Jasmine wandered the streets, clutching the doctor's diagnosis—a death sentence.

"So you're saying… I only have about 30 days left?"

"I'm very sorry, Ms. Spencer."

It had been a gut-punching feeling to hear those words—one that wasn't the first time Jasmine had felt it.

The Spencer family was barely holding together now, and all the pressure had fallen on her shoulders.

When she had felt completely alone in the past, she had called William. She thought that even if they just argued or bickered a little, it might still make her feel better.

However, William rejected every single call. When she kept trying, he finally got annoyed and just turned off his phone.

The next time she saw him, he was in their bed with a young model, both of them naked.

William never saw how helpless she really was.

All he saw was a face he was sick of.

He deliberately kissed the model in front of her—deep and messy, the kind that left a string of spit at the corner of their mouths. It stung Jasmine's eyes.

"So? Want a divorce?"

Jasmine forced herself to stay calm and ran out of that room.

In Jovelle City, pretty much everyone knew she and William had never gotten along. They fought every time they saw each other.

And nearly everyone believed Jasmine hated William—just like William hated her.

Jasmine touched the ring on her finger—the one William had reluctantly given her after they got married.

When he handed it to her, he had thrown the box so hard it hit her in the face.

At first, Jasmine hid her feelings well—until the night William forced her to act like a real wife.

In the heat of the moment, his hand brushed against the ring on her finger.

William suddenly burst out laughing.

"Jasmine, don't tell me… you've been refusing to divorce me because you actually like me?

"If that's the case, then you'd better forget those thoughts now. Not only will I never like you—I can't stand you!"

There was never any baseless hatred—William disliked her for concrete reasons.

He didn't like her because the Graham and Spencer families had arranged their marriage way too early. And because of that, his first love had been forced to leave the country.

That night, Jasmine stared at the ceiling until the sun came up.

Her mom had passed away early. No one ever taught her how to hold onto someone she loved. As a kid, all she knew was how to use sarcasm and sharp words to get William's attention.

But after that?

Jasmine blinked her dry eyes.

Her phone kept buzzing, pulling her out of her thoughts. She glanced at the screen—William was flooding their group chat with smiley face emojis.

[What's the occasion? You seem pretty thrilled, Mr. Graham.]

William didn't reply. He just sent a photo of the signed divorce waiting period form.

That one picture was like a bomb going off—it blew up the whole chat full of quiet lurkers who had just been watching the drama unfold.

[You really split? Jasmine actually agreed?]

[This is amazing news! William, you finally got rid of that burden!]

[Time to celebrate! You said just last week that you couldn't even sleep after seeing her face every night. Now you're free—switch out ten or twenty women if you want, no one's stopping you!]

[But isn't it weird? William's hooked up with so many models, and Jasmine put up with it all. Why's she suddenly not putting up with it now? You think she's messing with you? What if she ghosts you at the end and you can't even file the papers?]

That comment made the whole group fall silent.

Right after that, Jasmine's phone started ringing.

"Jasmine, you're not playing me, right? After the 30-day waiting period, you're really going to show up and get our divorce finalized?"

Jasmine's pale lips curled up into a faint smile, and she spoke softly into the phone.

"Yeah. I'm playing you. What are you going to do about it?"

On the other end of the line, William was breathing heavily.

Jasmine figured if she were standing in front of him right now, she wouldn't even make it through the month—he would probably strangle her on the spot.

Before William could start yelling, she laughed again.

"William, I'm not messing with you this time. But I have one condition."

William didn't say a word.

Jasmine didn't care and kept going.

"I want you to do ten things with me. Once they're done, I'll go with you to sign the divorce papers. I promise—I'll disappear from your world for good."

That promise was tempting.

William frowned. "Ten is too much. Five."

Jasmine chuckled. "Fine."

The first thing? She wanted William to take her to a charity gala.

She dressed to the nines. When William came to pick her up, his fingers were flying over his phone screen, eyes locked on it. He didn't even glance at her once.

Jasmine didn't mind. She knew better than to expect anything sweet out of his mouth.

But oddly enough, once she got into the car, William finally looked up at her—and frowned.

"Did you lose weight? Your face looks pale. Honestly, you look awful."

Jasmine curled her fingers slightly but stared straight ahead, saying nothing.

When they got out of the car, William grabbed her hand. Jasmine flinched, and he sneered.

"What? We've held hands before. We've done way more than that. Don't act all shy now."

Her icy hand was wrapped in the heat of his palm.

It wasn't the first time William had held her hand—but it was the first time he had ever done it on his own.

People around them stared, wide-eyed at the strange, sudden harmony between them.

After the auction started, Jasmine spotted something she really wanted. She instinctively raised her paddle—only to have the man beside her beat her to it.

It was a painting by a late foreign artist, and many people in the room liked it. The bidding quickly heated up.

But in the end, it was William who won it with the highest bid.

A strange warmth passed through Jasmine's chest.

"William—"

"Ship the painting to the Farrell family's residence in Norwyn City."

Jasmine's hand, halfway raised, froze in the air.

So, the painting wasn't for her.

A wave of bitterness rose in her throat, threatening to drown her whole.

She abruptly stood and walked toward the exit.

William frowned and followed, grabbing her arm in one quick stride.

"It's not over yet—where do you think you're going?"

Jasmine tried to pull away, but his grip was too strong.

