I was reborn. The timing was impeccable—it was exactly our fifth wedding anniversary, right at the moment Carter Hayes claimed he had amnesia. "I only remember being deeply in love with your sister, Stella..." he said, clutching his head in mock agony. Our son pulled at my hand. "Mom, don't blame Dad. He just wants to take care of Aunt Stella. She's such a good person, and even I can't bear to see her all alone." The System popped up, exactly as it had in my previous life: "Host, amnesia is fine! You succeeded last time, and you can do it again. Just re-conquer the devoted second male lead and your son!" I calmly lit a Virginia Slim, placed the framed photo of our "happy family of three" face down on the table, and pulled up a picture of the story's obsessive, villainous antagonist on my phone. "System," I exhaled a thin stream of smoke. "I remember I still have a one-time 'Target Swap' token available. I can change who I conquer, right?" 01 "Huh?" The System froze. "I mean, yes, you never used your Target Swap token, but why would you want to? Carter just has amnesia!" "And you guys have a son! If you change targets now, what happens to little Mason? No, no, I don't approve of this." I scoffed. Amnesia. In my last life, I bought Carter's bullshit. I tried every possible method to help him regain his memory, desperately trying to make him fall in love with me again. Instead, I had to watch as his bond with Stella grew deeper and deeper. "I'm sorry," he had told me. "Maybe we really did share beautiful memories, but I don't remember any of them. I only have Stella in my heart." No matter how hard I tried, all he had for me was the pity you'd give a stranger. He even asked for a divorce. And our son, Mason? He was a miniature, carbon-copy of Carter. When I was drowning in the pain of trying to salvage our marriage and find his father's memories, Mason stood firmly by Carter's side. "Mom, you always tell me to help people. Why are you so mad that Dad is helping Aunt Stella? You're acting really selfish and annoying." Even my own parents came to persuade me. "Why torture yourself? Carter loves your sister now. He can't remember you, so why cling to this marriage?" "Besides, Mason loves Stella too. Even if you and Carter divorce, we'll all still be family." Later, their persuasion turned into accusations: "Your sister went through a terrible divorce. She's so pitiful, why don't you have any empathy for her? She and Carter genuinely love each other now. Because you won't divorce him, she has to bear the stigma of being the 'other woman.' She's your sister. How can you be so selfish?" Eventually, the prolonged depression took its toll, and I fell severely ill. When I went to the hospital, I saw Carter holding Stella up. She was leaning into his chest, sobbing. "Carter, shouldn't we just tell Serena that your amnesia is fake?" He went silent for a moment. "We were married for five years. I'm afraid the truth would hurt her too much." "But she keeps dragging her feet on the divorce! My belly is getting bigger. How can I show my face? How can I have this baby?" Stella cried pitifully. That was when I realized—Carter had never lost his memory. The so-called amnesia was just a convenient excuse to cheat on me without looking like the bad guy. And I, like an absolute idiot, had believed he still loved me, frantically trying to restore "memories" he had never lost. That night, I went back to an empty, echoing house. By midnight, I was burning up with a dangerously high fever. I called Carter, Mason, and my parents. Not a single person answered. They were all out celebrating Stella's birthday. In our family group chat, festive photos popped up one after another. My hand trembled as I typed a few words into the chat: "I think I'm dying." The group chat instantly went dead quiet. A moment later, Stella called. "Serena, are you purposely trying to ruin my birthday? Do you really hate me that much?" Her voice wavered with fake tears. "If you didn't want to come, just say so. Don't act out for attention," my father's voice boomed through the speaker. "Saying you're dying—who are you trying to guilt-trip?" my mother chimed in from the background. "Auntie! Auntie, ignore my mom! It's midnight, time to blow out the candles!" Mason's cheerful voice rang out. The other end of the line erupted in laughter and cheers. As the phone slipped from my weak grip, I heard a mechanical chime. "Host has failed the Extra Chapter Conquest. Ultimate Ending: Conquest Failed. However, because you achieved the 'Marriage' milestone halfway through and have valid points, you may trigger a one-time rebirth protocol with the original system. Rebooting in 5, 4, 3, 2..." So, this was just an "Extra" chapter. It all made sense. When I married Carter and told the System I wanted