Sunlight streamed into the grand hall, refracting into a dazzling display.

Sloane closed her eyes, then rose and walked out. Kaelen, as if sensing her, looked over.

Their eyes met, and Sloane forced a smile.

"I've fulfilled my vow. But since we're in Tibet, can we stay and explore for a couple of days?"

Her voice held a hint of pleading.

She no longer harbored any hope of winning Kaelen's heart. She just wanted to spend a little more time with him before she left. Just a little longer.

Kaelen looked at her slightly reddened eyes, and his heart gave an unexpected lurch, a feeling of unease settling over him.

He rarely agreed to Sloane's requests, but this time, before he could even think, he nodded instinctively. "Alright."

For the next few days, they wandered through Tibet without a plan.

Until one day, they found themselves on a snow-covered mountain.

Sloane stared at the silent, vast expanse of snow and felt a fleeting, surreal sensation.

She turned to the man beside her. "Kaelen, doesn't this feel like the end of the world? Like we're the only two people left?"

The words that came from Kaelen's thin lips were colder than the snow. "That would be truly terrible."

Sloane froze, then smiled bitterly. She never learned.

Suddenly, a burst of laughter and chatter from nearby broke her train of thought.

She turned to see a group of young college students, backpackers.

They saw the two of them and waved enthusiastically.

But Sloane stiffened. Among them was a girl who looked strikingly like Willa.

Except this girl wasn't pale and delicate like Willa. Her face was flushed from exercise, vibrant and cheerful.

She glanced at Kaelen and saw his eyes fixed on the girl, unmoving.

Sloane's heart sank. She said to Kaelen, "Let's go down. We shouldn't bother them."

But perhaps her talk of the apocalypse had offended the gods, and her words became a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Halfway down, they heard piercing screams of terror from the students behind them.

"Help!"

"Run! It's an avalanche!"

The roaring grew closer, the world seeming to crack apart.

The group of students was now close to them.

Sloane reached for Kaelen, intending to run together, but her hand grasped at empty air.

She saw Kaelen reach out and grab the arm of the stranger who looked so much like Willa, abandoning her in a split second.

In the moment Sloane's world stopped, a massive impact threw her forward.

She was buried by the snow, and the world went dark...

When Sloane woke up again, the first thing she saw was a white ceiling.

She tried to move, and a sharp pain shot through her entire body.

A voice came from her side. "Sloane, you're awake!"

The voice was both familiar and strange. She turned her head slightly and saw Kaelen.

No wonder it sounded strange. Kaelen rarely called her by her first name.

The memories from before she passed out flooded back.

In a life-or-death moment, Kaelen had abandoned her for a complete stranger.

Sloane let out a self-deprecating laugh.

So, even without Willa, there would have been someone else.

She was never Kaelen's first choice.

Soon, a doctor rushed in. After an examination, he instructed, "Her life is no longer in danger, but there will be lasting effects. No more strenuous activity in the future."

"Once she recovers a bit, get out of Tibet immediately. She was buried in snow for a day. Her body can't handle the high altitude."

After the doctor left, a flicker of guilt finally appeared in Kaelen's indifferent eyes.

"Sloane, I'm sorry..."

"I didn't have time to think. I didn't realize... I thought I was grabbing you."

She opened her mouth, her throat feeling like it had been scraped with a knife. "I was on your left. That girl was on your right."

All of Kaelen's words caught in his throat.

His scarred hands trembled. The moment he thought he had lost Sloane, a wave of immense panic had washed over him.

He had spent a day and a night digging alongside the rescue team, frantic and desperate.

As he struggled for words, Sloane spoke again. "But it's a good thing..."

Kaelen breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, it is. Thank God you're okay."

Sloane smiled, closed her eyes, and finished the sentence in her mind—

"It's a good thing you didn't save me this time."

Otherwise, she didn't know how many more years she would have to spend repaying Kaelen for this debt.

Fifteen years was enough.

Now, she could finally leave without a single reservation, without a shred of lingering attachment.