When my billionaire parents chose the fake heiress once again and refused to visit me in the hospital, I finally gave up. "System," I whispered, "let the cancer cells spread. I’m ready to leave this body." As my soul drifted away, I heard them talking. "If Serena hadn't warned us, I wouldn't have known our biological daughter was faking an illness just for attention! How low can she get?" "Let’s not contact her for a few months. She needs to learn her lesson. Maybe then she’ll finally start behaving." Behaving? Too bad I’m already dead. 1 The hospital walls were too white. So white they made my eyes ache. I sat by the window where a sliver of sunlight managed to peek through, yet I couldn't shake the freezing chill that wrapped around my bones. "Miss Sterling, please lie down. It’s time for your IV." My private nurse pushed the door open, her voice soft and careful. It was strange. I was the biological daughter of the richest man in the city. I was in a premier VIP suite. So why was there such deep pity in her eyes when she looked at me? "Nurse Thompson, did you tell my parents the biopsy results?" Her hand faltered for a second, nearly missing the vein. She offered me a weak, forced smile. "Don't worry. Even though the tumor is malignant, we caught it early. With surgery and two rounds of chemo, you’ll recover." "Don't be afraid." I nodded, then repeated my question, more urgent this time. "But... did you notify my parents?" Nurse Thompson opened her mouth, then closed it, looking like the words were stuck in her throat. I understood. There was no way she hadn't told them. It was just that they chose not to come. Before leaving, she tried to cheer me up. "Don't lose heart. The cancer hasn't metastasized yet. Your condition is very treatable." I forced a smile but said nothing. The cancer hadn't spread yet, but when I transmigrated into this body, I came with a "System" mission. If I couldn't win over my parents' love, my only ending was death. I leaned greedily toward the patch of sunlight. This cancer was the System’s countdown timer. If things continued like this—I was truly running out of time. 2 The original owner of this body was the true heiress of the Sterling family. She had been switched at birth due to a hospital error and grew up in a middle-class family. It wasn't until she turned 18, just a year ago, that she was finally found. At first, I thought this System mission would be easy. What parents wouldn't love their own child? But after coming home, I realized how cruel reality could be. There was another "Miss Sterling" in the house, born on the exact same day as me. The fake heiress: Serena. Initially, my parents were wonderful. They cried while holding me, calling me their "precious girl" in every breath. Within three months, I had successfully won them over. I was the apple of their eye. I even charmed the grandparents and extended family. Of course, I also managed to dodge Serena’s constant, petty traps. Until one day, she pulled me close with a sisterly grin to show me around. "Maya, look. This is Dad’s private wine cellar." "Every bottle here is priceless. You have to be extremely careful." I never touched that room. But a month later, my parents went to Serena’s parent-teacher conference. When they returned, Serena looked at me, smiled, and threw herself into the custom wine rack. The entire unit toppled. With a deafening crash, it shattered at my feet. Glass shards pierced my soles, drawing blood. The wine soaked my clothes, stinging my open wounds with a blinding pain. But a second later, Serena was the one screaming. "Dad! Mom!" "Serena! What happened?" My parents, arriving a few steps late, were stunned by the wreckage. I stood in the middle of the glass, frozen. Serena pointed at me, sobbing. "Maya was jealous because you went to my conference today." "She pushed me. I hit the rack, and it just... it all fell..." I found out later that the wine on that wall was worth as much as a luxury villa. 3 That was the fifth month after I returned home. My father slapped me, hard. He did it because Serena had dropped to her knees in the middle of the wreckage right in front of them. She looked up with tear-filled eyes. "Maya, Mom and Dad still love you most. They just went to my school for an hour." "I don't want to fight with you. If you hate what happened in the past, hate me, but please don't blame Mom and Dad. We’re all victims here." "If you really can't stand me, I’ll leave!" I watched her one-woman show in shock. Before I could even open my mouth to defend myself, the slap landed. Then came my father’s roar. "Maya! Is this how your foster parents raised you?" "You act so sweet to Serena in front of us, but you’re a monster behind our backs. You’ve deeply disappointed me." I tried to explain, but no one listened. Because Serena’s knees were shredded by the glass. My father scooped her up and rushed her to the hospital. I was left to limp out of the glass in my slippers, one agonizing step at a time. I treated my own wounds in my room, gritting my teeth against the pain. When Serena returned, both her knees were wrapped in thick bandages. My parents flanked her, supporting her every move while treating me with nothing but cold glares. "Maya, go to your room and reflect on what you’ve done." "Serena might not be our biological daughter, but we raised her for 18 years. Do you think that bond just disappears?" "Don't think we don't love you. It’s because we love you that we can't let you become this twisted! We have to correct you!" I tried to speak, but the pain in my feet made me gasp for air. "Maya, stop the act." "You were wearing slippers earlier. We both saw it." I knew words were useless, so I retreated to my bedroom. But because of the pain, I couldn't help but limp. In their eyes, even my pain was just another act of defiance. 