Chapter 643: I Don’t Think You Should Enter Your Son-In-Law’s Room

Maria’s jaw dropped.

Over a hundred years.

That wasn’t just progress. That was a leap. A transformation. A complete reshaping of everything doctors thought they knew.

She wanted to laugh, to dismiss it as some massive joke.

But looking at Diana’s face—at the genuine admiration and excitement shining in her eyes—she knew her friend was telling the absolute truth.

It already would’ve been quite shocking if some random person has accomplished the same.

But it wasn’t anyone else but Cassius.

The same boy who had actually confessed to her, who had told her he loved her, who she had gently rejected.

She already thought he was brilliant. Charming. Intelligent. Respectful.

She had already formed a high opinion of him, a high evaluation that wasn’t easy for her to give.

But this?

This was something else entirely.

This was a level she couldn’t even touch. A realm she couldn’t even imagine.

He wasn’t just smart—he was advancing all of medicine by so many years. He was saving lives that would have been lost. He was changing the world.

And she had rejected him.

She had told him no.

Maria let out a deep, exhausted sigh.

She leaned back against her chair, letting her head fall back as she stared at the ceiling. All the energy seemed to drain from her body at once.

“Diana.” She said weakly. “I don’t even know what to say about this.”

Diana watched her with amusement.

“I came here for a relaxing time with you.” Maria continued, her voice taking on a plaintive edge. “I wanted to catch up, drink tea, laugh about old times.”

“Instead, I was immediately thrust into a surgery because one of your nurses got sick. And now you’re telling me things that are honestly making my head ache.”

She turned her head to look at Diana with mild, tired eyes.

“I honestly don’t know what to feel right now.”

Diana chuckled sympathetically.

“And Joy?” Maria continued. “My daughter is running around right now after Cassius, telling everyone he’s some sort of devil or demon who’s out for flesh and blood.”

She laughed weakly.

“If I told her about any of this—about how he’s helped so many people, saved so many lives—she would probably just faint on the spot. Her soul would rise straight to heaven.”

“It’s probably better if you don’t tell Joy.” Diana giggled at the image. “She might just explode from genuine frustration.”

They both laughed at that, the tension in the room breaking slightly.

But beneath her laughter, Maria’s mind was still spinning.

Cassius.

What else didn’t she know about him?

Maria’s expression then softened into a warm, genuine smile as she shifted the conversation.

“Speaking of daughters.” She said fondly. “I really have to say you’re so lucky, Diana. So incredibly lucky.”

Diana tilted her head curiously.

“After all, Vivi managed to snag Cassius for herself.”

Maria continued, a wistful note in her voice.

“And Cassius. He’s…He’s everything, isn’t he? Kind, brilliant, caring, charming.”

She shook her head admiringly.

“She really could not have found anyone better.”

A look of pity then crossed her face, the kind that came from remembering dark times.

“To tell you the truth, in the past…” She said quietly. “…I really didn’t know if Vivi was going to have any kind of future at all. Any kind of happiness. Any kind of love.”

She reached out and took Diana’s hand.

“We searched for so many years, didn’t we? You did your best here at the hospital, while I traveled all over trying to find some sort of solution. Any sort of cure.”

Diana’s eyes glistened slightly.

“And we couldn’t find anything.” Maria continued, her voice barely above a whisper. “Nothing at all.”

“Honestly…there were moments when I was giving up hope as well.”

Diana squeezed her hand, understanding perfectly.

She too had been at the edge of despair countless times, watching her daughter suffer, unable to do anything to help.

The memories of those dark days still had the power to make her heart ache.

But then Maria’s face brightened, the shadows lifting as quickly as they had appeared.

“But fortunately, it all turned out for the best, didn’t it?” She said, her smile returning. “And the moment I came to Cassius’s estate, do you know who was the first person to greet me?”

Diana raised an eyebrow.

“Vivi.” Maria answered, her eyes sparkling. “Your daughter. Standing right there at the entrance, healthy and whole and absolutely radiant.”

She laughed softly, shaking her head at the memory.

“And the funny thing is—even though I’ve known her for so many decades now, ever since she was a tiny little thing—I didn’t even recognize her at first.”

“I was completely caught off guard. So shocked to see her that I couldn’t even properly comprehend how healthy she was.”

She put a hand to her chest.

“For a moment, I couldn’t even process that it was your own daughter standing right in front of me.”

