Take The Second Chance

After all that effort to complete the mission, I ended up dying with the villain.

But the system informed me that if I died, the mission wouldn't count as a success?

Now, the mission had restarted, and my target changed into the villain who died with me in the explosion in the previous life.

I had to accept that.

But gradually I realized this villain remembered everything?

Chapter 1

The system notified me, "Host, the world has been reset for you. This time, please don't destroy the original body."

I thought about Ferris Haynes, who died with me in the explosion yesterday.

Even though the pain from the explosion was minimized, it still hurt like crazy. That villain Ferris had a truly miserable time. He was toyed with by the female lead from start to finish, turned evil in the end, and then get killed by me, an outsider.

I asked, "System, where are we now?"

I looked around at the lavishly decorated room, a stark contrast to the desolate mass grave I had landed in the last time I transmigrated into the female lead, Daniela Tucker's body.

In the previous life, I had arrived in the desolate mass grave, only to be rescued by the male lead, Eduardo Wallace.

But this time? I glanced around. There didn't seem to be any immediate danger, and Ferris was nowhere to be seen.

The system answered me, "This is the household where Ferris was adopted. Specifically, you're now the legitimate daughter of the King, Celia Haynes."

I rubbed my forehead, deep in thought, but couldn't recall anything about this person.

"Celia was frail and sickly. In the original timeline, Celia died half a month after Ferris arrived."

Ah, now I understood. No wonder I didn't recognize her. Celia was such a minor character.

The system continued to introduce, "Right now, Celia has just taken her last breath, and you've taken over her body. But don't worry, with me here, her illness won't act up in the short term."

I asked, "What illness did she have?"

I did feel a dull pressure in my chest, as if I were suffocating.

The system answered, "A heart condition-congenital heart disease."

Just then, I heard voices outside, and the system fell silent.

"Doctor, please take a look at my daughter! She was fine just a moment ago. Why did her condition suddenly worsen?"

"I will do everything in my power. Everyone, please step back. The prince needs rest."

The door creaked open, letting in a gust of cold wind. I saw Celia's father, Javier Haynes, his eyes brimming with tears.

...

In the previous life, Javier was Ferris's childhood nightmare.

At twelve years old, Ferris had been adopted by Javier who was obsessed with Ferris's mother. But the problem was, Ferris's face bore a striking resemblance to his biological father.

Faced with this face that embodied both the person he loved most and hated most, Javier had to raise him while also torturing him.

The food and drink Ferris consumed were often laced with poison. After ingesting the toxins, he would be sent to spar with martial artists, enduring beatings as part of his training.

As a result, Ferris developed his own combat skills and became an expert in identifying poisons.

Javier said, "Celia, you're awake? Lie down, quickly. You scared me to death just now."

I wasn't sure why someone like Javier would treat Celia with such care, but it was certainly better than being sabotaged at every turn like in the previous life.

I forced a gentle smile and obediently lay back down.

The doctor took my pulse, his fingers lingering for a long time, his expression one of disbelief.

"Her pulse is steady, not only is there no sign of illness, but... it's incredibly strong, a situation that hadn't occurred in all these years."

Behind the doctor, Javier's mouth fell slightly open, as if he couldn't believe his ears.

I quickly spoke up in a soft voice, "Father... Just now, I felt like I was on the verge of death. I was in a daze and seemed to have dreamed about God. He said to me..."

"What did God say, Celia?" Javier asked.

"He told me he'd sent an important person to be around me, named Ferris. Only by having him with me often can my sickness gradually get better."

Thankfully, my knack for weaving convincing stories came in handy. Javier held my hand, deep in thought for a moment, before his expression returned to normal.

"Don't worry, Celia. I will come up with a solution."

And he did make some efforts. One day, he sent a servant named Ferris Cruz. The next, it was Ferris Jordan, also as my servant.

Eventually, I had no choice but to fake sleep one night, disguise myself, and sneak out of the courtyard.

"Host, this is it," the system notified.

I looked at the woodshed in front of me. This was Ferris's living quarters in the imperial palace.

I knocked on the door, but there was no response.

Pushing it open, I found Ferris lying motionless on the floor.

...

The system told me, "He's just been poisoned with Bone-Crushing Poison. This is the first time Javier has poisoned him, and it's the most severe. In the future, Ferris will learn to guard against it, but this time, it could be fatal."

I asked, "Fatal? He wouldn't die, right?"

The system said, "Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't. That's because Daniela would sneak into the palace, find him in the woodshed, and use Mr. Turner's rare and mystical medicine to save him."

Sergio Turner? In my previous life, I owed my survival to his assistance.

"Then should we just wait for Daniela to show up?" I asked.

The system answered, "That's an option."

So I sat by the door, waiting for Daniela to appear. I waited for a long time, but she never came. Meanwhile, Ferris's breathing grew increasingly faint.

"Hey, system, what's going on?"