to stay in this world, it had stayed suspiciously quiet. I had never actually completed the conquest. I had never escaped the plot's constraints. In this spin-off chapter, the female lead (Stella) divorced her husband and finally ended up with the devoted second male lead (Carter), whom she had loved all along. And I? I was just the vicious supporting character in their extra chapter. A stumbling block on their road to romance. The catalyst to prove their true love. I was someone who died alone, without a single person caring enough to check on me. 02 Just then, the front door opened. Carter and Mason walked in. The moment Mason saw me, he rushed forward to block his father. "Mom, don't start nagging Dad about the past today! He's exhausted." Oh, I bet he was. Stella's divorce had been finalized today, and Carter had spent the entire day helping her move. Thinking about it, I suddenly burst out laughing. Carter frowned deeply. "Serena, what are you laughing at?" His gaze dropped to the cigarette between my fingers. In my past life, I had never touched a cigarette. "You know, Carter," I said, crossing my legs and casually blowing a smoke ring. "When I used to read romance novels, I always loved the devoted 'second male lead'." "But looking back, what is a 'devoted second male lead'? He's just a simp." I pointed at him with my cigarette, then pointed at Mason. "What I didn't expect was that a simp would raise another simp. Apparently, the trait is genetic." "What's a simp?" Mason blinked, confused. "Mom, what are you talking about? Why are you calling me a dog?" "Serena, if you're acting like this because I helped Stella today..." Carter said impatiently. "Why are you so jealous of your own sister? Besides, I spend every day looking for my memories with you. I just wanted one day to rest—" "You don't need to anymore," I interrupted. "What?" I stubbed the cigarette out in a glass of water and slid a stack of papers across the coffee table. "I've thought it through. If the memories are gone, they're gone. It's no big deal." "I've already drafted the divorce papers, and I've already lined up my next guy. Let's do each other a favor and just sign. We can be done today." "What are you saying?" Carter froze. "Host! Host, calm down! You can't handle Damian Vance! He's a complete psycho! You can't just swap to him!" the System screamed in my ear. "Yeah, well, I need a psycho," I replied to the System internally. Otherwise, how was a "vicious supporting character" like me supposed to tear down the Hayes and Davies families? "Are you saying..." Carter stared at me in absolute disbelief. "You have... someone else?" He stared blankly, blurting out, "That's impossible." 03 Of course, to Carter, it sounded impossible. Carter was Stella's ultimate simp, and the old me? The old me was Carter's ultimate simp. I had revolved my entire life around him. I accompanied him when he was down, took care of him when he was sick, and even stayed awake for days to change his ice packs when he had a fever. "Serena, can you stop throwing a tantrum?" Carter’s face darkened as he tossed the divorce papers back onto the table. "I told you, I have amnesia. Faking a divorce and making up some imaginary 'next guy' to make me jealous isn't going to work. The current me feels absolutely nothing for—" "I want 30% of the Hayes Global equity, since I helped build it after we married. You can keep the kid," I said expressionlessly, walking toward the door. "Just sign it, and we'll head straight to the courthouse." He froze again. "What does divorce mean? Does it mean Aunt Stella is going to be my new mom?" Mason asked blankly. I ignored the two of them, opened the door, and walked out. "Host, what are you doing?! Carter just has amnesia, he still has feelings for you underneath! You're hurting him so much..." The System kept chattering. "Hey System," I said. "Do you think I should touch up my makeup before going to Vance Enterprises?" "What? Where are you going? No, you absolutely cannot go see that psycho villain! You'll regret it— BEEP." Using 20 points, I muted the System. Too noisy. I went out, bought a sharp new outfit, and headed to a high-end salon for full hair and makeup. "You look stunning today, Mrs. Hayes. Is it a special anniversary with your husband?" the stylist asked sweetly, recognizing me. "Yep. Getting ready to go cheat," I said, adjusting my pearl earrings with satisfaction. "...Haha, you're so funny, Mrs. Hayes." I decided not to take my own car. Instead, I caught a cab straight to the Vance Enterprises skyscraper. "Excuse me, who are you here to see? Do you have an appointment?" the receptionist asked. "Could you do me a favor and let Mr. Vance know," I smiled, "that Serena from Hayes Global is here to bring him a massive gift." 04 Inside the CEO's