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.

When the system returned, I had just finished arguing with John. The bedroom was in shambles, torn paper and glass shards making it difficult to even walk.

He had just returned from a trip with a mistress he was meeting outside, and the first thing he thought of doing upon returning home was to have his way with me.

He pulled me into his arms, pressed kisses upon my body, and allowed his hands to wander, yet when I pushed him away with disgust in my eyes, he reacted like a provoked beast, his eyes becoming red in anger.

He glared at me. "Do you know how they suck up to me outside? What's the act for, huh? Didn't you say you always wanted to be with me? Why are you acting like a nun now?"

I stared at him in disbelief, unable to believe the comparison he was drawing. He was the one who was cheating, yet he was standing there and berating me for not going along with him.

I couldn't bring myself to do something so vile, to endear myself to him at my expense. Had he even thought about me when he drank day and night outside, lavishing other women with money?

"You're disgusting, so don't touch me!"

My emotions were high, and every fiber of my being rejected having him near me. I wanted nothing more than for him to disappear right that instant.

John scoffed, grabbing my hand and roughly pressing me against the vanity, grabbing my face and forcing me to look at my own reflection in the mirror.

"Take a good look at yourself, Elodie Rose. Do you still think you're the school beauty that everyone fawned over back in the day? Wake up! You're just an old hag now, with nothing that can tie me to you! Other than your body, do you think I would even give you a second glance?"

I looked at my reflection, registering my disheveled state, wrinkles appearing on my once-beautiful face, and my eyes filled with endless sorrow.

Truly, there was no way I was winning against the university student he was pampering. She was young, after all, and she knew exactly what to say to pull at his heartstrings.

Meanwhile, I was a thorny rose, unable to speak a single nice word to him, nor lower myself to please him.

However, I hadn't even changed, ever since the very start. In fact, he even told me that he liked this part of my personality.

"What difference do you have now from a random hag down the street? You're just like your mother!"

His words shattered my pride, threw it into the dirt, and trampled it mercilessly for good measure.

Like a woman gone mad, I shook myself free from him, mustering all the strength I had to send one tight slap on his face as tears flowed down my cheeks.

Bewildered by my reaction, John raised his hand to hit me, but was stunned by my pained expression, shocked by my tears.

I had always been a very prideful person, never shedding a single tear in front of him, so this was the first time he'd ever seen me cry to such an extent.

I had been with him for five years by now, and had already gone through enough hardships and sorrow, yet I had never felt he had crossed the line more than I did in this moment.

"Tell me what you said just now, I dare you!" I choked on my words, and he didn't make a sound. "Come on, talk!"

I hated him to the bone. I hated how useless he was, how he cheated on me, and how he said I was the same as my mother. He knew, better than anyone, that it was a very sore topic for me and my bottom line, yet he was willing to exploit it so easily just so he could mock me.

Perhaps he'd wanted to say those words much sooner, so they slipped out the moment tensions ran high.

He scoffed, clearly not thinking that what he did was much of a big deal, and that I was kicking up a fuss for no good reason. "There's nothing for us to say anymore, Elodie. I mean every word I said.

"Look at yourself. Did I lie?"

My heart felt like it was stuck in my throat, and my entire chest hurt, my field of vision blurry with tears. My fingernails dug into my palms so hard they almost chipped, yet I didn't feel any pain, all of my senses were drowned out by an overwhelming sense of suffocation.

I couldn't even clearly register what he was saying.

"Is that why you cheated on me, John? How could you treat me like this?!"

As I spoke, Ivy's youthful face couldn't help appearing in my mind's eye, her eyes filled with youthful energy and splendour, along with ambition that couldn't be hidden.

She really was beautiful. She was constantly filled with energy, radiating a charm that no one could ignore nor resist. It was only a matter of time before John fell for her.

"Have I not done enough? Be good, and I can continue being married to you. You don't have anyone else to rely on other than me, after all.

"It's true that Ivy's better than you in every way, but she's nothing more than a game to me. She won't threaten your position, so what are you worried about?"

John leaned in close, whispering in my ear lowly as he wiped the tears from my face with surprising patience. "So don't cross the line, got it?"

My heart felt like it was being gripped tightly as I listened to his words. The man in front of me was truly a bastard, not only playing with my emotions, but other women as well.

"Besides, going out with her makes me look better." He looked up and down at me before laughing out loud. "You're past your prime, Elodie. Bringing you out would only be shameful."

I lowered my head, not saying a word in response.

As his patience ran out and he was turning to leave, I muttered, my voice raspy and ugly. "Do you love me, John?"