William was losing patience. "You're the one who asked me to come here, so why are you throwing a fit now? You're seriously sick!"

That last line hit Jasmine hard.

"Yeah. I'm seriously sick."

She yanked her arm free and walked off without looking back.

Jasmine didn't contact William for a week. She also moved out of the home they had lived in since they had gotten married.

At first, William didn't care.

However, the thought of the four things she still wanted him to do made him uneasy. It felt like if he didn't finish them quickly, Jasmine might suddenly cling to him again.

Unable to hold back, he finally called her.

Jasmine had just finished a round of chemotherapy when her phone rang. Her condition was getting worse. Her whole body ached down to the bone.

"There are still four things left, Jasmine. Don't try anything stupid."

Jasmine went quiet for a moment.

"I want to go to the country of Zaryen."

William frowned. "Right now?"

"Yeah. Right now."

William seriously thought Jasmine was out of her mind. But for the sake of the divorce—for the sake of getting rid of her—he really did book a flight to Zaryen right away.

Jasmine was bundled up tight. By the time she arrived, William was already annoyed from waiting.

"What's your deal? I offered to pick you up, but you wouldn't let me. Then, you show up late."

He kept grumbling.

Jasmine didn't say much. She just handed him her suitcase. "You talk too much."

William sneered, but he took everything from her hands without complaint.

Even he didn't realize how natural it felt.

Just as the plane was about to board, William's phone suddenly rang.

Jasmine stood at the gate, looking at him from across the way.

William's hand clenched around the phone, and his whole body went stiff.

"Sorry, Jasmine. I can't go to Zaryen with you."

Right after he said that, William turned and ran out of the airport.

Jasmine numbly pulled out her phone.

Just as she had guessed, the top post on her feed was from Jennifer Farrell. The latter didn't write anything—just shared a painting.

And that was all it took for William to walk away from Jasmine and the promise he made.

"Miss, we're about to close the gate."

Snapping out of it, Jasmine stopped looking in his direction and turned to go the opposite way. When she landed in Zaryen, Jasmine got a text from William.

[I'll be two days late. Go have fun first.]

Jasmine was a little surprised. He was going to be late instead of just ditching her completely.

Guess he really was desperate to break free from her.

Jasmine didn't wait. She found a local guide and joined a tour group. However, she couldn't keep up. Most of the time, she was resting alone in her room.

By the time William showed up, she had already packed her suitcase and was ready to leave.

"Jasmine, I ditched so much work to come all the way out here and go along with your madness—you think this is funny?"

He kicked over her suitcase in frustration.

As her clothes scattered across the floor, Jasmine let out a bitter laugh.

"Go along with me? Really? Isn't Jennifer right next door?"

William froze, and his voice wavered a little when he next spoke. "Jennifer's just here to sketch. You don't need to pick a fight with her every time."

Jasmine's fingers curled slightly, but she didn't say another word. She just bent down and started picking up her clothes.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Jennifer suddenly appeared in the doorway, and the anger on William's face vanished instantly.

It was replaced by concern and urgency.

"You said you weren't feeling well—why are you up?"

"Oh, I can't just lie around forever. What were you and Ms. Spencer talking about? I heard loud voices, so I thought I'd come check."

When William heard Jennifer's words, he glanced at Jasmine.

"It's nothing. You hungry? I'll grab you something to eat."

Jennifer gave a small, shy nod.

William turned to leave, but then he suddenly stopped. He looked at Jasmine, clearly annoyed.

"What about you? What do you want to eat?"

Jasmine had just finished packing the last of her clothes, and even that small bit of effort had left her sweating. She could hear the shift in his tone, how he flipped back and forth.

She replied quietly, "Nothing. I'm good."

The second William heard her refusal, his face darkened. "Suit yourself. Starve for all I care. You look like a ghost already!"

Then, the door slammed shut behind him, and only Jasmine and Jennifer were left in the room.

It wasn't Jasmine's first time meeting her.

The Farrell family had made their money fast—new money. Naturally, the Graham family looked down on them.

And Jennifer, with her proud personality, had always thought the Graham family was arrogant and snobbish.

Back then, she had stormed off in anger, hoping to make a name for herself overseas.

Now she had come back with her tail between her legs. And the first thing she did?

Rekindle things with her old flame.

As someone watching from the outside, Jasmine found the whole thing pathetic.

And now that William was gone, Jennifer didn't even bother pretending.

"Long time no see, Ms. Spencer."

As Jennifer spoke, she kicked over Jasmine's suitcase. All the things Jasmine had carefully sorted and folded were ruined in an instant, just like that.

Seeing her effort so easily ruined lit a fire in Jasmine's chest.

She knew Jennifer was doing it on purpose—trying to get under her skin.

And it worked.

Without hesitation, Jasmine slapped her across the face.

William walked in just in time to see the red handprint blooming across Jennifer's cheek, and her watery eyes.

He was holding a bowl of stew meant for Jasmine, but it crashed to the ground.

Without asking a single question, he stormed over and struck Jasmine hard across the face.

"Jasmine, know when to stop!"

Jennifer let out a soft sob and looked up at William.

"It was my fault. I knocked over her suitcase by accident. I know I'm not welcome here. I'll leave."

After saying that, Jennifer rushed out the door.

William didn't hesitate and turned to follow her, but Jasmine suddenly called out.

"William!"

He paused.

"The third thing: Stay."