PAMPERED BY MY THREE BROTHERS: THE RETURN OF THE NEGLECTED HEIRESS Chapter 987: Situational question

Did Slater accept the task?

He did, and surprisingly, he was much better at it. It was likely thanks to his training and the lessons he had taken to enhance his craft. Or maybe it was because he had grown up with a guy like Hugo, who would beat a poor dummy to a pulp.

Either way, taking that woman’s hand answered the "why" he tried to run away.

His entire body and soul already knew it would change him... and it did, forever.

******

[PRESENT TI]

"Slater, I don’t think this is working," said Jas. "Why did your father ask to watch over you and report to him?"

Jas slowly raised his brows and turned to his side where Slater was seated in the van. "Slater," he called, but Slater didn’t respond.

"Uhm..." Jas cleared his throat. "Surely, you and Penny inherited this trait from your father. How co he thinks he can also boss around?"

But Slater didn’t answer. Normally, Slater would quickly enter his combat mode when others ntioned his family in a bad light. Sotis, even a joke wouldn’t be okay — it was his rule. They could joke with him, but just not about his family. But Slater seed a little too distracted.

"Is it the last woman?" Jas wondered, thinking that Slater’s last date was too old to be his date. "Don’t tell he was mortified to be matched with an older woman?"

"Slater... Slater!" Jas called again, waving his hand in front of Slater. "Hey!"

This ti, Slater blinked slowly before focusing on Jas.

"Slater, what’s wrong? You’ve been distracted since that last date," said Jas. "Did she tell you sothing?"

"No." Slater’s expression was plain, his gaze locked on Jas. "I’m just a little... just a little tired."

"Tired? How could you be tired? You used to do autograph signings for hours! You’ve only spent a little over an hour with those girls." Jas frowned. "Don’t lie to . Sothing’s wrong. Tell ."

Slater smacked his lips and frowned. "How did you know I was lying?"

"We’ve known each other for more than half our lives! How could I not?"

"Well... that makes a little sense," Slater rocked his head before tilting it slightly. "Wow. I never thought you’d be a little scary."

"Huh? ? Scary?"

"Jas, do you know when I lie to you?" Slater asked out of pure curiosity.

"Of course!"

"Really?"

"Slater, being your manager makes extra attentive to you. You’re the only artist I handle. It would be bad for if I couldn’t even take care of the one artist under !" Jas intoned. "Besides, you’re my friend. So, I know when sothing is wrong or when you lie to ."

Slater blinked. "So, if I tell you that I once died and had the chance to live again, what do you think that would be?"

"Hah??"

"Jas, I actually died before, but then, I woke up several years in the past," Slater adjusted his seat and faced Jas. "Would you believe ? Or would you think it’s a lie?"

Jas studied the stern look on Slater’s face before his nose scrunched up. "What kind of nonsense is this?"

"..."

"If you die, you’d be dead! What second chance are you talking about? Did you read a script or sothing? How co it didn’t go to first? Surely, so people are a pain in the neck and don’t have enough decency in them."

As Jas mumbled on and on, a shallow breath slipped past Slater’s nostrils. However, to be fair, he wasn’t sure if he was relieved or a little sad. He just knew that Jas knew him in certain ways, but not entirely. At least, Jas knew when Slater was tired or bothered. But he didn’t know when Slater was lying about where he had to go or the people he was talking to — who were also agents from Holand Security.

"Ahem!" Jas stopped ranting and cleared his throat. "Slater, you’re really good at distracting people, huh? Did you say that nonsense to distract ?"

Slater slid his eyes to the corner. "No, but I’m... just thinking of a script I read online."

"You read the script online?"

"It’s more of a thread," Slater clarified. "It’s a thread asking a situational question."

"What is it?"

Slater humd and leaned back in his seat. "What if... soone important to you is on death row for a cri they didn’t commit? This person could be a friend or family — as long as they’re close to you."

"Okay...?"

"You can save this person, but you have to kill two people. Would you do it?"

"Who are these two people?"

"You don’t know them, but the person who asked you to do it didn’t want them in her way," Slater clarified. "So? Would you do it?"

"..." Jas opened his mouth but then closed it again. He massaged his nape, thinking about it carefully. "That’s very complicated."

After a mont of thought, Jas smacked his lips and shrugged. "I’d do it."

"You will?"

"If the person who is frad is my mom, then I’d kill those two to save her. She might not be happy about it, but I think as long as I don’t tell her, it’ll be fine!" Jas grinned. "They’re family. However, I think I would need a lot of therapy for it. I an, just the re thought of doing it is enough to give goosebumps."

Slater rocked his head. "But what if, when you finish the mission, you end up dead... only to find yourself back in ti? And sohow, you got the chance to learn who these people were?"

"What the—" Jas scrunched up his nose in dismay. "You an even when I succeed, I’ll still die? But I get reborn again? And get to know... who?"

"The people you killed in your first life; you learn that they were actually good people." Slater clarified. "Not just that, but then you et the person who made you stain your hands with their blood. What would you feel?"

"Shitty?" Jas blurted out, shrugging as Slater’s brows rose. "But I don’t think what I feel will matter, to be honest."

"Why is that?"

"Because in my first life, I did what I did because I felt like I had no choice. My family was going to die for a cri she didn’t commit. Do you know how much of a ntal load that is? Before I care for anyone else, I would care for my family first," Jas intoned. "But if I was reborn, isn’t that a blessing? Even if I rember what I did, the people around don’t. I can change my future and perhaps change the inevitable."

"As for the part where I ended two kind people because I had to save my family, I’d feel shitty. But at the end of the day, it’s the reason I was reborn again," Jas added in a knowing tone. "Instead of asking the obvious, it makes more sense to ask what would I do? But I guess it’s also obvious since I’ll surely use my second life to make the real puppeteer and the root cause of why I feel like a piece of trash pay. If not for their lives, then for sothing else of equal