"James, have you lost your mind? Or are you so cowardly that you don't even dare admit your own desires?"
Victoria spoke with confusion and contempt. "Think carefully. We're talking about magic, about immortality! Faced with such enormous benefits, you still want to bind yourself to that ridiculous set of ethics and morality?"
"Crazy! You're all crazy!"
James staggered back half a step, as if trying to avoid the nauseating reality before him.
He wanted to say something, but when he saw the identical cold, indifferent expressions on the faces of the three people across from him, he clearly realized how powerless words were at this moment.
Sophie abruptly rose to her feet and pulled her daughter tightly into her arms. Tears spilled uncontrollably from her eyes, but her voice was exceptionally firm.
"You're all monsters! James, let's go! I don't want to stay in this horrible place for one more second!"
"It's pouring outside," Victoria said with a disdainful smile. "Where can you go? You'll just come crawling back."
"Compared to the storm, you're far more terrifying and disgusting!"
Sophie shrieked. The little girl, Ollie, was startled awake and burst into tears.
James, who had been trembling, suddenly jolted. He scooped up his daughter, gripped his wife's hand tightly, and strode out without looking back.
"Even drowning outside would be better than staying with you!"
The door was yanked open. The couple forced themselves to walk through the insects crawling all over the floor.
The living room fell into a deathly silence. Only the occasional crackling of wood in the fireplace mingled with the seemingly endless sound of rain outside.
Richard stood stunned for quite a while before slowly realizing what had happened. Then fury at their defiance surged through him.
He turned to Victoria and said in disappointment,