4 Serena was willing to hurt herself just to turn them against me. Gradually, in their eyes, I became a person who would do anything to get what I wanted. The three of them were always together, leaving me alone at home. Their excuse? "It’s to build your character and teach you tolerance." That was when the System’s punishments began. The data showed that my parents' hearts were tilting further and further toward Serena. Desperate to save my failing health, I tried to fight back once. I got into a physical altercation with a girl at school who was insulting me. We both ended up bruised; I had a split lip. My parents rushed to the school. That was one of the few times I felt their love. "Maya, what happened? Does it hurt?" "Sweetie, she’s so much bigger than you. Why would you fight her?" My mother stroked my hair, her eyes full of heartbreak. My father stood in front of me, berating the principal for the lack of supervision. "Mom, I’m okay." With red eyes, I let her pull me into her arms. See? They still love me. But then, Serena arrived. In front of everyone, she looked at me with a look of pure, feigned disbelief. "Maya... did you lie and pick a fight just to get Mom and Dad’s attention?" With just one sentence, their faces changed. They didn't defend me anymore. They just turned and walked away. I touched my stinging lip. It was the other girl who had started it, calling me the "unwanted daughter." To prove my innocence, I convinced the girl I fought to testify for me. I even asked my teacher to come home with us. "Mr. Sterling, we cleared it up. It really wasn't Maya’s fault." But my parents only looked at me with utter exhaustion. "Maya Sterling, have you really stooped to this level just to maintain a lie?" Their tone was ice-cold. In my mind, the System’s alarm bells began to shriek. 5 From that point on, my health plummeted. But I stopped fighting. No matter how badly I was hurt, Serena could erase it all with a single, casual comment, and I would end up as the villain again. I lay in bed and whispered to the System. "System, when can I go back to my own world?" The System’s voice was low, sounding almost empathetic to my struggle. "Finish the mission, or die." I was silent for a long time. I had thought about it... If I die, I die. But I really wanted to go home. Lately, afraid I would "hurt" their precious foster daughter, my parents kept me on house arrest. At first, they visited me every day. But the look in their eyes was always a mess of complicated emotions, always ending with the same question: "Maya, do you admit you were wrong?" I shook my head stubbornly. Wrong about what? After asking enough times, they lost their patience. When I finally collapsed at home and was rushed to the hospital, they were away on vacation. They didn't even bother to check on me. Instead, they sent a text: "Maya, come home when you’re ready to admit your mistakes." "We won't enable this behavior anymore." I laughed. From start to finish, what was my crime? Oh, I knew. My crime was that I wasn't good enough to earn their favoritism. Did they love me? I guess the only way to find out was to die. 6 I was diagnosed with stomach cancer. The nurse told me not to lose hope; early-stage stomach cancer was very treatable. But I just stared at the ceiling, watching my life's countdown. I lived alone in that massive VIP suite. It was so quiet I could hear my own heartbeat. My only companion was the System I had grown to both love and hate. "Maya, do you think they're really not coming?" I leaned against the headboard, my eyes vacant. "Probably." "They don't even believe I’m sick. They wouldn't even believe the doctor." The System sighed. I just smiled. Good. It’s better to give up early. After a moment of silence, the System tried one last time. "Call them." "Otherwise, even if you have the surgery, the cancer will metastasize rapidly." I bit my lip and dialed the number. But—Serena was the one who picked up. Compared to my hollow, weak voice, she sounded incredibly vibrant. "Maya? What is it?" "Are you looking for Dad? Hang on, he’s out surfing." The System: "What? His daughter is dying and he’s surfing?" "That’s impossible." I listened silently to the sound of the waves on the other end. Daughter? In their hearts, they only ever had one daughter: Serena. 7 I waited ten full minutes before my father finally got on the line. But before I could even say "Dad," his stern voice boomed through the speaker. "Maya, have you finally realized you were wrong?" I let out a bitter, silent laugh. I guess the "jealous brat" label would only be washed away once I was in the ground. "Maya, enough of the drama. Admit you were wrong and come home." "You’re going too far now, actually making the hospital staff call your mother. Do you have any idea how close she came to a panic attack? If Serena hadn't seen through your little game, we would have been worried sick!" I opened my mouth, but the words were choked in my throat. Seeing my silence, his tone softened slightly. "Maya, as long as you come home and apologize, you’re still our daughter." Our daughter... I whispered, "Dad, what if I’m actually sick?" There was a long pause on the other end. Then I heard Serena’s voice in the background: "Sigh. Dad, Maya just won't change, will she?" "EXACTLY!" My father’s rage exploded. "Maya Sterling! Who taught you to be such a pathological liar?!" The line went dead. This time, even the System was silent. The sun moved to the west, and the light vanished from my room. Why? Was