Chapter 444
The Wolfsbane Mansion loomed in the distance. But Alex didn’t head for the grand entrance.
Instead, he made his way to a smaller, weather-worn house tucked at the far-right wing of the estate-a place most people had forgotten existed.
Inside, chaos roared. The small house was alive with anger-the kind that had been brewing for years.
Sofina Scheinwald stood in the middle of it. Across from her, her mother Felicia raged, while her stepfather Albert and her half-sister Pauline hurled words like stones.
“Alex Saint-Claire-that loser! He’s an embarrassment! If you don’t divorce him now, your father might disown you! And your grandmother? She’ll kick you out form here! Have you learned nothing from your mistake with Heinrich p>
Sofina didn’t flinch. “Father will never disown me, you know, I am his only daughter. And I don’t care about Grandmother p>
“You-!” Felicia’s hands trembled, her voice rising with fury.
“What’s so special about that half-slave? Why can’t you divorce him and marry Count Gustav? If you marry Gustav Klein, our entire family could finally hold our heads high p>
Albert joined in. “Your mother’s right, Sofina! If you marry Gustav, we’ll finally be back where we belong. Your grandmother will welcome you again-welcome all of us. We could move back to the main estate, live with dignity instead of rotting in this goddamn barn p>
“Enough.” Sofina’s voice cut through the air, cold and sharp. “Say whatever you want—I’m not divorcing Alex p>
Her stepsister Pauline shot up from the couch, face flushed, eyes burning with rage. “God, Sofina, stop being such an asshole p>
“Because of you, we’re stuck here suffering while the whole family laughs at us! My friends at school make fun of me every damn day-what more do you want? You’ve turned my whole life into hell! Stop thinking only about yourself! You’re such a selfish bitch p>
“What’s all the yelling about?” Alex stepped into the living room, his expression calm, almost bored. He stretching his arms with a lazy yawn. “Can’t even get a moment of peace in this damn house p>
Every face in the room turned toward him-glaring, hostile, burning with resentment.
“I thought you were already dead somewhere, you useless loser,” his mother-in- law, Felicia, snapped, crossing her arms as her lips curled into a sneer. “Why are you even here? Get out of this house. You have no place here p>
Alex nodded and took Sofina’s hand, “My dear wife, if they’re going to keep barking, maybe we should take the hint. They clearly don’t want us here—so let’s leave p>
Sofina blinked, stunned. For a heartbeat, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He’d just handed her an escape—one she’d never dared to take before.
“You’re right,” she said quietly. “If my own mother doesn’t want us here, we will walk out p>
Felicia’s face twisted with anger. “See that?!” she snapped. “He walks in here a minute and already turns you against your own family p>
Alex lowered his head, pretending humility, his tone dripping with false regret. “Mother,” he said softly, “I’m sorry for the trouble I’ve caused today p>
“Mother? Don’t call me that. I don’t want a son-in-law like you!” Felicia barked a bitter laugh.
“You’re a disaster! You’ve dragged this family down long enough. Have some decency-get out of our house before you ruin us even more! If it’s money you want, I’ll give it to you just divorce Sofina p>
Sofina stepped forward, her voice trembling but strong. “Mom! How can you say that? Alex is your son-in-law! If you throw him out, I’m leaving too p>
Alex gave a crooked smile, raised his middle finger at Felicia and the others, and walked toward the door without a word.
Luckily for him, the Prussians around didn’t understand what that gesture meant. “Sofina!” Felicia shouted. “You promised your father you’d stay here for a year!” “I did,” Sofina said coldly, “but you’re the one driving me out. That means the deal’s off. Goodbye.” She took Alex’s hand and walked out beside him.
“Wait!” Felicia barked, her eyes narrowing. “Fine. You can stay-for now.” Her tone softened, but her mind was racing. If Sofina really left with him, they might never come back. That would ruin her chance to push for a divorce.
“Go back to your room before I lose my temper completely,” she hissed.
Pauline leaned back on the couch, arms crossed, disgust twisting her face. “What a loser,” she muttered under her breath.
Alex glanced at her, eyes glinting with mischief, and gave her a deliberate wink. “You jerk!” Pauline shot up, face flushed with fury.
“You bastard,” Albert snapped as he stepped forward. “You ruined this house. Don’t you have any conscience p>
Alex stopped, cold as a drawn knife. He closed the distance with a menace that made Albert falter.
“You know you’re almost twice my age,” Alex said quietly, each word a threat. “Lose my control because of your mouth and I might hit you-hard. With the Xia power I carry, one strike could end you. Are you sure you want to test that p>
He shoved his shoulder into Albert’s chest, driving him back. Albert stumbled, eyes wide, and Alex hit the nearest iron wall so hard it groaned and left a deep dent.
“If you weren’t someone, I’d already break a bone,” Alex muttered, lips curling. “Too bad. Keep mocking me. See what happens to your head p>
Albert went pale. He’d never expected a fight like this-his people relied on machines and androids for heavy work.
The Xia still used their bodies as weapons.
Now Albert felt the mistake of goading something dangerous and barely contained.
“Let’s all stay in this house and be
decent to one another,” Alex said, voice flat as a knife. “You don’t know
what I’m capable of. So stop making our lives hard. Maybe you two my mother-in-law and my
stepsister-could learn to cook and put food on the table for me every day. What do you think p>
belongs to s
The room froze. Faces drained of color. Nobody knew whether to laugh or cry-
they were just stunned at the sheer audacity.
Alex’s smile widened, slow and certain-the kind of smile that stripped shame
from the air. He wore shamelessness like armor and watched them shrink under
it.
Felicia clenched her fists. “Sofina, take that man to your room before I do something I’ll regret p>
“Don’t let me stop you. Go on-since you already regret having me here, don’t shy adding another regret. Let it out. Go all the way. Better to be done with it than choke on regret at your age p>
Sofina grabbed his arm. “Come on.” She hauled him toward the door. “Let’s go- now p>
Alex let her pull him toward the stairs, completely unfazed. But before disappearing from view, he turned back toward the stunned room.
“Mother-in-law,” he said with a bright, mocking grin, “I love you. And you too-well, whatever bastards you al are. What a warm, loving family Truly the best gathering I’ve ever
f.n
had. I can’t wait to put my hand on
every one of your faces p>
belongs to s
Felicia’s jaw dropped. Pauline’s face went crimson. Even Albert looked ready to
explode.
The Alex Saint-Claire they once mocked as a half-slave, a loser, a walking error—
Alex the Dunce-was gone. What stood before them now was Alex the
shameless, the ruthless, the unbreakable.
They were all on the verge of losing their minds.
Felicia, who’d only meant to make him and Sofina uncomfortable—trying to push
them toward divorce-was now the one cornered.
For the first time, she realized she might be the one to flee her own house, haunted by the monster she’d let in.
Inside the room, Sofina couldn’t hold it in anymore-she burst out laughing, clutching her stomach.
Alex frowned. “What’s so funny p>
“You,” she said between breaths, still laughing. “Alex, you’re smart-and absolutely terrible. How could you act like that in front of my family? You played
the perfect thug on purpose, didn’t you p>
“You wanted to leave an impression
tole
so deep they’d think twice before mocking us again. You showed then you’re not someone theyvan push around. If they keep it up, you might even go physical. You basically locked down every possible move they could make to break us apart. You’re bad, Alex-really bad.” s
Alex smiled, slow and amused. “And how did you figure all that out? Seems your
reputation as the smartest woman in Winchester wasn’t a lie after all p>