"Bad news. Daniela saw movement near the woodshed earlier and went to the kitchen next door instead."

"So what do we do now?"

I rolled my eyes. The second male lead didn't have the protagonist's plot armor. If Ferris died, who knew which kind of person would be my target next time? Maybe Javier?

"Host, you have a permanent reward from your last mission-300 points. You can exchange it for an antidote recipe."

"Exchange it!"

The system then notified me that the exchange was complete.

"How many points do I have left?"

"Zero."

What? Could I take it back?

This Bone-Crushing Poison would spread from the internal organs to the limbs, seeping into the bloodstream. It rapidly soaked into a person's bones, like how sulfuric acid corrodes things. Even if the bones didn't melt, they would still break.

Such a vicious poison. Javier really was a terrifying old man.

The antidote, however, was surprisingly simple to made.

As a graduate of traditional medicine, I even started to doubt whether this medicine was worth 300 points.

...

I had the antidote now, but there was no way he could drink it on his own.

After some thought, I took a big gulp myself, then bent down and transferred it to Ferris by pressing my lips to his.

"Wow, Host, you're smart!" the system praised me before falling silent again.

I focused on feeding him, only to realize at some point that the man beneath me had opened his eyes.

He stared at me coldly, and I nearly jumped out of my skin.

"I... I'm saving you, " I stammered.

He said nothing, his gaze fixed on me with an unreadable intensity. "You..."

Before I could finish, he moved in a flash, pressing a dagger to my neck. Startled, I dropped the bowl of medicine onto the floor.

Ferris asked, "Where is this?"

I answered, "The woodshed... your room..."

Was the poison messing with his head?

Ferris frowned, suddenly clutching his head and groaning softly.

Ferris asked, "This is... the imperial palace?"

I nodded.

He kept asking, "And who are you?"

"I'm Javier's daughter, Celia."

For a moment, surprise flickered across his face, but then the dagger at my neck pressed even tighter.

He said, "Celia has been dead for a long time. Who are you really?"

Not knowing what was going on, I quickly asked the system if something was wrong with his brain.

The previously silent system finally reappeared. "Host, there's not enough energy to restart the world before. It seems like some bugs have popped up."

"What kind of bug?"

"Ferris's memory might not have been fully erased..."

"What?"

...

This system was really screwing me up!

I had no choice but to play dumb, hoping Ferris would think everything happened in the previous life was just a dream.

I explained to Ferris, "You were poisoned. Hallucinations and dreams are perfectly normal. I am really Celia. If you don't believe me, you can ask around."

"Then why did you save me?"

"Because..." Thinking quickly, I pushed against the dagger at my neck. I could feel the blade cutting into my skin, warm blood trickling down.

I continued, "Because... I had a dream too. God told me that someone named Ferris would come to the palace, and that this person was important to me. If you're well, my illness will be cured."

"Oh?" He raised an eyebrow. "So you saved me for your own sake?"

I nodded.

He withdrew the dagger from my neck, only to press it against his own.

"Then if I don't want to live, are you going to die with me?" He smiled faintly, and I couldn't help but marvel at how we always seem to end up dying together.

"Actually there's another reason..." I racked my brain. "I like you. I want you to be my husband."

If I remembered correctly, Ferris had had such a habit.

In my past life as the female lead, also the woman he liked, the villains who messed with me were all tortured by him to an incredibly miserable and tragic end.

But those villains who messed with me because they liked Ferris? They managed to live for a few extra days.

I figured he must be starved for love. He seemed to enjoy keeping those who liked him around, tormenting them until they were filled with fear, and only then finishing them off.

Nervously, I watched him. Sure enough, he loosened his grip on the dagger and tilted his head at me. "You like me? Do you know that the people who saved me all ended up wanting to kill me and regretted it deeply?"

I confirmed, "I'll never regret it."

...

I'd barely managed to calm Ferris down, but now he was acting completely different from what I'd expected.

I thought he'd bring a bloodbath and chaos to the palace.

But instead, he ate every poisoned dish Javier sent him without hesitation. He refused to go to the training grounds, claiming his back hurt.

Now his body was as fragile as someone with advanced osteoporosis.

With a body like that, forget practicing martial arts, just walking around the room left him weak and wobbly.

My father said to me, "Celia, a man who doesn't train at the grounds is no man at all. Leave him to me. I'll handle him."

I resorted to crying, pleading Javier not to force Ferris. It's not that I didn't want him to the grounds. He got a hold of my weaknesses. Every time I tried to push him, he'd threaten to kill himself. How could I dare ask him to do everything?

After finally sending Javier away, I returned to his room to find Ferris lounging against the headboard, leisurely nibbling on a piece of a cake.

I took a bite of the cake myself.

I asked, "When did I ever give you this cake?"

He replied, "This isn't from you."

I pressed, "Who else would bring you food besides me?"