“Well, that’s only natural, isn’t it?” Diana nodded understandingly. “Because of her illness, it was difficult for anyone other than me and her special nurses to see her.”

“And you—you were always traveling to places with plague or distant lands with strange diseases.”

“Because of that your visitations were limited and you only met her a couple of times in her life, and those were when she was very young.”

Her voice grew quieter.

“After that, her illness got even worse. Even those visits stopped happening. So you couldn’t see her anymore.”

She looked at Maria with gentle eyes.

“It must have been quite shocking to see her like that—healthy, vibrant, alive.”

“Oh, it most definitely was!”

Maria nodded vigorously.

“You did tell me in your letters that Vivi was getting better, and I was so elated that I went around giving offerings to so many people, just out of sheer happiness.”

“But even when I read those words, I couldn’t truly comprehend it. Not really.”

She shook her head before a warm glow radiated from her as she said,

“It was only after I met her again later that that I realized—this was your daughter. Your daughter, healthy and whole, standing in front of me and I got so excited that I talked to her for the longest time.”

She giggled at the thought of the vibrant conversation she had with Vivi and how she struggled to hold herself back from pulling her in and giving her a whole lot of kisses because of adorable she was.

But then she has a rather perturbed and confused look on her face as she hesitantly said,

“And even though I haven’t met her properly in years, Vivi for some reason still knew so much about me. She spoke to me as if she had known me her whole life.”

“Oh, that’s because I’ve always talked to her about you.”

Diana knowingly said while waving her hand as if it was totally obvious.

“I told her how you’ve been helping us, how you’ve been searching for cures, how you’ve never given up on her. She has quite a lot of respect for you, you know.”

“Respect for me? Please.”

Maria waved her hand dismissively, before she leaned forward earnestly and said,

“In fact, I’m the one who has respect for her.”

“Respect for her? For what reason would you—”

Diana was about to ask before Maria cut her off.

“Diana, think about it. After going through so much suffering, so much illness, being locked in a room for years on end without even being able to move properly…”

“…she still has such optimism in her life. She’s still so happy all the time.”

She shook her head in wonder before quickly adding,

“And not to mention, she’s even helping other people now. Talking through their problems, giving them a different sort of therapy that no one has ever seen before.”

“Your daughter…”

“…she’s truly one of a kind, Diana.”

Diana’s face glowed with maternal pride.

“She truly is.” She agreed softly.

Maria then leaned forward even more, her eyes suddenly alight with burning curiosity.

“So.” She said eagerly. “What exactly happened? What was the solution? What was the treatment that finally cured her?”

Diana blinked at the rapid change in topic.

“In your letters…” Maria continued. “…you never mentioned exactly how she got better. You just said she was improving. And now I’m really, really curious.”

Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“Did you find some holy book with an ancient treatment inside? Did some five-hundred-year-old elf healer show up and work a miracle? Or…”

She gasped dramatically.

“…don’t tell me you found the cure yourself! Just from the sheer love you have for your daughter?!”

Diana stared at her for a moment.

Then slowly, a look of bemused confusion crossed her face as she said,

“I thought you would have known who helped her. From everything I just told you earlier.”

Maria tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

“About the devices.” Diana prompted gently. “About the medical innovations.”

“…About the person Vivi is now betrothed to.”

The words hung in the air.

Then suddenly, Maria’s eyes shimmered.

Her breath hastened.

Her lips parted in utter disbelief.

“No way.” She whispered. “Are you telling me—are you telling me that Cassius—”

Diana nodded firmly, answering with four simple words.

“Yes. It was Cassius.”

Maria’s eyes somehow widened further.

“He was the one who found the treatment.”

Diana continued, her voice filled with genuine appreciation.

“He was the one who figured out how to cure her. Without him, she would still be rotting in that bed, suffering day after day after day.”

“It was him, Maria.” She shook her head slowly, a look of profound gratitude on her face. “Cassius saved my daughter’s life.”

Maria stared at her.

Then slowly, a look of surprise and jubilance spread across her features.

“Wow.” She whispered. “Just…wow.”

She leaned back in her chair, processing this new information.

“So he’s the one who helped her.” She murmured. “He’s the one who saved her.”

She paused, then nodded to herself.

“I guess that makes sense, doesn’t it? If he’s helping so many other people, if he’s inventing all these devices and medicines and techniques…of course he would be able to help Vivi as well.”

She shook her head in wonder.

“Cassius truly is…I don’t even have words to describe him anymore. He’s truly amazing.”

