After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World novel Chapter 1013

A/N: I know everyone misses Althea and Alterra (I do too~) but yeah, we got a lot of future arcs to set up and the setting can’t be told in Althea’s limited POV while she’s safely in Alterra. xD

Wait a little more, my loves~ We’ll finish this mini-arc soon! Probably! _{freewёbn૦νeɭ.com}

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Octavia went to Orion’s study and saw him writing in his study, surrounded by documents. Her heart clenched again—just by the sight of him.

The current image overlapped with the ones decades ago, when he was much smaller.

Orion started doing documents early on and was trained as the heir from as early as he was 15 years old.

Because he had the ability and the level-headedness, he was also given more responsibilities early on. Even at that age, he was an admired ’golden boy’ in the city.

He had become the ’standard’ of what an heir should be like, and people forgot how weak Zaol was.

She admired him so much and was proud that her future husband was so capable and handsome.

Although he was never affectionate with her, he never overtly denied their arranged marriage either.

Even when the arrangement wasn’t a formal one, everybody assumed it was, so she had been so certain that she’d get married to him.

But now…

She pursed her lips and walked forward. "Orion…" she said, her voice soft, hoping he’d turn to look at her again.

"What is it, Octavia?" he asked, without pulling his eyes away from the documents.

When she was a teenager, something similar happened. At the time, she was so jealous of the paper she actually hid them...

It didn’t take long for Orion to figure out who was the suspect. Instead of being mad though, he simply ignored her for months after that. No matter how many times she visited him, how many gifts she sent, and how many words of apology she uttered—he didn’t mind them at all.

She wished he had yelled at her instead. At least, in that way, he would show emotions. At the time, she felt like she was not even worthy to show his anger to.

Those were the worst days of her life, only overtaken by that night when she lost him to another.

She heaved a deep breath and walked around the table, her arms holding his shoulder.

His eyebrows furrowed and he turned to look at her with a frown. "What are you doing?" he asked, standing up to put distance between them.

Instead, she rushed forward, hugging him from behind.

"Please… Orion. Please help me."

"Have some dignity, Octavia."

"Please, take me. You don’t have to leave Hilda," she said. "You just have to take me in, even if it is only in name, please…"

If her father found an heir, then it was only a matter of time before she got married off.

It wasn’t that she had not tried killing her father—it was in her blood, after all.

However, that man was a powerhouse level 65. He was the strongest in the entire city next to some hermit elders who didn’t care about anything anymore.

He was also deeply mistrusting. He would be able to kill the women next to him without batting an eye if they showed even a hint of being suspicious. He also had special tools and equipment that would make him virtually impenetrable to them, even when he was asleep.

However, despite this, he still desperately tried to get sons even if the chances were almost nill—as if it was better than putting her on the throne.

Orion took away her hold on him and stepped back. He stared at her for a moment, as if considering, but he shook his head in the end. "You know how my family is, and I agree with our values."

"I’m begging you so much. Do you not feel sad for me? I can be married off to a bastard!!"

Orion sighed. He knew he was being callous. A woman’s marriage could determine her life and death. However, she had betrayed his trust once—who was to say she wouldn’t do it again?

He could not risk the peace his parents worked so hard for for such a woman.