My Substitute CEO Bride (Nash Calicraft) novel Chapter 2367

"It's raining again. Just as I thought, nothing really changes around here," Charlotte remarked.

"Charlotte, has it been a long time since you last returned to Grenford?" Astin asked.

Charlotte nodded. "It's been several years. A lot has changed here, but the one thing that hasn't is this rain."

"Charlotte..." Astin noticed something unusual in her tone but was not sure how to comfort her.

As Charlotte listened to the sound of the rain, her thoughts drifted back to that rainy night, and she could not help the tears that came to her eyes.

Astin took out a tissue from his pocket. "W-What's wrong?"

Instead of answering, Charlotte forced a big smile. "Nothing! Sorry, I said something weird."

"Oh, okay. That’s good, then.”

Charlotte took the tissue, a slight smile returning to her lips. "Honestly, I feel sorry for that mother and son, but... more than that, I think I'm a bit envious."

Astin smiled too. "I understand, Charlotte. Being deeply loved by one's parents, by those close to you... It's something to be envious of. And it’s precisely because of that deep love that the mother committed such a grave crime.

"But the reality is, a crime is a crime, and all the grand justifications are just excuses to cover it up..."

"What were your parents like, Astin?" Charlotte asked, unaware of his family situation. After all this time, Astin had started to come to terms with it.

"Parents... It's such a distant word now... Whether they love me or hate me now, I don't really know. But, they once loved me—at least, that's what I like to think.

"Maybe it's just my imagination, but I still hope to see them again, or at least return to the places where I have memories of them. Those memories were real, after all. I want to hold on to them, to remember them deeply," Astin said.

His words touched Charlotte. She, too, longed for her hometown, for the small moments she remembered fondly but lacked the courage to face. This incident illustrated to her the profound love a mother could have for her child. Love could be beautiful, but it could also be sharp.

Astin smiled gratefully. "Thank you. I hope you won't mind if I ramble a bit. I'll tell you about my family, about my parents..."

As they settled in, Astin began to share his story.

...

Meanwhile, in a nearby building, Zenon was watching Astin through a telescope. He lowered the telescope and pulled out a file from his side.

"As I thought, that kid is also one of those demon hosts. Interesting, very interesting."

A figure emerged from the shadows. "So, are you planning to kill him?"

Zenon shook his head. "Who knows? Maybe the demon inside him is the one I've been searching for all these years. If that's the case, killing him might be too easy a fate for him."