Departure with a Belly (Alaric and Victoria)

Chapter 40

Victoria didn’t even have to stand in her position to understand that it was

unacceptable, but she was Victoria, not Claudia.

She could only consider the matters from her own perspective.

“What a pity. I’m not that great of a person nor am I willing to sacrifice. The

child is in my belly, so whether or not I want to keep them is my decision.

No one else can decide the life or death of my child except me.”

“You-”

“If you want me to return the favor, sure. I am willing to do anything you

ask of me except this.”

Her child was her family. How could she let someone else decide on her

behalf whether to keep the child or to have an abortion when she was

reluctant to do that?

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

“Are you really going to do whatever I say?”

“Yes, as long as it isn’t anything outrageous.”

Favors must be repaid, but if her demands were too high, then she

shouldn’t even think about it.

Claudia started pondering about it.

In fact, before she came here, she had predicted that Victoria wouldn’t

agree to her request easily.

Who was Alaric? He was the heir to the Cadogan Family. Whether it was

his family background, character, or the way he presented himself, they

were all top–notch.

In Claudia’s eyes, no one else in the world could compare to him.

Who wouldn’t want a man like him? Who would be willing to give him up if

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

they captured his heart?

What about Victoria? Her family went bankrupt, prompting her to hold on

to Alaric like a lifeline. If she had become his real wife, then she would

have been living in a rags–to–riches fantasy.

Had she been willing to give up on him, she wouldn’t have gotten

pregnant.

The child could be considered a token for Victoria to hold Alaric back. Thus,

Claudia couldn’t possibly allow that token to exist. Otherwise, it could

possibly affect whether they would get a divorce eventually.

Now that Victoria wasn’t willing to abort the child, Claudia had to use other

means.

Moreover, the most important thing to do now was to calm Victoria down.

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

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spoke. “Sure. Aborting the child is indeed cruel. Even I can’t bear to do that.

In that case, let’s sign an agreement.”

“An agreement?”

As soon as the question slipped out of Victoria’s tongue, Carlo served the

cup of warm milk.

“Here’s your milk, beautiful.”

Claudia stopped talking before offering him a sweet smile. “Thanks, Carlo!”

Carlo winked at her. “You’re welcome. It’s my honor to treat two beautiful

ladies to some drinks. Enjoy.”

After that, he left once again without any inquiry into the content of their

conversation. No wonder Claudia chose this place.

Acting as if she was being considerate; Claudia pushed the glass of milk in

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Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

front of Victoria. “Since you can’t take any other drinks for now, have some

warm milk.”

Victoria glanced at her and noticed that she was wearing her facade

again.

“What? Are you afraid that I might have drugged the milk?” Claudia

chuckled. “Don’t worry. If I wanted to do such a nasty thing, I wouldn’t have

asked you out.”

Withdrawing her gaze, Victoria no longer wanted to continue that topic.

Instead, she changed the subject. “What were you saying about the

agreement?”

Claudia smiled. “Seems like you can’t bear to stay any longer with me.”

“What? Don’t you want to get it over and done with?”

“Of course, I do.”

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

While saying that, Claudia took out a paper folder and handed it to

Victoria.

“This is the agreement. Take a look.”

Victoria took it with a poker face.

Seeing her calm look, Claudia couldn’t help holding her breath. At this

point, Victoria didn’t even seem to have any other better idea, but she

could still appear so calm and collected. How on earth did she do that?

All of a sudden, she recalled the scene where Victoria plunged into the

river many years ago.

It was a risky act, but she jumped down without hesitation. Claudia, on the

other hand, panicked and was unsure of what to do.

In her dreams, darkness penetrated her nervous system often, showing a

clear contrast between herself and Victoria.

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

In front of others, Claudia was highly praised because she sacrificed

herself to save Alaric.

Behind others, however, she was just a clown under Victoria’s mask. The

harder Victoria tried to save Alaric, the more despicable and shameless

she appeared to be as she robbed the credit.

Outsiders all deemed her as pure, naive, and had a great personality, but

in reality…

No. Stop thinking about it. Stop thinking about it.

The past was now in the past. Everyone knew that she was Alaric’s savior

now, and even Alaric himself thought so.

The only person who knew the truth was Victoria, who had lost her

precious memory when she was diagnosed with a serious illness back

then. She would never be able to get her memories back in this lifetime.

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

“I have a question about this agreement.”

Victoria’s cold and distant voice sounded, pulling Claudia’s sanity back.

She noticed how Victoria’s face was superimposed with the younger

version of her face before they were separated.

In the past, her young face was delicate and bright, but now, Victoria

looked a little cold. Her features had grown as she aged, making her look

even more beautiful than before.

Claudia forced a smile.

“What problem?”

Victoria glanced at her before looking down at the agreement again.

Although the agreement seemed to be overlapped, it merely revolved

around a few main points.

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

Firstly, she had to leave the country after the divorce and promise not to

return within five years; secondly, she was not allowed to mention the

child to Alaric, nor could she use the child as a token for self–pity; thirdly,

she couldn’t engage in any intimacy with Alaric before their divorce; lastly,

Claudia would offer her an amount of money, and if Victoria had to raise

the child, Claudia was willing to undertake the obligation of supporting the

child until he or she reached adulthood.

Under Claudia’s gaze, Victoria tapped the table with her fingertips lightly

before asking, “Why can’t I mention the child to Alaric?”

Hearing that, Claudia widened her eyes. When she drafted the agreement,

she had done it in a rush.

Nonetheless, Victoria wasn’t dumb. It made sense that she would be

doubtful of the agreement, but Claudia insisted on using the agreement

to suppress her. Otherwise, Victoria could possibly make a slip of the

tongue by mentioning the child in front of Alaric while they still lived This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org.

Chapter 40 Not Interested in Raising Someone’s Chi

together.

After much thought, Claudia decided to risk it.

Anyway, she had something on Victoria, so if the latter refused to sign the

agreement, she was going to use other means that were up her sleeves.

In order to make Victoria believe her, Claudia had long prepared an

answer to her question.

Looking into her eyes, Claudia uttered in a soft voice, “It’s all for your sake.”

Victoria looked at her judgmentally.

Claudia picked up the coffee cup and took a sip. With a look of disdain,

she explained, “Since you two are childhood friends, I believe that

friendship still stands between the two of you if not for love. Otherwise, he

wouldn’t have helped you, right? But he will live with me for the rest of his

life soon. Your child isn’t just going to be an obstacle for us, but he or she

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will also become a threat to the two of you. He seems to really care about

it, do you understand? Most importantly…”

She paused for a moment, then continued, “I worry that if you bring up the

child too often, he might eventually ask for him or her. I’m not interested in

raising someone else’s child, Victoria.”