System S.E.X. (Seduction, Expansion, eXecution)-Chapter 347: I need...

A sleek, silver luxury sedan glided silently down the street, its headlights cutting through the darkness. It pulled up directly behind Ryan’s SUV, and the engine hummed with a quiet, expensive precision.

The door opened, and a man stepped out. He was impeccably dressed in a tailored navy suit, his hair slicked back without a single strand out of place. This was Julian, the man the family had chosen—the "worthy" suitor they intended to replace Ryan with.

"What is this mess? I could hear the shouting from the corner," said Julian.

"Julian, thank God you’re here. This... this creature won’t leave. He’s delusional, claiming he owns cars and houses," said the mother-in-law, her voice instantly shifting to a refined tone.

Julian walked toward the gate, looking down at Ryan, who was currently pinned against the gravel by the guards. A smirk of pure condescension played on Julian’s lips.

"So, the dead man walks. I must say, Ryan, your persistence is almost admirable. Pitiful, but admirable," said Julian.

"Let me go, you bastard! She’s my wife!" said Ryan, struggling against the weight of the guards.

Julian signaled the guards to let him up. As Ryan stumbled to his feet, breathless and covered in dust, Julian stepped into his personal space. Without warning, Julian delivered a sharp, stinging slap across Ryan’s face. The force of it, combined with the humiliation, made Ryan’s head snap to the side.

"She was your wife. Now, she is a daughter of this house again. You are nothing but a stain on her history. Look at you—standing in the dirt, wearing rags, barking like a stray dog at a gate that will never open for you," said Julian.

Julian leaned in closer, his voice a cold hiss.

"I’m the one taking her to Europe. I’m the one who will give her the life you could only dream of while you were filing papers in a cubicle. Now, get out before I have the guards do something you won’t walk away from a second time," said Julian.

With a nod from Julian, the guards grabbed Ryan by his collar and the seat of his pants. They dragged him across the pavement and literally threw him into the middle of the street like a bag of trash. Ryan hit the asphalt hard, the impact knocking the wind out of him.

"Stay in the gutter where you belong!" said the guard.

At that exact moment, the front doors of the mansion burst open. Ryan’s wife finally broke free from her father’s grip, sprinting down the porch.

"Ryan! Ryan, I’m here!" said she.

But it was too late. The high stone walls and the thick iron gates blocked her view of the street. By the time she reached the gate, the guards had already closed it, and Julian was standing there, blocking her path with a practiced look of concern.

"He’s gone, darling. It wasn’t him. It was just some drunk looking for trouble. Come back inside," said Julian.

Outside, on the cold asphalt, Ryan was crawling. His fingers scraped against the road as he tried to push himself up. His body was healed, but his soul was screaming. He looked back at the fortress of the wealthy, hearing her faint cries from behind the walls, but he couldn’t even see her.

"I’ll kill you... I’ll kill all of you," said Ryan, his voice a broken rasp as he collapsed back onto the ground.

He lay there in the dark, a man who had been given a miracle only to realize that in this world, health wasn’t enough. He needed power.

"Let me go! I told you, I am a married woman! I don’t care if he died, I will be his wife for the rest of my life!" said she, her voice echoing through the gardens with a desperate strength. "I am not going to Europe. Tomorrow morning I am leaving this house, and I’m never coming back. I have never asked you for anything, so leave me alone!"

Hearing her voice through the cold iron bars gave Ryan a sudden, violent surge of strength. She hadn’t betrayed him. She hadn’t abandoned him in that hospital bed. It was all them—those bastards—but she was still his. The realization burned through the humiliation like a wildfire.

He struggled to his feet, his knees shaking but holding firm. He stumbled toward the back of the luxury SUV, his hands fumbling with the trunk. He knew calling her was useless; if she wasn’t answering, it was because they had taken her phone.

Then, he remembered Ethan’s words. I have prepared your gifts specifically for you... with more faith and hope than anything else.

He popped the trunk. Inside, was a charcoal-black suit of exquisite tailoring, a brand-new black smartphone, and a handwritten note.

I hope you enjoy your gifts. — Your brother, Ethan.

The sight of the signature broke him. Tears streamed down his face, mixing with the dust and blood on his cheeks. He wasn’t just losing his wife; he was shaming the name of the man who had called him "brother" and raised him from the dirt.

"Forgive me, boss... I won’t let you down again," said Ryan.

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Ryan wiped the blood from his mouth. He didn’t put on the suit—there was no time—but he climbed into the driver’s seat. He didn’t look for a remote. He didn’t ask for permission. He shifted the vehicle into gear, roared the engine, and slammed the accelerator.

The heavy SUV smashed through the reinforced gates, the iron twisting like tin foil under the impact. He screeched to a halt in the middle of the courtyard, jumped out, and ignored the guards rushing toward him.

"My love! I’m here!" said Ryan.

"Ryan!" said she, breaking away from Julian’s grasp and sprinting toward him.

The father and Julian tried to intercept her, but she turned on them with a fury they had never seen.

"How dare you! How could you do this to us? You lied! You told me he was dead!" said she. "I love him! Go to hell, all of you! As far as I’m concerned, you are dead to me!"

Julian stepped forward, adjusting his tie, his face red with indignation.

"You’re choosing him? I am the owner of a world-famous construction firm! I just signed a contract with the most powerful corporation in the state! How can you even compare me to this... this creature?" said Julian.

Ryan stood there, blood leaking from a cut on his forehead and his lip split open, looking like a man who had crawled out of a grave. His wife grabbed his hand, her grip like iron.

"You’re right, Julian. He can’t be compared to you. Because he is worth a thousand of you," said she.

Without looking back, they climbed into the SUV. Ryan floored it, the tires screaming as they sped away from the mansion, leaving the "powerful" family standing in the ruins of their broken gate.