He Pretended to Forget Me, So I Erased Him for Real Chapter 04

He Pretended to Forget Me, So I Erased Him for Real Chapter 04

Gideon’s call came through shortly after.

“Vivienne is the daughter of a late associate; I can’t just abandon her when she’s spiraling.”

“The kidney is gone, but we can source another one…”

I remained silent. He let out a weary sigh and shifted the subject.

“You received the designer gown, right? Wear it tomorrow night. Meet me at our landmark. I have something crucial to tell you.”

It finally clicked. Tomorrow was the day of his ninth “proposal.” Even now, he was planning to continue this grotesque charade. But Gideon, I’m done playing. Your assets, your influence—I don’t want any of it anymore. And I certainly don’t want you.

The next day, I didn’t show up. That haute couture gown was tossed into the incinerator.

Just as I was processing my mother’s discharge paperwork, Gideon’s security detail appeared. They dragged me away, ignoring my frantic protests.

“Gid has been waiting for hours. Why haven’t you checked in?” One of them hissed. “Even though he’s proposed a dozen times, this might be the night his memory finally sticks. Don’t sabotage it now!”

The night sky was filled with a symphony of fireflies. Even though I had witnessed this eight times before, my eyes used to well up with tears every single time. I used to think I was Gideon’s unwavering choice. As it turned out, I was merely the target of his unwavering vengeance.

The glowing lights were nothing but blinding eyesores now. I watched with a vacant expression as Gideon, dressed in the exact same tuxedo, delivered the exact same scripted vows.

With a sudden movement, I slapped the multi-carat diamond ring out of his hand. Gideon froze, visibly stunned.

“Elara… are you… rejecting me?”

I looked at him with icy detachment. “Gideon, drop the act—”

Right then, one of Gideon’s hangers-on rushed up, clutching his phone. The two of them exchanged a look, then darted a glance at me. Gideon tried to play it off, shoving the man away.

“Can’t you see I’m in the middle of moment? Get lost!”

A sharp sense of dread coiled around my heart like a viper. I lunged forward and snatched the phone. My heart skipped a beat, then seemed to stop entirely.

The screen was a Livestream. My mother was standing on the precipice of the hospital rooftop.

I scrambled toward the road, flagging down a cab with trembling hands. Throughout the ride, I frantically called the hospice aide watching my mother, while simultaneously spamming the chat room of the stream.

Mom, please come down…

Then I realized she couldn’t see the screen. I messaged the Streamer instead, begging him to tell her I was on my way.

To my horror, the streamer let out a cold sneer into his microphone. “Oh, so you’re the daughter! Your mother is up there because of you!”

“Having a daughter who lives on an Arrangement with the elite… no wonder she’s too humiliated to live!”

The blood in my veins turned to ice. Just then, the aide’s voice came through the phone, panicked and sobbing.

“Elara! Get here fast! Half an hour ago, a girl named Vivienne told your mother everything—about the Sugar Baby rumors, the money… Your mother thinks her illness destroyed your life. She wants to end it all so you can be free…”

I gripped the phone so hard my knuckles bled, a monumental hatred surging through my chest. I reached the hospital just in time to hear a voice from the crowd scream:

“Just jump already! Having a daughter like that makes you a total failure!”

And then—THUD.

A sickening sound. My mother hit the pavement right before my eyes, blooming into a crimson stain on the concrete.

“No—!”

I threw myself onto her broken body, cradling her. My tears mingled with the viscous blood on her face. I looked at the crowd around me, my mouth hanging open, but not a single sound escaped my throat.

Please. Someone. Save my mother.

[Host, the mission window has closed. You have failed.]

[Commencing the total wipe of all memories regarding Gideon Blackwood…]

Gideon had intended to follow Elara to the hospital, but a call from Vivienne diverted him. She had another “migraine.” After a moment of hesitation, he turned the car back toward the estate.

He ended up staying the night, trapped by Vivienne’s feigned fragility. He slept until the afternoon sun was high. When he woke up, his group chat was buzzing with notifications.

“Is Gid about to start his ninth ‘amnesia’ cycle?”

Gideon stared at the screen, his thumb hovering over the glass for a long time. It wasn’t until Vivienne stirred beside him that he typed out a single word.

“Yes.”

After dressing, he followed the same protocol as the previous eight times—ordering his security detail to “handle” Elara’s hands.

But this time, a persistent sense of foreboding shadowed his mind.

Two hours later, the lead guard called. “Sir… Miss Vane is gone. She’s vanished without a trace.”