003

EVELYN’S POV

I spent most of the night going through my research, and just as I was about to retire, the system appeared.

I glanced at the blue screen hovering at the edge of my vision.

[MISSION PROGRESS: Secure the Host’s Original Medical Research.]

[Progress: 85%.]

I had backed up my files and organised my preliminary findings, but I still needed to secure the original laboratory records. Some of the documents were stored at the research facility where I had worked before the outbreak, and I couldn’t risk leaving them vulnerable.

I made a note to retrieve them as soon as possible. Then I checked the time and reached for my phone.

Adrian had agreed to meet me that morning.

I sent him a message confirming our meeting place before getting out of bed. I had barely finished dressing when another notification appeared on my screen.

Daniel.

Are you going to keep ignoring me? We need to talk.

I stared at the message for some seconds before putting my phone down.

There was a time when a message like that would have ruined my entire morning. I would have wondered whether I had done something wrong, replayed our last conversation in my head, and searched for ways to make things right between us.

Not anymore. Daniel had already shown me exactly who he was. I didn’t need to spend another lifetime discovering it.

Still, there was one thing I needed to do before moving forward.

I needed to end our marriage.

Not because I wanted to punish him or because I expected him to beg me to stay. I simply refused to spend another day tied to a man who had betrayed me so thoroughly.

I picked up my phone and called him.

He answered after the third ring.

“Finally,” he said. “I’ve been trying to reach you since yesterday. What’s going on with you?”

“I’m fine.”

“Then why haven’t you answered my calls?”

“I’ve been busy.”

There was a brief silence before he sighed.

“Busy doing what, Evelyn? You’ve barely spoken to me in days. I had to find out from your messages that you’d been looking into those virus reports again.”

I frowned.

He had no idea how much I already knew about the coming outbreak, yet he was more concerned about my failure to keep him informed.

“I didn’t realise I needed your permission to do my job.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Then what exactly are you saying, Daniel?”

He exhaled impatiently.

“Can we stop this? I’ve had a terrible morning, and I don’t have the energy to argue with you. I’ll be home this evening. We can talk then.”

“Good. There’s something I need to discuss with you too.”

“Fine.”

He ended the call before I could say anything else.

I lowered my phone.

By this evening, I intended to make one thing very clear.

Our marriage was over.

Adrian was already waiting when I arrived at the café.

He stood as soon as he spotted me, offering a small smile before pulling out the chair opposite him.

I sat down, and he pushed a cup of coffee toward me.

“I wasn’t sure what you’d like, so I ordered this. If you want something else, we can change it.”

“Thank you.”

His thoughtfulness caught me off guard.

It was such a small gesture, but I found myself remembering all the times he had done something similar in my previous life. When I had worked late, he had brought me food. When I had forgotten to take a break, he had reminded me to rest. When other doctors dismissed my concerns, he listened.

I had taken his kindness for granted because I had always assumed there would be more time to appreciate it.

Now, sitting across from him, I had to fight the urge to reach out and hold his hand just to reassure myself that he was real.

Thankfully, he spoke before my thoughts could carry me away.

“You said you wanted to discuss something important.”

I nodded and opened the folder I had brought.

“I’ve been reviewing the latest reports about respiratory infections. I think we’re underestimating the situation.”

His expression became serious.

“I’ve been thinking the same thing. The number of reported cases is still relatively small, but the pattern is concerning. Some of the patients developed severe symptoms much faster than expected.”

“Exactly. And the available information doesn’t give us enough to determine how the illness might progress.”

I showed him my notes, carefully keeping the discussion focused on the evidence I could support.

Adrian studied the documents, occasionally asking questions or making observations. We spent nearly an hour comparing our findings and identifying gaps in the available information.

The more we discussed the virus, the more certain I became that working with him had been the right decision.

He didn’t dismiss my concerns, but neither did he accept every conclusion without questioning it. He wanted evidence, and he was willing to put in the work to find it.

That was precisely what I needed.

“If we can obtain suitable samples and collaborate with a properly equipped laboratory, we might be able to investigate potential preventive treatments,” he said eventually. “It’s too early to make any promises, but we shouldn’t wait until the situation becomes worse before taking this seriously.”

I nodded.

“That’s what I was thinking.”

He closed the folder and looked at me.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“Why are you suddenly so determined to investigate this?”

My fingers tightened around my cup.

For a moment, I considered telling him everything.

I wanted to explain that I had already seen the hospitals overwhelmed, that I knew how quickly the virus could spread, and that I remembered the faces of people who had died because we hadn’t been prepared.

But how could I tell him I had returned from the dead?

“I have a bad feeling about this,” I said instead. “And I don’t want us to look back later and realise there were warning signs we ignored.”

Adrian studied me for a moment before nodding.

“Then let’s make sure we don’t ignore them.”

Something in my chest loosened.

He had no idea how much those words meant to me.

Before we parted, we agreed to continue reviewing the available evidence and explore the possibility of conducting preliminary research into preventive treatments.

It wasn’t enough to stop the outbreak yet, but it was a beginning.

And for now, a beginning was all I needed.

