I was the billionaire CEO's tragic first love who died young. Fifteen years after my death, the System resurrected me and told me to save the kid standing on the edge of the rooftop. "He is your flesh and blood. If you don't help him, he'll truly have nothing left in this world." But I grew up with a fiery temper and a spoiled personality. I was used to people serving me, not the other way around. So, I marched over in my stilettos, grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him back. "Stop acting like you're going to jump. You're just as pathetic and useless as your father." "Where is he, anyway? Doesn't he know I'm back? Why isn't he here to pick me up?" 01 The teenage boy looked at me quietly. For a split second, a look of bewilderment crossed his face, but he quickly recovered, his expression returning to a stagnant, ripple-less pool of water. He tilted his head slightly, lost in his own world. I clicked my tongue impatiently and gave him an order. "Call Arthur Sterling." It took him a long while to pull out his phone and dial a number. The phone rang for thirty seconds before the automated voicemail prompt kicked in. I narrowed my eyes. "Arthur dares to ignore calls? He's got some nerve!" Leo seemed used to it. He was just about to put his phone away. I snatched it right out of his hand and dialed the number three or four more times in a row. Finally, the call connected, but it was a crisp female voice on the other end. "I'm sorry, Mr. Sterling is currently in a meeting. Please do not interrupt." She hung up before I even had a chance to speak. I almost smashed the phone against the wall, but suddenly remembered it wasn't mine. I forced my raised hand down, grinding my teeth in anger. "Alright, just you wait!" Leo tugged at my sleeve. When I looked over in confusion, he stared at me with those clear, glass-like eyes and softly said two words. "Go back." 02 On the ride back, I confirmed with the System one more time: "Is this silent kid really my son?" I told Leo the cab's seats were uncomfortable; he just said, "Mm." I told him I didn't like the driver's heavy breathing because the rhythm was too messy and annoying; he just said, "Mm." I told him the clothes he was wearing were painfully ugly and dragging down my aesthetic; he still just said, "Mm." Eventually, I got so mad I started cursing, demanding to know where that bastard Arthur had rolled off to. He finally raised his eyes to look at me, his eyelashes trembling slightly, and whispered two words. "Business trip." I almost died of anger. Getting a single word out of him was like pulling teeth. He didn't seem like my son at all. When he was two, he used to scream so loud he'd keep Arthur awake all night. He clearly had my exact fiery temper back then. How did he turn into this silent, closed-off shell? [Host, please try to be a little understanding. The child suffers from severe psychological trauma. Communication barriers are just one of the symptoms.] I pursed my lips, looking at Leo's thin, frail silhouette and his dull, lifeless eyes. My chest physically ached with anger. In the fifteen years I was gone, how the hell did that bastard Arthur raise our kid?! 03 After getting home, I did a quick tour of my own bedroom. Good. The layout was exactly the same as it was fifteen years ago, and not a single one of my belongings was missing. However, in the shoe cabinet by the door, there was an extra pair of pale green women's slippers. I glanced at them. They fit my personal style, so I didn't overthink it. By the time I finished my inspection, I realized that kid Leo had disappeared. His bedroom door was locked. I frowned, grabbed a spare key, and opened the door myself. The room was pitch black. The lights were off, and the heavy blackout curtains were drawn tight, blocking out every sliver of sunlight. As the light from the living room spilled into the room through the open door, I saw a lonely, desolate figure sitting by the window. I stomped over, flipped the light switch with a loud click, crossed my arms, and sat down right in front of him. Leo just sat there blankly, staring unblinkingly in one direction, lost in his own thoughts. His eyes were completely dull and devoid of light. I stared at him and spat out three words. "I am hungry." Leo finally seemed to register my presence. Hearing my words, he looked down, pulled out his phone, and opened UberEats. "I don't eat takeout!" "Is this how Arthur lets you resolve your three meals a day?!" Leo put his phone down, lowered his head, and stopped responding to me entirely. I ran my hands through my hair in frustration, turned around, and walked out, unable to stop myself from complaining to the System. "With a mess like this, you might as well have let me stay dead." Behind me, Leo looked up, his eyelashes trembling slightly. 04 I called the System out and demanded a full rundown of what Leo had been through over the last fifteen years. The System told me that after I died, Arthur grew more depressed by the day. There were times he completely neglected his own company, let alone taking proper care of Leo. Once, Arthur got blackout drunk and slept for two days straight. During that time, Leo didn't eat a single bite of food. He cried from hunger until he passed out, and had to be rushed to the ER to be resuscitated. After that incident, Arthur dumped Leo on a nanny and threw himself entirely into his work. The nanny saw that Arthur didn't pay much attention to the kid, so her attitude toward Leo was terrible. She rarely cooked for him and occasionally even hit or scolded him. It wasn't until Leo fainted from starvation again that Arthur rushed back and discovered what was happening. By then, Leo was already severely ill, to the point where he couldn't even go to school. Arthur fired the nanny, but struggled to find someone suitable to care for the boy. His executive assistant, Sylvia