Chapter 10: Apologize to My Wife

"Ariella and I went to City Hall and obtained a legal marriage certificate. By refusing to accept my status, are you questioning the bureau itself? Are you challenging the credibility of the government?"

As Kingston spoke, his hands never ceased their motion. He continued to film everything steadily.

"Robert!" Katrina cried out. Her tongue was usually sharp and acidic, yet she found herself unable to outtalk this penniless nobody.

If he were merely hurling insults, she could handle it. But this man had a habit of escalating the moral stakes. She was clearly attacking him as an individual, yet he managed to frame her words as an affront to the state, making it seem as though she were an enemy of the nation. Katrina fell silent, terrified of giving him any more leverage.

Ariella pursed her lips slightly, surprised to find that her new husband possessed such a silver tongue. What moved her most was the realization that even though she had told him to wait outside, he had been too worried to leave her alone. He had followed her in secret and was now declaring war on the Ellerker family for her sake.

Robert fixed his cold, clouded eyes on Kingston.

"You are the first person to ever dare behave so insolently within the walls of the Ellerker family estate," Robert said in a low, ghostly voice. "Aren't you afraid that you might never walk out of these doors again?"

Hearing the threat, Ariella panicked. She instinctively stepped in front of Kingston, shielding him. "What are you trying to do? If you have a problem, take it out on me! Do not hurt him!"

However, Robert's intimidation had no effect on Kingston. The man's deep eyes swept over Robert. Facing the patriarch's gaze directly, he replied calmly, "I have already uploaded the video to the cloud. If anything happens to me on your property, this video will go global in the next second."

He paused, a cold glint in his eyes. "By then, I fear Keystone Pharmaceuticals, which you have spent so many years painstakingly building, will be destroyed overnight. My lowly life is worth nothing, but if I can take Keystone Pharmaceuticals down with me, I would consider it an honor."

When he finished, he let out a fearless, light chuckle.

Robert stared at him intensely. Who exactly was this man? How could he remain so composed while facing a death threat?

"That video cannot be leaked," Robert conceded, taking a step back. "What is it you want?"

"Apologize to my wife," Kingston demanded. He stood tall, a natural aura of nobility and command radiating from him.

"Robert! We cannot possibly bow our heads to these lower-class people!" Katrina hissed, clutching her husband's arm. "He is probably lying. There is no way he could upload a video to the cloud that quickly. We cannot let them fool us!"

Robert wrenched his arm away from Katrina's grasp.

"You foolish woman! You are gambling with the entire future of Keystone Pharmaceuticals. What if the video goes public? The Ellerker family's reputation is ruined!" Robert glared at her. "Apologize. Now!"

Katrina froze. She wasn't the only one hurling insults earlier, so why was the burden of the apology falling solely on her shoulders?

"What are you standing there for?" Robert roared, venting all the frustration he felt toward Ariella and Kingston onto his wife. "Do you really want to make this a public scandal?"

Katrina was only brave enough to be cruel to Ariella. She dared not offend the head of the household.

"Fine. Ariella... Mom was just speaking out of anger. Don't take it to heart," Katrina muttered.

Ariella's lips twisted into a bleak, hollow smile. She knew Katrina wasn't sincere. If Kingston hadn't been so smart—if he hadn't seized this leverage—they might have both been silenced today.

"I have already apologized. What more do you want?" Katrina's eyebrows arched in irritation as she looked at her daughter. "I'm so sick of your deadpan expression. It's bad luck just looking at you!"