“Anything else happening back home?” Nathan paused briefly, his voice dropping lower.

Sensing the chill from ahead, Yelena lowered her gaze and spoke softly, “Mr. Moore, that’s all. Zinnia is well protected by Yannis–he treats her like his own sister, granting her every wish. You really don’t need to worry about her so much.”

Nathan looked up, his eyes icy and distant. “Yelena, my patience is running thin. You’re off Zinnia’s case–I’ll find someone else. You’re being transferred to the branch office.”

Yelena froze, a chill shooting up her spine. But when Nathan finished speaking, her eyes instantly welled up. She pleaded, her voice trembling, “Mr. Moore, I don’t want to go to the branch office. I just want to stay by your side…”

“Leave.” Nathan’s tone brooked no argument.

‘Once someone starts thinking only about themselves, selfishness is sure to follow,’ Nathan thought coldly. ‘If I let her keep an eye on Zinnia, who knows what danger might befall her?’

To him, Zinnia was his entire world now—protecting her was his bottom line, and he would never allow anyone to harm her.

Yelena had begun harboring ulterior motives. But Nathan was far too perceptive–her schemes were as clear as day to him…

For example, among all these photos she had, Yelena deliberately chose to show more of Zinnia with Yannis.

She knew full well how important Zinnia was to Nathan, yet she still put those photos out there–hoping to make him jealous. After all, the girl who used to have eyes only for him now had someone else by her side.

But Yelena had miscalculated. While Nathan did feel a pang of jealousy, what truly filled his heart was happiness for Zinnia.

‘Her world doesn’t revolve around me anymore,‘ he thought. This was exactly the outcome he had envisioned–even hoped for. As long as she was happy, that was all that mattered to him.

“Mr. Moore… why?” Yelena feigned confusion. “I’ve always been in charge of Zinnia’s affairs. If you suddenly assign someone else, they won’t understand her situation as well as I do-”

Nathan’s detached gaze swept over her. “Yelena, must I spell it out? Don’t test my patience.”

“Mr. Moore, I was wrong. I’ll never dare to do it again,” Yelena pleaded desperately.

Just one sentence from Nathan, and Yelena–who had been by his side for four years–realized her little scheme had been exposed.

She’d brought out those photos today merely to test the waters, hoping to suggest that maybe Zinnia wasn’t worth all his attention. But she’d underestimated just how perceptive this man was.

Yelena’s eyes welled up with unexpected tears at Nathan’s coldness. She pleaded, “Mr. Moore… Zinnia has so many people around her. You shouldn’t be pouring all your attention into her. You’re sick and she hasn’t shown you the slightest bit of care.

“Here you are, pushing yourself to the limit, desperate to finish everything just so you can rush back to her. And what about Zinnia? She’s out there, living it up, not even thinking about what you’re going through.

“You’ve looked after her for sixteen years—isn’t it time you thought about yourself for once?”

Yelena gazed up at Nathan’s face—his sharp, cold features softened only by those faintly misty eyes. Even if his entire demeanor was weakened by illness, he was still breathtakingly handsome, exuding an air of untouchable nobility and indifferent.

Her eyes shimmered with disbelief and heartbreak. After four years by his side, she couldn’t believe he felt nothing for her. But Yelena knew she could do nothing–once Nathan made up his mind, there was no changing it.

She understood him all too well: when it came to Zinnia, he was gentle, patient, and endlessly indulgent. Just seeing her photos could bring a smile to his face. But with everything else, he was ruthless and ice-cold.

She had only shown him those photos of Zinnia and Yannis together, yet that alone was enough for Nathan to cast her aside. He simply wouldn’t tolerate anything that might threaten Zinnia. Yelena clenched her fists at her sides, her eyes burning with resentment and envy.

“Your services are no longer required, Yelena,” Nathan said, looking down at the heartbroken Yelena, his expression utterly unmoved.

His world had crumbled seventeen years ago. Since then, Zinnia had become his entire world. Only two things had kept him going: revenge and Zinnia.

Now that his revenge was complete, all he had left was her. He wanted to secure her future, so that even if something happened to him, Zinnia would still be safe and sound.

Clinging to her last shred of hope, Yelena’s eyes welled with sorrow. “Not required? Have you ever thought about me?” she asked, her voice trembling.

She already knew how much he cared about Zinnia, but hearing it from his own lips still sent a sharp, uncontrollable pain through her heart.

Yelena realized her questions had crossed a line Nathan would never tolerate, so he cast her aside. She’d thought that after four years by his side–and even being trusted to look after Zinnia–she meant something to him. Never had she imagined he could so casually fire her.

“You? I’m only tolerating you because you’ve kept to your duties lately.” Nathan gazed down at her, his dark eyes icy and detached. His voice dropped several degrees colder, sharp with impatience.

Yelena’s body swayed unsteadily, her eyes clinging to one last desperate hope. She asked softly, “To you… am I really nothing more than just a subordinate?”

Nathan’s response was a flat, emotionless statement. “What other feelings could I possibly have for you?” He didn’t even seem to register her question, as if he were merely stating an undeniable truth. His indifference was a cold, hard wall.

“Then why did you let me join MZ Group? Why make me your secretary and put me in charge of Zinnia’s affairs?” she asked.

She then cried inwardly, ‘Out of all the people you rescued back then, I was the only one you brought into MZ Group. I thought… I thought I meant something to you.‘

“Quincey chose you,” Nathan said, his voice dripping with undisguised impatience.

Yelena had worked diligently in the secretarial office for four years, reporting to Quincey, Nathan’s trusted senior assistant. Quincey would pass on the details to Nathan, who had never involved himself in such matters directly.

However, three months ago, Nathan sent Quincey away to search for medicinal herbs. At that point, Yelena was assigned to handle Zinnia’s matters directly. If it hadn’t been for Zinnia’s affairs, Yelena would never have crossed paths with Nathan.

The fewer people who knew about his personal matters, the better. Nathan didn’t want to involve Zinnia in any of this. If the Moore family found out what he was doing, they might act recklessly.

That was why he hadn’t contacted Zinnia in the past few months. As for updates, he had Yelena report directly to him.

Yelena had been diligent in her duties lately, but Nathan only cared about Zinnia and barely noticed her. It was only because her work involved Zinnia that she got to see Nathan more often these days. Yet she never expected to start harboring such foolish hopes.

“Heh…” Yelena forced a bitter smile. She knew she had never mattered to Nathan; the only one he cared about was Zinnia. With those divine, compassionate features, he looked like a merciful deity–seemingly the most affectionate, yet in truth, the coldest and most heartless of all.