A whole year passed since their eternal bond, a tie that neither unraveled nor wavered.

  Everyone used to say that love fades after marriage, but the exact opposite happened; Nagisa's love for Nyoko grew with every moment they spent together.

  Her voice still played the strings of his heart, and her laughter continued to paint joy on his features.

  He rushed every evening to return to her arms, holding her as if the entire world disappeared between her embrace.

  He often canceled his plans with friends, saying.

  "I want to spend this night with my wife."

  They would tease him in response.

  "She won't fly away! You have your whole life with her!"

  Then came that day... the day when Nagisa wasn't just nervous, but seemed to be in a state of panic.

  He had left Nyoko alone at home, looking pale and exhausted, barely able to move, vomiting occasionally, and closing her eyes in visible fatigue.

  All of this was enough to make his heart tighten with worry, but he couldn't stay with her; the scheduled meeting with the manager and the sales committee was critical, and there was no room for postponement.

  Nagisa stood in the middle of the white meeting room, in front of a long table surrounded by committee members, giving a detailed presentation about the revenues and future plans.

  He spoke with apparent confidence, but beneath that, his heart was pounding with anxiety for Nyoko.

  In the midst of his presentation, his phone vibrated in his pocket.

  He glanced at it quickly and saw an unknown number.

  He excused himself hurriedly, left the room, and moved to a secluded corner where no one could see him.

  He took out the phone, hesitated for a moment, then pressed the answer button and raised it to his ear.

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  "Hello?"

  He said, his voice mixed with worry and curiosity, as though something inside him was whispering that what was coming wouldn't be good.

  On the other end, a soft woman's voice spoke gently to him, but it wasn't Nyoko's voice, it was someone else's that he didn't recognize.

  "Hello, are you Mr. Nagisa?"

  That tone in the woman's voice made his unease grow. He only had two women's numbers on his phone: his mother's and Nyoko's.

  Who was this? And how did she get his number?

  He composed himself and replied in the most serious tone he could muster, trying to show her indifference, though her delicate voice still unsettled him.

  "Yes, it's me. Who are you? What do you want? And how do you have my number?"

  "I'm a nurse at Kyoto Katsura Hospital."

  Those words stopped Nagisa's heart. They confirmed his suspicions.

  His mind immediately jumped to the worst scenarios about what might have happened to Nyoko, and before long, he shouted through the phone.

  "What happened?! Is my wife alright?! Wait, I'll come immediately!"

  He didn't even give her a chance to respond to his questions or say a word.

  He hung up abruptly and shoved the phone back into his pocket. His heart felt like it was about to burst out of his chest, and all he wanted at that moment was to run with all his might to reach his wife.

  Nagisa turned to his manager, moving quickly, then leaned close to his ear, whispering with a hint of panic.

  "Sir... I need to leave immediately, it's an emergency."

  His voice was trembling, and his eyes seemed to beg for time, as if he were fighting the ticking of the clock to run to the hospital and spend the night by his wife's side.

  But the manager, that short, plump, elderly man, didn't even bother to lower his voice or show any respect for the urgency of the moment.

  Instead, he pursed his lips in a scowl and shouted in the middle of the meeting room, in front of everyone.

  "Leave the meeting?! Have you lost your mind?! Listen to me, you impudent fool, if you walk out now… consider yourself fired!"

  The manager's insulting words struck a chord deep within Nagisa, a feeling of rejection that stood firm against the humiliation.

  He stood up straight, his eyes gleaming with a determined resolve that refused to break.

  He didn't say a word, his expression unchanged, but he started to step back, one step after another, until he left the meeting room.

  Shock appeared on everyone's face, the manager, the committee, the employees.

  No one expected Nagisa, who had spent five years at this company and built his name here, to walk away from it all… without even blinking.

  When he crossed the threshold of the door, Nagisa paused for a moment, turned around, and raised his voice with unshakable confidence.

  "My wife… and my dignity, are worth more than all your money."

  Nagisa threw his words into his manager's face, then turned without hesitation, giving his back to everyone… to the employees, to the meeting, to his entire career.

  He rushed out of the building, and all that occupied his mind now... was Nyoko.

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