Chapter 1

I'm an orphan living with the Roman family, and I've loved Maureen Roman since we were kids.

She mentioned offhand that she wanted some porridge from outside, so I got on my bike at four in the morning and rode across half the city to buy it.

She likes things clean, so I hand-wash her clothes every day and iron each piece flat.

When she brought friends home and got drunk, she called me her male nanny. I played along and laughed, "Miss is right."

On the night of her eighteenth birthday, she pulled me into bed.

The next morning, she took me to the marriage registry office to get our marriage license.

But the day after that, she dragged me back to get a divorce certificate.

She posted on her social account, the marriage and divorce papers laid side by side.

The caption was six words.

"Registry office, express edition."

Her friends left comment after comment.

"Miss Roman is really crazy, but hey, you're the one who made that bet with Liam Pruitt."

"That jinx Zachary Henson, clinging to Miss Roman day and night, and now he's really a divorced man, hahaha."

I stared at those words, and tears spilled from my eyes.

The next second, something suddenly lit up in my mind.

So it turned out I had been sent into this world by a System.

The System said that every time Maureen Roman toyed with me, one percent of the assets in her name would be automatically transferred to me.

This was the ninety-ninth time she'd toyed with me.

Soon, I'd be able to disappear forever with an enormous fortune.

1

I stood at the entrance of the marriage registry office, the sun burning my face, sweat dripping down.

Liam Pruitt stood beside Maureen Roman, doubled over laughing.

"Haha, Maureen, I think he was crying just now. Did we take it a little too far?"

He turned to me and gave me a mild smile.

"Zachary, I just made a bet with Maureen to see how long she could stay married to you. I never thought she wouldn't even last a day..."

"You won't hold it against me, will you? It was just a joke."

I looked at him without any expression.

Maureen Roman closed the post and gave me a cool, indifferent glance.

"Zachary Henson, you saw the post too. Liam and I just made a bet, that's all. Don't take it seriously."

I already knew about the System, but I still couldn't stop myself from speaking.

"Then that night, on my birthday, the two of us..."

She burst out laughing.

"We just slept together. You're not going to make a life-or-death fuss and demand I take responsibility, are you? We're both adults, and it was mutual."

I clenched my fists, my nails digging hard into my palms.

"Maureen Roman, you've really gone too far!"

Liam Pruitt cut me off.

"Zachary Henson, you're an orphan living off someone else's family, deludedly clinging to Maureen. You're the one who's gone too far!"

Maureen Roman put on her sunglasses, took out her car keys, and got in.

"Let's go, Liam. That watch you wanted came in. The wait was half a year long."

Liam Pruitt got in the car and shot me a pitying look.

"Zachary Henson, get yourself a cab home."

I hailed a taxi, leaned against the window, and my head filled with the past.

I'm an orphan living with the Roman family. Maureen Roman and I were betrothed as children, and I've loved her since I was little.

But she was always cool toward me.

On my birthday night, when she unbuttoned my shirt and kissed me, I thought she'd felt something too.

I never imagined all of it was just a bet she'd made with someone else.

She turned me into a divorced man, all to win a joke.

My chest ached so much I could barely breathe.

Then, something suddenly lit up in my mind.

A voice sounded, cold as ice.

"Stop crying. Every time she toys with you, one percent of the assets in her name quietly transfers to you. Then you'll successfully break free from this world."

At first I thought I was hearing things.

But when I opened my mobile banking app, I saw a string of zeros too long to count.

I was stunned.

The tears circled in my eyes, then drew back.

So it turned out I wasn't cursed with a hard life. I was saving up money.

Every time she toyed with me cruelly, she was stacking another reward into my account.

I rolled down the window, and the wind carried the heaviness out of my chest.

At dinnertime, a servant knocked on my door and said Mr. Roman wanted me in the study.

The moment I reached the doorway, a teacup shattered at my feet.

Mr. Roman's face was full of fury.

"Go get that wretched girl back here! This is absurd!"

Paulette Roman patted his hand.

"All right, all right, why get so worked up? Our daughter was only joking."

Mr. Roman's voice rose.

"Marriage is a serious matter—how can it be treated like child's play? A license yesterday, divorced today. If word gets out, people will talk behind my back about the Roman family, laughing that I raised my daughter badly!"

Paulette Roman turned, saw me, and her brows knit together.

"And you—spineless every day, can't even keep one woman in line. If you weren't so soft, would she be acting this outrageous?"

When Mr. Roman saw me, his face went livid, and he grabbed the ashtray and hurled it at me.

"Look at you—how can you not even hold on to one woman?"

I had no time to dodge. The ashtray struck hard against my forehead, and blood gushed out at once, streaming down my face.

I sucked in a sharp breath at the pain.

Mr. Roman didn't so much as glance at the wound, only asking coldly,

"Where's Maureen?"

I pressed a hand to my forehead.

"I don't know."

Mr. Roman gave a cold laugh.

"Zachary, you've been with our family all these years. You have no one left, and the Roman family is powerful and wealthy now—we could easily have refused to honor this match. It's only because our family values loyalty and keeps its word. Why can't you learn to be a little smarter?"

I listened, my lips moved, but I said nothing.

Mr. Roman waved me off.

"Enough. Get out first."

I went back to my room and quickly patched up the wound on my forehead.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open.

Maureen Roman rushed in and slapped me twice across the face.

She shoved her phone at my face; on the screen was a screenshot of a chat.

"Zachary Henson! The one I've loved from beginning to end has always been Liam! No matter what you do, I'll never have feelings for you, and I'll never fall for you."

"You wanted so badly to get married—well, now you've got both papers. Don't go deluding yourself over me anymore."

"You'd better know your place and stop sending Liam threatening text messages."

I covered my face.

"I never sent any texts..."

She grabbed my wrist and flung it aside hard.

"Stop pretending. I forced you into the divorce, you couldn't take it, so you turned around and threatened him. I'm warning you—don't let there be a next time!"

She didn't wait for me to say anything. She turned and left.

My face stung, hot and raw.

But that voice kept repeating in my head.

"The ninety-ninth time."

Almost there.

Once this last time passed, I'd be able to take all the money and vanish from this world for good.

I lifted my head and looked in the mirror.

The person in the mirror wore a resolute expression.