office at Vance Enterprises. "Your office is quite spacious, Mr. Vance. Just a bit empty," I said, sitting on the leather sofa, looking around. "Mrs. Hayes, my time is quite valuable," Damian Vance said from behind his massive desk. His legs were crossed, his expression unreadable and dark. "I know. You're busy competing with Hayes Global, aren't you?" I smiled. "What if I said I'm willing to defect to your side? Would Mr. Vance be willing to take me in?" He paused, then suddenly chuckled. "I've heard rumors of Mrs. Hayes's deep devotion to her husband. I never expected that you'd offer yourself up as bait to infiltrate my company for his sake." He stood up, walked over, and leaned down, placing both hands on the sofa on either side of me. His eyes were dangerous. "Aren't you afraid of walking alone into a wolf's den? You might be swallowed whole, leaving no bones behind." Our eyes met. For a long moment, it was silent. Then, I burst out laughing. "I'm not afraid. Since Mr. Vance knows I'm someone who would do anything for her husband, you might as well marry me. You know a hopelessly devoted woman like me will sacrifice everything for love. Plus, the design team I control is pretty top-tier." He didn't speak. But I knew he was tempted. Not by me, but by the resources I controlled. Truthfully, Damian and I were old acquaintances. He ran Vance Enterprises, Hayes Global's biggest rival, and he was a constant thorn in Carter's side. In the original timeline, I was a relatively famous jewelry designer. Hayes Global had once been pushed to the brink of bankruptcy by Damian. The initial capital that brought Hayes back from the dead came entirely from my jewelry designs. Over the years, Hayes and Vance had clashed countless times, trading wins and losses. And Damian Vance was the man Carter hated most in the world. After a long moment, Damian straightened up. "Mrs. Hayes is undeniably beautiful, but I have no interest in married women." "What if I divorce Carter Hayes?" I stood up, taking a step closer, tilting my head to look at him. He faltered for a second. "Oh, well, that changes things," he smirked. "But Mrs. Hayes should know, I don't tolerate traitors." He reached out, tilting my chin up with his fingers. "Marriage is a valid contract, I'll admit. But if you want to marry me, you're going to need to show some sincerity." "Thirty percent of Hayes Global equity, and my entire design team. I'll bring them with me as my dowry." I smiled. "Can Mr. Vance handle that?" 05 Damian accepted my terms. Over the following days, I moved out of the house entirely, prepping everything for the impending divorce. Neither Carter nor Mason came looking for me; they were likely too busy playing house with Stella. One day, I had to swing by the house to grab a design draft I'd forgotten. When I opened the door, the place was chaotic. Mason was crying in Stella's arms, my parents were looking furious, and Carter had a dark storm cloud over his face. "You actually have the nerve to show your face? Who knows where you've been running wild!" my mother yelled the moment she saw me. "You don't care about your child, you don't care about your husband! How did I raise such a useless daughter?" "If Stella hadn't been helping take care of Mason lately, we wouldn't have even known he was being bullied so badly at kindergarten! What kind of mother are you? Why are you taking the side of an outsider?" I frowned. Stella immediately stepped forward, her voice soft and gentle: "Serena, I don't want to lecture you, but when Mason was bullied at school, how could you force him to apologize first? Do you know how much trauma that could cause a child?" "Why should he apologize when he did something wrong?" I replied coldly. "He called another kid a 'poor loser' and called his parents 'trash.' The other kid got mad and fought back. Mason didn't even lose the fight—he broke the other boy's nose." "But he did lose!" Stella’s voice remained saccharine. "When I picked him up these past few days, he was so depressed. But it's fine. I already paid the other family off, and they made their kid apologize to Mason immediately." "What?" I stared at her in disbelief. "Don't you think that's incredibly unfair to the other child? He was the victim, and just because his parents took a payoff, he has to apologize?" "He should apologize to me! You're biased! You're a bad guy! You're not my mom! I want a new mom!" Mason charged at me, fists flailing, until Stella pulled him back. "See? You're breaking the child's heart." Stella crouched down, delicately wiping away the two forced tears on Mason's cheeks. I rolled my eyes. "You really think this is a good way to raise him?" "Enough. We all agree with how Stella handled it," my father stepped in, his voice grim. "You didn't grow up by