Elora quickly acknowledged her mistake, “I promise it won’t happen again. I’m truly sorry. Please forgive me.”

Katelyn seemed uninterested in prolonging the conversation. She gave Elora a final look, remained silent, and turned to exit.

Elora felt a bit anxious, unsure whether Katelyn had truly forgiven her. But now, unable to get out of bed, she had no choice but to watch as Katelyn walked away.

The attending physician caught up with Katelyn. “Hades, there’s a complex case here that needs your expertise.”

Katelyn paused, asking, “What kind of case? Do you have the medical records?”

Her interest was piqued at the mention of a challenging case. After all, as a doctor, she had a deep passion for studying complex illnesses.

The attending physician had initially thought that Katelyn wouldn’t take any interest in him, so he was taken aback by how eager she was to help.

Just as the attending physician was about to speak, a voice from nearby interrupted, respectfully saying, “Hades, there has been some progress on the matter you asked me to investigate.”

Katelyn froze mid-step, turning toward the voice that had called her name.

Austen stood a short distance away, his posture respectful.

Without hesitation, Katelyn addressed the attending physician beside her. “I’ll check the medical records later. Something urgent just came up.”

Without waiting for a response, she walked toward Austen and said simply, “To a quiet place.”

The attending physician opened his mouth as if to call her back, but they were already gone before he could speak. He sighed. He wasn’t sure if he could meet Hades again, but he couldn’t force her to stay either.

The rooftop was quiet. A cool breeze brushed against Katelyn’s face, stirring her bangs. She ignored the chill, her focus razor-sharp. “What did you find?” she asked.

Austen said nothing. Instead, he handed over a document.

Katelyn took it and flipped through the pages. The file detailed that a woman, who had given birth in the same small-town hospital as Sharon, was from Yata—a daughter of a minor noble family. Her name was Hazel Ruiz.

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But Hazel wasn’t originally from Yata. She had reportedly been adopted from the same country as Katelyn after an accident. If this information was accurate, the only way to trace Hazel’s whereabouts was to start with the Ruiz family.

Katelyn fell silent, gripping the document a little tighter. Could this family hold the answers she had been searching for?

Austen studied her expression before breaking the silence. “But that family was wiped out years ago.”

Katelyn’s body stiffened. Though her face remained composed, her fingers unconsciously tightened around the pages. She turned to Austen. “Can you find out why?”

Regardless of whether Hazel was the person she sought, she needed the full truth. This was the only lead she had at the moment.

Austen nodded. “If it happened in Yata within the last thirty years, I could dig it up. But it’ll take time.”

Decades-old secrets weren’t unearthed overnight. Katelyn understood this.

“Fine. Name your price once it’s done,” she said.

Austen didn’t respond, simply nodding in acknowledgment.

Katelyn didn’t press further. Clutching the document, she exhaled slowly. “Thank you. You can go now.”

Her heart pounded with anticipation and unease. After all these years, this was the first real clue about her biological parents. She had finally found something. It wasn’t much. But it was something. Progress.

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