Ryan couldn''t help but let out a dryugh—was this guy for real? Who did he think he was, asking questions like that?


    Before Ryan could say anything, Dn picked up the mug from the table and took a sip. The tea was cold and bitter.


    "ra''s doing fine now," Dn said, his tone almost casual. "As her brother-in-w, isn''t it normal to check in with you about her past?"


    Brother-inw? Ryan nearly lost it. What a load of crap. Everyone knew Dn had forced ra into that marriage.


    Ryan took a slow, steadying breath, ready to snap back, but Dn looked up, meeting his eyes. "Did ra used to lose her memory a lot?"


    The way Dn said her name-soft, almost gentle-made Ryan grit his teeth. But the question was serious, and Ryan had no choice but to swallow his irritation. He dropped down onto the couch with a heavy sigh.


    "How is ra doing now?" he asked, his voice rougher than he meant.


    "She''s okay," Dn replied.


    Ryan ran a hand through his hair. "Back then, when ra was chasing after Simon, she''d forget who we were every few months. Like clockwork-bam, another episode. She was obsessed with Simon, practically followed him everywhere, even when peopleughed at her. My parents were embarrassed. Honestly, we all thought she was faking it, trying to get Simon''s attention. I did too. I mean, who loses their memory that often? It sounded ridiculous."


    Dn stared down at his mug, a strange ache tugging at his chest, like something raw and sour gnawing at him from the inside out.


    Ryan seemed to get lost in his memories, his anger fading. "ra was always good to me. She''d cook for me whenever she had time. But when she was around Simon, people would make fun of her. I tried talking sense into her; she never listened. After a while, I got tired of it. I couldn''t believe someone like her was my sister. So every time she said she''d forgotten us, we all justughed it off."


    He paused, voice softer. “But a few days ago, when she came to save me, she looked just like she did back then. And I started thinking-maybe all those times she lost her memory were real. We just didn''t want to believe it. I''ve been digging into it, trying to figure out what''s really going on, but honestly, I''m way out of my depth."


    That was why he was willing to sit here and talk with Dn-because Dn might actually find answers.


    Dn was quiet, caught up in his own thoughts. After a long pause, he finally spoke, his voice low and rough. "Did she ever mention anyone important to her? Someone special?"


    Ryan frowned, thinking. "Someone important? I don''t remember. Back then, ra only had eyes for Simon. Things were bad between us, so I wasn''t really paying attention to her."


    Dn stood up, ready to go.


    Ryan trailed after him, blurting out, "Dn, I don''t know everything, but I do know ra really hates you. Whenever you''re around, she avoids you like the gue."


    Dn paused for a second, silent, then walked out without another word. He slid into his car and nced at the time-seven p.m.


    Later, at Palm Bay Café, Dn sat across from the doctor. "You were right," he admitted quietly. "ra''s had memory problems in the past. She lost her memory a lot, but always seemed to bounce back."


    The doctor stood beside him, handing over a thick stack of documents.


    "Sir, the drug first appeared in North American underground fight clubs over twenty years ago. Someone used it to throw huge matches into chaos back then, a single bet could be worth hundreds of millions. Fighters were buried in debt, and within a few months, all the favorites


    were taken out byplete


    nobodies. It wasn''t just the casinos; private gamblers lost everything too. When the casinos figured out someone was using drugs to rig the fights, they put a bounty on his head across North America. The man disappeared, but that drug spread fast. Soon, every fighter was using it. The fights got bloodier, more brutal. But the side effects were terrifying. Most fighters lost their minds; the ones who survived turned into monsters-they only knew how to kill. From everything I''ve found, no one''s evere out of it normal."


    Dn took the folder, flipping through it slowly. He''d always thought ra''s past was simple just a girl taken in by someone else. But whoever raised


    him clearly had secrets of their own.


    He tapped his finger on the pile of documents, thinking aloud. "That man-the one


    they chased in the North American fight clubs. Is there any record of what he looked like?"