By the time I returned home, the sun was beginning to set. I found Daniel in the living room, scrolling through his phone. He glanced up when I entered, then returned his attention to the screen.

“You’re late.”

I set my bag down.

“I was working.” I said, looking up at him. “Is there a problem?”

He finally put his phone away. “Yes, actually. There is. You’ve been acting strangely, Evelyn. You’re distant, you’re secretive, and now you spend your days running around discussing medical reports with that doctor friend of yours.”

I stared at him. Of all the things he could have complained about, he had chosen that.

“His name is Adrian. Besides, we were discussing the virus.” I explained.

“He’s a man, Evelyn.”

“And I’m a married woman. Is that supposed to mean I can’t work with him?”

Daniel’s jaw tightened. “Don’t twist my words.”

“I’m not twisting anything. I’m asking you a question.”

He stood up, visibly irritated.

“Why are you being so difficult lately? We used to be able to talk without you turning everything into an argument.”

I almost laughed, he spoke as though our marriage had been perfect, as though he hadn’t spent the better part of two years betraying me behind my back. But I swallowed the bitter response rising in my throat.

I hadn’t called him into this conversation to argue about Adrian. I had a much more important announcement to make.

“Daniel, I want a divorce.”

He went still. “What?”

“I want a divorce.”

He continued staring at me, waiting for me to smile or admit that I was joking.

When I didn’t, his expression hardened.

“Is this because of our argument?”

“No.”

“Then what is it? Have you lost your mind?”

I remained calm.

“I don’t want to be married to you anymore.”

He looked at me as though I had personally offended him.

“After everything we’ve been through?”

I almost asked him whether he remembered the things we had supposedly been through together. The sacrifices I had made, the nights I had spent working while he pursued his career, the countless times I had defended him because I believed we were building a future together.

But I already knew he wouldn’t understand.

To Daniel, everything I had done was something he was entitled to.

“You can’t just wake up one morning and decide you want a divorce,” he snapped.

“I can decide that I no longer want to remain in this marriage.”

“And I’m supposed to accept that?”

“You don’t have to like it. I just need you to understand that my decision isn’t changing.”

He stared at me, his face growing increasingly red.

“Who put this nonsense in your head? Is it Adrian?”

I shook my head.

“This has nothing to do with him.”

“Then explain it to me!”

“There is nothing to explain, Daniel. I don’t want this marriage anymore.”

He ran a hand through his hair, then let out another incredulous laugh.

“You have to be kidding me.”

I said nothing.

He began pacing across the living room, muttering under his breath before turning to face me again.

“You know what your problem is? You think because you’re intelligent and have a medical degree, you can do whatever you want. You think the world revolves around you.”

I watched him silently.

“Do you have any idea how much I’ve done for you?” he continued. “How many doors have I opened? How many people have I introduced you to? You think you would have gotten this far without my support?”

There it was.

The arrogance I remembered so well.

Daniel had always liked reminding me of the things he had done for me, conveniently forgetting that I had worked just as hard to build my own career.

He had never considered that I might be capable of standing on my own.

“You’re nothing without me, Evelyn.”

He stepped closer, looking down at me with undisguised contempt.

“Absolutely nothing. You can pretend you’re independent all you want, but when you walk away from this marriage, you’ll realise how much you need me. And when that happens, don’t come crawling back.”

I held his gaze.

In my previous life, those words might have frightened me. I might have wondered whether I could manage without him, whether leaving would destroy everything I had worked for.

But I had already lived through the consequences of trusting him.

I had died with nothing but regret, while he and Vanessa celebrated the success they had stolen from me.

And somehow, I had been given another chance.

So I smiled.

Not because his words didn’t hurt, but because I finally understood how little power they had over me.

“Then I suppose you’ll be disappointed when I don’t come back.”

He shook his head. “You’ll regret this.”

I picked up my bag. “But that will be my mistake to make, won’t it?”

I walked toward the stairs, leaving him standing in the living room. I had barely reached the first step when he called after me.

“You’re going to come begging me to take you back!”

I stopped briefly. Then I turned my head. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

I continued upstairs without waiting for his response.

Once I was inside my bedroom, I closed the door and leaned against it.

My hands were trembling.

I hadn’t expected the conversation to be pleasant, but hearing him say those words had brought back memories I would have preferred to leave buried.

For a moment, I allowed myself to feel the hurt.

Then I straightened. Daniel had made his choice long before I returned to the past.

Now it was my turn to make mine.

I took out my phone and opened a new message to a lawyer, requesting a consultation about ending my marriage. I would not fight Daniel for his money, his property, or anything else he believed made him valuable.

I wanted a clean separation.

Nothing more.

As I set my phone aside, another notification appeared.

It was from the Medical Evolution System.

[MISSION UPDATE]

Objective: Secure the Host’s Future.

Additional Recommendation: Eliminate Unnecessary Personal Obstacles.

I raised an eyebrow.

“Are you calling my husband an obstacle?”

[The system does not make personal judgments. However, the Host’s current relationship is unlikely to contribute positively to her primary mission.]

I walked over to the window and looked out at the evening sky.

Two months. That was all the time I had before the world began to change.