Read Novel Full Chapter 489: Apology
Chapter 489: Chapter 489: Apology
Inside, Dante stepped out of his office and watched Nina being drowned in hatred. A faint regret stirred in his chest.
Not because he pitied her, nor because he wanted to shield her from consequences, but because he never intended for things to spiral into chaos.
Nina had been right about one thing.
Dante truly did not want this matter to become a nuisance for Ivy.
That was why he had been keeping his head down, swallowing his irritation and choosing restraint again and again.
’If it can be settled quietly, then it should be,’ he had thought.
Yet fate seemed to enjoy mocking him. In the end, he still created a chaos large enough to draw Ivy’s attention.
He had guessed correctly.
The moment Ivy learned what had happened, she rushed over without delay.
The air shifted the instant she arrived, the crowd instinctively parting.
Seeing Nina, Ivy’s expression turned glacial.
Without a word, she lifted her hand and coldly motioned for her subordinates to take Nina away.
Nina shouted at first, her voice sharp with panic. "This is a misunderstanding!"
But when she realized that no one, almost no one, was willing to stand up for her, her expression twisted.
She raised her voice again, desperation creeping in. "I’m not alone in this. General Frank is involved!"
At those words, Ivy smirked. Dante did the same. At last, they had direct proof.
Without hesitation, Ivy turned to her subordinates. "Bring General Frank in for investigation."
The matter moved swiftly after that.
When everything finally settled, a collective sigh rippled through the crowd.
Someone murmured quietly, "Ivy’s family and her husband’s family have really suffered a lot, just because she represents the base."
Others nodded in agreement.
"From now on, if we hear that anyone’s been framed, we should investigate first before accusing them."
"What if someone tries to use the same trick on Ivy or her family again?" another voice added.
More nods followed.
Hearing this, Ivy felt something warm stir in her chest.
She couldn’t help but feel moved.
’In my previous life,’ she thought bitterly, ’no one listened to Blackthorne’s explanation.’
They had blindly believed that Dante had tried to molest a young woman.
No one had questioned it. No one had doubted it.
Meanwhile, Dante, who had heard everything, couldn’t help but feel moved too.
Yet when he looked at Ivy standing there, quietly watching the dispersing crowd, a strange urge rose in his chest.
’I should apologize,’ he realized suddenly. Not later. Not someday. Now.
Taking a deep breath, he decided not to delay. With resolve firming in his steps, he walked toward Ivy.
The crowd, after exchanging a few final whispers, slowly dispersed.
When Dante reached her, Ivy was just about to leave.
Noticing him approaching, she stiffened slightly, a trace of nervousness flickering through her composed expression.
’In my previous life,’ she thought, ’I owe the Blackthorne family far too much.’
Dante especially. She had killed his son with her own hands, caused his wife’s death indirectly, and in the end, led to his demise as well.
Dante stopped in front of her. "Are you free for a moment?"
Ivy nodded. Her face remained calm, but inside, her thoughts were in chaos.
’What did I do to catch his attention?’ she wondered.
"Come inside," Dante said quietly.
She followed him in, masking her unease, and sat down across from him.
Once seated, silence stretched between them.
Dante looked at Ivy, memories surfacing... memories of the wedding, of everything that followed.
Even after entering the base, he had never truly spoken his heart. Some things had remained buried, unclear, unresolved.
"When Silas was born," Dante began slowly, "there were... difficulties."
His voice was low, heavy with old memories. "I became paranoid. And when I saw my son excelling at everything, that paranoia only grew."
Ivy blinked. This was the first time she was hearing Dante’s side of the story.
"I had excelled my entire life," Dante continued. "Sports, academics, everything. But my son was even more outstanding than I was."
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
"I couldn’t help wondering what kind of future awaited him. Maybe it had something to do with Silas or his origins. I don’t know, but I was afraid."
He let out a soft breath. "I worried that because he was too excellent, he would suffer too much."
His smile turned bitter. "I was excellent too, and I suffered. "
His gaze grew distant. "My parents divorced when I was young. I watched my peers eat properly while I went hungry. There were times I starved for three or four days straight, simply because I outperformed others."
His voice remained calm, but the pain behind it was unmistakable.
"They envied me. They never saw my struggle. Only my success."
"When I entered a prestigious university and chose the military," he went on, "people thought I was foolish. When I became a general, they said I was lucky, that I joined at the right time." His fingers curled slightly.
"They never saw how many bullets I took. They never saw the blood, the pain, the nights I wondered if I’d wake up alive. All they saw were the medals on my chest."
He looked at Ivy again. "That journey was brutal. And it was brutal because I was excellent."
"To prevent Silas from facing the same fate," Dante said quietly, "I consulted a fortune teller." His voice lowered further.
"She told me that the person Silas loved would one day become the reason for his death. She said that if he became obsessed, he would die because of that very obsession."
Ivy’s heart clenched.
"And at that time," Dante continued, "Silas was obsessed with you." He closed his eyes briefly.
"I was terrified. I was selfish. I ignored the fact that your involvement in his pursuit was almost nonexistent. I blamed you anyway."
His shoulders sank slightly. "I blamed an innocent woman. And I’m ashamed of it."
He looked straight at her, his voice barely above a whisper. "I’m sorry."
The moment those words left his lips, Ivy’s eyes filled with tears. She shook her head instinctively.
"You didn’t do anything wrong."