our side, and we failed to discipline you. That's why you grew up to be such an irresponsible wife and mother." "If you can't raise a child, let Stella do it. I think she's a much better mother figure than you." I actually let out a dry laugh. They couldn't wait to replace me, could they? I turned to Carter. "What about you? Do you agree with them?" "It's in the past," he said, standing up. "Stop harping on it." "Hurry up and cook dinner! Dad works so hard every day, how can you just not be home? We're starving!" Mason shrieked at the top of his lungs. Whatever. I let out a long breath. "Carter, did you sign the divorce papers?" "Papers? What papers?" Stella clearly didn't know about this yet. But her eyes darted around, and she immediately ran to the side table, picking up the divorce agreement. "Serena, you want a divorce? And you want 30% of the Hayes shares?" She stared at me with wide, innocent eyes. "Don't you think... that's taking it too far? How can you be so greedy?" "Too far? Greedy?" I looked at her. "When I married Carter, Hayes Global was on the verge of bankruptcy. My jewelry designs brought it back from the dead. I built the current design team from the ground up. Why shouldn't I get 30%?" "But you stepped back from management after having Mason! Hayes Global is where it is today because of Carter's blood, sweat, and tears! How can you shamelessly claim it's your doing?" "Never home, demanding a divorce, and trying to extort money from your husband's family—our Davies family is entirely humiliated to have a daughter like you!" my father roared. "You didn't see what I sacrificed, so you get to say I don't deserve it? How did I not help the company? As a designer, I accompanied Carter to every single business dinner. When he drank, I drank. I drank just as much as him to secure those deals!" I couldn't help but yell back. "Enough!" Carter suddenly bellowed. Everyone fell silent. "Serena, 30% is too much," he said coldly. "I absolutely will not agree to it." I suddenly started laughing. "You guys... are truly disgusting." I turned, grabbed my design portfolio, slammed the door, and walked out. I never wanted to see anyone in that house ever again. It was raining outside, and I didn't have an umbrella. "See? I told you not to cause a scene. How are you going to fix this now? It's going to be so hard to get Carter to forgive you!" the System nagged incessantly. "Give me a minute of quiet," I muttered, finding an empty spot on the sidewalk to crouch down. The rain washed down my hair. I hugged my knees, feeling a bone-deep chill. Even though I knew this was just a "conquest" world, I had treated everyone in it with absolute sincerity. I had truly considered them my family. Even though I knew I had fallen in love with a piece of trash, in this moment, I still felt a profound sense of worthlessness for myself. For all those years I had thrown away. "Looks like Mrs. Hayes's road to divorce isn't going very smoothly." An umbrella suddenly appeared over my head. I looked up. It was Damian. He stood there holding the umbrella, looking down at me. "Sorry, I couldn't get the 30% equity." I gave a self-deprecating smile. "Just pretend you never heard my offer, Mr. Vance." He was quiet for a moment, then suddenly crouched down. "Actually, I think I'm starting to find you, Serena Davies, quite interesting. "Want to try a different game?" "Huh?" "I don't want the 30% equity anymore." He pulled out a handkerchief and gently wiped the rainwater from my hair. "Marry me, and we'll bankrupt Hayes Global together." 06 "Host, don't be impulsive!!! Wait, wait, wait—" SLAM! I pushed open the double doors to the CEO's office at Hayes Global. "Divorce." I slapped a revised divorce agreement onto Carter's desk. He frowned. "I don't want the equity. I'm leaving with nothing. Now can you sign it?" "What crazy pill did you take today?" He rubbed his temples. "I told you, I've already found my next guy. I'm in a rush to get married, so we need to divorce immediately." He suddenly laughed, slowly pulling a stack of papers from his drawer. "Serena, your dashcam logs show that you haven't been going home, but you've only been staying at your old pre-marriage apartment. "Your routine is incredibly simple. So simple... it looks like you have nowhere else to go." He tapped the papers, his gaze confident. "You don't have a 'next guy.' You're causing all this drama just to use a divorce threat to get my attention." I suddenly understood just how frustrating it must have been for whoever coined the phrase "playing the piano to a cow." I sat down, lit a Virginia Slim, and made a quick phone call to Stella. After her divorce, Carter had immediately secured her a job at Hayes Global. "Why did you call her?" "To chat." Stella arrived promptly. "Serena, what