Chapter 491

In that electrifying moment, Jane seemed to have stumbled upon an earth-shattering realization. She sprang to her feet in an instant, her tiny feet shuffling backward several steps. Her wide, glistening eyes stared at Brother Frederick with undisguised horror. Her slightly chapped lips, parched from dehydration, trembled as she stammered, "Brother Frederick, y-you... so you've never really thought of me as your actual sister?" Frederick stood up and approached her, then knelt down to meet her eye level. With deliberate emphasis, he said solemnly, "Jane, I like you. I've never once seen you as a sister." Jane was utterly dumbfounded. Not only was she rendered speechless, but her eyes froze in place, her mind went completely blank, as if she'd been struck by a petrifying spell. After what felt like an eternity, she finally found her voice again. "So... Brother Frederick, my brothers were right to be wary of you all along..." A wave of hurt instantly flooded Frederick's deep-set eyes, his