15
Seeing Adam’s stunned expression, Noah quickly apologized to the woman in white.“Sorry, my brother mistook you for someone.”
Adam awkwardly retracted his hand, his eyes filled with disappointment.“Noah, do Sylvia hates us so deeply that she refuses to see us, even reborn?”
you think
This was a question Noah had once asked, but now it was Adam’s turn.
Noah lit a cigarette, a wry smile on his face.“We gutted her soul. If she never forgives us, we deserve it. All we can do is… wait. Wait to see if we’re worthy of redemption in this lifetime.” Adam nodded silently.
Meanwhile, I, in my new body, lay in a cozy bed. The system was showing me a broadcast of funeral.
my
To avenge me, Adam and Noah had exposed Charlotte’s crimes, cleared my name, and crushed her career. With the Fowler family’s power, erasing someone was effortless.
But so what? No amount of penitence could resurrect the girl they’d let bleed out under their balcony.
I remained emotionless, like a detached observer watching the livestream.
“Host, it seems like they truly regret it. Shouldn’t you consider going back? The Fowler mansion has heated marble floors! Why endure this peeling wallpaper while you could reclaim luxury…?” the system asked, confused.
I smiled calmly. Few people knew that luxury meant gilded cages.
I remembered my high school classmate, a girl from the countryside who’d shared her homemade pickles with me. Adam learned this and forced me to end this friendship.
“Sylvia, she’s just a girl from a poor family. You don’t need to befriend her. If you want to make new friends, I can introduce you to girls of wealthy families.”
I never saw that girl again. Much later, I learned that Adam and Noah had threatened her into transferring.
After that, Noah and Adam closely monitored my friendships. Anyone I seemed to like would mysteriously disappear from my life.
I loved singing and planned to major in music in college. But on the day I filled out my application, Adam forced me to change it to finance.
The reason? The Fowler family didn’t allow their adoptive daughter into the entertainment industry; they didn’t allow me to sing for pennies because they thought it was vulgar.
Despite the Fowler family’s kindness, if I ever had the chance to leave them, I wouldn’t return.
The system didn’t understand, but seeing my determination, it didn’t say anything more. Then, a cheerful male voice came from downstairs.
01516
Menu
< 15
“Sylvia, come down for dinner.”
My new body’s owner had the same name as me. Her parents were ordinary working–class people; she had an older brother. Their family wasn’t wealthy, but it was warm and loving.
I was grateful to the system for this arrangement. My new parents and brother were kind to me, making up for the loss of my parents.
However, I never expected that this hard–won happiness would be so easily shattered.
My brother knew I loved singing and signed me up for Washington’s largest singing competition, held by a company owned by the Fowler family. I didn’t want to go, but seeing the bright light in his eyes, I swallowed my refusal.
I was worried about encountering Adam and Noah. But since I had a new body, they might not recognize me. Besides, they might not be there.
To my surprise, after singing a song, just as I was about to leave, I was stopped by Noah and Adam. The moment they saw me, their eyes turned red. Adam’s usual elegance was gone.“You must be Sylvia. You’re back, right?”
< 16
Menu
16
