“It’s time to deceive you, but he is struggling. Once you learn the truth, will you be able to forgive him?”

“No matter the reasons, lying is always wrong. No one wants to be misled. He has been deceived for a long time. If he discovers the truth, he shouldn’t be angry. If you know the truth, don’t start off by cheating,” Kiera told Julian. “Mr. Bucham, you need to persuade your friend. If he doesn’t want to lead a life of deceit, he should come clean with the person he has wronged as soon as possible. He should strive for the other person’s forgiveness.”

Julian smiled and replied, “Yes, what you say makes sense, and I will talk to my friend.” He tested the waters this way to understand Kiera’s boundaries.

After two days, once he had returned Kiera to Yonsburg, he planned to confess everything to her. However, he worried that being honest might prevent him from returning to the martial arts gym. Although he wasn’t particularly keen on learning martial arts at Caron’s gym, he believed his boxing and kicking skills matched Kiera’s. Since they had never sparred, he had no way of knowing who was better. After witnessing Kiera in action that night, he suspected they were evenly matched.

If he couldn’t attend the home martial arts gym, he would miss out on the opportunity to get closer to her. Reflecting on Kiera’s words, Julian decided that if he couldn’t find an alternative, he should simply let it go. He knew he couldn’t deceive Kiera. If she discovered the truth later and became so upset that she wanted to leave him, he feared he might react like Zachary.