He paused, then slammed the door shut without any hesitation, plunging the room into deafening silence.

After an eternity, I choked out a short, bitter laugh.

What a joke.

In the end, the emotions that I'd kept hidden deep inside erupted. I screeched at the top of my lungs and wailed, shattering everything I could get my hands on.

In the end, I curled up on the floor weakly, looking at everything around me and allowing my sadness to swallow me whole.

Suddenly, my system, which had gone silent for ages, returned. Its voice was like an angel from the heavens, or maybe the whispering of the devil.

"Come home, Host. Your mission is over."

I sat there on the ground, numbly picking up the trash haphazardly strewn around me, not even stopping when shards of glass drew blood from my fingers.

When I first started dating John, everyone around us told us what a good match we were, and we were admired by everyone around us.

His family background was unimaginably elite, to a point where I couldn't even reach it even if I had a ladder that stretched up towards the heavens.

I could have never imagined that someone that shone as brightly as him would fall for a girl from a regular background like me. That being said, his appearance in my life truly did save me, back then.

When someone as prideful as him was willing to do anything for me, it spoke to me more than any love letters ever could.

When I first arrived in this world, I didn't want to pursue him. I didn't want our relationship to start with lies and calculation, my life being filled with deceit as-was, ever since I was a mere child.

I hated that world, yet had no choice but to surround myself in lies and mistruths to survive, wearing a mask that hid my true nature every day.

I hated what I had become, and hated everything in the entire world.

However, John was different. He genuinely loved me, encouraged me, and showered me with the affection I always yearned for but never had.

I had always dreamed and hoped of building a family with him, to create a harbor where I could finally rest, a family filled with love.

But now, looking at the wrecked house around me, I couldn't help but think how it was similar to our relationship. Nothing but a wreck.

Our wedding photo hung on the wall of the bedroom, a smile radiating with happiness on my face, while his eyes held none of the disdain and disgust that he did now.

Since when did things become this way?

Burning with hatred and frustration, I stood up slowly and glared at the wedding photo, before throwing the glass of water in my hand at it. The glass shattered, along with any lingering hopes of being together with John for the rest of my life.

"How long until I go back, System?"

"Seven days. You have one week to bid farewell to this world."

I lowered my gaze, understanding.

Even if I didn't like my original world, I had no other choice. It took true betrayal from John for me to realize that there was no one more reliable in this world than myself. Rather than placing everything in someone else’s hands, it was better to take control myself.

Meanwhile, a trending topic suddenly appeared on social media.

It was footage of John and Ivy travelling together in Franconia. In the video, the two of them were inseparable, like newlyweds, their faces full of happiness.

John looked especially gentle, indulging the faux anger of the girl beside him as he whispered sweet nothings to her.

Evidently, one of the things he said worked, because the girl's angry expression soon melted into a smile. She hugged John closely, her smile as bright as the sun.

Watching this video, I felt nothing in my heart but a dull, ironic throb.

I was the only one he'd treated like that in the past, and now he had handed over that privilege to another woman.

At this point, I was already past having hopes for him.

A few moments later, John called me, ordering me to speak up and clear the air on his behalf. As the CEO of his company, the footage that was leaked impacted his shares greatly, so he wanted me to help me deflect the negative repercussions.

What a joke. He only thought of me when his interests were affected.

"I already told you that Ivy and I are just fooling around. If anything happens to the company, you wouldn't be able to continue living rich either.

"I want you to clear things up for Ivy as soon as possible. She's sobbing her heart out right now. Don't do anything unnecessary."

Even now, his tone was still filled with impatience.

How considerate of him to immediately go to another woman after arguing with me.

"I understand."

Perhaps it was because I reacted too calmly, or because it was the first time I hadn't fought with him over anything regarding Ivy, he seemed stunned for a moment.

"That's… That's good. If you'd always been so obedient, I wouldn't have fought with you in the first place. See, was giving in and being good really so difficult?"

His voice was filled with smug satisfaction.

I hung up on my end, not willing to continue talking with him. At this point, just hearing his voice was enough to remind me of how he cheated on me.

How disgusting.

Back then, after he got together with me, he announced it to the world. Our marriage was celebrated with a grand wedding, making many people believe that he was a rare man, one who was devoted and deeply affectionate.

I was one of the people who believed.

But the very first year we were married, Ivy came knocking at our doorstep. She looked at me smugly, her face girlishly sweet, and her eyes filled with provocation.

"Hi, I'm Mr. Linde's assistant. He said that he left one of his documents in his study, so he asked me to come fetch it."

Then, she looked down at me, almost judgingly.

I frowned, but still let her into the study. She, however, told me to wait outside.