Then she chuckled to herself.

“And not only did he save her life…”

She looked at Diana teasingly.

“He managed to win her heart as well.”

Diana smiled faintly.

“I suppose that makes sense too.” Maria continued warmly.

“A prince in shining armor comes and frees her from years of suffering.”

She clasped her hands lightly.

“It would be stranger if Vivi didn’t fall for him.”

She then looked out toward the courtyard, sunlight reflecting in her eyes.

“It’s almost like destiny.”

“Like she had been waiting all those years…not just to be healed…but to meet him.”

“To finally be freed from the shackles that bound her.”

Maria smiled gently.

“It’s a beautiful love story.”

But just as the warm, comfortable mood settled between them, Maria’s expression shifted.

She remembered something.

Something from a few nights ago.

Her cheeks flushed a deep crimson, and she found herself suddenly unable to meet Diana’s eyes.

Her gaze darted around the room—the bookshelf, the window, the floor—anywhere but at her friend’s face.

Diana noticed immediately.

“Maria?” She asked, her voice gentle but curious. “What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something you want to say?”

Maria fidgeted.

Her hands twisted together in her lap, fingers interlocking and unlocking in a nervous rhythm.

“It’s just that…” She hesitated, biting her lip. “I…um…I don’t know if I should say this or not.”

Diana’s expression softened. She reached across and placed a warm hand over Maria’s restless fingers.

“Maria, you can tell me anything. There’s no need to hide anything between us.”

She smiled reassuringly.

“No matter what you say, it’s not like I’m going to take offense. So just say it.”

Maria took a deep breath.

Then another.

Finally, still fidgeting, still blushing, she spoke.

“It’s just that…two nights ago, I woke up in the middle of the night to get some water in Cassius’s home.”

Diana nodded, listening attentively.

“I was walking by Cassius’s room.”

Maria continued, her blush deepening with every word.

“And I noticed that the door was slightly open. Just a crack.”

She paused, gathering herself.

“I thought Cassius or one of the wives might be coming out. But then…” She finally looked up at Diana “…to my utter surprise, it wasn’t them at all. It was you.”

Diana’s eyes widened slightly.

“You came out of his room.” Maria said softly. “And you were wearing…rather skimpy clothes. See-through ones.”

She rushed to add,

“I understand that’s probably your night clothes! I’m not judging that! But I still don’t think it’s appropriate for you to be visiting his room so late at night.”

She looked at Diana earnestly, trying to convey her concern.

“I know you probably just wanted to check on Vivi. Make sure she’s all right. It’s probably just a mother’s habit, wanting to look after your daughter. But still—”

She gestured helplessly

“—she’s already a grown woman now, Diana. She has a man of her own. I don’t know if it’s right or wrong for you to be visiting his abode so late at night.”

She leaned forward, her expression earnest.

“I think you should maybe…distance yourself a little. Now that Vivi has grown up. Just a little bit, for propriety’s sake.”

Maria finished, expecting any number of reactions.

Embarrassment, maybe. Diana getting flustered and defensive.

Perhaps even a little awkward laughter at being caught.

But what she saw instead made her confused.

Diana wasn’t blushing.

She wasn’t flustered.

She wasn’t embarrassed at all.

Instead, she had a look of complete and utter shock on her face. Like she had just heard something absolutely ridiculous.

“Maria.” Diana said slowly, her voice strange. “What are you talking about?”

Maria blinked, confused by the reaction.

“What’s wrong?” She asked. “Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong? Did I take it too far?”

“I’m sorry if I overstepped, I just thought—”

“No, no!” Diana shook her head quickly, though the shock hadn’t left her face. “It’s not that at all. I’m just…”

“…I’m wondering why you’re even saying such things to me.”

Maria tilted her head, genuinely puzzled.

“Well, I mean…you are Cassius’s mother-in-law, right?”

She spoke slowly, as if explaining something obvious.

“So it shouldn’t be right for you to be going into his room. Especially when his other wives are there. It’s not appropriate.”

She tried to put some reasoning into her voice, thinking that Diana was simply too caught up in her role as a doting mother to see the issue.

But Diana only looked more confused.

“Maria.” She said carefully. “Seriously, what are you talking about?”

She paused.

Then, very deliberately, she spoke the words that would shatter Maria’s understanding of everything.

“I’m not just Cassius’s mother-in-law…”

“…I’m also his wife.”

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