Chapter: 244

“Run! Run! There's a murderer!"

The man's focus remained locked on Joanna, driven by a mix of envy and despair. “Why should the rich enjoy lives of ease while I chase pennies? I won't stand for this inequality! If I can't have peace, nobody will!"

He fixated on Joanna with a chilling intensity. "Let's die together!" he threatened with a twisted smile.

Brandishing the knife, the man chased after Joanna, his pursuit relentless. Their chaotic path through the hospital corridors elicited screams from bystanders.

Eventually, hospital security arrived, equipped with shields and batons, and began evacuating the area.

“Drop the knife! We will take action if you don't.”

“The police are on their way. Surrender now."

Joanna silently thanked her stars for the self-defense training she had received. Without it, the man would have surely overtaken her.

As she noticed a line of security guards offering a chance to escape, a child's cry pierced the air. She turned to see the man gripping a young boy of about six or seven years old.

The boy's parents were nearby, frantic with worry. “Carl! Carl!

Please save our son..."

Facing the man squarely, Joanna demanded, “What do you want?"

The man's grip on the child tightened, the knife dangerously close to the boy's throat. A single move could end in tragedy.

"I want you dead!"

"I was trying to help you just now!" Joanna protested in utter disbelief. Her intentions to help had spiraled into this nightmare.

The man's voice was raw with fury. “Because you're filthy rich! You deserve to die! With all your wealth, why not help those who are suffering? Those starving and freezing? Instead, you spend lavishly on jewelry. My father has passed away, and I've lost my will to Live.

I want you to die with me! If not, this child will suffer the same fate!"

The boy's mother was beside herself with grief, barely able to speak.

“No, not Carl..."

“Let him go. Take me instead!" Joanna offered herself, stepping closer, her resolve clear in front of the gathered crowd. She was determined not to let an innocent child suffer because of her.

"ALL right. Come here," the man commanded, turning his attention back to the child. "Stay quiet, or I'll end you now!"

The boy froze, terror-stricken.

Joanna took a deep breath and lunged at the man, managing to throw the child to safety. She then aimed a kick at the man's hand, hoping to disarm him.

At that moment, shock registered on Joanna's face as she felt the knife pierce her abdomen.