Raelynn poured Julie a glass of warm water and asked again, “What did Arthur say?” After all, he was her own flesh and blood. If there were another way, she wouldn’t want Arthur to sacrifice himself either. But last night, Arthur had blown everything up to an uncontrollable level. Julie didn’t answer her mother’s question. Instead, she asked, “Eight years ago, when we three sisters fell into the ocean, did either of you actually see Zac rescue us?” John and Raelynn exchanged a look, confused as to why Julie was suddenly bringing up that old accident. Still, Raelynn answered honestly, “No. At the time, Zac wanted ice cream, so we went to buy some for him. When we got back, he had already pulled you all ashore.” John nodded. “It was a good thing Zac could swim. He was so young, yet he still risked his life to save you girls. And look at Arthur now—when the Gray family is in trouble, all because of him, he refuses to step up and do his part.” His voice carried an unmistakable trace of blame. Julie suddenly said, “But I just spoke to Zac’s first coach, Mr. Nick. He told me that Zac didn’t know how to swim when he started training.” John and Raelynn froze. “What do you mean?” Raelynn asked uncertainly. “Nick was a well-known swimming expert in South City. Dad personally hired him to coach Zac. He’s trained countless students. He can tell at a glance whether someone is a beginner or not. And he said Zac had absolutely no prior experience. He didn’t even know how to stay afloat.” Julie hadn’t even finished speaking, yet John and Raelynn were already deep in thought. She pressed on. “The three of us were unconscious from drowning. Zac, an eight-year-old who didn’t even know how to swim—how could he have possibly pulled us all to shore?” John and Raelynn stared at her in shock. They exchanged glances, unable to believe what they were hearing. “You’re saying… Zac didn’t save you?” Julie fell silent. She didn’t want to admit it, but for eight years, their so-called life-saving debt had dictated how they treated Zac. They had poured far more love and devotion into him than usual. And now, they were being told that the person they had been indebted to for eight years… had never actually saved them?Whether it was Julie or her parents, none of them wanted to accept this reality. But the truth was right in front of them—how could they deny it? “But… there was no one else around at the time,” Raelynn said hesitantly. That day, their family had gone to the beach for a vacation. Wanting the kids to have more fun, John had arranged to have a private section of the shore reserved just for them. Aside from the distant staff members keeping watch, there had been no one else around. But when they had questioned those staff members, they all said they hadn’t noticed the girls falling into the water. By the time they did, the sisters had already been rescued. If the staff hadn’t saved them… then who had? Julie suddenly spoke. “Arthur was there too.” Both John and Raelynn snapped their heads up. They had almost forgotten—after Arthur woke up, he had repeatedly insisted that he was the one who had saved them! But right after Arthur said that, Zac had cried and claimed that Arthur had been playing around. That he had seen his sisters go into the water and wanted to follow them, which led to him nearly drowning. Zac had said that Arthur only lied about saving them because he was afraid of being scolded. Julie continued, “Arthur had taken a few swimming lessons when he was little. But after that day, he never dared to go into the water again.” Arthur had learned to swim for a short while—he would have been far more capable of saving them than Zac. For a long moment, none of them knew how to feel. But there was one undeniable truth—Zac had lied. He hadn’t known how to swim back then. And if Zac had lied about that, then chances were, he hadn’t saved them at all. They had spent eight years repaying a debt of gratitude that likely never existed. After a long silence, Julie pulled something out of her bag—the document Arthur had given her. Her voice was heavy. “Arthur said he won’t sacrifice himself to protect the person who tried to ruin him. This is his declaration of estrangement—he told me to give it to you.” “What?!” Both John and Raelynn gasped in disbelief.John snatched the thin sheet of paper from Julie’s hands. The bold words at the top—Declaration of Estrangement—stood out like a slap to the face. He had even signed his name. Raelynn rushed over to look. Her lips trembled as she stammered, “Arthur… he’s serious?” John slammed the document onto the table. “Ridiculous! What is that boy thinking?! That ungrateful—” He stopped mid-sentence. There was no usual rage in his voice. No fiery temper. Instead, there was something else in his tone—something much heavier. It was Guilt.