Liam was stuck in custody with no easy way out. Leo's death was ruled a suicide—knife wounds matching the blade in Liam's hand, fingerprints on the hilt, even witnesses who'd seen Leo "flee" Liam's office. Leo's wife was screaming for Liam to rot in jail, and the story was blowing up: paparazzi camped outside the studio, hashtags trending on social media.
Elena didn't care. Liam and Leo had been the ones to spread her blackmail material last life, to trap her in bad contracts, to hand her to executives like a commodity. Their downfall was her doing—and she'd let it burn.
Her bigger problem was Ethan. She'd spent nights thinking of how to gain his trust while keeping him weak. Mind control was out—Ethan was too paranoid, too quick to check security cameras. A single contradiction between fake memories and footage would ruin her.
Then she thought of Liang Yuchuan.
The name sent a cold shiver down her spine. Last life, the Liang family's enforcer had hunted her for months—all because of his talent: [Fate Gear](Max-Rank). A talent that didn't kill, but tormented.
She remembered the details like they were yesterday:
Skill 1 (Your Luck Runs Out): Target a player, twist their luck for 8 hours. Cooldown: 8 hours. No visible status change—you just knew when it hit.Skill 2 (Swap and Suffer): Swap a target's highest and lowest stats for 2 hours. Cooldown: 8 hours.
It was a curse disguised as a gift. She'd had 60% critical hit chance once—yet every fireball missed. She'd choked on healing potions, tripped over empty air, even had her own gun backfire. She'd evaded the Su and Han families for a year, but Liang Yuchuan's [Fate Gear]had trapped her in three days.
"He's a beta player," she muttered. The first beta had 500 players, the second 5,000—by the third, it would be 50,000. Liang Yuchuan had to be in there. And if he was… she'd kill him before he could target her again.
But first, she needed to prepare.
She spent two days brewing potions in her villa: 200 Minor Phase Potions, 500 Intermediate Invisibility Potions (45 seconds of stealth, 60-minute cooldown). She even learned [Cooking (Basic)], making 680 beef skewers—each one restored 5 HP over a minute, perfect for low-profile healing. Her inventory was stacked: potions in one bin, skewers in another, the Soroya Mask tucked safely in her jacket.
The Liang estate was in the same luxury neighborhood as her villa—close enough to watch, far enough to avoid suspicion. She'd seen Ethan visit once, last life—he'd used a dungeon portal in his Liang-gifted villa to curry favor with the family. This time, she'd beat him to it.
She drank an Intermediate Invisibility Potion at dusk, slipping past the estate's gates. The mask's runes glowed—her disguised status ([Broker], mediocre stats) would hold if she was spotted. She crept toward the main house, her boots silent on the grass.
Memories of [Fate Gear]flashed: a healing potion catching in her throat, a fireball veering into a wall, a critical hit that never landed. She gripped a beef skewer, taking a bite—HP inched up to 95%.
She reached a side window, peering in. A man sat at a desk, scrolling through a tablet. Liang Yuchuan. His talent screen wasn't visible, but she'd recognize that cold, bored expression anywhere.
Next to him was another man—Liang Yichuan, Ethan's future ally. His talent: [Blood Fiend](Max-Rank). Elena's jaw tightened. She'd seen its power last life:
Skill 1 (Blood Bond): Merge blood drops into a weapon.Skill 2 (Blood Boost): 50% damage increase for all blood-based skills/items.Skill 3 (Vampiric Drain): 60% chance to steal 2% HP from targets.Skill 4 (Blood Forged): Regenerate slowly when merged with blood.
It was a brutal support talent—one Ethan would leech off later, using Liang Yichuan's blood skills to survive dungeons.
Elena pulled back, slipping into the shadows. Killing Liang Yuchuan now would alert the family. Killing Liang Yichuan later, when Ethan relied on him? That would break Ethan's plans.
She had a better idea.
She crept to the villa Ethan would soon own—the one with the dungeon portal. She pressed her hand to the wall, activating [Take One]on a loose brick. A faint glow—then nothing. She tried again, HP dropping to 80%.
Steal Successful!
Loot: 1 Fragment of [Dungeon Key].
She smiled. The portal needed three fragments to open. Ethan would spend weeks hunting them—she'd just stolen a head start.
The potion's cooldown hit 10 seconds. She sprinted toward the gate, vanishing into the night as the invisibility faded.
Back at her villa, she laid the fragment on the table. Next to it: the Soroya Mask, a beef skewer, an Intermediate Invisibility Potion.
Liang Yuchuan's [Fate Gear]was a threat. Liang Yichuan's [Blood Fiend]was an opportunity. Ethan's dungeon plans were now hers to ruin.
She thought of Ethan, probably bragging to Su Yitong about his "connection" to the Liangs. She thought of Liang Yuchuan, scrolling through his tablet, unaware she'd already outmaneuvered him.
Elena picked up the fragment, turning it in her hand. The game's third beta was in two days. She'd find Liang Yuchuan there. She'd steal his luck, his items, his chance to ruin her again.
And when Ethan finally reached that dungeon? He'd find nothing but an empty room—and her, waiting.
Fate wasn't on Ethan's side. It was on hers.
She took another bite of the beef skewer, HP climbing. Tomorrow, she'd scout the Liang estate again. Tomorrow, she'd take another step toward breaking Ethan.
The gear of fate was turning. And this time, she was the one twisting it.