Chapter 281

Just then, the lights in the hall went completely dark.

A magnificent nine-tiered cake was wheeled in.

Twenty-one candles flickered with warm, reddish flames in the darkness.

The faint glow illuminated Lucinda's cool, refined face.

"Cindy, quick—make a wish!"

Valencia urged softly from beside her, voice full of tenderness.

Lucinda stood at the center, surrounded by everyone.

She looked at the dancing flames, lashes trembling slightly.

During those years in Seaside City, she never celebrated her birthday.

To her, it had only been the most ordinary, most unbearable day out of three hundred sixty-five.

No cake. No candles. And certainly no one gathered around her like this.

But now, things were different.

Lucinda closed her eyes gently, pressing her palms together.

She didn't wish for greater heights or more wealth.

Those things—she could obtain with a flick of her fingers.

Instead, she recited silently, word by word, with utmost sincerity:

"I hope everyone I love stays safe and lives long."

Safe. Long.

These words were her gentlest compromise with the world.

Lucinda opened her eyes and softly blew out the candles.

The moment the flames went out—

A deafening boom echoed from outside the window.

Countless brilliant beams of light shot into the sky, exploding in the pitch-black night.

Fireworks.

The entire night sky was illuminated in that instant.

Colorful light poured through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, spilling into every corner of the hall like a grand blessing spanning the stars.

Reginald stood at her side.

In that fleeting moment between darkness and light, he caught her hand with perfect precision.

His large palm was warm and solid, wrapping her cold fingers with reassuring strength.

He didn't say a word.

But the warmth in his hand spoke louder than a thousand words.

"Kiss! Kiss!"

Tamsin stood nearby and was the first to start chanting.

She raised her glass and led the applause.

"Yeah! Kiss!"

Niamh joined in the teasing, her cheeks flushed pink.

Heath sat at the head table, watching the young couple's tightly clasped hands, grinning from ear to ear. His cane tapped lightly against the floor in rhythm.

"Ah, youth is wonderful."

Royce raised his glass, face glowing with pride.

He turned and clinked glasses with Wesley. "Wesley, you've raised a remarkable daughter and found an excellent son-in-law. From now on, we're all family."

"Mr. Castillo is too kind. This girl has caused you plenty of trouble." Wesley smiled and downed his drink in one go.

Though his words were modest, the pride in his eyes couldn't be hidden.

The hall filled with laughter and joy, rising and falling in waves.

Niamh followed Reginald around like a little shadow.

"Reginald! Spill it—when's the wedding?"

Niamh looked up at him, eyes full of gossip. "I'm picking my own bridesmaid dress! I want the prettiest one!"

Reginald glanced down at his usually irreverent sister, though his gaze never strayed far from Lucinda.

"As soon as your sister-in-law agrees, we can do it tomorrow."

Niamh covered her face and let out a dramatic shriek. "Reginald, you're so sappy! I can't take it anymore!"

Manuel walked over, glass in hand.

"Reginald, even though you're powerful beyond measure, I'm saying this today—if you ever treat my sister badly, the Douglas family will make you pay, no matter the cost."

Milton, expressionless, reached over and snatched the freshly poured wine from Reginald's hand, replacing it with a glass of warm water. "No drinking before the wedding. Alcohol affects nervous system development. For my sister's future happiness, you're drinking water today."

Reginald fell silent.

Looking at these fiercely protective brothers, he felt helpless for the first time.

But he wasn't angry. In fact, a strange warmth stirred in his chest.

The banquet gradually drew to a close.

Guests began leaving in small groups.

The hall was bathed in scattered light and shadow, the air still carrying the sweet scent of champagne and cream.

Lucinda was a little tired.

She slipped away from the crowd, walked through the corridor alone, and climbed to the rooftop terrace.

The night breeze was cool.

It brushed against her dress and lifted the strands of hair by her forehead.

Outside, the fireworks were still blooming in the sky.

One after another.

Though not as dense as before, they burst with stubborn brilliance against the silent night.

Lucinda leaned against the railing, gazing up at the sky.

"Cold?"

A warm chest pressed against her from behind.

Reginald draped his suit jacket over her shoulders, then wrapped his arms firmly around her slender waist from behind.

His chin rested lightly on her shoulder.

His breath was warm and rapid, brushing against the sensitive skin of her neck. It tickled.

"What are you thinking about?" Reginald asked softly.

Lucinda leaned back slightly, listening to his strong heartbeat. She seemed lost in thought.

"I wonder if Grandma can see this."

Her voice was so soft it was almost carried away by the wind.

In that most difficult time in Seaside City. In the Wipere family, where she could barely eat.

Only that kind old woman had secretly saved her a warm sweet potato. Only she had gently stroked her head with those calloused hands.

Grandma was the softest moonlight in the deepest part of her heart.

"She can definitely see it." Reginald's hand tightened slightly around her waist.

He turned his head and kissed her ear softly. "Grandma's watching from above. Seeing her Cindy doing so well now, with so many people who care for you and love you—she must be at peace."

Lucinda said nothing.

She simply listened quietly.

In her mind, images from the past twenty years flashed by like a silent black-and-white film.

She remembered the cold stares from the Wipere family.

The lonely figure running through rainy nights.

The struggles in the hacker world, at the research institute, in Sylvanor—gritting her teeth just to survive, over and over again.

Those years, she had walked a hard road.

Painful. Lonely.

She had once thought she was destined to walk alone in the dark.

Destined to spend the rest of her life consumed by bitterness.

But now.

She had returned to the Douglas family.

She had parents who loved her. Brothers who would fight for her.

And most importantly—

She had Reginald by her side.

All the grievances, all the struggles—in this moment, beneath tonight's grand fireworks—settled completely.

They became the most solid, most even path beneath her feet.

Lucinda looked down at the diamond ring on her left ring finger.

Then she turned her head and looked at the man beside her—whose eyes were full of nothing but her.

"Reginald."

She suddenly called his name.

"What is it?"

Reginald responded immediately, gaze tender.

Lucinda's lips curved slowly.

"From now on, I won't walk alone anymore."

"Silly girl."

Reginald chuckled softly, his eyes brimming with affection so thick it couldn't be dissolved.

He lowered his head and kissed her red lips with perfect precision.

"As long as I'm here, you'll never be alone."

The night wind continued to blow.

The fireworks in the distance continued to bloom.

And their life together had only just begun.

End