“So, do you really want to kill me?” Zachary Campbell spread his arms and shouted, “Come on!”

The Vault shook her head, looked at the flames already starting to roll in below, and said, “For someone like you, it’s not worth it.”

“Really?” Zachary Campbell turned to Harry Forrest, whispering in a goading tone, “Come on, don’t you want to kill me? The knife is in your hand—miss this chance, and you’ll never get another. Don’t you want revenge on me?”

The temperature in the air began to rise. Flames spread rapidly along the gasoline, thick smoke drifted up to the platform, carrying a pungent, choking smell that made The Vault's eyes sting.

·

This door was harder to open than expected, different from most locks on the market. The officer who came with the vehicle wasn’t a professional locksmith; he was a criminal investigator forced into this because of a minor skill.

With everyone staring at him, cold sweat streamed down his back, making it even harder to stay calm.

The real professional support was still on the way, and even at top speed, they were still five minutes from the location.

Perched atop the high wall, an officer peered in through the iron window, giving constant updates on the situation inside.

“It’s on fire.”

“The flames are spreading. Gasoline’s been poured on the floor. Judging by the fire… we have about five to ten minutes left.”

“There’s a fight! Someone has a knife!”

Upon hearing this, Julian Grant jumped up in alarm, his muscles spasming again: “Who’s fighting who?!”

The officer, affected by his panic, shouted as well: “Harry Forrest is fighting Zachary Campbell!”

Julian Grant immediately breathed a sigh of relief, feeling his vitality return.

Henry Harris couldn’t take it anymore, checked the time, and with his limited patience finally exhausted, shouted, “This won’t do, forget it, just ram the car through! Time, time, time!”

Everyone hurriedly gathered their things and cleared the entrance. The nearest young man jumped into the driver’s seat at once, and two cars reversed together, ready to charge.

·

Inside the factory, Zachary Campbell was still relentlessly inciting Harry Forrest: “Harry Forrest, be a man! Do you know what kind of life your sister has lived? Think about those ten years you spent in prison.”

Harry Forrest shuddered all over, dragged back into that most terrifying abyss. He gritted his teeth and said, “Shut up.”

Zachary Campbell: “The moment I said I had evidence, that woman knelt before me like a dog…”

Harry Forrest couldn’t listen anymore and roared, “I told you to shut up!”

“My hands are clean, I’ve never killed anyone, but she’s different—she really killed them.” Zachary Campbell said regretfully, “I’ve done all this, and you’re still so useless.”

Before he finished speaking, Harry Forrest was already charging at him, gripping the cold, gleaming knife.

The Vault called out in a trembling voice, “Harry Forrest!”

“Yes, yes!” Zachary Campbell, pinned to the ground, showed no fear for his life; instead, he was extremely excited, “Kill me! If you have the guts, kill me!”

The tip of Harry Forrest’s knife was only a finger’s width from Zachary Campbell’s neck—the scene he had imagined countless times was finally coming true. His blood roared in his veins, a joy long suppressed finally unleashed.

Several voices echoed in his mind, swirling and occupying his thoughts:

—Stab him! He’ll be freed!

—Someone like him deserves to die!

—If not for revenge, what has he lived for until now?

But there was still a pair of slender hands on his wrist, the veins standing out on the pale, almost translucent skin, forcefully gripping him, restraining his urge to kill.

Harry Forrest turned his face, his eyes bloodshot, silently questioning—Don’t you hate him? Don’t you want to kill him?

Their lives had no chance to start over, all destroyed by this man’s casual cruelty.

It was this kind of thing!

The Vault slowed her breathing, struggling to speak calmly: “He’s just a coward who doesn’t dare kill himself. He just wants to drag you down with him.”

The blade pressed against Zachary Campbell’s neck, cutting into the skin, a line of blood flowing out.

The wound only made Zachary Campbell more excited, and he began to rant madly:

“Do you know why I chose you? Simply because I didn’t like the look of you. It was just a little game I played when I was bored!”

“Bang—”

A thunderous crash came from the entrance—someone was trying to break down the door.

Only then did The Vault realize that help had arrived.

The commotion gave Harry Forrest a moment’s distraction.

Zachary Campbell sneered disgustingly, “I had a great relationship with Fan An’s husband, you know?”

