Three years into my husband’s affair, the System finally returned online. It told me I could go home. For the final ten days, I stopped fighting. I stopped screaming. I let him stay out all night with his sugar baby. I let him regift the things I cherished to her. On the day of my departure—my birthday—he stormed in with his mistress. He smashed my cake, pinned me against the window, and demanded to know why I tried to hurt their unborn child. "When did you become so vicious, Elara?" I laughed, too tired to explain. "You're right. I am vicious." "So, you two deserve each other." Then, right before his eyes, I leaned back and fell nineteen stories down. Ending everything I had in this world. 1 When the System finally broke its silence to tell me I could leave, I had just finished another screaming match with Damian. He had just come back from "comforting" his mistress, Bella. The scent of her perfume was still clinging to his jacket. Seeing me lying on the bed, he climbed in and hugged me from behind. His lips were warm, trailing kisses down my neck. I sat up abruptly and slapped him across the face. "Damian, if you don't feel dirty, I do." He froze, touching his cheek with a self-deprecating smirk. Then, he grabbed me. He dragged me to the vanity mirror, gripping my jaw, his eyes cold. "You think I'm dirty? Look at yourself, Elara. Do you see even a shadow of the woman you used to be?" I looked at myself in the glass. My hair was a mess, my silk strap slipping off a bony shoulder. I looked like a madwoman. The eyes that used to sparkle were dull. Fine lines had crept onto my face, stealing my youth. In that moment, Bella’s face flashed in my mind—young, collagen-filled, burning with ambition and desire, looking at me with pure provocation. "So, that’s your excuse for cheating?" I whispered, leaning against the wall, tears welling up. He stepped closer, wiping a tear from the corner of my eye. "I’ve told you a thousand times, I’m just having fun. When I get bored, I’ll come back. Elara, I’ve always loved you." Disgusting. I screamed, grabbing a heavy perfume bottle and smashing it into the mirror. "Get out! Get the hell out!" After he left, I stood barefoot on the cold marble floor, looking out the window at the giant LED billboard across the street. It was playing Bella’s modeling commercial—paid for by Damian. I laughed. Scenes like this had played out a hundred times this year. From heartbreak to numbness. I didn't belong to this world. Eight years ago, I entered this world on a mission: Save the tragic, broken antagonist, Damian Sterling. Back then, his father had embezzled funds and run off with a mistress, leaving Damian with a bankrupt company, a mother who had taken her own life, and millions in debt. His eyes were dead. I was the one who walked toward him on a sunny morning. I lived in a damp basement apartment in Queens with him. We ate instant noodles and worked three jobs until every cent was paid back. He once asked me, "Why are you so good to me?" I smiled and held his hand. "Maybe it’s a sign from God." He lowered his head. "Then you are the best gift God has ever given me." The day the mission was completed, he seemed to sense I might leave. He held me all night, eyes red. I softened. "Damian, I’m not going home." The System vanished. For five years, it was silent. And in those five years, Damian built an empire. And three years into our marriage, he strayed. He found a twenty-something model named Bella. 2 I still remember the day I found out. He came home drunk, leaned his head on my shoulder, and mumbled, "Ella, how did you get shorter?" I thought it was a joke. I’ve always been 5'5". People don't shrink in their twenties. Later, I checked his phone. Bella was 5'9". Tall, leggy, sexy. And when he called out "Ella," I realized he wasn't saying my name, Elara. He was saying Bella. I don't remember much of that day. Just a ringing in my ears and the world spinning. Damian knelt before me, crying, swearing it was just a moment of weakness. Three years of dating, three years of marriage, giving up my real life... all for this. I wasn't willing to let go. So, we stayed in this rotting marriage. Like a rose infested with aphids—too beautiful to throw away, too disgusting to keep. We fought until we were exhausted. So when the System woke up and spoke to me, I answered immediately. "System, I regret it. I want to go home." 3 "Host, I warned you back then. The storyline after the mission