Charming Scoundrels Across Worlds to Save

At one o 'clock in the morning, the city's neon lights have long lost most of their luster, leaving only a few scattered street lamps, casting a dim yellow glow on the wet asphalt road. Ethan, dragging his legs filled with lead, stood downstairs of the apartment building, looking up at the familiar warm light by his window. But there was no trace of warmth in his eyes, only the bloodstains from days of overtime work and the lingering fatigue. His tech startup was just beginning to pick up, and the slowly growing numbers in his account were the result of countless all-nighter efforts. To enable Anna to live the "days without having to calculate bills" she had talked about countless times, he could even spend the whole night on a folding bed in the meeting room, chewing coffee and continuing to deal with investors the next day. But at this moment, when he took out the key to open the door, his gaze seemed to be fixed on the floor of the entrance hall - where two pairs of shoes were prominently placed. One pair was the narrow-heeled sandals that he was all too familiar with, the ones that Anna had complained about rubbing her feet in just last week. The other pair was the men's Oxford shoes he had never seen before, with fresh dirt still stuck to the heels. Blood shot up to the top of the head in an instant and froze into ice in the next second. The faint, fragmented sounds coming from the bedroom, like poisoned needles, pierced his eardrums densely. Ethan's hand involuntarily reached towards the kitchen, where the chef's knife he had used to cut the steak last night was gleaming cold. In the briefcase, the DSLR camera used for shooting product materials made a crisp shutter sound... He stood still, his fingertips turning pale from the force he exerted, and countless bloody or disheveled images flashed through his mind. But in the end, he just slid down against the cold wall and fished out a crumpled pack of cigarettes from his pocket. The lighter lit up with a "click", and the firelight reflected the bottomless desolation in his eyes. A cigarette burned out and the bedroom door opened. Anna came out in a silk nightgown. When she saw him, she didn't even raise her eyelids, as if he were just a roommate who came home late. It was the man behind her, wearing a bathrobe, whose face flashed with a hint of panic, who hurriedly rushed towards the door. "Ethan? Why are you back? Anna smoothed her slightly curly long hair and her tone was as flat as if she were asking, "What's the weather like today?" Ethan didn't look at that man, his eyes fixed firmly on her: "Who is he?" " "Mark, the curator of the gallery." Anna walked to the fridge to get some water. "We talked late. It's raining outside and it's hard to get a taxi." "Did you have s*x together " Ethan's voice was as hoarse as sandpaper rubbing against it. Anna finally turned around, with a hint of impatience on her face: "Ethan, can we be more mature?" I've long wanted to tell you that I'm fed up with waiting for you to come back in an empty house every day and living by those cold numbers. Mark is different. He will accompany me to exhibitions, to concerts and remember the flowers I like... "The money he spent with you," Ethan suddenly laughed, his laughter filled with self-mockery. "It was the contract payment I got by staying up late to revise the plan and running around to negotiate." " Mark had already vanished without a trace while the two were talking. Anna looked at Ethan's red eyes and pursed her lips, "Think whatever you want." I won't pass this day. We'll go and handle the formalities tomorrow." Ethan was about to say something more when suddenly a blinding blue light burst before his eyes and an emotionless mechanical voice rang in his ears: The anti-deception men who play with women's feelings system detects a compatible host, and the binding program starts... 10%... 50%... 100%..." "Binding successful. Host Ethan, hello. I'm System Specialist No. 520." Ethan shook his head sharply, thinking he was having hallucinations due to staying up late. "What the hell?" This system aims to correct the energy imbalance caused by the behavior of "men who deceive and play with women's feelings" in parallel worlds. The host needs to enter the designated world and complete tasks to eliminate the resentment value of the target character. "Get out!" " Ethan stood up abruptly, his mind still filled with the images of Anna and that man. ​ Warning: Refusal to cooperate will trigger the erasure procedure. The cold four words were like a basin of ice water, instantly extinguishing Ethan's rage. He stared at the blue data stream dancing before him, gritting his teeth and asking, "What's the benefit of completing the task?" After the mission is successfully completed, the host can choose to return to the original world or go to any parallel world to restart their life. Before he could ask about the standard of "perfection", a dizzy feeling of the world spinning and the earth spinning hit him, as if he had been thrown into a drum washing machine. When I regained my footing, the deafening sound of firecrackers filled my ears and the sweet fragrance of champagne and roses lingered on my nose. "Ethan!" What are you daydreaming about?" A man in a pink suit gave him a push. "Lily is waiting inside. If we don't go to pick up the bride soon, the auspicious time will be over!" Ethan was stunned. He looked down at the sharp white suit he was wearing - it wasn't his. He had never worn such a fancy color. The people around laughed and jeered, all with kind teasing on their faces, saying "The groom is too nervous." Just then, a huge stream of information suddenly rushed into his mind, as if someone was stirring in his temples with an electric drill. The "Ethan" of this world, 24 years old, got engaged to his college girlfriend Lily right after graduation. Today is the wedding day, but just half an hour ago, Lily's mother, Martha, suddenly changed her mind and demanded that he must buy a 100-square-meter apartment in the city center in full, and only Lily's parents' names could be written on the property title; otherwise, her daughter wouldn't be allowed to go out. The original owner's family was of ordinary financial status. The 200,000 yuan as a gift money was already pooled together by the parents by depleting their savings and borrowing from all relatives. Of course, he couldn't come up with the money and started arguing with Lily's family. Not only did Lily not speak up for him, but she also joined her mother in pushing him and even threw out the words, "Let's not get married." The original owner, in a fit of rage, saw his college classmate Isabella standing in the crowd - he knew this girl had been in love with him for four years, was gentle in nature and came from a wealthy family - and on a whim, he walked up to her in front of everyone, holding flowers and saying, "It turns out the best person has always been by your side." Then he forcibly pulled her, who was completely stunned, to the hotel and hastily completed the wedding. In the days that followed, the original owner, relying on the resources of the Isabella family, started a company and bought a luxury car, but always felt that he had "reached a high level". Isabella carefully protected his self-esteem, never mentioning that his family background was inferior to hers. She even secretly used her own money to help him fill the company's holes, but the original owner became increasingly distorted. While enjoying Isabella's efforts, he secretly got in touch with Lily. She deceived Lily and herself with nonsense like "We're just friends" and "She's too domineering. I only feel relaxed with you." Isabella was not oblivious, but every time she wanted to speak up, the original owner would pretend to be pitiful and swear, saying that she was just confused for a moment. It was not until later that the original owner, in an attempt to fully control Isabella's family business, devised an "accident" that killed her parents. When Isabella was at her lowest point of collapse, the original owner tricked her into signing a series of equity transfer agreements and then turned around to live with Lily. And Lily, out of jealousy that Isabella had owned the original owner (even if it was just for use), actually hired someone to sell the desperate Isabella to a remote mountainous area. At the end of her memory, there were Isabella's eyes filled with despair and remorse when she jumped off the truck. It was not until her death that she realized that the person she had bet everything on to love had only regarded her as a stepping stone to climb up from the very beginning.