Chapter 361

Darkness engulfed her vision. It took a while before Athena’s eyes adjusted to the dim light.

Inside the room, a figure stood silently.

The gold-threaded curtain swayed without wind. Athena instinctively stepped back and turned to push the door open.

A low, familiar voice rang in her ears. “Athena, I’ve been waiting for you.”

Athena froze. As her eyes made out the silhouette, she gasped. “Ferris?”

Since their last parting, she hadn’t seen Ferris for a long time.

She thought their paths would never cross again, yet here he was, meeting her in this secretive, almost shameful way.

Athena gave a bitter smile. When had things between her and Ferris come to this?

His shadow loomed closer. He looked pale and hollow-eyed, bloodshot, his once gentle features now sunken as if he had just recovered from a serious illness.

He looked just like the sickly young man he used to be.

Athena stared at him in surprise, but her gaze soon calmed.

That shift in her demeanor pleased Ferris. He stepped forward, standing in front of her, his eyes filled with melancholy. “Athena, are you really going to marry Xander?”

She replied, “Xander treats me well. He protects me, cherishes me, understands my thoughts… Most importantly, he respects me.”

Her words stabbed like knives into Ferris’s heart.

He lowered his eyes in shame and pain. “Athena, can you forgive me?”

Athena let out a light laugh. “I never blamed you.”

Ferris looked up, confused, his voice hoarse. “But I used you. Why wouldn’t you hate me?”

“Because I never took it to heart,” Athena replied calmly.

Although they could still speak without anger, she knew things had changed. Some things could never go back.

Ferris had gone too far down the wrong path. She had tried to pull him back, but it had been futile.

One last time, Athena tried to reason with him. “You and Xander aren’t enemies. He’s not who you should be fighting. I hope you’ll live well from now on.”

She turned to leave, but Ferris suddenly rushed forward and grabbed her arm.

Without thinking, he pulled her into a tight embrace. Hot tears fell onto her shoulder. “Athena, don’t go…”

He knew that if she walked away this time, there would be no more hope between them. Panic took hold of his reason.

He held her as if she were his whole world.

His voice cracked and broken, he pleaded, “Please… don’t leave me.”

Ferris had already lost so much. Athena was everything to him.

But she forcefully pushed him away. Ferris stumbled backward, his face twisted in anguish. His eyes pleaded with her silently.

Athena remained unmoved. There was even a trace of anger in her expression. “Ferris, what’s gone is gone. I’ve already moved forward. Why can't we just live our lives in peace?”

She added, “You trapped me in here again today. Did you ever think about the consequences?”

Ferris looked at her with pain. “I can take whatever consequences come. Athena, let’s go somewhere no one knows us. We can start over…”

Athena chuckled. “Had you shown this resolve earlier, we wouldn’t have missed each other. Your hesitation cost us. Now that I’m happy, you want to step back in? You always say I’m your everything, but you never once considered things from my perspective.”

She added coldly, “To be brutally honest, if it had been Xander, he would never have made things difficult for me. That’s the difference between you two. It has nothing to do with status or background, only who he is as a person.”

Ferris looked at her, horrified, shaking his head. “I only have the courage now because I’ve finally climbed high enough. I can protect you now! Xander has nothing but a title. He can’t protect you.”

“He can.” Athena’s voice was firm. She tilted her head slightly toward the window.

Outside, hidden in the shadows, a crossbowman had already drawn his weapon and had Ferris in his sights.

If he made one wrong move, he’d be dead on the spot.

But Ferris didn’t care. “Anything he can do, I can too.”

Seeing he still didn’t understand, Athena added, “Even if he were just an ordinary man, he’d still be able to protect me.”

Ferris staggered, bracing himself on the table. A celadon cup tipped over and soaked his robes.

Ferris asked, “You still blame me, don’t you?”

Athena sighed. She didn’t want to argue anymore.

She turned to leave again, but Ferris tried to grab her one more time.

Suddenly, a silver needle was poised at his throat. Ferris stared in disbelief.

In a broken voice, he muttered, “Athena… you want to kill me?”

“I don’t want to,” Athena said coldly. “But you keep forcing my hand. Ferris, this is the end of us. If you ever do something like this again, we won’t even be friends.”

With that, she kicked the door open and strode out.

At the door, someone tried to stop her. Athena’s expression turned frosty. “What, you want to keep me here?”

Ferris gave a bitter, self-deprecating smile. He shook his head and ordered, “Let her go.”

He knew Athena too well. If he didn’t, things between them would only worsen.

When Athena came downstairs, Jessa had already subdued the shopkeeper.

Her dagger was pressed to his throat. Athena called out, “Let him go.”

He was only following orders. There was no point in punishing a shopkeeper.

Besides, her wedding was coming. She couldn’t afford bloodshed.

Jessa kicked the man aside but stabbed her dagger deep into the counter, glaring at him.

It was a warning to Ferris to stay away from Athena from now on.

Outside, the hidden guards withdrew their weapons the moment Athena appeared.

If Ferris had made one wrong move, he would’ve been killed on the spot.

Athena stepped onto the carriage. Just as she pulled the curtain down, an arm suddenly wrapped around her and pulled her into an embrace.

Startled, she raised her hand, only for it to be gently caught.

In front of her was Xander, looking a little aggrieved. “I almost barged in just now,” he muttered.

Athena looked at him apologetically, stroking his cheek. “But you didn’t, did you? You respected my dignity, gave me space, and even gave him a chance.”

Xander whispered, “Darling, I can’t wait anymore. How about we move the wedding up?”

Only five days remained until the big day, but to Xander, it felt like forever. He couldn’t wait any longer.

He feared more complications, feared losing the happiness he had worked so hard to earn.

Athena looked at him, amused. “So you want to ask the King for permission, have the Ministry of Rites scramble to rearrange everything, and then notify all the guests to tell them we’ve changed the date?”