Chapter 1

I sat in the audience. My fists clenched so tightly that the veins popped up.

When I first traveled back in time, the very first thing I did was rush to the school and force my daughter to withdraw from classes.

I even locked her in the house and confiscated her cell phone.

“Dad, what are you doing?! I’ve been dreaming of this!”

My daughter was crying her heart out.

But with a grim expression, I locked her door from the reverse side. “You’ve lost your life. What’s the point of talking about dreams? Just stay put!”

At that moment, the anniversary celebration gala drew to a close.

I stared intently at the center of the stage.

The figure who was wearing the same costume as my daughter had her back to the audience as she slowly rose into the air.

Her costume was custom-made, and she wore a mask. Her face was completely obscured.

Yet, the unease in my heart was growing like wild grass.

If I had locked my daughter at home, who was that person up there?

I instinctively looked around.

The moment I did, my blood nearly boiled.

In the VIP seats right in front of me sat several faces I would never forget for the rest of my life.

It was Tina Zaal. She was the female classmate from my previous timeline who had led the bullying campaign against my daughter out of jealousy that she had snatched the lead role.

She was casually munching on snacks with the others and acting as if nothing was amiss.

Then, there was my daughter’s male advisor, Steve Zaal.

The father and daughter duo were huddled together while watching the lead slowly rise into the air. Their shoulders were shaking, as if they were trying to stifle their laughter.

Tina held a glow stick while glaring venomously at the stage. Her lips were moving silently.

I could read her lips.

“Anya Sommer, go to hell.”

My anger boiled over, and like a giant hand, it clenched my heart tightly.

They had no idea the lead had been replaced. They thought the person hanging up there was Anya!

The wire work must have been tampered with!

Even though the person up there was not Anya, it was still a living, breathing human!

The image from my previous timeline, of flesh and bone reduced to pulp, once again flooded my mind.

No, I could not just stand by and watch the tragedy happen again.

I sprang to my feet. While ignoring the disapproving glances of the audience around me, I rushed toward the backstage area.

“Move aside, everyone, move aside!”

I shoved aside the security guard blocking my path and strode purposefully toward the cable’s control console behind the side curtain.

As long as I could hit the emergency stop before the wire cable’s system fully deployed, there was still time to save the situation!

I ran as fast as I could, but just as I was about to reach the control console door, a strong arm shot out from nowhere and clamped tightly around my neck.

“Mr. Sommer? This is backstage. What are you doing here?!”

My breath caught in my throat, and I was forced to stop in my tracks.

I turned my head and locked eyes with Steve’s grim face.

Behind him were several Student Council members, including a few of Tina’s sidekicks.

“Let me go!” I grabbed his wrist with my other hand and tried to shake him off.

“There’s a problem with the safety cables! Hurry up and get them to stop! The person up there is going to die!”

Not only did Steve not let me go, he even used his size to pin me against the wall.

“What nonsense are you spouting? The cables have gone through three rounds of safety inspections. What could possibly be wrong with it?

“I think you’re having a mental breakdown. You just couldn’t stand seeing your daughter perform successfully, could you?”