Chapter 5 The Other Man
- “Why do you have Bethany's phone? Where... Where is she showering at?” I anxiously asked.
- The man laughed. “We're in the same room. She has gone to take a shower, so it's no surprise that I have her phone. If she's taking a shower, then she's obviously in the bathroom. She can't be showering in the kitchen, right?”
- I yelled, “Why are you both in the same room?”
- “What's strange about a man and a woman in the same room at night?” He chuckled. “Hey, aren't you afraid of ruining a man's happy hour by calling at a time like this?”
- “You... You—” I was fuming. “Who the h*ck are you?”
- “You don't need to care about who I am, but I know who you are.” The man sneered. “You're Bethany's loser of a husband, Marcel Larson, aren't you? Hahaha! I heard that you've never slept with Bethany despite being married to her for three years. Tsk, tsk. That means you don't know how wonderful your wife's skin and figure are, right? I never thought that the most beautiful woman in Glenport would be so flirtatious in bed. Hahaha!”
- With that said, the man ended the call. I nearly lost my mind after that. I called and called her again, but no one picked up anymore.
- In the end, I did not know how many calls I made, but I only stopped when my phone ran out of battery.
- As if my soul had been sucked out of me, I knew nothing but to stand rooted to my spot.
- It felt as though someone had stabbed a knife through my heart. I never expected my wife of three years to betray me.
- Now, it made sense why she ignored my calls and why the Xenoses treated me with such disdain.
- As it turned out, they had already made up their mind about this.
- After a prolonged moment of silence, a seething ball of anger erupted within my chest like a blazing flame.
- “I won't let this slide, Xenoses! I'll become stronger, and I'll make you regret treating me this way!”
- That night, I stayed by Sabine's side, never once leaving her alone.
- Fortunately, Spencer's Pharmacy was open throughout the night.
- Furthermore, Calvin told the staff to treat me well, so no one dared to come and disturb me.
- It was not as if I was just sitting around that night either.
- Divine knowledge was not something that could be digested over hours, as it encompassed a vast amount of information, including knowledge about magic.
- The goddess of health, Isis, was not only in charge of lives, but she was also the goddess of magic. During the age of gods, she was one of the significant deities.
- I took a sip of the Water of Life. With the help of the vital energy from the medicine, I began channeling the energy within myself to nurture the divine power.
- Divine power was supposedly power that only gods could harness, but it was not an absolute rule, for some heroes and demigods during the age of gods could also harness divine power.
- Now that I was Isis' envoy, I would naturally have the right to harness divine power as well.
- Furthermore, I had divine knowledge and was well-versed in the study of divine power. Nurturing it would be far easier for me.
- In one night, I had already successfully mastered several types of magic that were common during the age of gods, and divine power was now flowing in my body.
- Unlike conventional magic which typically required the use of magic power, the divine power I possessed could emulate the qualities of magic power. Furthermore, any magic cast with divine power would be significantly more potent and formidable.
- Magic power was a type of power that had been passed down since the age of gods. While it might not have been as potent as divine power, it still held its own unique and remarkable abilities.
- As the sky started to brighten, I made sure Sabine's breathing remained steady before departing from the room.
- Behind the pharmacy, there lay a yard resembling a garden, adorned with numerous planted trees.
- I picked up a fallen leaf and deftly held it between two fingers, then flicked it with a gentle motion. The leaf pierced through the air and lodged itself into the side of a nearby tree trunk.
- Despite the tree's sturdy trunk, the leaf I had flicked had managed to embed itself halfway into the wood, and astonishingly, it remained intact.
- Would I have taken someone's life if I had done it to a person instead?
- The trick I had mastered the previous night involved a form of magic that could render any object incredibly rigid and resilient, albeit for a short amount of time.
- Following that, I conducted further tests with various types of magic, attempting to bolster my own physical capabilities. The exertion left me sweating profusely.
- As I took a quick shower and returned to Sabine's room, my phone began to ring.
- The moment I answered the call, my mother-in-law Helen's furious voice blasted through the speakers. “Marcel Larson, where the h*ll did you go?”
- Among all the members of the household, Helen had the most volatile temper. She held the strongest animosity toward me, believing that I had destroyed her family and her daughter's life.
- Just the night before, she had deliberately gotten me drunk and almost manipulated me into making a disastrous error. I had no clue what else she could possibly want from me.
- Suppressing the anger in my chest, I managed to say, “I'm taking care of Sab right now.”
- “Enough with the excuses. I don't care about Sabine. Come back immediately!” she bellowed. “Also, arrange for a car. Bethany is returning today. Pick us up first, and then head to the airport to fetch Bethany.”
- “I...” There was more I wanted to say, but Helen had already ended the call.
- I was irked, to say the least. My wife's family had always ordered me around and paid no heed to my feelings.
- At that very moment, I had a strong urge to call her and refuse her demands. However, after some contemplation, I ultimately decided to go.
- Regardless of Bethany's family's attitude, what mattered most to me was understanding what was going on in Bethany's mind.
- I also needed to know if Bethany had done something to wrong me the night before.