Maiikling Kwento tungkol sa Tragic Love at Imagination, at mga Nobela ng Mistress na may System

My CEO girlfriend promised to marry me if only I handed over my billion-dollar-worth project to her first love. I agreed without hesitation. Yet on the day we were supposed to make things official, she never showed up. I called her 99 times, but she didn't pick up once. Just when I was about to give up, I saw a post from her first love on social media, featuring a picture of them holding their newly issued marriage license. [From school uniforms to wedding vows. A love that never changes.] I quietly liked the post without making a scene. Moments later, my long-lost girlfriend finally called back. "Cyrus got into a car accident trying to save me, and he lost his memory. The doctors say he needs emotional stimulation to recover. Don't worry, though. Once he gets better, we'll get married. You're the one I love most." What she didn't know was that there would be no future for us. The moment she stood me up at City Hall, the system I'd bound myself to declared my mission a failure. I had seven days left. After that, I would be completely erased from existence.

Yuna Cooper was left mentally impaired after saving my life, so I gave up my chance to return home and remained in the mission world to care for her. But in my third year there, she suddenly ran me down with her car. Then, taking Joshua Cook’s hand, she told me, “I’ve finally waited for this day. Once you’re dead, Joshua and I can take your place as the one chosen by the system and live forever.” Only then did I realize she had been pretending all along, plotting to steal the system from me. What she did not know was that I had been enduring the system’s punishments this entire time. I said to the system, “There are two new hosts willing to take my place. Can I leave now?”

My boyfriend, my best friend, and I were dragged into some kind of relationship game. The system told us that if we cleared every round, we could go home. The first test was simple. Vote for one person to be punished. Sophie clutched my arm, trembling. I patted her hand. "Vote for yourself. If we all do that, it should end in a tie." The votes came in. One each. A three-way tie. Sophie let out a shaky breath, tears still clinging to her lashes. "Cecilia, thank God you thought of that." Then the system told each of us to pick a reward box. Mine contained a small silver shard. A message rang directly in my head. [Ability unlocked: View and alter the outcome of one vote.] I closed my fingers around the shard, smiling as I turned to tell them I’d gotten something useful. Then white light flashed around me. I arrived a few seconds after they did. And before the light had completely faded, I saw them. Sophie had her back to me, tucked into my boyfriend’s arms. "Why wouldn’t you let me vote for her just now?" Her voice was low. "If we vote for her every round, then the two of us can get out safely, can’t we?" He rested his chin on top of her head and lowered his voice. "We’ll vote for her next round." "It’s just a test. Don’t rush." The last of the light faded, and I appeared beside them. Sophie immediately turned around. As naturally as if nothing had happened, she slipped her arm through mine. "Cecilia, what did you get? Neither of us got anything." Inside my pocket, the silver shard pressed into my palm. I smiled. "Nothing." "Mine was empty too."

The fifth year of my husband's affair, the system that had gone silent finally reappeared, telling me that I could go home. In the final week, I stopped arguing with him. I allowed him to go out with other women and stay out all night, and let him give away the things that I treasured the most to someone else. The day I was meant to leave was our fifth wedding anniversary. He burst into the house with Ivy, knocking over the food I'd prepared and pointing a shard of broken glass at me as he pinned me down by the neck. In a fit of rage, he questioned why I hurt Ivy and the baby she was carrying. "Since when did you become this cruel? You make me sick!" I smiled, not bothering to defend myself. "I did it all, and I really am that cruel. What, did you only realize that now? "Anyway, I wish you two a long, happy life together." As he stared me down, I viciously stabbed the artery in my neck, and my life in this world was finally over.

For the 101st time, Adrian Sinclair, heir to the city’s most powerful family, and ruthless tycoon Vincent Kane had abandoned us for the sake of a delicate socialite. My best friend, Lily Shaw, and I stood outside the courthouse in the pouring rain, laughing as we tore our marriage certificates to pieces. “System, cancel the mission.” I stared at the trending headline that had just appeared on my phone: [The heads of the Sinclair and Kane families chartered a private jet just to make Belle White smile] My gaze was empty and devoid of feeling. “Even if failing the mission means being erased, I’ve had enough of being a pathetic lapdog.” Lily was even more decisive. She wiped away the blood at the corner of her mouth. Vincent had caused the injury when he pushed her aside to reach Belle, making her hit the car door. “Erase me, then. That’s still better than living like a dog.” “We’re heiresses to billion-dollar families even without this mission. If the system wants to take our lives, let it try.” “Come on. Let’s go celebrate. We’ll book the most expensive suite in town, crack open some champagne, and party with a few handsome hunks!”

