"How dare you ignore me!"
Elara who was lost in thought returned to reality. She stared at Calliope for a moment and began to feel annoyed and bored. She was a very strange woman with a bad temper. She had always made Elara the object of her anger. Even if Calliope said she had a deep grudge with the real Elara, Elara would believe her.
"Isn't my successful diet program good news? She will no longer see my body plastered with a lot of fat, and the percentage of chances that Asher will like me will go up. Doesn't she want to get a successor? Ah, though of course I'll never give her one," Elara grumbled.
"Now, what are you muttering in my presence?!"
The woman shouted again. Elara had to close her eyes, as the loud voice nearly broke her eardrums.
"Wouldn't Asher be the happiest if I lost weight?" After saying that, Elara left her place to get some milk from the fridge and turned towards the main door.
The servants that Elara passed by, bowed their heads and behaved politely. It seemed they realized there would be a change in the position of the hostess if Elara gave birth to a successor.
"I like their respect for me, but unfortunately a successor will not be born from my womb."
The fragrance of flowers brought smiles. Large trees with dense green leaves surrounded. The leaves danced in the gentle breeze, while the sunlight played shadows on the soft grass. At the far end of the garden, a shimmering pond reflected the sunlight, creating a mesmerizing image for all who looked.
Elara plopped down on an elongated white chair. Her lips curled upwards. She was enjoying the peace and tranquility she got from this place.
She had faced many events lately. There was no one more suitable than her to enjoy this tranquility. She had to maintain her sanity among the many events that wanted to make her scream hysterically.
"No one knows one's line of destiny, like me. I never thought that I would enter another person's body, become the wife of a billionaire who is obsessed with me, and have a family that is so bad it's like trash. Ah, right. What my life had in common with my previous life was having a family like trash. I'm even more convinced not to have a family in the future."
Elara's palms moved back and settled on the chair, she raised her head and smiled sweetly. Elara straightened her gaze to stare at the beautiful garden where there were various flowers with beautiful colors.
"The gardener here must be a professional. His work is very satisfactory."
"Is that so, Madam?"
Elara turned her head, looking at a five-headed man who walked up to her. With a friendly smile and a respectful demeanor, Elara concluded that this middle-aged man did not hate the real Elara. He didn't look dangerous either, unlike the servants with gazes that seemed ready to cut her into pieces.
"This is the first time I've met someone who doesn't hate me," Elara muttered.
"Did you say anything, Madam?" asked the man still with his smile.
"I was just saying that you've taken good care of the garden. Not a single wilted flower in sight and untidy grass clippings."
The man took off the round hat on his head and smiled bitterly. "You were the first to praise the garden I worked on. Thank you very much, ma'am."
Elara was taken aback as the gardener suddenly bowed his back. Although she was a vengeful person, she was still respectful of those older than her and those who respected her.
"No need to thank me. I should be the one to say that. Thanks to you, I have a peaceful place to calm my heart. The beautiful flowers have comforted my heart," Elara said as she looked straight ahead.
"Do you have a problem, Madam?"
Elara did not answer. She didn't want to lie but she couldn't explain her problem either. Who would believe her when it came to the possession system anyway? No one would, and it was more likely that she would be taken to a mental hospital.
"Madam, I have a daughter, but she chose to leave by her hand at a young age."
Elara immediately turned her head. A sadness radiated from those wrinkled eyes. His smile began to look bland.
"She was too hard on herself and ended up falling apart. She and I had a dividing wall, and I didn't want to cross that transparent wall for fear that my daughter would grow to hate me. I regret it so much now. I should have pulled my daughter's hand to be on the same side as me. She should have poured out her grief to me and not pretended to be tough with a stern expression on her face."
The gardener turned his head and looked at Elara. She smiled warmly.
"Right now you may be on one side and not realize there is another you on the other side because of the transparent wall. You should reach out your hand for happiness to reach it. You will feel lighter through all the winding paths if you join hands with her. You won't fall too deep and regret it."
"As far as I can see, you are a strong person. You can get through it and find more people who like you."
Elara was still transfixed even as the middle-aged man finished his words. The advice was poetic and hit the nail on the head. Perhaps this was what was called life experience.
Elara straightened her body, and the corners of her lips pulled up. "Thank you, thanks to you I have become much better."
***
Elara was busy putting documents and books in a small cabinet. She tapped her palm several times to remove the dust. A satisfied smile was etched on her lips.
"Seeing them neatly organized makes me happy. Finally, tomorrow is my first day of college with Elara's body! This sixth semester will be one I'm happy to get through."
Elara ran quickly and jumped onto the bed. Her hands stretched out to grab the pillow and hug it tightly. She couldn't wait to put her plan into action.
"Going back to college is the first step to completing the missions given by the possession system. Gosh, my heart is pounding just at the thought of being a student again."
"Status window. User skill."
User skills:
1. Alchemy skill (Level 4)
2. Martial skill (Level 4)
3. Programmer skill (Level 5)
"Even though I've been trying hard for the past few days, I still can't touch level 10. How can I dream of touching 50 if the most level increase I can get is only two numbers?" Elara grumbled.
Congratulations! You have received an item reward for successfully leveling up your programmer skills to level five. Stay tuned for further rewards on other multiples of five.
>> Item detail
Elara closed her gaping lips in amazement. She had just finished developing the programming skills according to the instructions given by the status window. For her, just getting a good clue was very easy, but it turned out that she also got item rewards. And at every multiple of five?
"Wow, crazy! My mood just flew to the sky. I'm so happy right now!" Elara brought her body to turn her head right and left enthusiastically.
"Okay, now focus, Elara." Elara took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
"Item detail."
Love Debate
Function: Shows the percentage of favorability of the three candidates selected by the system.
A smirk appeared on Elara's lips. "This item will make my path easier."