Their Mistake, Her Rise - Chapter 60: Chapter 60

The sudden lunge was so unexpected that it felt like an ambush in the dark. Shawn's instincts kicked in, and for a moment, he thought he was back on the battlefield. He tensed up, thinking Zoe was about to attack him.
His brow furrowed instinctively, and he raised his strong, firm arm, ready to push Zoe away.
But as he grabbed the back of Zoe's collar, Shawn suddenly stopped. He immediately realized that Zoe was trembling in his arms, too scared to even look at the roller coaster ahead.
Shawn's face softened. He had mistaken Zoe's fear for an assault. 'It seems I'm too on edge. I almost hurt her again,' he thought to himself.
Moved by compassion, Shawn didn't push her away. Instead, he wrapped his arms around Zoe, holding her tightly as she shivered in fear.
The roller coaster picked up speed, twisting and turning on the tracks. Zoe had been visibly scared from the start, and as the ride continued, her fear only grew. She clung to Shawn the entire time, playing the part of a terrified little girl perfectly.
When the roller coaster finally came to an end, many people got off and ran to the side to vomit from the intense experience. Zoe didn't throw up, but her face was as pale as sheets.
She looked genuinely frightened and hadn't made any aggressive moves toward Shawn. Seeing this, Shawn let his guard down a little.
He looked directly at her and asked, "If you're so scared of roller coasters, why did you want to ride one?"
Zoe's face immediately took on a sorrowful expression. "I've never ridden a roller coaster before. I just wanted to try everything.
"I saw on TV and online that people say it's really fun. But when I was little, we were very poor and didn't have the chance. When I grew up, no one was there to go with me."
She continued, "I came back home, thinking I had found family, someone to enjoy these things with, but they don't like me. Mr. Ludwig, am I so unlovable? Do they actually wish I had never come back? That I shouldn't have returned at all?"
Zoe's story transitioned from the amusement park to her current situation. She shed a few tears, perfectly embodying the role of a lonely and abandoned girl. In fact, there was some truth to her words.
As the Queen of Mercenaries, who had thrived on the battlefield, Zoe had indeed never ridden a roller coaster before. Her greatest wish had always been to live a normal life with her family.
All children want to go to amusement parks and ride roller coasters, but she had been forced to grow up in such a dark environment.
Shawn couldn't help but think of himself. Without parental protection, he had been strictly groomed by his grandfather from a young age. His uncles had always schemed to get rid of him, treating him like a thorn in their side.
He had never even had the chance to leave the Ludwig mansion, let alone go to an amusement park.
On the surface, he was the supreme heir of the Ludwig family, but in reality, his life was anything but free.
Shawn wanted to say something to comfort Zoe, but was interrupted when she wiped away her tears.
She looked at him again, her tone stronger. "I really do envy those kids who can come to the amusement park carefree, accompanied by their parents.
"When I was little, I was like a stray dog. No one wanted to take me in. People would throw stones at me whenever they saw me. They laughed at me, hit me, called me a nobody, a disgusting beggar. I was often beaten ruthlessly."
She continued, "But even so, it was a new life given to me by God. At least there, I could survive, I could scrape together a meal and find some old clothes to wear in that hellish place.
"If I were lucky, in winter I might get a warm blanket and a shabby little hut to keep out the wind and rain."
Zoe's eyes glistened with tears as she spoke of her past. She spoke as if recounting someone else's story, but Shawn saw the genuine sorrow and pain hidden in her eyes.
Zoe kept a close watch on Shawn's expressions throughout. Actually, her words were a mix of truth and fiction. She had indeed been bullied, starved, and left with barely enough to wear.
In reality, the slums she had crawled through were far more brutal than she described. However, the people who had once bullied her were all dead at her hands.
Zoe told Shawn a mix of truth and lies because only genuine emotions could truly move someone.
Though Shawn's face was expressionless, Zoe could see a flicker of emotion in his eyes. On the surface, Zoe continued to play the victim, and inside, she felt confident.
If she could reach Shawn's heart, she believed the assassination mission would succeed. Once a person had a weakness, they were no longer invincible.
"Is there anything else you want to do?" Shawn asked.
Zoe's eyes lit up as she looked at Shawn, showing just the right amount of anticipation. "Mr. Ludwig, are you going to keep accompanying me?" she asked.
"Since it's a celebration for you, you get to decide," Shawn replied.
Zoe sniffled slightly and pointed into the distance. "I want to try those," she said, indicating a row of high-altitude rides.
Shawn's eyes flickered. "Aren't you scared?"
Zoe's lower lip trembled slightly. For some reason, Shawn's heart softened, and he agreed without hesitation. "Let's go."
Shawn didn't want to upset Zoe, so he went along with it. Seeing that Shawn wasn't resisting, Zoe took his hand, interlocking their fingers in an intimate gesture.
At first, Shawn felt a bit uncomfortable, but when Zoe deliberately showed her vulnerability, he found it hard to refuse.
"That one over there has the most people. Let's do that one," Zoe said, leading Shawn into the crowd. She was agile, deliberately weaving through the densest areas.
At that moment, someone accidentally tripped and collided with Zoe. Shawn's strong hand quickly pulled her to his side, shielding her from the impact.
Shawn positioned Zoe in front of him, protecting her from the jostling crowd. With him there, it was as if everyone else was blocked out, and no one could touch her.
Zoe pressed against Shawn's broad and warm chest, feeling his strong heartbeat. Her own heart was pounding fiercely.