“Kid, I thought you were someone important. Turns out you’re just a clown who popped out of nowhere.”

I clenched my fists, every muscle straining to hold back the fury.

I had hoped, just maybe, that there was some misunderstanding.

But now, my heart sank completely.

For six whole years, I had vanished from the world.

Trapped in a place so remote, even satellites couldn’t find it, buried in experiments day after day.

She had moved on. Maybe I should’ve expected that.

But before I left, she promised, she swore, she would take care of our daughter.

The daughter I remembered, once cheerful and full of life, now looked as frail as a withering flower.

That timid, fearful expression on her face pierced straight through my chest like a blade.

My heart ached just looking at her.

“Come on. I’m taking you home.”

With tears brimming in my eyes, I gently held her hand, ready to walk away from this place together.

Whatever I owed her over these six years, I would make it right.

Every moment I missed, I would give it back to her tenfold.

I wanted her to laugh again. To be the happiest little princess in the world.

But just then, a mocking voice rang out behind us.