Chapter 1

Before filling out our college preferences, Ethan Barron, our class president and son of the richest man in the country, suddenly claims that he can get everyone in our class into Meridian College. "My parents have donated several buildings to the college. It'll be a piece of cake to get all of you in."

Even though most of my classmates have scores that fall well short of Meridian College's admission threshold, they fall for his promise, skip their official applications, and count on Ethan to pull strings and get them into college.

In my previous life, I realize Ethan's words can't be trusted, so I immediately urge them to submit their college applications, just in case. I also make a point of calling their parents one by one to warn them.

However, this infuriates Ethan. He mocks me for being a penniless nobody who knows nothing about the rules of high society and accuses me of ruining the lives of our classmates.

My girlfriend, Sasha Corbin, also berates me for being consumed by jealousy. "You're just jealous that Ethan comes from a wealthy family and can get all of us into Meridian College. So what if your grades are good? You could work your ass off your entire life and still never catch up to what his family has amassed over three generations!"

For the sake of our three years as classmates, I choose not to hold it against them. Yet, when I realize right before the deadline that they still haven't submitted their college preferences, I immediately call the cops and expose Ethan's fake identity.

Ethan is vilified by everyone and, overwhelmed by despair, jumps into the river to end his life. My classmates claim he got what he deserved and thank me for saving their futures.

However, at our class farewell dinner, Sasha poisons my drink. My classmates watch coldly as I writhe in agony. "We may have lost our chance to get into college, but Ethan has lost his life!"

When I open my eyes again, I find myself back on the day Ethan claims he can get us into Meridian College through his family connections.

Chapter 1

Even after I was poisoned to death in the private room of the restaurant, my girlfriend, Sasha Corbin, was still not satisfied. She searched my body, fished out my phone, and contacted Mom and Dad.

After hearing that something had happened to me, Mom and Dad rushed to the private room without a second thought. When they saw me lying on the floor, blood pouring from all seven orifices, they bawled their eyes out until they could barely catch their breath.

Sasha and my other classmates helped them to their feet and helped them sit down. "Calm down, Mr. and Mrs. Marlowe. The ambulance is already on its way. Have a sip of water first."

Without a hint of suspicion, Mom and Dad downed the glasses of water that were offered to them. In no time, a sharp pain tore through their chests, and they immediately spat out mouthfuls of blood.

At that moment, Sasha and my other classmates finally revealed their true colors.

"We poisoned your precious son to death too. He killed Ethan, so he has to go down to hell to pay for his sins! You two old fogeys can go down and keep your son company too. If you want to blame someone, blame your vicious son for dragging you down with him!"

The three of us died on the spot. My soul floated in the air, and I wished I could drag them all down with me, but I couldn't do a thing.

Yet, the very next second, a familiar voice sounded in my ears. "Whoa, Ethan! Did your chauffeur drop you off at school again today? That's a Rolls-Royce!"

Standing in the corner of the classroom, I stared at everything before me in disbelief. It dawned on me that I had been reborn.

"No, that's my dad, not my chauffeur."

The crowd went wild. "Damn, your dad's so good to you! He's so busy, yet he still drives you to school."

Our class president, Ethan Barron, smiled as if he agreed. However, I knew everything he had said was a lie. Remembering the agony I had endured before my death in my previous life, I shot daggers at him.

Perhaps sensing my hostile gaze, Ethan shifted his attention to me. "Francis, your grades are so good. I'm sure you don't need my help to get into Meridian College, right?"

I withdrew my gaze and was about to respond when Sasha beat me to it. "Don't worry about him, Ethan. Look at how broke he is. Even if he gets into Meridian College, he won't be able to afford the tuition. He might as well go to some lousy vocational college."

"Exactly. He probably can't even afford the tuition. Francis, even if Ethan helps you get into Meridian College, you won't last a month in the capital.

"Ethan, you can't take care of him for the rest of his life, you know."

At that moment, all my classmates firmly believed Ethan's words and were convinced that he could pull strings to get them into Meridian College. I had already checked my grades the night before, and my score exceeded the admission threshold for Meridian College. So as long as I filled out my college preferences correctly, I was guaranteed to get in.

Ethan's eyes lit up when he heard that. "To be honest, my family does charity work all the time and sponsors underprivileged students. If you drop to your knees and beg me right now, I can pay for your college tuition."

I clenched my fists, suppressing the urge to lunge at him and punch him in the face. "That won't be necessary. If you forcefully try to take things that aren't yours, it will eventually come back to bite you."

Ethan's expression froze for a moment before he immediately squeezed out a few crocodile tears. "I'm only doing this for your own good. After all, if you attend Meridian College, your destiny might actually change in the future. But if you don't appreciate the offer, you can forget it."

