Five years later, in the country of Klicta, the grand hall of its most prestigious auction house was packed with social elites and public figures.

On stage stood a woman in white—the auctioneer. Her hair was perfectly styled, a fine veil covering her face. Though her features were hidden, her elegance was unmistakable; every move she made held the room's attention.

She presented the lot in fluent Klictan, calm and composed. The moment she finished, the bidders below erupted into a fierce bidding war.

Her clear, radiant eyes moved steadily across the room, and with the gavel held confidently in her hand, she presided over the entire auction with natural command.

Daniel watched quietly from the balcony on the second floor. Tilting his head a little, he glanced toward her again. "So that's the person Grandpa insisted on meeting?"

Archie Chapman, his assistant, handed him a file. "Yes. Her name is Amelia Morgan. She joined this auction house five years ago. At her very first auction, she sold an antique painting originally valued at one million dollars for sixty million, which was sixty times the starting price. That sale made her famous."

Daniel's eyes narrowed slightly. "Has she always worn that veil?"

Archie paused for a moment as he considered the question. "Yes. I once heard someone offered her ten million just to take it off, but she refused. People say she must be terribly unattractive if she's so determined to hide her face."

Daniel pressed his cigarette into the ashtray and continued watching her in silence. "She has beautiful eyes."

He felt certain that someone with eyes like that could hardly be unattractive.

Besides, they reminded him of Emilia—the woman who, five years ago, had left behind divorce papers, secretly ended her pregnancy, and vanished without leaving even the slightest trace.

"Bring her to me," Daniel said as he stood.

After taking several steps, he stopped and turned back toward Archie. "It's been five years, and you still haven't found anything about Emilia?"

Archie's expression stiffened uneasily.

People often claimed that no one could disappear without leaving behind some trace, yet Emilia had done exactly that, and in those five years not a single clue about her had surfaced.

Daniel sighed in frustration. "Keep looking."

In his mind, Emilia had been merciless—divorcing him, ending the pregnancy, and cutting off every path he might use to find her.

No one knew that he, the CEO of the Wright Group, had been the one handed the divorce agreement. No one knew that for the past five years, he had searched desperately for the woman who had walked out of his life.

He intended to find her, because he wanted to ask what unforgivable mistake he had made to deserve such cruelty.

When Daniel walked away, Archie remained standing there, rigid as cold sweat spread across his back. He had searched everywhere for Emilia, but found nothing.

Trying to locate someone who had been missing for five years was like searching for a needle lost in a haystack.

Archie muttered to himself, overwhelmed by frustration. "Where on earth are you?"

The auction eventually concluded. Amelia offered a graceful bow before stepping down from the podium.

Five years earlier, Emilia had arrived in Klicta and begun working at an auction house under the name Amelia Morgan. To avoid unnecessary trouble, she always kept her face hidden beneath a veil whenever she worked.

She walked back toward her office.

At that moment, a cheerful little girl ran straight toward her with open arms and wrapped herself around Emilia's leg. "Mommy!" she called brightly.

Emilia lifted the veil, revealing a delicate face of striking beauty. She bent down, picked up her daughter Olivia Moore, and kissed her gently on the cheek. "Have you been waiting here long, sweetheart? Where are your brothers?"

Olivia clenched her small fists and lifted her chin with irritation. "They went outside to play!"

"They didn't take you with them?" Emilia asked.

"They said they're playing boys' games and I can't join," Olivia replied.

Emilia sighed quietly. She understood perfectly well that her two sons had simply wanted to play by themselves without Olivia following along.

Back then, crushed by heartbreak, Emilia had originally planned to terminate the pregnancy. Yet when she finally stood outside the operating room, she found she couldn't bring herself to go through with it. In the end, she decided to keep the babies.

Two months after settling in Klicta, she gave birth to three children—two boys and a girl. They were Leo Moore, the eldest, Asher Moore, the second son, and Olivia, the youngest.