Thorne, volunteered to take on the task. "Sylvia?" I recalled the woman who had answered Arthur's phone earlier. It had to be her. [Leo hates her very much. Because of her, he had a massive falling out with your husband.] [Three years ago, Arthur planned to marry Sylvia to balance his work and family life. Leo vehemently opposed it. He held a knife to his own wrist and forced Arthur to swear he would never marry Sylvia, or else he would kill himself.] I couldn't believe my ears. "Arthur actually wanted to marry someone else?" [Please don't worry, Host. In the end, he didn't marry Sylvia. To this day, their relationship remains strictly boss and subordinate.] [However, ever since that incident, Sylvia has harbored deep resentment toward Leo, and her attitude toward him is no longer what it used to be.] I frowned. "What did she do?" [Learning from the previous nanny's mistakes, she didn't dare do anything too obvious. Instead, she just tells Leo every single day that his mother is never coming back. She tells him he needs to be obedient and not be a burden to his father. She constantly reminds him that Arthur needs a capable wife who can be his right-hand woman, not the ghost of a dead first love.] I let out a cold laugh. "Oh, really? A right-hand woman, huh?" [Host, what do you plan to do next?] "Arthur clearly has water in his brain. I'll just have to beat it out of him," I smiled playfully. "And as for this Sylvia... using those kinds of psychological tricks on my son? She's about to get what's coming to her." 05 But even I didn't expect the confrontation with Sylvia to happen so quickly. The next morning, I was still sleeping in my room when I was abruptly woken up by a loud commotion. I pulled the blanket over my head, intending to go back to sleep. Then I heard the argument outside my door. A female voice, dripping with blame, said, "Leo, how could you just bring a stranger home? And a woman of unknown origin at that?" "I know you've always hated me being by Mr. Sterling's side, but you don't have to retaliate against him like this. Where does this put Mr. Sterling? And what do you think you're doing?" But no matter what Sylvia said, Leo's attitude was resolute. He refused to let her in. Sylvia raised her voice slightly. "Leo, you are being so disobedient. It is truly disappointing." "Do you want me to tell Mr. Sterling that you brought some shady woman home and let her sleep in your mother's bedroom?" I didn't catch what Leo said, but Sylvia's tone suddenly shifted, becoming incredibly severe. "If that's the case, then I have no choice but to have Mr. Sterling come back and discipline you personally." I played with my manicured nails, chuckled to myself, and opened the door. Seeing me step out, Leo frowned slightly. "Did she... wake you?" "It's fine. It was about time to wake up anyway." Sylvia looked me up and down. "You are certainly pretty. No wonder you managed to seduce Leo like this." "But as long as I am by Mr. Sterling's side, I will never allow someone like you to step foot in the Sterling household. Leo is naive and isolated from the world. You're just taking advantage of that to manipulate him..." SMACK! A crisp, resounding slap echoed through the hallway. Sylvia covered the bright red handprint on her cheek, staring at me in absolute disbelief. "You actually hit me?" I smiled. "You're exactly the person I intended to hit." Sylvia took a deep breath and spoke into her phone. "Mr. Sterling, you heard all of that. Leo has truly gone too far this time, letting this woman run wild in your home..." "Hold on." Arthur's voice came through the speakerphone, carrying a trace of undetectable agitation and uncontrollable, overwhelming joy. "Turn on your camera. Let me see her face." Sylvia froze for a second, but she obeyed Arthur's command, switching to a video call and pointing the camera right at me. "Get out." A voice laced with icy hostility rang out. Leo stepped in front of me, blocking the camera lens with his hand, refusing to let Arthur see my face. Before anyone could react, he pulled me back into the room and locked the door behind us. Sylvia banged on the door from the outside, berating him. "Leo, why are you being so rebellious now? Going against your father for some woman—you're going to disappoint him deeply..." Leo's tone was indifferent and entirely calm. "None of your business." Sylvia tried using both soft pleas and harsh threats through the door, but nothing worked. Even when she threatened to complain to Arthur, Leo treated it like white noise. She wasted almost an hour at the door before finally giving up and leaving. Inside the room, I stared at Leo, deep in thought. "Why didn't you want Arthur to see me?" Leo's actions were incredibly abnormal. It wasn't just a kid throwing a tantrum. He seemed withdrawn and antisocial, but his mind was delicate and sensitive. There had to be a reason he did that. Leo slowly looked up and met my gaze. He suddenly reached out and grabbed my wrist, a faint tremor in his voice. "Don't. Leave." My heart swelled with warmth. I gently wrapped my arm around his back, softly stroking the top of his head. My voice was gentle. "Don't be afraid. I won't leave." Leo buried his face in my embrace for a few seconds before pulling back slightly. He pulled out his phone and showed me a document. The more I read, the deeper my frown became. "What the hell is Arthur thinking? He actually agreed to this?!" The document detailed ten top-performing students Arthur had sponsored over the years. According to the proposal, he was going to select one of these ten to adopt as his stepson and heir. I was so furious I wanted to call Arthur and curse him out immediately. "Is his brain filled with water? Did his brain cells shrink as he aged? What an absolute idiot." Leo tugged at my hand. "It's... cousin's arrangement." "Don't... trust him." I froze for a second. Leo's "cousin" was Richard