"Mr. Linde said that it's a confidential document, and that outsiders can't see it. Sorry, but you're going to have to wait outside. I'll come out as soon as I'm done. He's in a hurry, see?"

Her words triggered a sense of unease in me, and when John came back, I couldn't help but complain to him.

With a smile, he explained, "She's the daughter of a business partner who asked me to take care of her."

Then, he told me that if I minded having her around, he could tell her to leave.

His voice was sincere, and our relationship had been smooth sailing up till that point, so I only thought about it briefly before shaking my head.

"It's alright. If she's related to a business partner, having her leave might affect your business. I'm fine, don't worry."

But I never imagined that this would be my first encounter with the woman he was keeping outside our marriage.

Later, I discovered that the two of them often went out behind my back. It wasn’t until I saw them kissing passionately in the underground parking garage that I finally realized how foolish I had been.

I never once doubted the lies he spun for me, wholeheartedly believing that he was working hard for our family.

One night, when John came home drunk, he hugged me tightly and muttered in my ear, "Ivy, why did you become so thin? Did you change your perfume?"

I felt as if I’d been struck by lightning, unable to believe it.

The man who once understood me and loved me sincerely was now holding me intimately while calling another woman’s name.

That was the first time we'd fought. It was heart-wrenching, and every frame of that fight was preserved in my memory. Even now, I couldn't forget a single moment.

After I found out, he started messaging Ivy while I was there, as if he was deliberately rubbing it in my face now that his lies were exposed.

He mocked, "If you were half as obedient as Ivy or half as passionate, I wouldn't have cheated in the first place."

From that moment on, I was completely dragged into the abyss.

After realizing that I would be leaving this world very soon, I stopped caring about how John treated me.

Whether he loved me or not was the least of my concerns. The answer to that question was not important to me anymore.

He and Ivy were probably together. He'd already been away from home for four days, and it would be three days until our fifth wedding anniversary, and also the day I would leave this world.

I didn't have many belongings, and I couldn't take them with me anyway. As for what John had asked of me, I still hadn't said a word, leaving it for the system to handle.

When he left, John took away the first necklace he had given me. It was something I treasured deeply. It was a gift from when he confessed to me at an amusement park, taking out the necklace as fireworks filled the sky.

"Elodie, I haven't officially taken over my family's business yet. I could only use my allowance to buy you something affordable. But in the future, I'll replace it with something better, something more expensive! Will you be my girlfriend?

"I'll treat you well in the future, and love you even more than I do now."

The boy's gaze back then had been sincere, full of love.

It had been the comfort I clung to day and night amid the pain of betrayal, the only cure I held onto through this unfortunate life of mine.

But now, hatred grew wildly like unrestrained poison ivy, and everything from the past became thorns that wrapped around me, aimed for the kill.

When he took away the necklace, I didn't say a thing.

"Ivy said she liked it. She never wants much, so I'll give her whatever I can. Besides, this necklace is already quite old, and you have better ones anyway."

I nodded quietly, the light within my eyes extinguishing.

He smiled. "Look at you, being sensible for once. I like it when you're like this."

Sensible. That's all he had to say after all the years I'd stayed by his side.

He claimed he didn't love Ivy, yet his actions made it clear that he had already fallen for her.

Did he really not understand what that necklace meant?

Meanwhile, the system notified me that it was done clearing the air.

"Do you really love him that much? When I contacted you, you didn't seem to want to leave."

The system's words made me smile bitterly.

It was true that I didn't want to leave back then. Our relationship was genuine, once, and even though our experiences weren't what you would call earth-shattering, what we had was real.

I had relied on him for so many years, and my entire life was filled with nothing but him. I had no one to rely on in the other world, so I clung desperately to the warmth he provided me.

I had tried to numb myself, telling myself that even like this, I still wanted to hold on to the light of my youth. But things had already slipped beyond my control.

I cared. I cared so much it hurt.

If I were to live that way for the rest of my life, I would die.

When John called again, he was furious.

"Elodie, I never imagined you could be this cruel! Just you wait, if anything happens to Ivy, you'll be sorry!

"You're just as disgusting as that mother of yours! Honestly, what was I to expect from something that crawled out of the slums, and from the womb of that disgusting woman, no less!

"I should have seen you for what you truly were ages ago! You acted all pure and innocent while you were with me, but you're nothing but narrow-minded and petty!

"Your mother was a cunning, sly prostitute who sold her body, and you're exactly just like her!"

My heart lurched violently, my entire body trembling uncontrollably.

"John!"

"Elodie Rose, I'll make this clear right now—you'll bear the consequences yourself!"