A look of grim resolve flashed in Harry Forrest’s eyes, and the knife, which had been hesitating, pressed even closer.

“Harry Forrest…” The Vault’s hands trembled, no match for his strength. Her voice was hoarse: “Before Logan Carter died, she called me. She told me she shouldn’t have asked me to be your teacher…”

Harry Forrest froze.

Logan Carter’s voice was always gentle and soft. That day, on the other end of the line, she spoke slowly, confiding to The Vault: “I’m sorry, The Vault—getting involved with Harry Forrest has brought you so much trouble.”

The Vault said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Logan Carter, as if talking to herself, said, “Really, I believe my son is a good person, but not every truth can be accepted by the world. After so many years, I’m just tired. I thought if I prepared for the worst, our family could start over after the pain, but now I realize I was wrong.

“I shouldn’t have told them to be so strong, shouldn’t have given them no hope, shouldn’t have made them hold their tongues and stay silent. I wasn’t a good mother, didn’t protect my son, didn’t protect my daughter. I was too weak.”

Finally, Logan Carter let out a relieved sigh, and for the first time, spoke to The Vault with absolute conviction: “Harry Forrest is innocent. He is innocent.”

The Vault choked up, “Do you know why she killed herself? Because she wanted to tell everyone you were innocent! She wanted to tell everyone how hard your lives were, that you were at the end of your rope, and she was begging them to let you go. She had no other way to prove it. Harry Forrest… Logan Carter wanted you to live well.”

The Vault rasped, “For someone like this… it’s not worth it.”

Harry Forrest’s lips trembled, tears streaming uncontrollably down his face, soaking his cheeks in an instant. He thought of Logan Carter’s face, every word she’d ever said to him, and suddenly lost all strength, slowly withdrawing his hand.

All his guilt and unease had nowhere to go.

In that moment, Harry Forrest was lost, unsure what it meant to truly live well.

Seeing this, Zachary Campbell clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction, bent his knee and rammed it into Harry Forrest’s abdomen. As Harry Forrest doubled over, he kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying.

The Vault instinctively went to check on him, but her neck was suddenly seized from behind by Zachary Campbell.

Agonizing pain struck, and The Vault was completely unable to breathe. Her face flushed red as she clawed at Zachary Campbell’s arm, digging in her nails, trying to make him let go. But Zachary Campbell, with the strength to twist her neck, held her tightly in front of him.

The Vault pushed hard with her feet, dragging Zachary Campbell backward with her.

Zachary Campbell, already weakened from being beaten by Julian Grant, could no longer maintain his strength. He staggered backward, barely able to stand.

The two of them stumbled and crashed around the platform, finally knocking over a gasoline drum at the edge.

Gasoline splashed over both of them, the heavy stench filling their nostrils. Zachary Campbell was pinned underneath, his eyes completely smeared.

He cried out in pain, squeezed his eyes shut, but still refused to let go.

Harry Forrest got up and joined the struggle, the three of them stumbling and crashing toward the railing.

Zachary Campbell, unable to see, only realized his position when his waist hit the guardrail.

Seeing the opportunity, The Vault gave Harry Forrest a deep look, didn’t stop her momentum, and without a word of warning, hurled herself outward, dragging the still-clinging Zachary Campbell with her.

Harry Forrest was so shocked by her action that he panicked, and at the last second, grabbed The Vault’s outstretched hand, leaving her hanging in midair. Zachary Campbell, however, fell straight to the first floor.

The fire on the first floor had already spread, flames and gasoline quickly engulfing Zachary Campbell, wrapping him in a ball of fire.

Zachary Campbell immediately let out shrill, miserable screams, rolling frantically on the ground. But everything at the scene had been arranged by him—there was nothing to put out the fire.

He got up and ran a few steps toward the door, but soon collapsed from the pain, shrieking sharply.

“Ah—help me! Help me!!”

Faced with this agony worse than death, he lost all dignity. In the end, he was just a fragile little man.

The Vault watched coldly as Zachary Campbell struggled between life and death, unsure how to feel. Harry Forrest, however, had no time to be distracted, focusing only on gripping her wrist.

The Vault had also been splashed with gasoline, the slippery liquid coating her arms. No matter how hard Harry Forrest tried, he couldn’t pull her back up onto the platform, and could only watch as she kept slipping down.