?Chapter 1398:


    Carol gave a weary sigh. “He’s probably just trying to force you to pull yourself together.”


    “You’re wrong,” Niks said quietly, cing the phone face down. “He doesn’t y emotional games. Everything he does is calcted. Now that I’m useless to him, he’s thrown me away like trash.”


    After that, Niks stopped caring. He let his beard grow, traded his dress shirts for wrinkled tees, and eventually stopped showing up to work at all. Most days, he stayed in the vi, glued to the couch with a controller in hand.


    Every night, as Carol and the others arrived, the sharp stato of virtual gunfire echoed from the living room speakers.


    Not once did Dani lift a finger to interfere.


    Watching him spiral, Carol couldn’t take it anymore. “He’s not going to snap out of this on his own. If you don’t step in soon, Dani, he’s going to rot awaypletely.”


    He was dealt such a strong hand, but he threw it all away. It truly was a shame.


    Instead of responding immediately, Dani nced at Cedric, who gave her a yful wink. That was enough to draw a shortugh from her.


    Later that evening, as Dani entered the vi and found Niks still sunk into the cushions, she walked over, tapped the backrest, and said, “Hey, you. Put the controller down. You’reing with me to an auction tonight.”


    Niks kept his eyes glued to his screen. “Forget it. I’m not going.”


    Dani didn’t waste her energy persuading him. She said coldly, “You have half an hour to get your act together. If you’re still a mess when Ie back down, you’re leaving this house for good.”


    Niks pressed his lips together, refusing to listen. Just then, Cedric strolled past and said, “I advise you to listen to her. If you get kicked out, no one is going to help you.”


    Niks frowned and turned on him. “You know what, Cedric? You’re henpecked.”


    Cedric shrugged. “That’s absolutely true. So think about it. You’ve got thirty minutes. Fix yourself or don’t. It’s your call.” With that, he disappeared upstairs.


    Grumbling under his breath, Niks tightened his grip on the video game controller and turned to Carol. “Does she ever bluff with these threats?”


    Carol answered inly, “Nope.”


    When Dani returned downstairster, Niks hadn’t made any effort to tidy himself up, though he rose from the sofa in a vain attempt to save some pride. “Look, these are the only clothes I’ve got. I’ll just go like this.”


    Dani remained indifferent. If he wanted to humiliate himself, that wasn’t her problem. She gave him a quick, detached nce and headed for the door, but Niks suddenly groaned. “Cedric! Let me borrow one of your suits.”


    He went upstairs to change. Carol, amused, stayed behind, quietly chuckling to herself.


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