2026-07-31 06:41:55Ethan stared at his phone.
The screen kept lighting up.
Chloe ❤️ Calling…
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Just like before.
Five years ago, seeing her name would have made him smile.
Now…
It only reminded him of betrayal.
He let the phone ring until it stopped.
A few seconds later, it rang again.
Ethan answered this time.
“Where are you?” Chloe asked.
“I’ve been calling you.”
Ethan leaned against the wall.
“What do you want?”
His cold voice caught her off guard.
“What kind of question is that?”
“I just wanted to hear your voice.”
Ethan almost laughed.
Five years ago, he would have believed her.
Now he knew better.
“You don’t need to.”
There was a short silence.
“Ethan… are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Then why are you talking like this?”
“I’m just busy.”
“You promised we’d have dinner tonight.”
“I know.”
“Don’t forget. Ryan reserved a private room for everyone.”
The moment Ethan heard Ryan’s name, his eyes turned cold.
So…
It really was the same day.
Nothing had changed.
Everything was happening exactly as it had in his previous life.
Only this time…
He knew what was coming.
“I won’t be late,” he said calmly.
“Good.”
“And Ethan?”
“Yeah?”
“Wear something nice.”
The call ended.
Ethan looked at the phone for a few seconds before placing it on the table.
“Wear something nice…”
He smiled bitterly.
In his last life, he had worried about impressing Chloe.
He had even planned to propose to her that night.
Now he knew she had already chosen Ryan.
The proposal…
The ring…
The humiliation…
It had all been meaningless.
A familiar voice echoed inside his head.
[Daily Mission Available.]
A blue screen appeared in front of him.
Mission: Spend $5,000 before midnight.
Reward: Beginner Gift Pack.
Failure: No Reward.
Ethan blinked.
“That’s it?”
“Just spend five thousand dollars?”
The system didn’t reply.
Another message appeared.
Funds have been transferred to the Host’s account.
His phone vibrated.
He quickly opened his banking app.
His balance changed instantly.
$10,284.37
Ethan took a deep breath.
“It actually works.”
This wasn’t a dream.
The money was real.
He looked around his tiny apartment.
Five years ago, ten thousand dollars felt impossible.
Now it had appeared in seconds.
A slow smile spread across his face.
“This life…”
“I’m going to live it differently.”
He quickly changed into a clean shirt and grabbed his wallet.
Before leaving, he looked around the room one last time.
“I won’t stay poor for long.”
…
Outside, the city looked just as busy as he remembered.
Cars filled the roads.
Street vendors shouted at passing customers.
Office workers rushed toward nearby buildings.
Everything was familiar.
But Ethan wasn’t the same man anymore.
He walked into the nearest taxi.
“Downtown Grand Mall.”
The driver looked at him through the mirror.
“That’s one of the most expensive malls in the city.”
“I know.”
Twenty minutes later, the taxi stopped in front of a huge shopping mall.
The glass building reflected the afternoon sun.
Luxury cars filled the parking lot.
People walked in wearing expensive clothes and designer watches.
Ethan paid the driver and stepped out.
As soon as he reached the entrance, a security guard looked him up and down.
His simple clothes stood out immediately.
“Can I help you?” the guard asked.
“I’m here to shop.”
The guard frowned.
“This mall mostly sells luxury brands.”
“I know.”
The guard forced a smile.
“The supermarket is around the back.”
Ethan understood what he meant.
The man thought he couldn’t afford anything inside.
In his last life, Ethan would have felt embarrassed.
Today…
He didn’t care.
“I’m not looking for the supermarket.”
Without saying another word, he walked past the guard.
The guard wanted to stop him.
Just then, another security officer whispered, “Let him go. If he causes trouble, we’ll deal with him later.”
Ethan heard every word.
He simply smiled.
“They’ll learn soon enough.”
As he entered the mall, the system spoke again.
[New Mission Triggered.]
Find Sophia Bennett within thirty minutes.
Reward: 100 System Points.
Ethan stopped walking.
“Sophia Bennett?”
He didn’t recognize the name.
“Who is she?”
The system remained silent.
Only a countdown appeared before him.
Time Remaining: 30:00
The timer immediately began to count down.
Ethan looked around at the crowd.
Hundreds of people filled the mall.
Families.
Students.
Businessmen.
Tourists.
Finding one person among them seemed impossible.
But Ethan had learned something about the system.
It never gave impossible missions.
He took a deep breath.
“Alright.”
“Let’s find Sophia Bennett.”
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Latest Chapter
Chapter 146: The Woman Who Was Never Sophia
The blade pointed at Ethan’s throat.He did not move.The woman sitting across the table watched him with eyes that held centuries of anger, though she looked no older than twenty-five.“Tell me,” she repeated. “Why did you steal my name?”Ethan glanced at the system message still floating above the table.[FOUNDATIONAL VICTIM: IDENTIFIED.][NAME: SOPHIA.][STATUS: DECEASED BEFORE FIRST CREATION.][CAUSE OF DEATH: UNKNOWN.]The woman followed his gaze.“That thing has always been a liar.”“Then tell me your name.”She laughed bitterly.“You still think a name is something you can demand.”“No. I think it’s something you have the right to give me.”The blade stopped moving.For the first time, uncertainty crossed her face.Ethan continued carefully.“I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what happened between us. And I won’t pretend I remember something I don’t. But if you believe I took your name, I need to understand why.”She studied him.“Do you remember the first woman you loved?