Leo was calm and reliable, Asher was energetic and mischievous, and Olivia was the gentlest and sweetest of the three.

Holding the lovely little girl in her arms, Emilia felt deeply grateful for the choice she had made years earlier.

"Mommy, guess who the three of us saw today?" Olivia suddenly asked.

"And who was it that you saw?" Emilia asked softly.

"My terrible father," Olivia replied.

She spoke loudly, yet Emilia somehow failed to hear the words clearly.

"What did you say you saw, Olivia?" Emilia asked.

"We saw our father—the TV guy! His name's... um... Daniel. He's a bad man. A really, super-duper scary man," Olivia said while waving her hands to demonstrate.

When Emilia heard those words, a sharp ache rose in her chest.

During the past few years, Daniel's name had rarely been mentioned around her.

For a time, she had almost forgotten that he even existed.

But hearing Olivia speak his name now stirred up old memories, leaving a bitter taste in her heart.

She couldn't imagine how Daniel could possibly be here.

However, since her children only knew that their father's name was Daniel Wright and had seen him on television a few times, she assumed they must have mistaken someone else.

"You must have mistaken someone for him, dear. He wouldn't come here," Emilia said.

"But—" Olivia began. Two knocks sounded at the door and cut her off.

"Who is it?" Emilia called out.

"Amelia, are you busy in there? The manager wants you in his office right away. A very important client asked to see you. The manager said you should hurry," a voice from outside replied.

Emilia found herself wondering who this supposedly important client could be.

Their auction house regularly hosted wealthy patrons, yet it was rare for the manager to show anyone such urgency and deference.

The thought made her mildly curious about just how significant the visitor really was.

"I'm free right now. I'll head there immediately," she answered.

"But I really did see him," Olivia murmured, her small brows knitting together.

Emilia turned toward her, and the little girl blinked her wide, watery eyes before asking in a faintly disappointed voice, "Are you going back to work again, Mommy?"

She gently guided Olivia onto the sofa and spoke with a hint of apology. "Stay here for a little while, sweetheart. I'll be back soon, okay?"

Olivia wished her mother would stay with her, yet she knew she couldn't stop her from returning to work. She had always been a very obedient little girl.

"Alright, Mommy. I'll wait here for you."

Emilia leaned down to kiss her cheek again, slipped a piece of bread into her hands, and said, "Eat this for now. Later, I'll take you and your brothers out for a big dinner, alright?"

"Okay," Olivia answered obediently.

Emilia smiled softly, lowered the veil over her face once again, and walked out of the room.

Holding the bread tightly in both hands, Olivia hurried to the doorway and peeked quietly outside.

Seeing her mother disappear down the hall made her feel terribly bored.

She set the bread aside, tapped her smartwatch, and sent Leo and Asher a voice message in her gentle tone. "Where are you? I'm coming to find you."

Soon afterward, a location pin appeared along with their voice reply: "Underground parking lot."

In the underground parking lot, Leo and Asher stood beside a black Maybach.

Leo crossed his arms and gave Asher a thoughtful look. "You're certain this belongs to that awful man?"

Asher was busy drawing across the car with colored markers.

When he finished, he stepped back and looked over his work with obvious satisfaction. "I'm sure. I saw him get out of this car myself."

Studying the crooked words scrawled across the vehicle, Leo muttered under his breath, "This hartless man abandind his wife and kids."

Leo smacked his forehead and stared at Asher like he could not believe what he was seeing, then said, "Mom's always telling you to hit the books properly and quit wasting so much time on computer games. You've been glued to those games way too much, haven't you? You even spelled two words wrong!"

"Ah, don't fuss over little things," Asher said with a cheeky grin. After scribbling out the words, he sketched a ridiculously over-the-top pig right next to them.

As he drew, he gave a mocking snort and muttered, "What a pig."

He wanted everyone to know that Daniel, their father, was an absolute scumbag.

