the edge of the bed with a heavy thud. Just then, the ship swayed and she was sent rolling into the corner of the room.

Photos and oil paintings hanging on the wall crashed down on her and she let out a faint groan, but no one paid her any attention.

Luckily, the captain quickly turned the ship around and an ambulance arrived at the port.

However, when the stretcher carrying Livia was about to be taken, Mitchel stopped them. "Send Malva first!"

The doctors dared not disobey him, especially since this hospital was owned by the West Family.

When it was Livia’s turn, the doctors discovered she had lost consciousness. Her body was covered in wounds and there were signs she had almost suffocated.

They forcibly pried open her mouth, quickly extracting the blood from her oral cavity, then administered the fever-reducing medication.

Using tweezers, they carefully removed the shards of glass embedded in her body, piece by piece.

By morning, she was wheeled out of the emergency room and sent to the inpatient center.

Mitchel stayed by Malva’s side, sleepless through the night. When he saw Livia’s body wrapped in white gauze, a sense of confusion lingered in his heart.

"It’s just a fever. How could it lead to encephalitis? Why is her body all wrapped up like a mummy?”

He glared at the doctor. “What are you doctors even doing? What’s the point of the West Family supporting you all?"

Malva, weak and exhausted, lay on Mitchel’s chest. "Calm down, they all know Livia and whatever she asks them to do, they have to listen. They didn't have a choice..."

Mitchel snorted coldly in anger. "Is this place run by the West Family or the Mayer Family? She’s too full of herself. Does she really think I won’t call off the engagement?"

Malva’s eyes lit up as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "Of course, in this family, it’s all about what you say, Mitchel. But when it comes to the wedding, that’s something your parents decide..."

Mitchel’s expression darkened and he fell silent.

His mother had always favored Livia. When he initially opposed the arranged marriage, he went on a hunger strike for three days, but his mother only took Livia shopping, saying Livia’s fate was so prestigious that the West Family wasn’t worthy of her.

He didn’t deny that Livia was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, but she was too spoiled.

He needed to suppress her and show her who was truly in charge of this family.

Livia hadn’t even been sent to the hospital before Mitchel’s bodyguards took her away.

She was placed in the attic of a villa.

Mitchel stayed by her bedside, coldly staring at her. "You’re really weak. Malva had a fever for a month and never needed to be hospitalized, yet you only had a fever for one night and are this badly off?"

It wasn’t until the caregiver helped her turn over that they discovered the bandages were soaked in blood. When the bandages were removed, they pulled off her skin along with it. Her entire body had no healthy skin left.

Mitchel's eyes turned red and he quickly took out his phone to contact specialists for a consultation.

Malva stood outside the door, pulling out some envelopes and stuffing them into their pockets.

She said, "With Livia in this state, she probably won’t make it. From now on, I’ll be the future mistress of the West Family, so you’d better think carefully about what you say and do."

"I want you to tell him that Livia's injuries are self-inflicted, that the brain inflammation was a misdiagnosis and that everything was planned by her to force you into this. Understand?"

The heads of several departments spoke in unison, stating that Livia’s injuries were self-inflicted and even the fever and brain inflammation were misdiagnosed under her coercion.

Malva's words dripped with feigned sincerity, her voice full of pity as she wiped away a few tears. "Mitchel, I didn't expect you to have lived all this time in the web of lies she so carefully spun. Livia never loved you. She only wanted to possess you because of your status as the heir to the West Family and she would stop at nothing to get you. Mitchel, don't be so heartbroken. I know you have feelings for her, but has Livia ever… “

The words hung in the air like a heavy weight, pressing against Mitchel's chest. "Don't you want to know why she immediately mentioned breaking off the engagement after getting out of the pool?"

The mention of breaking off the engagement was like a punch to his heart. It shattered the fragile remnants of his calm.

Mitchel immediately shoved aside the crowd, forcefully tearing at Livia's bandages and carried her into the bathroom.

He ordered the maid to bring ice cubes and poured them over her, desperate to grasp at any semblance of control in the midst of this chaos.

Livia lay motionless, her eyes tightly shut as the icy chill seeped into her skin, wrapping her in an unbearable, piercing cold.

Her mind flashed back to a month ago. She remembered Malva pleading with her to come on a trip to the uninhabited island. Once they arrived, Malva deliberately let the boat drift away. In a panic, Livia swam after it, desperate to bring it back. But when she finally returned to shore, Malva was gone.

Livia’s heart raced with panic as she searched the entire island, but no trace of Malva could be found. In desperation, she was forced to return alone and report the situation to the authorities.

However, when she got back, she found Malva unconscious in Mitchel’s arms.

Livia rushed over to check on her, but Mitchel forcefully pushed her away. His eyes were filled with disgust, a look that she would never forget.

For the past month, Mitchel had kept his distance from her, punishing her by refusing to speak a single word to her. But then, on this New Year's Eve, he sent someone with a message, asking her to meet him at the swimming pool.

As Livia carefully dressed up in the tight-fitting dress Mitchel had sent her, she never imagined that the next moment she would witness him and Malva embracing by the pool.

She had always been afraid of water, but because Mitchel loved swimming, she had pushed herself to learn. However, as she fell into the water, she forgot to struggle. Her mind was overwhelmed with the image of her fiancé and another woman in a sweet embrace.

Her heart felt like it was breaking and she struggled to breathe. Desperately, she opened her mouth to cry out, but the water choked her and she couldn’t make a sound.

‘Help, Mitchel, save me!’ She pleaded in her mind, but the words refused to leave her lips.

As her consciousness began to fade, a final thought consumed her. ‘I will never love you again. I will let you go.’

After being rescued by the staff, she immediately decided to break off the engagement.

"Alright, Livia, you've grown some guts!"

Suddenly, she jolted awake, her eyes snapping open.

She looked down and saw herself completely naked, her body covered in ice cubes, while Mitchel was staring at her intently.