It has been three years since I traveled back in time, but today, I stumbled upon a helicopter hidden right inside the manor’s yard. Looking down at my crippled leg, my husband, Ethan Miller, decided to finally drop the act. “Three years ago, you couldn’t accept the fact that I was marrying Vanessa and that you were just the mistress,” he said. “So, we had no choice but to trick you into believing you had traveled back in time, just to keep you locked up here. After serving as a maidservant and an unofficial mistress here for three years, I’d say you’ve finally learned your lesson.” I stared at him in disbelief. Suddenly, the steward standing beside him ripped off a mask, revealing himself to be my brother, Logan York. “Eva, now that Vanessa has safely given birth to her baby, you can finally go back,” Logan said carelessly. Then, he turned to someone else and added, “Hudson, your plan was absolutely flawless!” I slowly turned my head to look. The manor’s resident physician was standing there, smiling right at me. “You didn’t mistake my identity back then. I am your childhood friend, Hudson Jones,” he admitted. “We only set up this entire illusion because we were afraid you would hurt Vanessa.” For three long years, I believed I had traveled back in time. During this time, I was beaten, sold off, violated by countless strangers, and eventually bought by Ethan to be kept as a broken slave and mistress. By now, I had lost the use of my legs and was completely blind in one eye. I went from crying day and night, begging to go home, to living a numb, submissive existence. However, as it turned out, I had never traveled through time at all. The reality of it all made me break down. Just as I was about to end my life, an eerie line of text suddenly appeared before my eyes. [Congratulations to the tragic AI female protagonist for awakening. Countdown to reincarnating as a real human: Two days.] [Countdown: 48 hours.] [Countdown: 47 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds.]

When Adrian Hale chose Rosalie Quinn for the tenth time, I was hanging helplessly over the cliff’s edge. He clutched a rope in one hand, the web between his thumb and forefinger worn raw and bloody. Rosalie was sobbing so hard she could barely breathe. “Adrian, I’m scared…” He hesitated for only a second before pulling out a dagger and cutting through the rope on my side. “Clara, hold on. I’ll come back for you after I save Rosalie.” The system counted down in my ear. [The tenth abandonment has been confirmed.] [Life countdown: zero.] Before I fell, I didn’t wait for him to turn around like I had the previous nine times. I only smiled at him. “Adrian Hale, we’re even now.”

After I was rescued from five years in captivity, my husband, Luke Hauser, told me in an offhand tone, "I'm the one who arranged your kidnapping. When they dragged you into that van, I was standing right there in the alley." I froze. Then my brother, Peter Costner, the richest man in Hendonport, spoke up. "I paid for it. "We only meant to punish you for three years and then bring you home. But Jake was afraid you hadn't learned your lesson and would go on bullying Piper. "He insisted we leave you in that mountain village for another two years." Jake Bingham was an orphan I'd brought home when we were kids. After I was taken, men forced themselves on me night after night. My belly swelled and shrank six times. I wanted to die, but death wouldn't come. I tried to run, but they crippled my legs, and I ended up on cheap prosthetics. I had fought with everything I had just to see these three men again. I never imagined they were the ones behind it all. The blood in my veins ran so cold that I shook. My voice came out hoarse. "Why would you destroy me?" Peter and Jake hesitated, but Luke spoke first. "You took advantage of how much we spoiled you to bully Piper. We just wanted you to learn some sense. "Piper is pregnant with my child. If you can't accept that, you're free to divorce me." The taste of blood rose in my throat, and a System notification I hadn't heard in years chimed in my head. [Host, do you wish to abandon the redemption of the three villains and leave this world?]

On Christmas Eve, my wife, Abigail Balmer, publicly announced her relationship with her forty-ninth boy toy. [My forever love, @Dwayne Porter.] [My forever love, @Abigail Balmer.] Then she turned to comfort me. "He just lost a dare game, that's all. Don't take it to heart." Everyone mocked me as the man who'd married into money, too spineless to fight back. But I never made a scene. What they didn't know was that I'd struck a deal with the System. Every time Abigail was unfaithful, one year of her lifespan would transfer to me. By my count, of the eighty years she should have lived, she now had exactly one left. All I had to do was survive until the New Year, and she'd meet her natural end. And I would walk away with our three children and inherit the Balmer family's trillion-dollar fortune.

At our engagement party, Regina Horton walks toward me through the crowd, arm in arm with Larry Dickson, and says, "Since you love me so much, Dominic Carlson, I will ask Larry Dickson to proceed with the engagement with me in your place instead." I meet her unyielding eyes as a mechanical voice echoes in my mind. "Hi, Dominic. This is the 1000th day since you failed to win over the female lead. Do you wish to give up on being her sugar daddy?" "Yes." "Got it. You may choose a future path for her as well." "I want her bound to Larry for the rest of her life."

