Eden's Pov.
I stroll out of the elevator and into the massive living room. At least the penthouse has an elevator; I'll give him that one small credit. I don't think my feet could handle another flight of stairs right now.
This entire day has been so completely horrible. The wedding dress still feels heavy and restrictive on my body, and I can't even take the damn thing off because there is absolutely nothing here for me to change into. The thought makes my skin crawl. He's probably going to bring me one of his mistress's dresses later, some cheap, tasteless thing she left behind. The idea alone makes me feel sick.
This is exactly why I never wanted to marry this man. I didn't even need to meet him to know something was off about the whole arrangement. Talk about intuition being right.
[Yay! You're so smart] Lotus's mocking, electronic voice buzzes through my head, grating on my last nerve.
"I am hyper-convinced that you were sent directly by the devil," I mutter under my breath, collapsing into a large armchair.
[I wish I was. I would've just let you die in that tub and saved us both the stress] she retorts, her tone flat and unamused.
"F-ck you," I curse aloud, the words sharp in the quiet, empty room.
[Language, Eliza] her immediate response comes just as I let out yet another heavy sigh. My wedding was disastrous enough, not exactly the elegant, celebrated event I had always imagined for myself. But I could always give it another shot later with a competent, worthy groom. This is just the first wedding, a practice run. I can easily erase it from my memory.
"You're not my mom, Lotus. Don't tell me what I need and don't need to say. And don't you even start calling me by that name," I snap, irritation flaring.
[And where is your mom now? Or rather, Eden's mom?] Lotus fires back. [She's back at the house, probably celebrating that you've been successfully kicked out and married off. Open your eyes. You are Eliza now. The only way you can get out of this mess is by following through with my tasks and finishing your journey as a certified White Lotus.]
I let out a long, defeated sigh, slumping deeper into the chair. "Fine. What's in it for me after that? What's the grand prize?"
[You could get your old life back, for starters. I'm literally here to help you, Eliza.]
"Ah-hah!" My eyes brighten with a sudden, vicious spark. A wide grin spreads across my face. "I could use it to take my revenge! I can make that bitch pay for switching our bodies and ruining everything!"
[Ugh...] Lotus groans in my head, the sound full of static. [Why don't we start with some basic character development first? Baby steps.]
"Honey, I am the main character. I'm fully fleshed out and developed. I don't need another class on how to be me," I say, flipping my hair over my shoulder even though no one is here to see it.
[Maybe you need a whole university built just to knock some sense into you, then?] she quips.
"I hate you," I state plainly.
[The feeling is mutual. Now, are you done complaining?]
I roll my eyes so hard I see stars for a second. "So... I heard you mention something about redemption points earlier? Before the whole wedding fiasco?"
[Yes. Those are the points you get as rewards for performing certain tasks. You can convert them to real-life assets, like cash or items...]
"Great. Perfect," I interrupt, a new plan forming. "I need to start shopping for a new wardrobe immediately. I don't know where I left Eliza's card and phone, and I refuse to look like this for another second."
[I'm not unlocking the point converter or doing anything for you until you speak properly with Lorenzo. Go have a civil, non-screaming conversation with your husband. That's your next task.]
"You can't just send me on errands, Lotus. I'm not your personal assistant."
[Did you not get the memo already? That is literally my job. You perform tasks and I reward you. You fail and you get punished. It's a very simple system. You have five main levels to complete as a White Lotus. Seed, Root, Sprout, Stem, and Fruit. You finish all five and then you can get your final rewards.]
"Oh," I say, a little intrigued despite myself. "So what level am I now?"
[Zero. You're not even a Seed yet. And you currently do not have any redemption points or rewards because you blew up your first mission at the wedding.]
"What? That's so unfair," I grumble, slumping back in the chair. "I was under duress. There should be an exception for that."
[The system does not recognize 'duress' as an excuse for public hysterics. You'll get 100 redemption points if you go speak to Lorenzo calmly right now. A simple, civil conversation. That's it.]
"And that's how much if I were to convert it to cash?" I ask, my interest officially piqued.
[A hundred dollars. It gets bigger as you advance through the levels. The rewards scale up significantly.]
"Fair enough. So this is basically like a video game? Complete the quest, get the experience points?"
[You could say that. Though the consequences for failure are a bit more... tangible than just seeing a 'Game Over' screen.]
"I have another question." I sit up straight, a more serious thought crossing my mind. "Why did I switch bodies with her... really? What's the real reason? It can't just be because of Xavier."
[You seduced your sister's husband and then manipulated the situation to shove her into a marriage with another man that you yourself did not want. It's not about karma, I believe the Creator is giving you another chance.]
"He was going to come onto me if I didn't do it first, really. I was just being proactive." I bite my lower lip, trying to justify it even to myself. "And it's not like she's so righteous, is she? She has flaws too. She's not perfect. Why do I have to get all the punishment?"
[To be honest, Elizabeth, it's more than that single incident. There are dozens of entries in my database about your actions, but that information has been kept strictly for certain higher levels. I can't access it yet. At this level, this is how much I'm afraid I know. Sure, your sister may be icky or she may be pretending, who knows? The point is, you have to take responsibility for your own life and for your own actions if you ever want to find the true answers.]
I let out a long, defeated sigh. She has a point, even if I hate to admit it. "And why do I have to be the one to marry him? Isn't there an option to just give him to someone else? Can't we just get an annulment?"
[You'll have to find that out yourself. I'm counting on you to eventually understand why this path is necessary. Now, go talk to him if you ever want to take off that dress and get into some comfortable clothes.]
"You're so freaky. And no, I'm not doing that with him, especially since he has a girlfriend. Who knows what he carries?"
[I wasn't referring to sexual relations, but you do have a point about due diligence. Fine. I'll run a full background report on him, including his complete medical history, and send it to you. Will that ease your concerns?]
"Okay then," I say, a genuine smile finally appearing at the prospect of having some real leverage and information. I rise to my feet, feeling a new sense of purpose.
[This does not mean we're suddenly best friends,] Lotus adds, her tone dry and warning.
"I'd rather lose my skull in another bathtub accident than to ever think of that," I retort, heading toward the door to finally hunt down Lorenzo.