Even though they had never actually met Daniel face-to-face all these years, they had heard his name before and seen him on TV, smiling brightly at events with another woman.

So the second they spotted him here, they recognized him at once, and they were certain it was him.

Emilia had never wanted to speak to the children about Daniel at all. Most of what they knew about him had come from her best friend, Madison Ward, who had only told them because they kept pressing her with questions.

That was why the children knew Emilia had brought them here to live on their own, because Daniel had hurt her deeply. In their eyes, he was unworthy of being their mother's husband, let alone their father.

"Leo, Asher! What are you two doing?" Olivia came running over.

"Shh!" Asher quickly covered Olivia's mouth. "Keep your voice down. We're doing something bad."

Olivia promptly slapped both hands over her own mouth and nodded, promising to stay quiet. Then she noticed the words Asher had written on the Maybach and said, "Asher, you misspelled two words."

Asher gave an awkward wave of his hand. "Ah, don't fuss over little things."

Leo took Olivia's hand and asked, "Has Mommy finished work yet?"

"The manager called her into the office," Olivia answered.

Meanwhile, the moment Emilia stepped into the manager's office, the manager hurriedly waved her over and introduced her to the important client. "Amelia, come here and meet Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Wright, this is Amelia Morgan, the auctioneer you wanted to see."

The instant Emilia heard the manager call someone "Mrs. Wright", she lifted her eyes and frowned faintly.

To her astonishment, she saw Isabel, the very woman Daniel had loved so deeply.

What the manager said made it clear to Emilia that Isabel had, by all appearances, become Daniel's wife. Still, the revelation didn't shock her, because she had long believed Daniel would marry Isabel the instant their divorce was over, considering how deeply he loved her.

She'd walked away back then so Daniel could be with Isabel. Never thought she'd see her again—especially not here.

Something faintly bitter curled through Emilia's chest, and her face cooled at once.

Looking polished from head to toe, Isabel lowered her coffee cup and looked over Amelia—who was really Emilia behind a veil—with open disdain in her eyes.

What she had heard was that Amelia, the head auctioneer at this house, had a sharp eye for antique authentication, had become famous after a single legendary auction, and had been blown up by online gossip into some sort of miracle talent.

Isabel had expected someone far more impressive. Instead, she was annoyed to find that Amelia wouldn't even reveal her face.

Nor could Isabel make sense of Danny's urgency about meeting Amelia.

She gave a cold snort. "So, you're Amelia Morgan. I hear you're more than an auctioneer, and that you know how to authenticate antiques as well. We intend to hire you, and you'll return with us to the Wright estate in Zloigas for a few days to inspect some antiques. Name your price."

Isabel had no doubt Emilia would accept, because an offer like this was not something people refused, especially with the name Wright behind it.

With deliberate ease, she raised her coffee cup and took a sip, fully expecting Amelia to fawn over her.

Inside, Emilia let out a cold scoff. She did, in fact, know how to authenticate antiques, yet she had already made up her mind that she would never work for Isabel or Daniel.

She had left in the first place to keep them out of her life, so there was no chance she would go back to Zloigas with Isabel.

"Sorry, I'm only an auctioneer. If you need someone to verify whether antiques are genuine, you'll have to ask someone else. I can't help you. I've got something else to handle. I need to leave now."

On that note, she turned to leave.

Isabel froze in surprise. Being refused was the last thing she had expected.

She hurriedly called after Emilia, "Wait. Do you have any idea who I am? Think before you answer."

"I have thought about it carefully. My answer is no," Emilia said coolly.

"What is your problem? I'm offering you money to come with me. Who are you to say no?" Isabel snapped, pushing to her feet and seizing Emilia by the arm.

She needed to get Emilia back with her, or Danny would not be pleased.

A crease formed between Emilia's brows as her eyes dropped to Isabel's hand, still locked around her wrist.

Then her eyes widened.