the love and guilt they showed me six months ago all an act? Maybe because I was too quiet, the System whispered a warning: "A negative mood isn't conducive to recovery." I grinned. Recovery? What was left to recover? "Just go home and apologize. Keep your head down for now. You have to survive to win." And then what? Continue to play games with Serena? Apologize for things I didn't do? Listen to their "lessons" for the rest of my life? I’d rather die. I lay back on the bed, a single thought flashing through my mind. "System, let the cancer spread." "I forfeit the mission." The System became deathly serious. "Are you sure?" "If you forfeit, you will be forced to remain in this world as a ghost for ten years as a penalty." I agreed. I really wanted to see how they would react once I was gone. 8 With the System’s power, the cancer cells flooded every organ in my body overnight. When I woke up the next morning, I was so weak I couldn't even lift my hand. "Maya, it’s not too late to regret this." I closed my eyes. A silent refusal. When Nurse Thompson came for her rounds, she was so shocked she dropped the IV bag. "Doctor! Code blue!" She ran out, followed by a chaotic blur of footsteps. A team of doctors swarmed the room, checking my vitals. I was hooked up to a dozen different tubes. "How? Yesterday there was no metastasis. How could this happen in a single night?" Nurse Thompson gripped my hand, her eyes blood-red. Honestly, I didn't understand why she was so good to me. As a stranger, she had given me far more than my own parents ever had. The doctor shone a light into my pupils. "The will to live is non-existent." "Notify the family immediately." I struggled to open my eyes and saw Nurse Thompson pull the doctor aside. Even though my consciousness was fading, I could still hear them. "Dr. Young, the family refused to come..." "Refused?!" The doctor’s voice rose, then dropped into a low, urgent tone. "Give me their number." "The patient could go at any second. They must be informed." I fought to stay awake. Maybe... just maybe I could last until they arrived. I wanted to see their faces when they saw me. Regret? Or total indifference? 9 I waited and waited, slipping in and out of consciousness. In my dreams, I could hear the frantic voices of doctors and nurses. When I finally opened my eyes, the first thing I did was look at the chair beside my bed. It was empty. "How many days?" In this vast world, only the System remained by my side. "Three days." A single tear rolled down my cheek. Three days, and they still hadn't come. I tried to wipe the tear, but I couldn't move my arm. I think I’m done. The monitors beside the bed began a sharp, rhythmic beeping. The hospital’s final alarm. I saw a group of doctors rush in to start resuscitation. I watched them frantically compress my chest. They were still trying to save me. But it was too late. I felt myself float upward. With the final long beep, I was completely detached from my body. Two minutes later, the lead doctor looked defeated. "Patient: Maya Sterling. Time of death: April 28, 2023, at 9:03 AM." I saw Nurse Thompson turn away to wipe her eyes. The System teased me: "See? You weren't a total failure." "At least someone cried for you." I felt a pang of sadness. I tried to wipe her tears, but my hand was only a breeze that ruffled her hair. 10 By the time I found my parents, they were just returning from their vacation. I could feel it; even the System was in a foul mood. "Maya, I'm sorry." I sat casually on the steps of the Sterling mansion, dusting off my invisible skirt. "This family is trash." "I'm sorry I threw you into this pit." I just smiled and said nothing. I had cursed this System a thousand times in my head before. But I realized we were bound together. Over time, she had developed something resembling human emotion. In the living room, Serena was showing off her new designer dresses. My parents sat patiently, watching her model the last one, their eyes full of warmth and smiles. Until—the hospital called again. "Hello? When is this going to end?" "How much did Maya pay you? I’ll double it. You’re doctors, for God’s sake. How can you lie like this?!" I couldn't hear the doctor’s side, but my father started laughing. "You really don't even have a script for these lies anymore, do you?" "Tell Maya: if she isn't home in three days, she’s never allowed back..." The line clicked. My father was fuming. "He hung up on me!" "What did they say? What is Maya up to now?" My father slammed his phone onto the table. "Her lies are getting more and more unhinged. She just had someone call me and say she died of cancer." My mother’s brow furrowed. "Maya... it has been a few days since we heard from her." "I’ll give her a call." But as my mother reached for her phone, Serena cut in. "But didn't Maya call a couple of days ago and say it was early stage?" "How could it suddenly..." The couple exchanged a look, and a wave of shared annoyance crossed their faces. "Serena is right." "What kind of cancer spreads that fast?" "If Serena hadn't warned us, I wouldn't have known our biological daughter was faking an illness just for attention! How low can she get?" "Let’s not contact her for a few months. She needs to learn her lesson. Maybe then she’ll finally start behaving." Behaving? But I’m already dead. Serena hid a smirk, then reached out to tug on my mother’s arm. "Mom, Maya just wants your attention." "Maybe you should call her anyway." My father slammed the table. "NO CALLS!" I sat on the steps, propping my chin on my hands and sighing. If they wait any longer, there won't even be a body to find.
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