Drinking in his pitiable demeanor, Sasha immediately stepped forward and kicked me in the knee. "Don't bite the hand that feeds you, Francis Marlowe! You should thank your lucky stars that Ethan's willing to sponsor you. Now, hurry up and get down on your knees to thank him!"

"Exactly. What's the point of holding onto your pride when you're dirt poor? Can your pride put food on the table?"

Pain shot through my leg, but I still forced myself to stay on my feet. I merely glared at Ethan venomously. Dozens of eyes were on me, eager to watch me grovel in humiliation.

"I'll pass. My family may be poor, but we still have enough money for me to go to school. Besides, there are student loans. There's always a way to make it work.

"You guys, on the other hand, don't have high enough scores and want to get in through connections. Be careful not to let your cleverness backfire on you!"

Chapter 2

Sasha and I had met at school. Since I ranked number one in our class, I often tutored her. Over time, we developed feelings for each other.

Initially, we agreed that even if we couldn't get into the same college, we would at least attend college in the same city. Little did I know that everything would change after Ethan transferred to our class during our senior year.

Following his high-profile transfer, he began flaunting his wealth nonstop. He even told our classmates that he was the son of the richest man in the country. He was only attending school for show, and his future was already mapped out for him.

On top of that, he even showered our classmates with luxurious gifts to flex his wealth. Before long, most of the students in our class began fawning over him. Sasha was no exception.

Ethan gifted Sasha the latest gaming console on the market. From then on, she became addicted to gaming, and her mock exam scores in our senior year dropped like a rock every single term.

I watched the train wreck unfold and grew increasingly anxious. I urged her to set the console aside for the time being and focus on her studies. Once the exams were over, she could play to her heart's content.

However, she refused to listen to me. In fact, she resented me for getting in her way. "Do you have any idea how expensive this gaming console is? It's worth more than your life! Now, get the hell away from me!"

In my previous life, I couldn't bear to watch her sink into ruin, so I stuck my nose in her business and sought out our homeroom teacher, Noah Sterling. Looking back on it now, I was truly pathetic. Scum like her deserved to rot and fester.

"Oh man, I'm dying! Francis, you're way too naive. Do you even understand how high society works? All it takes to get us into Meridian College is one word from the richest man in the country." Sasha burst into laughter as if she had just heard the funniest joke in the world.

The rest of the class joined in. For a moment, the atmosphere in the classroom was lively.

"Exactly. His family has been in business for three generations. What makes you think your years of schooling can beat that kind of legacy?"

"So what if your grades are good? After you graduate, you'll still end up working for someone else!"

"A peasant like you will never get it. The things you've spent your whole life fighting for might be something the richest man in the country can get with a single word."

I chuckled. They weren't entirely wrong, but that logic rested on one massive assumption—that Ethan actually was the richest man's son.

"In that case, I hope you all get exactly what you wish for," I said. With that, I turned around and strode out of the school.

After walking a block, I got into a Rolls-Royce waiting by the curb, and it drove me straight to the gated villa community. When I arrived home, Mom and Dad were already waiting for me.

"I knew you could do it, Frankie! Come take a look and see if you like the gift I got you!" Mom placed a box in front of me and opened it. Inside were keys to several luxury cars I'd always had my eye on.

"Here's the deed to a house near Meridian College. When college starts, you can just commute from home. You won't have to squeeze into a dorm with other students." Dad placed the property deed in front of me, his face filled with pride and relief.

At the sight of my parents alive and well before me, tears spilled from my eyes. Thank goodness, there was still time.

Chapter 3

The second they saw me cry, Mom and Dad immediately asked me what had happened. I took a look at the housekeepers and wiped away my tears. "Let's talk in the study."

Once we were in the study, I told them everything that had happened that day. When I mentioned Ethan's name, Mom and Dad froze for several seconds.

"Isn't Ethan… Ian's son?" Mom was the first to connect the dots.

There was only one employee in our household with the last name Barron, and that was Dad's driver, Ian Barron.

That was right. Ethan wasn't the son of the richest man in the country. His father was merely one of the richest man's many drivers.

Dad had several drivers, and Ian was the newest addition. Consequently, he had never met me.

Not long after he started working for Dad, he approached him and told him that his son wanted to transfer schools.

Dad thought Ian was a hard worker and an honest man, so he had done him a favor and helped Ethan transfer to our school. It had never crossed his mind that he would end up raising an ungrateful wretch.

"Son of a bitch… I'll fire him right now!" Dad swore.

I hurriedly stopped him. If we exposed their identities now, we would only alert them. Besides, Ian and Ethan had done more than impersonate me.

"If they think they can walk all over my son and get away with it, they've got another thing coming!" Mom fumed.