There, on Isabel's wrist, sat a diamond bracelet, every inch of it drenched in glittering stones, the kind of dazzling masterpiece that was clearly worth more than a hundred million dollars. In an instant, Emilia knew it was her family heirloom.

Her mother had placed it in her hands herself and told her to guard it carefully, because one day it might be of use to her. Yet when Emilia had fled in haste all those years ago, she had left it behind at the Wright estate. Never had she imagined she would find it now on Isabel's wrist.

At once, she assumed Daniel must have been the one who gave it to Isabel.

Rage surged through her at the thought that he had taken something that was hers and handed it to Isabel simply because he wanted to give Isabel a gift.

Emilia twisted her hand around and caught hold of Isabel's wrist, then asked in a low, heavy voice, "Does this bracelet belong to you?"

Isabel threw Emilia an irritated glance. "Of course it belongs to me. My husband gave it to me. It's not as though it could ever be yours."

That answer confirmed Emilia's suspicion. A sharp ache cut straight through her chest when she realized Daniel had known perfectly well that the bracelet was hers, and had still given it to Isabel anyway.

In her heart, she cursed him as the lowest kind of scumbag for handing his ex-wife's heirloom to his new wife without the slightest trace of guilt.

"Let go." All at once, a cold, commanding voice rang out.

Emilia lifted her gaze and found a man standing in the doorway, though she had no idea when he had appeared there, and her eyes collided with his dark, piercing stare.

He was tall and broad-shouldered, standing straight as a blade, with a face so strikingly handsome it was impossible to ignore, and even in stillness, he carried the crushing presence of a man long used to power.

Emilia's hands curled into fists.

It was Daniel.

Shock hit her when she realized Olivia had not been mistaken.

A wave of frustration swept through her for failing to expect him; with how fiercely he and Isabel loved each other, if Isabel was here, then of course he would be beside her.

Not once in the five years since her departure had Emilia imagined she would ever see Daniel again. She had never wanted to see him again either, because there was something she feared.

She had given birth to three children. If Daniel learned the truth, he would absolutely take them away from her. A family as powerful as the Wrights would never allow children of their blood to remain outside the family.

Those children were Emilia's whole world. She would never gamble with even the smallest possibility of losing them. That was the reason she had hidden behind a veil all these years and stayed alert at every moment.

Emilia balled her fists tighter; Daniel's gaze stayed fixed on her, as though he were trying to see through the thin veil and uncover her face.

Her heart would not stop pounding.

Isabel jerked her wrist free from Emilia's grasp and immediately softened her manner, saying in a gentle voice, "Daniel, I already spoke to Ms. Morgan, but she flatly refuses to come back with us. She seems to think very little of us."

Inside, she gave a silent sneer, thinking that anyone bold enough to show contempt for the Wright family was simply begging for trouble.

With that in mind, she raised her chin with pride.

Daniel fixed Emilia with a cold stare and said, "Name your price."

Emilia pulled in a long, measured breath.

The dread of being recognized crawled over her skin like a chill, and she had no intention of remaining there even a heartbeat longer. And there was absolutely no chance she would ever consent to setting foot in Zloigas.

"Not everything has a price," she declared, brushing past Daniel before walking away with brisk, determined steps.

He did nothing to halt her, yet his eyes followed her retreating figure the whole time.

A delicate scent lingered around her—not the sort of perfume one would expect, but something strangely familiar, though he couldn't quite recall where he had encountered it before.

There was also an oddly distinctive quality about her that awakened a piercing recollection of Emilia within him.

Emilia had always appeared delicate, yet beneath that softness there had always been an unyielding core.

She had been fiercely independent and unwaveringly resolute.

For example, once she made the decision to walk away, she never reconsidered, granting no one a second opportunity and leaving no room whatsoever for negotiation.

Daniel realized that his thoughts had wandered back to Emilia yet again. His brows drew together. Over the past five years, she had surfaced in his mind again and again, particularly the image of her when she was seven months pregnant, and his thoughts would drift toward their unborn child as well. He would catch himself thinking that if she had not chosen to end the pregnancy back then, their child would now be five years old.

