Reborn With a Money-Making System: Ruined Actress to Nation's Treasure-Chapter 79: When Your Husband Deletes Evidence

[Congratulations, Host! You have successfully completed your mission: Freeze the Debt!]

[Reward: $15,000 has been credited to your account.]

[Remaining Balance: $170,915]

My eyes widened the moment I received that notification, and I almost dropped Lingo, who was in my arms.

Within seconds, I put him down on the grass and pulled out my phone from my pocket.

[Lando: Everything has been taken care of. For the time being, your debt has been frozen.]

[Lando: Mr. Rowell will take your case to court, but since I have to leave town tonight, we’ll meet him the day after tomorrow.]

I guessed that since the debt had already been frozen, Mr. Rowell wouldn’t have to come to the house tonight anymore.

I quickly typed a reply.

[Me: Okay ... but what exactly did you do to make the bank freeze my debt?]

Lando replied almost instantly.

[Lando: You don’t have to worry about it.]

I hissed softly, feeling frustrated that he kept telling me the same thing over and over again. Still, I figured it probably had something to do with his secret identity as a billionaire, so it made sense that he didn’t want to tell me the details.

In the end, I just sent him several thank-you messages and promised to treat him to dinner once he got back.

However, he told me that I didn’t need to do anything in return since it was already his responsibility to help me.

I smiled and decided to send him a voice note instead. "Thank you, husband," I said playfully. "If you don’t want dinner, I can pay you back with a kiss instead."

It was supposed to be just a joke, something to make him flustered and maybe agree to dinner instead.

But to my shock, he actually sent a voice note back, saying, "Okay."

My phone almost slipped out of my hand, and I barely managed to catch it in time.

When I looked at the screen again, the message had already been deleted and replaced with a new one:

[Okay, you can just treat me to coffee.]

What?! I wasn’t imagining that, right? He really did reply "okay" when I said I’d kiss him instead, didn’t he?

[Correct. You weren’t imagining things, Host.]

Then how the hell did he delete that message so fast?!

Penny didn’t respond again, and before I could even type a reply to Lando, another message popped up.

[Lando: I have to go now. I’ll contact you later.]

Oh, great. So now he’s running away right after agreeing to let me kiss him!

But ... if he hadn’t deleted that message, would I have really kissed him?

I slowly sat down on the garden bench, my mind spinning with that question.

Honestly, there was nothing wrong with kissing him. After all, he was my husband, and it wasn’t like kissing him would be something scandalous or wrong.

Still ... my heart wouldn’t stop racing whenever I thought about it. Just remembering the way his voice sounded when he said "okay" made my stomach twist in knots.

I covered my face with both hands, groaning softly. "Ugh, why did I even say that?"

Lingo, who had been sitting by my feet, tilted his head and meowed as if asking what was wrong. I gently scratched his head and sighed. "Your dad is making me crazy, you know that?"

The little orange kitten only meowed in response and leaned against me. At least his cuteness managed to make me forget the embarrassing thing I’d just done earlier.

Not long after, Penny sent another notification.

[Vivienne has just transferred $10,000 to your account!]

[Remaining Balance: $180,915]

Finally! I thought she had forgotten, since she still hadn’t sent me the rest of my payment yesterday. Along with the notification, I also received a message from Vivienne.

[Vivienne: Helcia, I’m so sorry for sending the remaining payment late. Your video result completely mesmerized me that I ended up forgetting everything else!]

[Vivienne: If this ad manages to attract a lot of viewers, I promise to give you a bonus!]

She was seriously too kind! But of course, I’d never turn down money. I quickly sent her a thank-you message, wishing her product good luck and continued success.

Now that I’d wrapped up this job, wasn’t it time to try another audition?

[Random Quest!]

[Quest: Join a drama series audition and successfully get a role!]

[Reward: $35,000]

[Time Limit: 1 month.]

Thirty-five grand?!

The reward was already close to fifty grand!

Without wasting a second, I immediately asked, "Do I have to get the lead role?"

[No, Host.]

[As long as you get a role in the drama series, Penny will consider the quest complete!]

I let out a sigh of relief. Drama auditions were much tougher than commercial ones. At the very least, I had to pass three rounds, and none of them were easy.

"But isn’t one month too soon? I’ve heard of production houses giving results two months later," I asked nervously.

[Penny believes you can make it!]

I bit my thumb, then texted Marissa, telling her that I wanted to try out for a drama series audition, and if possible, I hoped it would be scheduled sometime this week.

I was sure Marissa would think I was out of my mind for wanting to join a drama series audition this soon. For a rookie, it was always safer to pick an audition scheduled at least a month away because it gave more time to practice the script.

In the past, I always looked for auditions that weren’t happening too soon. But this time, I didn’t have that luxury. I didn’t want to lose thirty grand, and unlike my past self, I was much more confident that I could learn a script in a short time.

A few moments later, Marissa suddenly called me.

"Helcia," she began carefully, "are you sure about this? As a rookie, I honestly think you should join an acting class first. Don’t take this the wrong way, but drama auditions are really different from commercials."

She went on to explain things I already knew well, but since she thought I was still new to the industry, I didn’t interrupt her.

When she finished, I finally said, "I know it sounds like a bad idea, but ... I just want to give it a try. I actually took a few acting classes before. It’s been a while, but I still remember some of what I learned."

Then I added softly, "Please, I just want to experience a real audition. Even if I fail, it’s okay. It’ll just mean I need more acting lessons."

I tried to sound calm and polite so I wouldn’t come off as a cocky rookie or someone who thought too highly of herself.

However, since most rookies tended to have unrealistic dreams sometimes, I guessed Marissa thought I was the same.

She let out a small sigh before saying, "Alright then. I’ll look into some ongoing auditions for you. But promise me, Helcia, don’t get discouraged if you don’t get a callback, okay? Drama roles can be really competitive."

"I understand," I replied with a smile, even though my heart was already pounding with excitement.

After hanging up, I leaned back on the garden bench, staring at the blue sky above me. Just thinking about acting again after so long made my chest feel warm.

It reminded me of those days when I used to dream of standing in front of the camera, not as a model or commercial face, but as someone who could make people feel something.

Lingo jumped onto my lap, curling into a small ball as if giving me a little cheer. I chuckled and gently patted his fur. "Looks like we’re going back to the acting world, little guy."

He meowed in response, and somehow, that tiny sound filled me with courage.

This time, I wasn’t the same person I used to be. I had experience, I had confidence, and most importantly, I had a system that rewarded hard work.

I just hoped that the misfortune I faced in my past life wouldn’t repeat itself this time.

No matter how hard things got, I was determined to make this quest a success.

• •

Two days later, Lando finally came home before sunset. Unlike usual, he didn’t return empty-handed.

"For you." He handed me a small paper bag.

Curious, I took it from him and peeked inside. "You bought me something?"

"Just a little souvenir," he said casually, loosening his tie as he sat down on the couch. "I saw it while passing through the airport shop and thought of you."

When I opened the paper bag, I found a small box inside. Carefully, I lifted the lid, and I saw a silver bracelet gleaming softly under the light.

I turned to him with wide eyes. "You bought this for me?"

Lando gave a small nod, his tone calm but warm. "I thought it would suit you."

I gasped softly, my heart swelling as tears nearly filled my eyes. He was just so sweet to me. "Is this supposed to be a replacement for the wedding ring?" I asked, half teasing, half serious.

Lando, who had just taken a sip of the coffee the maid brought him, suddenly choked on it.