2026-07-31 06:42:51Ethan stood in the middle of the mall.
The blue screen floated in front of him.
Mission: Find Sophia Bennett.
Time Remaining: 29:42
The timer continued counting down.
Ethan looked around.
There were people everywhere.
Children ran across the hallway.
Couples walked hand in hand.
Store workers welcomed customers with bright smiles.
Finding one person among hundreds of strangers seemed almost impossible.
He took a slow breath.
“The system wouldn’t give me a mission I can’t finish.”
He started walking.
Instead of looking into every store, he carefully watched the people around him.
Five minutes passed.
Nothing.
Ten minutes.
Still nothing.
The timer dropped to nineteen minutes.
Ethan frowned.
“There has to be a clue.”
Just then, he heard a woman shout.
“You broke it!”
The sharp voice came from a jewelry store on the second floor.
Several people immediately gathered around.
Ethan looked toward the crowd.
For some reason, he felt the mission had something to do with it.
Without wasting another second, he hurried upstairs.
By the time he arrived, nearly twenty people had surrounded the entrance.
A young woman stood in the middle of the crowd.
She looked to be around twenty-one years old.
She wore a plain white blouse, blue jeans, and a pair of clean white sneakers.
Her long black hair was tied into a ponytail.
She wasn’t wearing any expensive jewelry.
In fact, she looked like an ordinary college student.
Across from her stood an angry saleswoman.
“I saw you touch the necklace!”
“I didn’t,” the young woman replied, trying to stay calm.
“I was only looking.”
“Then why did it fall?”
“I… I don’t know.”
“If you can’t pay for it, we’ll call the police.”
The young woman’s face turned pale.
“I really can’t afford it.”
The customers around them began whispering.
“If you don’t have money, why come into a luxury store?”
“Exactly.”
“People like her just waste everyone’s time.”
The young woman lowered her head.
She looked embarrassed.
Ethan looked at the necklace lying inside the display case.
It only took him a few seconds to notice the problem.
The clasp hadn’t been locked properly.
The necklace wasn’t broken at all.
Before he could speak, the system appeared.
Mission Target Confirmed.
Name: Sophia Bennett.
Age: 21.
Occupation: Third-Year Medical Student.
Future Achievement: One of the World’s Best Heart Surgeons.
Mission: Help Sophia Bennett.
A smile appeared on Ethan’s face.
“So you’re Sophia.”
He stepped through the crowd.
“Excuse me.”
Everyone turned to look at him.
The saleswoman frowned.
“This doesn’t concern you.”
Ethan didn’t answer her.
He picked up the necklace and looked at it carefully.
Then he pressed the tiny clasp with his thumb.
Click.
The necklace locked into place.
He held it up.
“It isn’t broken.”
The saleswoman’s eyes widened.
“What?”
“The clasp wasn’t closed.”
“You accused her without checking first.”
The store became quiet.
One customer stepped closer.
“He’s right.”
“It really isn’t broken.”
Another customer nodded.
“I can see it now.”
“It opens and closes normally.”
The saleswoman’s face turned red.
She quickly tried to defend herself.
“Maybe… maybe she loosened it.”
Ethan looked at her calmly.
“Then let’s check the security cameras.”
The saleswoman froze.
A few seconds later, the store manager rushed over.
“What happened here?”
Several customers spoke at once.
“Your employee blamed an innocent customer.”
“The necklace wasn’t broken.”
“She almost called the police.”
The manager took the necklace from Ethan and checked it himself.
His expression changed immediately.
He turned toward the saleswoman.
“You accused a customer without proof?”
“I…”
“I’m sorry.”
The manager pointed toward the back office.
“We’ll discuss this later.”
He then faced Sophia and bowed slightly.
“Miss, I sincerely apologize for what happened.”
“This was our mistake.”
“We hope you can forgive us.”
Sophia nodded politely.
“It’s alright.”
The manager looked at Ethan.
“Thank you for helping us avoid a serious mistake.”
Ethan simply smiled.
“I’m glad the truth came out.”
The crowd slowly dispersed.
Soon, only Ethan and Sophia remained near the entrance.
Sophia looked at him with grateful eyes.
“Thank you.”
“If you hadn’t stepped in, I don’t know what would have happened.”
“It was nothing.”
“No.”
“It wasn’t.”
She smiled softly.
“Most people just watched.”
“You were the only one who helped.”
She held out her hand.
“I’m Sophia Bennett.”
“Ethan Cole.”
They shook hands.
The moment their hands touched, the system spoke again.
Mission Completed.
Reward: 100 System Points.
Reward: Beginner Gift Pack.
A golden treasure chest appeared on the blue screen.
Would you like to open the Beginner Gift Pack?
Ethan looked at the glowing chest.
His heartbeat became faster.
Something told him…
The moment he opened it, his new life would truly begin.
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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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