When Chen woke, a splitting headache reminded him of his secret vow: never to drink so much again. The global economy had been grim lately, and as part of an investment bank's overseas department, Chen and his colleagues were under immense pressure. Finishing a major deal called for celebration, and that meant alcohol and beautiful women. So, after a night of revelry, Chen awoke to the girl beside him stirring, instinctively pulling the blanket up.
"Ah..." The girl's sharp scream made Chen wince and cover his ears.
"How could I be here?" she asked. Chen, however, wasn't in the mood to answer. His mind raced, trying to recall the hazy events of the night.
Finding a stranger in his bed after a hangover wasn't shocking for Chen; it was part of the high-pressure, wild lifestyle of his industry. He'd done it before with close friends. But a foreign girl, speaking fluent English with a British accent? That was... strange. He vaguely remembered twin sisters at the bar, then taking them to the hotel. Had one of his buddies pranked him while he was blackout drunk? He couldn't recall the reason, but he had to face the situation.
Fortunately, the flaxen-haired girl, with a few familiar freckles, seemed to calm down. She gathered her scattered clothes, muttering, and dressed under the blanket before grabbing her bag from the bedside table and heading to the bathroom. Faint sounds of water confirmed she was showering. The light filtering through the curtains signaled it was already broad daylight.
Subconsciously, he reached for his phone on the bedside table...
"Huh?"
He stared at the rather 'nostalgic' Motorola flip phone in his hand, a wave of confusion washing over him. Then, he realized the room layout was subtly different from the Ritz-Carlton he'd checked into.
What's going on?
Suddenly, an electric current seemed to shoot through his brain. A rapid-fire montage of movie-like images flashed before his eyes. His brain felt like a trash can, forcibly overstuffed, as if his very skull was about to burst. Then, Chen's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed onto the bed.
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"...Are you okay?"
When consciousness returned, Chen opened his eyes to the girl's slightly nervous face. Still so familiar.
"I... I should be fine. Maybe I was a little tired last night..."
At Chen's words, the girl's face flushed slightly as something clicked for her. She glared at him. "You bastard, I shouldn't have cared about you. I'm leaving..."
She was already fully dressed: a purple sweater, plaid skirt, black cotton socks, and long boots. Grabbing her trench coat from the sofa and her shoulder bag, she turned towards the door. Just as she was about to disappear around the corner, she paused, turned back, and looked deeply at Chen.
"What we did last night... was just a mistake. It's all my fault for running to the bar to drink too much when I was in a bad mood. You know, I hope we both forget about that..."
Even after the door clicked shut, Chen remained on the bed. His headache wasn't as severe, but beyond the lingering hangover, his current predicament was truly perplexing.
Chen... no, he shouldn't be called Chen anymore. His name was now Arthur Cavendish! He now possessed two sets of memories: his own as Chen, and those of this young man, Arthur Cavendish.
Getting up, he walked to the bathroom. The mirror reflected a handsome, blond Caucasian face—his new body. This reality was difficult to swallow. Who would have thought that Chen, from 2025, would, after a night of indulgence, wake up in 2002, twenty-three years in the past, as a native Brit?
Chen—now Arthur—splashed cold water on his face, trying to jolt some sense into himself. He looked up, only to be met with a reflection that still didn't feel real: a slightly baby-faced youth with golden-blonde hair and vivid blue eyes. He stared, stunned. Then he ran his fingers through the unfamiliar hair, tugging in mounting frustration."Seriously? What kind of crappy novel plot did I fall into?!"
The Motorola flip phone, a popular model at the time, was off, likely due to a drained battery. Fortunately, he found the charger in his bag and successfully powered it on. The display showed: May 20, 2002, 8:00 AM.
He walked to the window, opened the curtains, and looked out at the somewhat gloomy scenery. Chen began to sift through Arthur's memories. Who am I? Where am I? What am I going to do? These were the immediate questions he needed to answer.
A burst of MIDI music jolted him from his thoughts. It was the ringtone of the Motorola phone. Chen had almost forgotten the sounds of such 'ancient' feature phones.
"Butler Sean?" The name on the incoming call instantly conjured the corresponding image from Arthur's memory.
The original owner of Chen's current body, Arthur Cavendish, was a genuine Englishman from an aristocratic family. Not just any aristocratic family, but one of the mere twenty-odd families in all of England holding the title of Duke—the Cavendish Family!
In 1605, the ancestor of the Cavendish Family was granted the title of Arthur Cavendish, later becoming the Earl of Devonshire in 1618. Over three hundred years ago, the great-grandson of the first Earl was granted the title of Duke of Devonshire. For centuries, the Cavendish Family had produced generations of politicians and scientists, establishing itself as one of England's older ducal families, ranking in the top ten in seniority.
Growing up in such a family, Arthur received the most traditional British aristocratic education. Before high school, he resided at Darcy Manor, the Cavendish Family's estate in Derbyshire. Butler Sean was the loyal servant who had served their family for over forty years, watching Arthur grow up since childhood.