The night was long, but Adrian didn't sleep.He sat at his desk, staring at the faint blue glow of his laptop screen — Luna's message still open, the sea wind whispering through the slightly cracked window.
The city beyond felt alive — humming, breathing, unaware that a man who'd once died was about to change its fate.
But even in this new life, the past clung to him like smoke.
Flashback: Three Years Ago (Past Life)
The world had been warm then — too warm.The boardroom lights gleamed on polished wood and mirrored ambition. Adrian stood beside his fiancée, Elena Moore, presenting their joint proposal to the Vance Group's board of directors.
Her hand had slipped into his under the table, fingers cool and trembling.She'd smiled at him that day — soft, uncertain, genuine.
"We'll do this together," she'd whispered."Always," he'd promised.
But "always" had a cruel sense of humor.
A week later, a confidential report leaked to the press — insider trading, embezzlement, whispers of corruption tied to Adrian's name.He remembered the look on Elena's face when he'd confronted her.The tears. The fear.The lie that destroyed everything.
"I didn't mean to," she'd said, shaking, voice cracking."I just wanted to help your company — they said it was harmless!"
Her "help" had given their rivals the opening to gut him alive.Within days, the Vance Group collapsed. His father's death followed. His mother vanished.And finally, Adrian Vance had died in a burning car — a scapegoat, betrayed by love.
Present
The memory hit like a cold blade to the ribs.Adrian gripped the edge of his desk until his knuckles turned white.
Never again.
His phone buzzed. A message from Luna:
"Got what you asked for. The Moore family's internal communications for the last six months. You'll want to see this."
He opened the file. Lines of text and timestamps scrolled across the screen.And there it was — Elena Moore, exchanging encrypted messages with her father.
Keep him under control until we secure the Vance shares.Once we have the heirloom, he's expendable.
Adrian exhaled slowly. The ring on his finger glinted — a reminder of the moment she'd given it back to him earlier that day, smiling, pretending.
In his past life, he'd thought she was saving a piece of his father.In truth, she was confirming the trap.
But this time, he was already outside the cage.
Elsewhere — Moore Family Estate
Elena Moore stared at her reflection in the mirror, brushing her hair in slow, distracted motions.Her phone lay on the vanity, unread notifications piling up.
She replayed Adrian's words in her head — the way he'd said, "We were never meant to walk the same road."There had been no anger in his tone.No pleading.Only finality.
Something about that look in his eyes — that distant calm — unsettled her.The Adrian she knew had been warm, trusting, almost too forgiving.The man she'd seen today felt like a stranger.
She didn't know yet that he truly was.
A knock came at the door. Her father's voice followed — smooth, commanding."Elena, we need to talk about Adrian Vance. There's been... a development."
She frowned, turning toward the sound. "What kind of development?"
But the uneasy feeling in her chest already knew the answer.
Back to Adrian
Adrian closed his laptop, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.
The Moores think they're playing the same game again.They have no idea I'm the one writing the rules now.
He stood, buttoning his suit jacket, eyes hard with purpose.In his last life, he'd begged for truth.In this one, he'd take it — piece by piece, secret by secret.
And the first name on his list...Moore.
The rain began again outside — quiet, deliberate, like the ticking of a clock counting down to war.
Adrian Vance had awakened.The world just didn't know it yet.