In those days, his feelings for her had not been especially deep, yet divorce had never even entered his mind, and he had quietly looked forward to the arrival of their child. At that realization, a cold edge settled over his demeanor.

"Daniel, Amelia Morgan certainly has quite the temper. Why don't we find someone else for your grandfather? There are plenty of experts who understand antiques," Isabel suggested.

Daniel's expression darkened with a frown. "There may be, but Grandpa specifically wants her. Archie, look into her background. I want every single detail."

"Why would you need to investigate her at all? Are you… interested in her?" Isabel asked with careful hesitation.

Unease gnawed at her; ever since Emilia had disappeared, she had stayed at his side, yet he had never once mentioned marrying her.

Fortunately, naturally aloof and difficult to approach, he had never shown even the faintest interest in any other woman.

But the way he had looked at Amelia earlier ignited a brief, uneasy flicker of alarm in her heart.

"I'm not interested in her. But since Grandpa wants to see her, it's better to make sure we know who she is," Daniel replied coolly.

At that, Isabel relaxed somewhat, convinced that he was only having Amelia investigated because of his grandfather.

She also presumed Amelia was merely some ugly woman concealed behind a veil, someone he could never possibly find appealing.

"Let's head back to the hotel," Daniel said, turning around and striding away.

Emilia returned to her office, pressing a hand against her chest as her heart pounded violently.

Now she realized that Daniel intended to bring her back to evaluate a few antiques. After three years of marriage, she understood better than anyone just how commanding and overbearing he could be.

He would probably come searching for her again. She had allowed him a glimpse of her today, and she couldn't figure out whether recognition had flickered in his eyes or if he would soon begin probing into who she really was.

She couldn't risk him discovering anything about her, least of all the truth about her children.

She seized her phone and dialed a number. The call was answered almost immediately, and a deep, unhurried male voice floated through the receiver. "Sweetheart, what's going on?"

"I need a favor. Someone might start digging into my life. I can't let him uncover anything," Emilia said.

On her own, she had no power to stop Daniel from investigating her past, but the man on the other end of the line certainly did.

"Alright," he said with effortless indifference.

The instant his reply reached her ears, Emilia understood that the matter would be handled.

"This makes the third time," the man remarked abruptly, his tone slow and deliberate.

"What?" Emilia had no clue what he was referring to.

"In the five years we've known each other, I've stepped in for you three times now. So tell me something. When the count reaches five, will you marry me?" the man teased lightly.

Tall and strikingly handsome, he lounged across the sofa with lazy confidence, his bathrobe slipping open to expose a perfectly sculpted set of abs, while a mischievous smile curved along his lips and lent him an air of dangerous allure.

Emilia shivered. Marrying him was the last thing she intended to do. This man was very likely even more terrifying than Daniel.

"That will never happen. You help me, and I earn money for you. That makes us even," she replied briskly.

"I'd prefer you manage my fortune instead of simply making it grow," the man said.

"Then go find yourself a gentle, virtuous wife to handle your fortune. I'd probably run off with every last cent," she shot back.

"Heartless woman," the man teased.

Emilia hung up, sent her manager a message requesting two days off, inhaled slowly to steady herself, and pushed open the door to her office. "Olivia, I'm done. Let's go… Olivia?"

Her eyes scanned the room, yet Olivia was nowhere to be found.

Elsewhere, inside the underground parking garage, two tiny figures peeked cautiously from behind a wall. With a quiet sigh, Leo flipped open his laptop to clean up the mess Asher had created.

Asher had covered Daniel's car in scribbles. Eventually, Daniel would check the surveillance footage, and if they were identified, the consequences would be severe.

After breaking into the surveillance system and deleting the recording, Leo finally felt a measure of relief.

