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Chapter 180 The Qely Light in His Childhood
Chapter 180 The Only Light in His Childhood
Last time Whitney saw this guy, he was already thin. Now, he was nothing but skin and bones. He looked like he could drop dead any second.
He wasn’t wearing a mask. His face looked like a thin layer of skin stretched tight over a skeleton. He was nothing but skin and bones. His eyes bulged, as if they were barely clinging to their sockets, ready to fall out at any moment.
It was so creepy, it sent shivers down Whitney’s spine. She clicked her tongue. “Seriously, if hasn’t been that long since! last saw you, and look at the state you’re in. How pathetic.”
His expression shifted again, and his eyeballs trembled even more violently. “You Hittle brat, are you the one who set me up?” Whitney tapped her chin. “Actually, it’s not only me. There’s also the person you’ve been obsessing over.” She flashed a smile and gestured for someone to come forward from behind her.
A tall figure walked in slowly, his silhouette outlined by the shifting light and shadow. He stood behind Whitney, his face aloof and almost otherworldly, his deep eyes staring straight at that guy. They were stormy, as if a raging sea were hidden within them.
“So it really is you,” the person muttered, his voice trembling. The moment his eyes landed on Ryan, his expression shifted instantly. His eyes, barely clinging to their sockets, fixed on Ryan without blinking, and suddenly, he broke into a sinister, almost inhuman grin.
“Ryan, I knew it. As the heir to the Pierce family, as Edward’s son, I always knew you’d come for me,” he said, his voice low and twisted.
Ryan’s expression grew more somber, his eyes swirling with a deep, inky darkness that seemed ready to swallow up the whole world. He tensed up all over, every muscle coiled tight.
Whitney didn’t need to ask. She could tell right away that these two definitely knew each other. After all, if they hadn’t known each other, there’s no way the person could’ve gotten his bug into Ryan.
She stepped closer to Ryan. Then, she slipped her hand into his, feeling how cold he was. The moment her hand touched his, Ryan stiffened, jerking his head toward her.
“Ryan,” Whitney called out, her gaze no longer cold. She smiled gently, the corners of her eyes curving. “We’ve found him. Whatever grievances or scores you two have, now’s the time to settle them for good.”
No matter who that person really was, what he had to do with Ryan, or why he did all this to him, now was the time to find- out. Right here, right now, all those questions could finally be answered.
The moment Whitney’s warm hand wrapped around his, Ryan felt the storm inside him finally begin to calm. His eyes grew colder as he stared at that guy, his voice tight with restrained anger. “Uncle Xavier, why did it have to be you?”
Hearing Ryan call him uncle, Xavier felt his skinny face twitch for a moment. A flicker of darkness passed through his eyes. Clearly, being called that hit him hard.
Whitney was a bit taken aback. She glanced at Ryan. Then she looked at the old man, who was nothing but skin and bones. Honestly, they didn’t look like relatives at all.
“Ryan,” Xavier spoke slowly, his voice rough and hoarse, an odd gleam flickering in his eyes. “I’ve been waiting for you for a very long time.”
Ryan felt like something was stuck in his throat, his eyes stinging with unshed tears. “Why?” he choked out, his voice barely more than a whisper.
‘Why him?’ Ryan thought, his mind spinning. ‘Why did Xavier have to be the one behind all this? The bug, the scheming, everything against me?’ Ryan’s heart clenched with pain and disbelief.
Xavier was the only warmth Ryan ever had, the only light that colored his childhood. Ryan was born into the Pierce family. Everyone envied him, saying he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
But with that silver spoon came the price of losing the company of his loved ones. Edward was always busy, handling
family. He barely noticed Ryan was there.
ev
was born, had stood by the window every day, staring blankly at the yard full of fiery roses.
Cecially whenever she saw Ryan, she’d start crying for reasons nobody could understand.
or special affection from his parents. Aside from the nanny who took care of him,
there for him.
only one who’d hand him a piece of candy, a toy, or a little gift whenever he
Chapter 180 The Orb Light in s Childhood
He was also the only one who remembered his birthday and would sneak him out for a little adventure. To Ryan, Xavier was more of a father than Edward ever was
And then, one day, his mother quietly left. She left behind a pendant, but didn’t take Ryan with her. She chose to leave all by
herself
Edward clung to her things, sobbing uncontrollably, drowning himself in alcohol day after day. He was lost in his own pain, and still didn’t care about Ryan at all.
It was Xavier who stepped up, urging Edward to pull himself together and reminding him, “You still have a son, the only one your wife left behind.”
But in the end, Edward’s recovery didn’t last long. Late one night, he died in a car accident.
The investigation found that after years of pushing himself too hard at work, Edward’s heart finally gave out. On his way home, he couldn’t hold on any longer.
With Edward gone, the whole Pierce family was thrown into chaos. All the side branches began fighting over who would become the new head, each one eager to claim a share of the Pierce family’s vast wealth.
It was Xavier who stepped up, single-handedly helping the young Ryan take over as the head of the Pierce family. He was always there for Ryan, like a father and a true friend, guiding him through the ins and outs of running the family.
But when Ryan turned ten, everything changed. Xavier suddenly left. He didn’t leave a note. He just vanished, leaving Ryan all alone.
That was when everything started to go wrong. Ryan’s health began to decline, and he grew weaker and weaker. At his worst, he blacked out.
The doctors found that his organs were slowly failing, one after another. They predicted he wouldn’t live to see his twenty- fifth birthday.
And that was all it took to reignite the ambitions of the Pierce family’s side branches. Each one of them was eagerly awaiting Ryan’s demise.
But against all odds, Ryan didn’t only survive, but he grew stronger, more impressive with each passing year, shocking everyone who thought he’d never make it.
While he was still a child, he was already outshining Edward, proving himself more capable than his father ever had been. By the time Ryan came of age, he had completely suppressed every ambitious branch of the family, leaving them no hope. of fighting back.
Ryan never stopped searching for Xavier for fourteen years. It had been a full fourteen years. He hadn’t seen Xavier once. The Xavier standing before him now was nothing like the man he remembered from fourteen years ago. But Ryan recognized him instantly.
Xavier had always been the mastermind behind everything, the one pulling the strings all along. He had always stayed by Ryan’s side, never once leaving him, not for a moment.
But why would Uncle Xavier, who was always so good to him, leave that bug inside him and then vanish without a trace? ‘Why would he target me? Why would he target the Pierce family?’ Ryan couldn’t wrap his head around it, the pain and confusion twisting inside him.
If Xavier really wanted the Pierce family, he could’ve taken it for himself when Edward died. Instead, he did everything he could to make sure Ryan became the head of the Pierce family.
If Xavier didn’t care about the Pierce family, then why did he do all this? Ryan couldn’t figure it out.
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Lucia Morh is a passionate storyteller who brings emotions to life through her words. When she’s not writing, she finds peace nurturing her garden.

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