Chapter 10
Inside the Duke's office,the atmosphere had become unbearably heavy.
Ronan Valden sat behind his desk while repeatedly tapping his finger against the wooden surface.
Tap...Tap.....Tap....Tap
The folded letter remained in his hand.
On the couch nearby
the Duchess continued crying softly.
"Aarav…"
Her voice trembled painfully.
"Why would you think of doing something so drastic…?"
Aarav stood silently in the center of the room with his head lowered.
Unable to answer.
Ronan suddenly threw the letter onto the floor.
"Pick it up."
Aarav stays still. A shiver runs down his spine .
"PICK IT UP!!!"
Aarav quietly bent down and picked up the crumpled paper with trembling hands.
Ronan's cold voice echoed again.
"Read it."
Aarav froze.
His fingers trembled slightly while holding the note.
"F-Father…"
"Read It."
"F..Fa...Father , I am really so...."
"READ IT AARAV!!!"
Aarav's throat tightened painfully.
Still he forced himself to open the paper.
"Th..Th...Thank you…"
"…for everything you have done for me…"
His voice shook badly.
His eyes filled with tears , blurring the words on the note
"I-I'm so.... so …"
Ronan angryly shouts .
"READ IT PROPERLY ...!!!!!!"
Aarav flinches .
He hurriedly wipes his tears and continues to read while gasping for air.
"..I am sorry..."
"…Mother and Father…"
Every word felt heavier than the last.
Elara covered her mouth while crying harder.
Ronan's expression darkened further.
"Thank you huh"
" You planned to thank us by killing yourself?!"
His voice thundered through the office.
"What exactly made you take such a pathetic decision?!"
Aarav kept his head lowered silently.
"ANSWER ME!"
Ronan slammed his fist onto the desk violently.
"AARAV VALDEN!"
"ANSWER MY DAMN QUESTION!"
Aarav opened his mouth slightly
but no words came out.
Ronan's voice became harsher.
"What was it this time?"
"Did that Selena slap you again "
"Or were you simply feeling sorry for yourself ,losing to a commaner ?"
Aarav's hands slowly tightened.
"ANSWER ME AARAV"
"TELL ME WHY YOU WANTED TO JUMP OFF THE CLIFF"
Aarvav stood there crying helplessly .
Elara wanted to intervene but Ronan glares at her
"Elara stay out of this"
"And you..."
Ronan continued mercilessly.
"Do you even understand how many commoners would die to have the life you have?"
"You were born into one of the greatest noble families in the kingdom."
"You have wealth."
"Status."
"Opportunity."
"Did i ask you to achieve something great like Arin "
"No"
"All you had to do was keep yourself together and live properly."
"But no."
"You hire goons to attack your classmate because he's better than you."
Ronan laughed bitterly.
"No wonder Selena chose Lucian over you."
The moment those words left Ronan's mouth , something inside Aarav finally snapped.
His trembling stopped.
Slowly he raised his head and glares at ronan
"Duke Valden "
The sudden coldness in Aarav's voice caused the room to fall silent.
Ronan frowned immediately.
"…What did you just call me?"
Aarav's eyes looked slightly red.
"What exactly are you angry about?"
"Rgat i was about to die?"
"Or me staining the great Valden family name by killing myself?"
Ronan's fist slowly clenched.
"Aarav, stop this right now," the Elara cried weakly.
But Aarav ignored her completely.
A bitter laugh escaped him.
"You always wished only Arin had been born anyway, right?"
"I'm just the useless mistake standing beside your perfect son."
The Elara immediately stood up crying .
" No Aarav please....."
"Please stop talking"
Aarav ignoring her continues
"I should've just jumped yesterday , shouldn't I"
Silence.
For one brief second
nobody moved.
Then
BAM!
Ronan violently kicked his chair backward before striding toward Aarav.
The pressure in the room instantly became suffocating.
"AARAV!"
SLAP!
The sound echoed loudly through the office.
Aarav stumbled sideways from the impact.
A red mark instantly formed across his cheek.
Before Ronan could strike him again
Elara immediately rushed between them.
"STOP IT!"
Tears streamed down her face as she desperately pushed Ronan back.
"Please stop!"
Then she immediately grabbed Aarav's arm tightly.
"Aarav…"
"Come with me."
Aarav remained silent.
His head still lowered.
As the Duchess hurriedly led him toward the door
Ronan finally lost the calm noble demeanor he always maintained.
"Look at him!"
His voice shook with fury.
"That headstrong, ungrateful scoundrel!"
The office doors slammed shut behind them.
Silence filled the corridor afterward.
Meanwhile
inside the ring
Vyom remained unusually quiet.
For the first time since waking up
he said nothing.
Because watching the argument…
reminded him of a certain person .