Hayes, my own cousin who had grown up with me. Richard and I had a pretty good relationship. Back when I insisted on marrying Arthur, my grandfather vehemently opposed it, and Richard was the one who helped me convince him. I forced myself to calm down and looked at Leo. "What else do you know?" He shook his head. "It's okay. I'll handle this." I made a phone call to my grandfather's executive secretary. I briefly explained the situation and asked him to investigate Richard Hayes, as well as Arthur's current whereabouts. "Understood. I'll send people to investigate immediately. You'll have the results in three hours." "Wait. One more thing." "...Miss Chloe, does the old Mr. Vance know you're back?" "I haven't told Grandpa yet. Don't rush to tell him. By the way, is Grandpa's health doing okay?" "The old man is strong and healthy. He just misses you very much. He talks about you all the time." I blinked rapidly, my throat tightening. "I miss Grandpa too." 06 The secretary informed me that Arthur had just flown back into the country. The moment he stepped out of the airport, he was heading straight to corporate headquarters for a board meeting to announce his chosen heir. I told Leo to stay put at home and changed the front door passcode. Then, I drove straight to the highway to intercept Arthur. In the years I was gone, this was how he took care of Leo. He was doing a fantastic job. Following the location data the secretary sent, I tailed Arthur's car. I was just about to overtake them and force them to pull over when I realized something was wrong. This wasn't the route to the corporate headquarters. I slowed down, trailing them from a safe distance, wanting to see exactly what he was up to. To my surprise, the car drove straight out into the deserted suburbs. I followed closely behind. Suddenly, the car's trajectory became erratic, swerving wildly before slamming on the brakes, scraping against the guardrail, and coming to a screeching halt. The car doors flew open, and two men tumbled out, violently brawling with each other. Arthur was clearly losing. He was grabbed by his collar, slammed against the car window, and took a brutal punch to the gut that made him double over and drop to a crouch. The driver pinned Arthur to the ground, picked up a heavy rock, and aimed it right at Arthur's head, ready to smash it down. I slammed on my brakes, jumped out of the car, and sprinted over in my stilettos. I grabbed a heavy steel wrench I had grabbed from my trunk and brought it down hard on the driver's head. The driver's grip on Arthur loosened. He stumbled sideways, turning toward me in a daze. Before he could fully turn around, I delivered a swift, brutal kick, sending him sprawling to the dirt. Arthur looked like an absolute wreck. His custom suit was filthy, and his hair was plastered messily across his forehead with sweat. He gasped for air, squinting as he looked up at me. His attempt to stand up suddenly froze. He stayed frozen in that position, staring at me intently, muttering to himself as if he were sleepwalking. "Chloe? Is it you?" "I haven't seen you in so long... I thought you'd never want to see me again..." Confirmed. This man's brain was definitely not functioning properly. I didn't have the patience to waste time with him. I raised my leg and delivered a solid kick right to his thigh. He let out a muffled groan, and in the next second, he reached out and grabbed my ankle. "Such a familiar force..." Arthur chuckled softly, his eyes never leaving me for a single second. "Chloe. It really is you." I let out a cold laugh, wrenched my ankle out of his grasp, and slammed my stiletto heel down squarely onto his chest, grinding it in. "Alright, let's hear it." "In the fifteen years I was gone, exactly how did you bully my son?" Arthur stared at me in a daze, letting out a confused, "Ah?" I straddled his waist and delivered a stinging slap across his face. "Who gave you permission to dump Leo with a nanny? Who allowed you to let Sylvia Thorne walk all over him? And who agreed to adopt some random kid as your heir?! You think just because I died, you can bully my son?! Do you even have me in your heart? Do you even care about Leo?!" Arthur grabbed my hands, his eyes turning red. "I'm sorry, Chloe." "The first few years after you left, every time I looked at that child, he reminded me of you... There were so many times I just wanted to end it and go find you. I really... I had no other choice but to entrust him to someone else's care." "Later, when he grew up a bit, he completely refused to get close to me. And I was overwhelmed with company affairs..." SMACK! Another resounding slap. I grabbed Arthur by his collar, gritting my teeth and enunciating every word. "What does any of that have to do with him?! Why should a two-year-old child have to bear the burden of my death?!" "He was only two when I left! He was so small, what did he know?! He lost his mother at such a young age, and you just neglected him. Are you even human, Arthur? Do you have a conscience?!" Arthur obediently took the slaps without fighting back, then stealthily reached over to hold my hand. Tears were welling in his eyes, threatening to spill over. His refined, handsome face bore the bright red marks of my fingers. He looked thoroughly victimized. "I was wrong, Chloe. I swear I'll never do it again." "What the hell are you and Richard playing at? And what's going on today? Explain it to me clearly!" "It's a long story. Chloe, why don't you let go of me first..." I slowly released his collar, my voice freezing cold. "You'd better have your own master plan, because if you don't, I won't spare you today." Seeing me let go, Arthur leaned in, nuzzling against me as he held my hand. He pushed up his half-rim glasses and flashed me a smile. "Don't worry, Chloe. I know exactly what I'm doing."
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