A short distance away, Asher stood beside Olivia, eagerly waiting to see Daniel's expression when he discovered what had been done.

"Who did this?!" someone exclaimed.

A group of people approached them, with Daniel leading the way.

Archie's face went rigid with shock as he stared at the enormous words scrawled across the car, and he read them aloud without thinking, "This hartless man abandind his wife and kids. Uh… Mr. Wright…"

A horrified expression spread across his face as he looked toward Daniel.

He simply couldn't imagine who would be bold—or foolish—enough to pull off something like that. He was absolutely certain the culprit had to be completely out of their mind.

"Who on earth did this? They must be completely out of their minds," Isabel muttered, her brows knitting together in irritation.

The moment Daniel noticed the scrawled message, a shadow fell across his face. The badly spelled words made it painfully obvious to him that a kid had been responsible.

"Sir, I'll go pull up the surveillance footage right away," Archie said promptly.

Out of nowhere, a soft ripple of giggling drifted through the air.

Daniel's hearing was unusually keen. His gaze lifted, and he turned toward where the sound had come from. A split second later, he caught sight of two tiny figures peering cautiously from behind the wall.

Asher reacted first. "They've spotted us. Olivia, run!"

"Huh? What?!" Caught off guard, Olivia jerked in place. By the time she whirled around, her brothers were already sprinting far ahead of her.

"Hey, wait for me!" Flustered, Olivia hurried after them, but the hem of her dress snagged on something. After barely taking a single step, she stumbled and crashed face-first onto the floor.

By then, Daniel had already caught up to her. There was no chance of escape anymore. Lying flat on the floor, Olivia quickly covered her eyes with both hands, secretly hoping they wouldn't notice her there.

Without saying a word, Daniel strode over. He paused briefly while looking down at her, then bent and pulled her upright by the arm.

Even then, she kept her eyes tightly shut and her hands firmly pressed over her face, as if that alone could somehow keep him from recognizing her.

"I can already see you. Stop covering your face," Daniel said coolly.

Convinced she had hidden herself flawlessly, Olivia slowly opened her eyes, confusion flickering across them.

She couldn't understand how she had been discovered, because whenever she played hide-and-seek with her brothers, she was always the one who managed to hide the best.

Gradually, she lowered her hands. Dangling awkwardly in the air, she wriggled her small arms and legs, but she couldn't break free.

She gazed up at Daniel with wide, round eyes. It was the very first time she had seen her father from such a close distance. After blinking a few times, she realized her brothers really did look a lot like him.

She felt secretly glad that she had inherited her mom's looks instead of her awful father's.

With that thought, she instinctively lifted her chin and made a face.

Daniel observed her silently and could tell from the expression on her face that her little mind was racing with thoughts.

"Who are your parents, and why did you scribble all over my car?" There wasn't the slightest hint of warmth in his tone.

But Olivia wasn't afraid of him in the least. Instead, she pressed her lips together even more stubbornly.

Her mom had warned her never to talk to bad people, and her dad was definitely a bad person—the sort who would snatch her away and keep her far from her mom—so she refused to say a word to him.

"If you refuse to speak, I'll turn you over to the police, and they'll track down your father," Daniel said.

Olivia blinked.

She thought Daniel was unbelievably foolish, because he himself was her father.

Daniel had assumed that a child her age would be terrified of the police, but she didn't look even slightly frightened.

"When a child causes trouble, it's the parents who end up paying for it. I'm going to put your father behind the bars," he added.

Olivia actually found that idea rather appealing and even hoped he would.

When Daniel noticed that she still didn't react, he changed his approach and said, "Then I'll go after your mother."

"Why would you want to catch my mommy? Go catch my father instead! Not my mommy!" Olivia shouted, planting her hands on her hips and puffing out her cheeks angrily.

Daniel let out a brief, humorless chuckle.

Watching how completely different her reactions were when it came to her parents, he concluded that her father must be doing a truly terrible job.