Chapter 75

Aria Bennett abruptly shook off his hand and took two steps back, putting distance between them.

"Even raising a cat or dog for twenty years would foster some affection," she turned her face away. "I just don't want to watch you die in front of me."

She had long stopped hating Nolan Reed, but beyond that, there was nothing left.

Feeling the warmth in his palm vanish suddenly, Nolan's heart ached. "You caring about me is enough."

Aria couldn't be bothered to argue. She glanced around. "Where's Serena Blake?"

She had clearly seen the woman follow Nolan earlier and even heard a scream, so how had she disappeared in the blink of an eye?

At the mention of Serena, Nolan's expression darkened. "She ran."

The moment the venomous snake lunged, she had bolted faster than a rabbit. For all her talk of loving him, she was the first to flee when danger struck.

Hah. Some "true love" that was.

Aria scoffed. "Serves her right!"

Nolan sighed. "You're that happy about it?"

"Of course." Aria turned to leave. "I'm heading back."

Nolan quickly blocked her path. "Wait, I need to talk to you."

"We have nothing to say." Her tone was icy.

Nolan lowered his voice. "I've realized something's off about Serena."

Aria paused. "What do you mean?"

"Ever since I met her, I couldn't control the urge to help her," Nolan frowned. "Every time she's in trouble, a voice in my head pushes me to save her."

"Even on the plane earlier—I didn’t want to deal with her, but I inexplicably softened." He rubbed his temples. "Do you think I’m cursed?"

Aria's heart skipped a beat.

The book hadn’t mentioned any of this. Had Nolan been controlled in their past life too?

The thought made her bitter. So they had both been puppets of fate.

"Let me draw you a talisman," she sighed.

Nolan's eyes lit up like an excited puppy. "You're the best, Aria!"

Seeing his familiar smile, Aria felt a fleeting sense of nostalgia but quickly snapped out of it. "Aunt Rebecca said she wants to adopt me as her goddaughter."

Nolan's smile froze. "I don’t agree!"

"Your objection is irrelevant," Aria rolled her eyes. "From now on, you’re my godbrother."

"Who wants to be your brother?!" Nolan gritted his teeth. "Are you really this cruel?"

Aria raised a brow. "Yep. Better start looking for a godsister-in-law for me."

"Aria!" Nolan's eyes reddened with anger. "Do you have to twist the knife in my heart?"

"Isn’t it better to face reality early?" She picked up the machete from the ground and walked away without looking back.

Nolan watched her retreating figure, his chest tight with pain.

A godsister? He’d rather die.

But he knew this was Aria’s biggest concession. At least... she was willing to acknowledge him now.

Meanwhile, when Aria returned to camp, Serena still hadn’t come back.

It wasn’t until everyone finished packing their sleeping bags that Jonah Pierce noticed something amiss. "Why is Teacher Serena taking so long?"

Tobias Kane replied calmly, "We’ve already sent people to look for her."

Twenty minutes later, a blond mercenary brought back a disheveled Serena.

Aria glanced up—and her pupils contracted sharply.

The golden aura around Serena was even brighter than before!