KISS THE SCUMBAG Chapter 15

The first part was nothing special. Winston waited patiently as the will was read out in a tedious list. He remained calm even when it finished stating that he would inherit all assets except for the aforementioned portions. I’ll soon find out why Yujin is reacting so violently, was all Winston thought. That was, until the next part.

“…The above inheritance is granted only on the condition that Winston Campbell marries Yujin and conceives a child within one year.”

Winston slowly uncrossed his legs and straightened his posture, which had been slanting to one side. His expression remained unchanged, but that alone was enough for everyone to know how shocked Winston was. But that wasn’t the end of it.

“…If the contents of this will are not fulfilled, all assets shall be donated to a foundation, and the company shall be transferred to a professional manager. Furthermore, everyone in the Campbell family, including Winston, shall forfeit all rights, including to their assets. The execution of the will shall proceed after one year, provided the aforementioned conditions are faithfully met.”

One of Winston’s eyebrows twitched violently. His pheromone scent thickened again, but this time for an entirely different reason. Yujin was fidgeting as if he wanted to object immediately, but there was still more to the will.

“…During the marriage, Winston must remain faithful to Yujin. Any infidelity, including pheromone parties, is strictly prohibited, and he must ensure Yujin’s life is provided for without lacking anything. All of the above applies only if Yujin marries Winston; if the marriage does not take place or if the contents of the will are not upheld, resulting in the Campbell family forfeiting their property and rights, Yujin shall also receive no inheritance whatsoever. However, only in the event that the marriage fails after the contract has been faithfully fulfilled, Winston shall pay Yujin two million dollars per month for life.”

Having said that much, Harold coughed on the screen. Shaking all over, he let out a fit of violent coughing, then opened his mouth between wheezing breaths. His voice, hoarse and strained, faded to a whisper, yet everyone was able to clearly understand the final words.

“Yujin, I love you. I am truly, truly sorry. May God have mercy on you.”

With a sickly, haggard face, Harold gave his final blessing. With a faint smile, the screen froze, and the reading of the will ended.

The study was filled with a heavy silence. Only then did Winston understand why everyone was in such a state of confusion.

Marriage?

His father’s will repeated slowly in his head.

Have a child? Yujin and I?

He just stared at the frozen screen with a face that had hardened like a mask.

You want me to marry that male prostitute and have a child with him?

“This makes no sense!”

At the sudden scream, Winston’s brain began to function. At the end of his gaze was Yujin. Having risen from his seat again, Yujin stood with his fists clenched, screaming frantically with a face drained of color. It was as if he were letting out the resentment he had been bottling up all this time.

“Me and Winston, married? And have a child? Are you crazy? This is absolutely absurd! He couldn’t have been in his right mind; everyone’s mind gets muddled when facing death…. Yes, that’s it. It must be, Harold was insane!”

“My father’s mind was clear.”

Winston’s cold voice cut Yujin off. As if to prove it, the lawyer nodded and added:

“You would have seen it at the very beginning of the will. Three doctors cross-verified it, and Mr. Campbell’s consciousness was sharp. His pheromone levels were also remarkably low. The will is entirely truthful.”

The color drained from Yujin’s face in an instant. He wore a dazed expression as if he had been struck hard by something, then slowly shook his head and muttered:

“Such… that can’t be….”

Winston, who had been quietly observing Yujin as he repeated the same words like a trance, slowly turned his gaze. The image of his father, who was no longer in this world, entered his view. Narrowing his eyes, Winston glared at him on the screen and twisted the corner of his lips.

Father, you are messing with me until the very end.

“How in the world could this happen!”

Mrs. Campbell’s roar echoed thunderously through the drawing room. It was extremely rare for her to be this enraged. In their entire lives, her children had seen their mother like this only once before. Unfortunately, the cause that made her lose her strong sense of reason this time was the same. Of course, Winston hadn’t been present for that incident in the past, but he felt no particular agitation at seeing her like this for the first time. He remained deep in thought with his usual expressionless face.

Because their mother, who always maintained her poise coldly, was shouting in anger, the rest of the children watched cautiously and couldn’t bring themselves to say a word. That wasn’t all. Unable to contain her fury, Mrs. Campbell paced around the drawing room, continuously cursing her late husband.

“Good heavens, to leave such a will! I want to dig up Harold’s grave, pull out his corpse, and burn it! That shameless, unscrupulous man—he tormented me like that my whole life, and now he insults me by leaving such a will to that filthy thing….”

That male prostitute was to marry her precious youngest son and even have a child? It was out of the question; she would never permit it. On top of that, he was to give his mistress a larger pension than her, his lawful wife? Her pride was so wounded and she was so enraged that she lashed out with uncharacteristic, harsh words.

“That trash of a human being! He should have died the moment he collapsed that day! It would have been better if I had killed him before he wrote this will! I should have done it, I should have shot him in the head with a gun!”

Gordon began to inwardly worry that she might collapse. Seeing their mother pouring out such immense rage, the children could do nothing. They, too, were confused and had no idea how to handle this situation. All they could do was take their mother’s side and denounce their father.

“We can’t just let this pass, we have to do something.”

As Gordon stepped up, Lady Catherine followed suit.

“Of course. To be told to follow such an absurd will—Father must have been mentally ill. It’s truly nonsensical.”

Unable to find other vocabulary, George intervened on behalf of his wife, who kept repeating the same thing.

“Shouldn’t we start by pointing out whether his psychiatric evaluation was legitimate? At the very least, he should have had it confirmed by more than two doctors….”

“They said it was confirmed by three doctors. That fox of an old man.”

Gordon spat an insult at his late father, but no one stopped him. In their hearts, everyone was thinking the same thing. Their mother, who had been breathing heavily while pouring out her rage until then, suddenly turned around.

“What are you going to do, Winston?”

The focus of attention shifted to one side. Mrs. Campbell turned the target of her ire toward Winston, who had been sitting there motionless, lost in thought, without saying a word until then.

“Are you just going to let them take everything? You have to do something! That lowlife must have done something to your father. Weren’t they meeting behind our backs? Yes, that must be it. Otherwise, how, how could this….”

“I don’t think so.”

For the first time, Winston spoke. When his mother stopped talking and everyone focused on him, he continued, speaking slower than usual.

“The probability of my father meeting Yujin is slim. He stayed in the mansion for quite a long time—well, to be precise, at Delight—and if my father had gone out or met anyone, I would have known immediately. Especially if it were Yujin.”

Yujin’s reaction earlier had confirmed his suspicion. A brow twitched briefly at the memory of Yujin negating the will, screaming in near-shock.

Insolent.

Though he made no other movement, everyone sensed he was furious due to the thickened pheromone scent in the room. Of course, the reason was different from what they thought.

I should have been the one to shout and deny it. I should have been the one to protest that my father had lost his mind before his death, but I missed the timing because I was too busy losing myself in the fantasy of ravaging Yujin.

How dare he.