Reborn With a Money-Making System: Ruined Actress to Nation's Treasure-Chapter 174: Little Gifts From My Husband

"He probably has several branches of this kind of place elsewhere."

My stomach churned even more when I heard that. Just one branch of that kind of shit was already bad enough, let alone having more than one.

"Are there many female celebrities who were recorded there?" I asked Mr. Mercer.

The private detective nodded. "Yes, but there has never been anyone as popular as Helena before. Most of them were livestreamers or beginner models who were still struggling to establish their careers."

"I’ve gathered a lot of information about the women whose faces appeared in those videos, and most of them have now become adult film stars or are doing photoshoots for adult magazines," he explained.

I gripped the couch tightly, letting out a soft sigh, because it felt like I would have ended up just like them if I had gone to that massage place, or if I hadn’t jumped from the third floor.

What a bastard.

"They were probably threatened, right?" I speculated.

"There’s a high possibility of that. Maybe they signed a trap contract, or maybe they did it simply because their image was already ruined," Mr. Mercer added. "Because of that, they definitely have difficulty getting normal jobs."

That was true.

Once a woman’s image is destroyed—especially by a sexual scandal—it becomes very difficult for her to rebuild it. Even more so if she doesn’t have a powerful figure backing her up.

"For now, I’ll continue digging into this matter, and if Helena’s manager is openly trying to bring her here, then her agency is probably involved as well," Mr. Mercer said.

"I think so too," Lando spoke up. "Her agency didn’t do anything even though her manager treated her badly. That’s why there’s a possibility that Jasper has a strong connection with the Davenports."

Lando sounded hesitant when he mentioned the Davenport family name. He was probably worried that I would feel guilty since I was one of the Davenports, and that it turned out my own family had hurt my friend.

When the truth was... I had merely been reborn into Helcia’s body. That meant I had no blood ties to the Davenports at all, and Helena was me.

"As long as there’s no direct evidence, I can’t treat it as a fact. But I’ll continue to look into it," Mr. Mercer assured us. "Don’t worry, I’ll work harder to gather more information."

Mr. Mercer finally left the manor after giving us everything he knew, and he also sent the evidence he had collected to Lando.

"Are you okay?" Lando asked as soon as he returned to the living room after seeing Mr. Mercer off.

I nodded but didn’t even bother to fake a smile. "I don’t know. Maybe yes, maybe no. But... a part of me is relieved that Helena never set foot in that massage spa."

Lando then moved from his wheelchair to the sofa so he could sit right beside me, without any barrier between us.

"About Jasper’s connection to the Davenports—"

"I know," I cut him off. "I’m not affected by that at all. If it turns out to be true, I won’t be surprised. After all, my family is truly rotten, and I would be more than happy to watch their downfall."

Besides, they had never treated Helcia well either, so that family held no value in my heart, or in Helcia’s.

"I’m not worried about your family," Lando said. "I just don’t want your name to be dragged into their case. But don’t worry, I won’t let your career be destroyed because of this."

I only smiled in response, because I knew Lando was truly capable of doing that for me. Besides, once I secured my position in the entertainment industry, I would make a clarification about all the bad things the Davenport Family had done to Helcia.

I didn’t talk much with Lando after that, mostly because I was afraid I might snap at him again for no reason. In the end, I went to bed early so I could wake up with a clearer mind.

And yeah, I think it really worked.

But... it seemed that it wasn’t just because I slept early.

When I opened my bedroom door, I found a paper bag hanging on the doorknob. It didn’t look expensive at all—just a plain brown paper bag—but its contents were enough to calm my chaotic mind in an instant.

No, there were no luxury items inside. It was just a few chocolate bars, sweet drinks, candy, vitamins, and a letter from my husband.

[I’m sorry for not being able to talk to you properly these past few days. I’ll try my best to be more present and pay more attention to you.

I know this small gift is nothing much, but I hope it can lift your mood today.

— Your Husband]

I covered my mouth with my hand because I couldn’t contain my happiness. My husband was so sweet. Instead of giving me something expensive or throwing money at me, he chose to give me something that could lift my mood.

His gift was so sweet that my mood became very good, and I was even able to work well on set.

The director told me that all of my takes were really good, which made me even happier.

My husband still didn’t send me a single message throughout the day, and I didn’t disturb him either. But when I came home, he was already back as well, so we could have dinner together.

"How was your day?" Lando asked as we sat in the dining room. "Did you... like my little gift?"

I nodded quickly. "I really liked it! It helped me a lot today. Thank you, husband." I paused for a moment before asking, "But why did you come home so early today? Weren’t you very busy?"

Lando smiled and placed more chicken tenders on my plate. "I just wanted to have dinner with my wife."

He said it so simply, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. But those words still made my chest feel warm.

I looked down at my plate, pretending to focus on the food, afraid that if I met his eyes, he would notice how soft my expression had become. My husband really knew how to calm me down without saying too much.

"Then... thank you for coming home early," I said softly.

Lando only smiled and continued eating with me, the atmosphere between us calm and comfortable. For the first time in days, the heavy feeling in my chest slowly faded away.

After dinner, Lando asked me to come to his office. He probably wanted to talk about something serious.

"I have an offer for you," Lando said seriously. "But don’t worry, you can think about it until you finish shooting your current series."

I raised my eyebrows. "What is it?"

Lando then placed a rather thick script in front of me. "A blockbuster movie." He cleared his throat before continuing, "I showed your acting video to Mr. Lan a few weeks ago, and he became interested in you—your acting, of course."

"That’s why he wants you to take an audition for this movie."

I took the script and widened my eyes as I read the title, the summary, and the genre.

"This... this is an action movie," I said in disbelief. "Don’t you think this is too far from what I’m playing right now?"

I had acted in a few action movies before, but most of them were only supporting roles. More importantly, how could Lando give me this script at a time like this, when I was only playing a sexy secretary?

"It doesn’t matter," he said calmly. "A great actor is someone who can play many different roles without exception."

I lowered my gaze back to the script, my fingers slowly flipping through the pages.

"What is this movie about?" I asked, still a little unsure.

Lando leaned back in his chair, his expression calm but confident. "It’s about a woman who works as a covert operative for an international task force. On the surface, she lives a normal life, but behind the scenes, she carries out dangerous missions, like chasing criminals, stopping illegal trades, and dismantling underground organizations."

I twitched my eyes because I had never played that kind of role before, and even more so because I didn’t expect Lando to give this script to me. "Why... are you giving this script to me? I don’t think I’m a good fit for this."

Besides, I wasn’t an active person—at least in this body—and I didn’t know any martial arts.

"Whether you’re right for it or not, you won’t know unless you try," Lando said calmly. "There’s nothing wrong with aiming for something you’ve never done before. You’ll still go through an audition, and if it truly doesn’t suit you, you won’t be chosen."

Lando was right.

It wasn’t like I would get in through nepotism. If I truly wasn’t a good fit, then I wouldn’t get the role. Besides, acting in a movie produced by Zentra Entertainment seemed like the safest choice for me right now.

"But I’m really not an active person," I said again, a little helpless. "I’ve never even been to the gym."