Chapter 18: The Scent of Madness

... Ah. Fuck.

Ethan cursed silently.

Don’t get him wrong—he liked yanderes. He really did. But he had just acquired one, and now?

Another one? Not even a day later?

He exhaled slowly.

Okay Let’s be honest—I’m enjoying this.

But what he hadn’t accounted for was that it wasn’t just Julie who had fallen.

There was another.

Jade Bloodsanguine.

She sat still, composed—but inside, she was anything but calm. The moment her eyes met Ethan’s, something inside her cracked.

Something dangerous.

Something forbidden.

Her husband, Eric, had never married for love. He married to continue his bloodline.

His wives were not partners. They were tools.

Jade was no exception. She was his second wife, and only considered the “main wife” because her children were promising.

She had accepted it. Endured it.

But what woman didn’t long to be adored? To be cherished? To be treated as if she mattered beyond just her bloodline?

She knew she shouldn’t be thinking this.

And yet...

Looking at Ethan—at the effortless confidence, the calm authority in his every move—she couldn’t stop herself.

This man.

This young man could give her what she had never had.

Then she turned her gaze to her daughter.

And she immediately understood.

Julie had fallen, too.

For most families, this would be an issue.

But the Bloodsanguine?

A mother and daughter sharing the same man?

It had happened before.

It could happen again.

Jade’s mind raced.

If Julie becomes his, then I will see him often.

No—often is not enough. I must be here.

If I stay, it will be under the excuse of guiding my daughter. Yes. Yes, that makes sense.

It was madness.

But she had already convinced herself.

Her decision was made.

...

Ethan felt a chill crawl down his spine.

[Host.]

‘What now?’ he asked the system with growing dread.

[Are you a fan of Oyakodon?]

Ethan froze.

His body paused mid-motion, as if time itself had momentarily stopped.