Chapter 145: The Million Lives He Could Not Remember
The screams did not stop.They came from every direction, pouring through the doors that had appeared across the white space. Some were filled with rage. Others carried the terror of people who had waited too long for someone to remember them.And some were silent.Those were the worst.Ethan stood motionless as millions of faces stared at him.He recognized none of them.Yet every time he looked into someone’s eyes, something inside him recoiled as if it remembered being responsible for their pain.The boy lay at his feet.The silver blade had shattered, leaving a dark wound in his chest. Blood spread beneath him, but the wound did not close.Ethan dropped beside him.“Stay with me.”The boy looked up at him.“You’re doing it again.”Ethan froze.“What?”“You’re looking at me like saving me will make everything else disappear.”Ethan glanced at the doors.The faces behind them were still screaming.“I won’t let you die.”The boy closed his eyes.“That’s what you said before.”Ethan s
Chapter 144: The Boy Who Died Before Creation
Ethan couldn’t breathe.The boy kneeling in the white space had his face.Not a resemblance. Not another version of him created by the machine. Not an alternate possibility that had taken a different path.It was Ethan.The same eyes. The same mouth. The same small scar beneath the left eyebrow that had appeared after his reconstruction. Even the way the boy held his shoulders, as if preparing for a blow he knew was coming, was painfully familiar.But the boy was younger.And there was a blade buried in his chest.Ethan stared at the blood spreading across the white floor.“No.”The boy looked at him.“You said that before.”Ethan took a step forward.“No, I didn’t.”“You did.”The boy’s voice was weak, but there was no confusion in it.“You said you weren’t going to let me die.”Ethan stopped.Behind the boy, the original First Choice stood silently, watching them with an expression that was almost satisfied.Noah struggled to move toward Ethan.“Don’t listen to him,” he said.The si
Chapter 143: The Choice That Should Never Have Existed
Noah screamed.Ethan had heard people scream in pain. He had heard them scream in fear, in anger, and in the final moments before death.This was different.Noah’s scream came from somewhere deeper than the body. It tore through the white space beyond the beginning and reached every reality connected to the original agreement.For one terrible moment, every world went silent.Then the doors in the Hall of Unchosen Lives began slamming shut.One after another.Thousands became hundreds. Hundreds became dozens. Behind each closing door, a possibility lost its connection to the world that had allowed it to exist.Ethan stood before the silver door, his hand still pressed against its surface.“Noah!”He struck the door with his fist.“Open!”The door did not move.A system message appeared before him.[COMPLETE AUTHORITY RESTORATION: 100%.][THE ORIGINAL AGREEMENT HAS BEEN REACTIVATED.][FOUNDATIONAL AUTHORITY: FIRST CHOICE.][ENDING AUTHORITY: FIRST ENDING.][WITNESS AUTHORITY: UNRECOGNI
Chapter 142: The First Sin Was Mine
For several seconds, Ethan forgot how to breathe.The child stood beside the little girl, holding her hand as though they had known each other for years. His face was identical to Ethan’s, but his eyes carried a sadness that did not belong to any child.He pointed at Ethan.“The first betrayal was committed by someone who wanted to make sure you could never choose freely.”Then he said the words that shattered the silence.“That person was you.”Ethan stared at him.“No.”The child did not look away.“You don’t remember.”“I remember the first choice. I remember the white room. I remember leaving the girl behind.”“Those are the memories you were allowed to keep.”The child’s voice was quiet.“But you don’t remember what happened before the white room existed.”Caelum stepped forward.“Who are you?”The child turned toward him.“You know who I am.”Caelum’s face went pale.“No. You were destroyed before the First World began.”“That’s what you were told.”“I watched Sophia end your ex
Chapter 141: The Woman Who Taught Death to Choose
Ethan could not move.The woman stood at the end of the corridor with one hand resting on the little girl’s shoulder. Her face was calm, almost gentle, but the words she had spoken continued to echo in his mind.I am the reason you were never supposed to become human.Behind Ethan, the stranger who had called her Mother remained motionless.The little girl clutched her drawing against her chest.Nobody spoke.Then Ethan took a careful step forward.“What do you mean?”The woman studied him.“You have spent your entire existence trying to understand what you are. You have searched through memories, questioned authorities, and challenged every rule that threatened someone you wanted to protect.”She paused.“But you have never asked the most important question.”Ethan’s voice was tight.“Which is?”“Why did you need to become human in the first place?”He stared at her.“I was created to experience a life.”“By whom?”“Adam.”“Adam created the conditions that allowed your existence. He
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