I nodded and told them my plan. After I laid it all out, she patted me on the shoulder. "That's enough. Let's put these unpleasant matters behind us for the time being. Now that your results are out, you should fill out the form for your college preferences.

"But if you don't want to attend college in the country, that's fine as well. I've already gotten in touch with some colleges abroad for you."

Last night, the admission threshold for Meridian College was released, and my score was a solid 30 points above the threshold. In other words, I was virtually guaranteed a spot.

I immediately shared the good news with Mr. Sterling. Then, I indirectly asked about everyone else's scores.

While it would be somewhat difficult for the others to get into Meridian College, they could still make it into decent colleges. Sasha's and Ethan's scores, on the other hand, were so bottom-of-the-barrel that they'd be lucky to get into a vocational college.

I booted up my computer and filled out my college preferences. Then I chatted with Mom and Dad for a while before going to bed.

…

First thing the next morning, Mr. Sterling flooded the class group chat with reminders about the college application process. He urged everyone not to miss the deadline or they'd have no choice but to repeat their senior year.

No one responded in the group chat. However, in another group without him, everyone was mocking him for being an old stick-in-the-mud. They were convinced that they didn't need to fill out the applications at all because Ethan would take care of everything for them.

Moments later, Ethan posted a photo of a scenic spot overseas in the group chat. "I'm abroad right now. Don't worry, everyone, I've already talked to my dad. All you have to do is wait for your admission letters!"

The group chat immediately blew up again as everyone competed to kiss his ass. I quietly left the group. Now that I'd submitted my college applications and booked my plane ticket, I was all set for my own overseas getaway.

Chapter 4

Before I knew it, the day of the deadline arrived. I was fast asleep in my hotel room when Mom called. "Frankie, the deadline's tonight. Log into your account again just to be safe. Don't let anything go wrong.

"Last year, a student's college preferences were tampered with by a relative and changed to a vocational college! Go check yours right now."

I hadn't told anyone my username or password, so it should have been impossible for my college preferences to be altered. Still, I pulled out my laptop to double-check just in case.

However, when I logged in and looked at the screen, I was dumbstruck. Meridian College, the college I had initially selected, had somehow been changed to an obscure vocational college.

My heart almost leaped out of my chest, and I couldn't help but thank Mom. I immediately changed my college preferences back. I called Mom and Dad to break the news, and they were just as shaken. Yet, they calmed down in no time and reminded me to change my account password and keep it strictly to myself.

Moments later, Dad sent me an IP address. The moment I saw it, everything clicked. Sure enough, it was that bitch, Sasha, who had attempted to drag me down with her.

Most of my passwords were related to my birthday. So, she must've figured out my password and changed my college preferences.

Fortunately, Mom was one step ahead, and I managed to change them back in time. Even though I was abroad at the time, I wanted nothing more than to fly back and murder that bitch.

I canceled all my plans for the day and stayed in my hotel room, keeping an eye on the website until the deadline, afraid that something might go wrong again. The second the clock hit 12, I breathed a sigh of relief.

However, before I could even catch my breath, my phone chimed. Ethan sent me two photos.

The first one was a screenshot of my college preferences. "Since you can't afford to attend Meridian College, I did you a favor and changed it to a vocational college. The tuition is cheaper there, which is perfect for a broke loser like you!"

The second photo showed him and Sasha locked in a passionate kiss. "I've got Sasha to thank for this. If it weren't for her, I'd never have known your password."

I took one look at the messages and blocked him. I'd already changed my preferences back. Plus, these idiots wouldn't be gloating for much longer.

…

It was a monumental achievement to get into Meridian College. The day before we were supposed to pick up our acceptance letters, Mr. Sterling told me to come to school to collect mine the next day so everyone could bask in the spotlight with me.

I did as I was told. Yet, when I arrived at school, I noticed quite a crowd had already gathered.

"What are you doing here?" someone jeered. "We're picking up our Meridian College acceptance letters today. The vocational college ones won't be ready until next month."

A wave of malicious laughter immediately swept through the crowd.

"Forget it. Let him stick around. At least he can see what a Meridian College acceptance letter looks like. This is probably the only chance he'll ever get to see one in his entire life."

Their taunts didn't faze me in the slightest. After all, the truth would be revealed in a moment.

Just then, someone in the crowd shouted, "The acceptance letters are here!"

Everyone turned to look outside, only to see Mr. Sterling walking toward us with an acceptance letter in his hand.

"Why is there only one? Didn't everyone in our class get into Meridian College?" Sasha was the first to rush forward. "Why is there only one acceptance letter, Mr. Sterling? Where are the rest? Are there too many? I can help you!"

Even though Mr. Sterling was holding a Meridian College acceptance letter, his expression was grim. "What on earth is wrong with all of you? I checked with the administration, and none of you were accepted!"