Chapter 1My Dying Gift: A VLOG of Revenge

On our third wedding anniversary, I tricked Sera into signing the divorce papers.

The doctor had just told me I had terminal stomach cancer and only three months to live.

Sera just thought I was being difficult.

Annoyed, she signed, then jetted off to Europe with Leo, her adopted brother and childhood friend.

Later, she tried every trick in the book to threaten and retaliate against me, desperately hoping I'd come back to her.

But all she got was the video I left for her at my funeral.

When the first words flashed on screen: "Sera, by the time you see this video, I'll already be dead…"

The once utterly arrogant Sera completely lost her mind.

I was in the hospital, my stomach bleeding from overwork, while Sera and Leo watched a private fireworks show in our backyard. Facing the cameras practically shoved in my face, I forced a weak smile onto my pale lips.

"Everyone, stop guessing. Sera and I are doing great. The guy she's leaning on is just a family friend, her adopted brother, that's all."

The crowd of reporters surrounding me looked disgusted, as if my answer was too rehearsed.

Actually, it wasn't entirely false. Leo wasn't her biological brother; he was an orphan adopted by the Harrison family. Sera and I were in an arranged marriage, and she was a perfectly suitable partner for a business alliance.

But three months ago, after Leo returned from overseas, Sera's personality completely shifted. She clung to him constantly. She utterly forgot she was a married woman, and she forgot the media once hailed her as the perfect wife.

All the household staff had been sent by Sera to prepare the fireworks show for Leo. I called her several times, but she didn't pick up. I had no choice but to drag my weakened body through the discharge process and take a cab home.

The quiet night, my silent self, seemed utterly out of place amidst the raucous celebration. Watching the fireworks explode across the sky in the backyard, Sera attentively lit a cigarette for Leo, feeding him cake. Suddenly, I realized I was the outsider in my own home.

It was deep autumn. Leaves littered the ground, rustling underfoot. Leo was the first to spot me. He jumped up, startled like a bird, looking genuinely pitiful.

"Myles!"

"Please don't misunderstand, Sera and I were just celebrating the company's revival, that's all."

Ha!

Celebrating the company's revival? *Just* that? What did he have to do with our company clawing its way back from the brink of collapse to reach its peak today?

Seeing the contempt etched on my face, Sera rushed forward, shielding Leo behind her.

"Myles, stop acting like you're on your deathbed all the time, okay?"

"Haven't you had enough of faking your calm, collected demeanor for the cameras and interviews every single day?"

"You want me to pity you? Feel sorry for you?"

"Dream on!"

Leo, still behind her, looked scared by her outburst. He sniffled, his eyes red, and tugged on her arm.

"Sera! Please don't be so angry!"

"I'm scared."

This grand performance almost made me applaud, but I no longer had the energy to compete with them. Unexpectedly, I forced a smile and stepped closer, putting on a pathetic act for Sera: "Sera, I absolutely didn't misunderstand anything between you two."

"It's just… it's my birthday today. I know you're busy, so you forgot. I don't blame you."

She froze for a second, then any trace of guilt on her face was quickly hidden.

"Birthday?"

She scoffed, a sneer twisting her lips. "Didn't you say you hated celebrating your birthday?"

My mother died giving birth to me; my birthday is the anniversary of her death. My father cherished my mother deeply, and every year he would prepare elaborate memorials for her, so I had never celebrated a birthday growing up. But she had forgotten that it was *she* who, for two consecutive years after we married, celebrated my birthday, pulling me out of the darkness.

I remember her eyes sparkling as she leaned in close, whispering to me, "Myles, from now on, you'll never feel alone on your birthday again."

"You were never a curse; you are my lucky charm."

Looking at her now, defending Leo with the same unwavering devotion, my heart no longer ached.

She didn't know. A week ago, I had tricked her into signing the divorce papers.