are you doing? Carter works so hard. Last time you already made everyone in the family so upset. This is the office, you can't just throw a tantrum here—" "Shut your mouth and listen," I cut her off. "Carter." I turned, tapped my cigarette ash, and smiled at him. "Everyone's here now. Tell me, are you just reluctant to let me go?" "What?" He froze. "You keep saying you forgot me and only remember Stella. But when I ask for a divorce, you refuse. Is it because you just can't bear to lose me? "You don't actually like Stella as much as you claim, do you? "Or maybe, your amnesia is completely fake? You remember everything about us, which is why you won't sign the papers. Am I right?" I looked at Stella. "What should we do? I didn't know he loved me this much." "Shut up!" Carter roared, cutting me off. "Carter..." Stella immediately looked at him with big, watery eyes. His face was exceptionally grim. After a long moment, he clenched his fists and spoke: "Serena, I was only pitying you. I thought about the years we were married and knew you had nowhere else to go. That's the only reason I didn't want to sign. "I haven't remembered you, and I have zero lingering feelings for you. To me, you are a complete stranger. "You want a divorce this badly? Fine. I'll give you what you want." He grabbed a pen and, as if throwing a tantrum, signed his name on the agreement with a flourish. "But don't come crying to me when you regret it." 07 Afraid Carter might change his mind, I dragged him to the courthouse to file the papers immediately after he signed. "There's a mandatory waiting period before the decree is finalized. Don't be late for the final sign-off." He shot me an icy glare and left. "Why is he so mad? Wasn't he the one desperate for a divorce in the previous life?" I watched him walk away, utterly exasperated. "What previous life?" the System asked, confused. Oh, right. This System didn't have memories of the previous iteration. A few days later, Damian called and told me to go to a specific address. I went. It was a luxury bridal boutique. "Hello, Ms. Davies. Mr. Vance specifically instructed us to help you try on whichever style you prefer," the consultant said with a bright smile. When I married Carter, I wore a massive ballgown with a long train because that's what Carter liked, and I wanted to make him happy. But actually, I personally preferred a mermaid silhouette. This time, I was going to make myself happy. I spent the whole afternoon trying on dresses, snapped a few photos, and texted them to Damian. "You like the mermaid style?" he replied almost instantly. "It suits you perfectly." Just then, my phone rang. Assuming it was Damian, I answered it without looking. "Mason is running a high fever. You need to get back here right now." It was Carter's voice. "..." I took a deep breath, forcing myself to remain calm. "We are divorced. You have full custody of Mason. You are his father. Can't you take care of him?" "Serena, a mother and child are connected by heart! He's in so much pain, how can you be so cold-blooded?" It was Stella. Oh, she was there. Perfect. "I can't come," I said, my patience wearing thin. "Sister, didn't you say you loved Mason the most? Let me tell you what that means. When he's sick, you need to hold him constantly. You need to sing lullabies all night long like he's a baby, and take his temperature every thirty minutes. "Oh, and he fights taking his medicine. He'll throw up everywhere on purpose. But that's fine! You just mix the medicine again and give him another bath." "I don't have any experience with this! Why are you telling me this?! You're his mother, you should come back and take care of him! Mason, Mason, don't throw up on Auntie's dress—" "Stella," I lowered my voice, my tone icy. "What did you think raising a child was? Did you think it was just looking glamorous, sneaking him candy, spoiling him, and listening to him call you his favorite? "No. Raising a child is night after night of no sleep. It's endless, repetitive caregiving. It's being so busy you don't have time to use the bathroom, eat, or sleep. "Do you really want to be Mason's mother? Then do everything I just listed." "Serena, the kid is suffering! He keeps crying for his mom. Do you really have to be so petty over trivial things right now?!" Carter's angry voice boomed through the phone. "I told you, I'm busy." "What could you possibly be busy with?!" "Ms. Davies, for the dress, do we need to take the waist in a bit more for you?" the bridal consultant walked over and asked with a smile. The other end of the line went dead silent. "What... are you doing?" Carter's voice sounded thick with utter disbelief. I spelled it out for him, word by word. "I am trying on wedding dresses."
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