ends is unpredictable... including Damian's heart." "However, given your perfect mission rating, I will grant you a special privilege. I can open the channel home one last time." "But the window opens in ten days." Tears streamed down my face. I nodded. "Understood. The countdown begins." The System went silent. The penthouse was quiet as a tomb. I wiped my face and started packing. Or rather, clearing out. I didn't want to leave a trace. I threw my clothes into trash bags. I took down the wedding photos. I took off the ring. When we got married, Damian spent his last savings on a 0.7-carat diamond. He knelt, sobbing. "Elara, you are the only light in my dark life. I will be loyal to you until death." I wore that small diamond proudly. Until I saw the 5-carat pink diamond on Bella’s finger. I took a hammer and smashed the wedding photo frames. Looking at the empty apartment, I felt a strange sense of relief. I had struggled in this toxic marriage for too long. Leaving was a mercy. 4 The next morning, I went downstairs. The lights were dim. Damian was sitting on the sofa, smoking. "Where are the photos?" he asked, not looking up. His phone kept pinging. It was Bella. She sent a photo holding a bouquet of gold-foil roses. [Last night was exhausting, but the gift makes it all better. <3] He didn't even hide the screen. "I put them away," I said calmly, walking past him to get water. He put out his cigarette, smirked, and stood up. He pulled a Van Cleef & Arpels necklace from his pocket and clasped it around my neck. "Still mad? Here. An apology gift. It suits you." He leaned in, whispering in my ear like a snake. "Elara, you will always be Mrs. Sterling. No one can take your place. Not even Bella." "When I'm bored of her, let's try for a baby again, okay?" I pushed him away coldly, brushing off the lipstick stain on his collar. "Get out." 5 We did have a child once. I didn't even know I was pregnant. It was the fourth time I caught him. I had waited outside a hotel all night, crying in my car. In the morning, I saw him walk her out, his hand squeezing her lower back before helping her into his passenger seat. They started kissing before he even started the car. I lost my mind. I slammed on the gas and drove my car into a median. I lost the baby in the crash. Damian looked at me now, surprised by my indifference, but he didn't probe. He nodded and left. He didn't come home for two days. I watched the gossip news about him and Bella while I systematically sold off my assets. The System told me I could convert my wealth here into currency for my original world. In the early years of our marriage, Damian felt guilty for making me live in poverty. He put almost every property in my name. He didn't give me enough love, but he gave me enough money to live like a queen in my next life. With five days left, I drove to the outskirts of the city. There was one property left—a villa he gifted me for our anniversary. It was where we conceived our lost child. I arrived to find the garden replanted with roses. I used my key, but the door opened from the inside. "Back for more so soon, Daddy?" It was Bella. 6 She was wearing a sheer red silk robe, leaning against the doorframe. Her surprise quickly turned to a sneer. I realized immediately: Damian was keeping her here. "This is my house. You have five minutes to get dressed and get out," I said, stepping forward. Bella blocked the way, crossing her arms. "But Mr. Sterling gave this house to me." "Gave? Did he transfer the deed? Because the owner is standing right here." "You're just squatting. Get out." Bella’s face turned red. I called Damian. "Elara, it's just a house. Let the girl stay for a few days. Don't be difficult, if you make her cry, she's annoying to comfort." Bella grabbed my wrist, emboldened by his voice on the speaker. "Mrs. Sterling, you dated for three years. I've been with him for three years. Do you think I'll take your title this year?" She touched her flat stomach. "I'm raising the stakes. I'm pregnant." On the phone, I heard the click of mahjong tiles. Damian's voice was lazy. "I bought a jade necklace at auction. I'll give it to you for your birthday. Bella is just a pet to pass the time. If you're unhappy, I'll move her." I laughed, my voice trembling. "Damian, did you hear that? Your canary is having a chick. Congratulations. You're finally going to be a father." The line went dead silent.
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