Everyone in the mercenary group knew just how deeply Liam Smith loved me and feared losing me. He even suppressed his dark desires to make sure I felt truly safe. No matter how dangerous the mission, he made sure to check in every single day. Worried for his safety, I hid my identity and secretly became his team’s hacker. However, after one mission, I overheard the others joking over the radio: "Chief was in such a rush to pick that lock and go after Wendy. What's so irresistible about her?" Through an unattended monitor, I caught Liam glancing at the camera with a teasing smile. "Didn't I tell you guys that she nearly wrung me dry the last time we did it?" It felt like I had fallen into an ice-cold abyss. My heart shattered, and I summoned the system. [I want to leave this world.] The cold, mechanical voice replied without delay: [Once you leave, all traces of the host in this world will be erased.] [Starting the countdown: Seven days left.]

After losing her daughter, Simone drowned herself in the sea and returned to her original world. She thought of her marriage to Martin as merely a nightmare until the system reached out to her again. [Host, Martin wanted to trade his own lifespan to bring you back after you drowned.] [Don't worry, you only have to spend one year in this other world. And your daughter can be brought back to life in your original world. You'll also receive a bonus of $10 billion.] She agreed, but Simone was a completely different person after she returned. She suggested to Martin that they live in separate rooms and not get involved in each other’s lives. When Martin doted on the woman who saved his life, Simone never cried, fussed, or got angry like in her previous life. She was simply indifferent. When their son threw a tantrum demanding to see that woman, Simone simply had his luggage packed and sent him to her. That year, she spent every day shopping, keeping boy toys, and handing out money wherever she went. People in their circle jokingly called her ‘The Walking ATM’.

After his son, George Black, dies, Jonas Black returns to his own world, thinking of that marriage as nothing more than a nightmare. That is, until the system appears again. "Host, after you drowned, Serena wanted to trade her own life to save yours. If you go back and stay at her side for a whole year, George will come back to life in this world, and you'll be rewarded ten billion dollars." Just like that, Jonas is summoned back to that world for a second time. This time, he's a different person. He suggests to Serena Quinn that they should sleep in separate rooms and stay out of each other's lives. When his daughter, Erica Black, makes a fuss about wanting to see Serena's savior, Henry Lane, Jonas simply has her things packed and sends her over with her suitcase. Even when Serena favors and sides with Henry, Jonas doesn't act up or get angry. He just doesn't care. All he does throughout the year is buy luxury cars or spend his time at clubs and bars, showering the hostesses with money. Everyone in the circle calls him "The Walking ATM". One day, Jonas casually gives his wedding ring, worth tens of millions, to a club hostess. Serena, who has heard the news, barges into the private room soon after. "Jonas Black!" She grabs his wrist. "That's our wedding ring. I designed it myself, and it took three years to perfect it! How could you just give it away? What are you trying to prove?!" Annoyed by her shaking him, Jonas pulls his hand free and leans against the couch lazily. "It's just a ring. Why make a big deal out of it? You can give your ring to someone else, too. It's not like you haven't done it before."

In the twenty years I was bound to my host, this was the nine hundred and ninety-ninth time I had watched him argue with Vivian Hale. The meal he had carefully prepared was smashed all over the floor. His eyes were red as he nearly shouted at her. "Why do you choose him every single time? You divorced him, remember? I am your husband!" Vivian remained calm, as if she had known all along that my host would make a scene. "So what if we divorced? I have a child with him. I cannot just ignore him." That one careless sentence left my host sitting frozen in place for a long, long time. Long enough for the sky outside to go completely dark. There had been countless moments like this before, but he had always gritted his teeth and held on. I thought this time would be no different. Until my host suddenly asked me, "What happens if I abandon the mission?"

In the tenth year of my marriage to a genius pianist, I came down with a strange illness. A month ago, my husband missed my birthday party to care for his ailing sister-in-law. Night after night, I had waited for him to return home. But that night I forgot to wait at all and went to bed early. Half a month ago, he attended an important performance with his sister-in-law. I had always been petty and prone to jealousy, yet this time I didn't get angry. I simply went home in silence. Three days ago, I fell seriously ill with a burning fever. My husband rushed back from out of town in a panic—but only to tend to his sister-in-law, whose hand had been scalded. When we ran into each other at the hospital, I was strangely calm. I, who used to be fiercely jealous, felt nothing at all. I forgot the promise we had made to grow old together. I even forgot how he once fretted over me for days when I'd scraped a bit of skin. It wasn't until he said he wanted to bring his sister-in-law home and take care of her for the rest of his life that I—my memories riddled with holes—summoned the system at last. "I want to go home."

After the mission failed, I traded my emotions away with the system so that I could return to my own world. But two years later, the system urgently summoned me back. The system said my target had tried to destroy the entire world, and all she wanted was to see me. I rejected it on the spot. Even though I had already lost my emotions, I still did not want to stay next to someone who had hurt me out of rationality. The system grew frantic and threw out one reward after another. In the end, we agreed that I would only go back for three months. Once I returned, not only would my emotions be restored, but I would also receive a huge sum of money. Legal and after tax. But when I returned to Jessica Sand's side with no emotions at all, her madness seemed to have become even more erratic…