My "dearest" brother and my fiancé said I bullied their precious savior. To punish me for my "spoiled arrogance," my fiancé called me a shameless slut on our wedding night, and my brother planned to leak the "news" to every media outlet. I completely snapped. If I was going down, I was taking them all with me. I set the whole place on fire. But somehow, I got a second chance. I woke up, alive. Lily Greene was holding a pair of scissors to her own vixen face, smiling cruelly at me. "If they see my face scarred, Sera, how do you think they'll torture you?" I snatched the scissors from her hand, kicked her to the floor, and pressed her down with my heel. Then, I carved a dozen, deep, bloody gashes into her perfect skin. "Oh, honey," I cooed, "a tiny scratch isn't enough to go crying to them. This... this is how you make a statement. So much better, don't you think? Just beautiful." 1 I died on the night that was supposed to be the happiest of my life. At our wedding reception, my new husband, Julian Chenworth, barely glanced at me. He just took the microphone and addressed our guests. "This," he announced, "is a slut who's been cheating on me. Just last night, she was with four different men and didn't come home. I can't possibly marry such a depraved, disgusting woman." The ballroom exploded. "She always looked so innocent, but I guess she's a total freak..." "Well, she is the Vance heiress... maybe that's what they're into..." "How did the Vance family produce scum like you?" That last voice was my brother, Marcus. "I'm alerting the press. As of today, Seraphina Vance is disowned!" When I saw Lily Greene peek out from behind him, a triumphant smirk on her face, I understood everything. While the doors were still locked, I cut the power, plunging the room into darkness. Then I grabbed a lit candelabra and threw it at the propane tanks for the catering truck parked just outside the terrace. When I opened my eyes again, I was back. Four years earlier. Lily was in my villa, pressing a pair of scissors to her own cheek, creating a tiny red mark. She smiled. "Sera, what do you think Marcus will say when he sees my face is hurt? He'll probably make you kneel and beg for my forgiveness, won't he?" The familiar scene hit me like a truck. I was reborn. When I didn't react, Lily pushed further. "But... if you give me that new diamond necklace Marcus bought at the auction, maybe I'll be merciful and let you kneel for a little less time." All the hatred from my past life surged through me. I snatched the scissors from her hand and kicked her legs out from under her. I pinned her to the expensive rug with my stiletto. Amidst her shrieks and cries, I dragged the sharp blades across her face, over and over, leaving a dozen crisscrossing, bloody gashes. "Oh, honey," I laughed, tossing the bloody scissors aside. "A tiny scratch? That's not good enough to go crying to them. You need to be bleeding. See? So much better." Lily scrambled away like a cornered animal, screaming, "Get a doctor! Someone, call a doctor! NOW!" I leaned against the doorframe, feigning boredom. "Call a doctor? Why? This bloody mess is perfect for playing the victim for Marcus, isn't it?" This was my villa. From the butler to the security, every single person here worked for me. I walked out the front door. "Keep an eye on her," I told my security team. "Don't let so much as a fly leave this house." Lily threw herself against the reinforced glass, pounding and screaming. "You can't do this to me! Marcus and Julian will destroy you!" "You love this house so much, Lily?" I called back. "Then you can spend the rest of your life here!" I got in my car and drove off. In my past life, I was Seraphina Vance, the perfect heiress: generous, dignified, and tolerant. That included being tolerant of Lily Greene, the "savior" my brother Marcus brought home. But she was a wolf in sheep's clothing, a master manipulator who framed me time and time again. She’d cry to Marcus that I, the spoiled heiress, couldn't stand a "poor girl" like her. No matter how I tried to explain, Marcus never believed me. Even my childhood fiancé, Julian, always took her side. I drove to our family's main estate. When I pulled up, I saw Julian in the garden, nervously fiddling with his collar, clearly waiting for someone. He looked shocked when he saw me. "Sera? What are you doing here?" I smirked. "Not your precious Lily, I'm afraid. Are you disappointed?" Julian's eyes darted away. "She's Marcus's savior, Seraphina. Are you misunderstanding something?" He'd used that exact line on me a thousand times in our last life, every time I suspected they were too close. He always blamed it on me being "jealous." I only found out right before I died that Lily hadn't just saved Marcus. She'd saved Julian, too. What a coincidence. She just happened to be in the right place at the right time to save the heirs to the two biggest fortunes in the city. How convenient for her. Of course, Julian was just using me, the Vance heiress, to stage a coup and oust his older brother at his own family's company. Once he was the sole heir, he had no more use for me and turned on me at the wedding. I smiled, took a deep breath, and screamed at the top of my lungs. "SECURITY! HELP! THERE'S AN INTRUDER ON THE ESTATE!" The nearby security team and the head butler were on him in an instant, pinning him to the ground. 2 "Wait! It's all a misunderstanding!" Julian sputtered, his face pressed into the manicured lawn. "I'm Marcus's friend! Sera invited me!" I thought about him pouring champagne on my wedding dress while calling me a whore. I walked over calmly. SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! I hit him three times, hard. He staggered, clutching his face. A flicker of darkness crossed his eyes, but he quickly replaced it with a placating smile. "Sera, darling, are you upset about something? You can take it all out on me." "But," he added, his voice dropping, "I am your fiancé. You shouldn't embarrass me in front of the staff." "Oh, right," I said, nodding as if I'd just realized. "In that case, our engagement is off." "Wh... what?" He looked genuinely stunned, clutching his chest. "But... we're childhood sweethearts! Our families arranged this... You can't just... cancel it." "Childhood sweethearts? Don't flatter yourself," I said coldly. I nodded to the guards. "This man is a trespasser. Teach him a lesson, then throw him out." I stayed and watched. Only when Julian was curled on the ground, beaten and gasping for air, did I finally turn and walk away. Getting even felt good. That evening, I was summoned to Marcus's penthouse. Lily, her face wrapped in bandages, was curled up in his arms, weeping. Julian, his suit now rumpled, was standing stiffly to the side. They had clearly been waiting for me. I ignored them both and smiled brightly at my brother. "Marcus, darling! Did you call me here to give me my allowance?" Marcus's face was like ice. "Kneel." "Why the hell should I?" The smile vanished. "You ordered your men to beat the heir to the Chenworth family. You viciously mutilated my savior, nearly disfiguring her for life. You tell me if you should kneel!" His voice boomed, trying to intimidate me. I just raised my voice louder than his. "I am Seraphina Vance! Who the hell are they? Their status doesn't compare to mine. If I want to bully them, I bully them. Do I need a reason?" My blatant arrogance left him speechless for a moment. Then, his face contorted in rage. "You are an embarrassment! You have no class, no upbringing!" he roared. "You scarred Lily's face and you had Julian beaten. For that, you'll take thirty slaps to the face. Now! Do it!" Two of his personal bodyguards started to move toward me. From Marcus's arms, Lily looked at me with pure, venomous triumph. "Sera," Julian pleaded, "you made a mistake, and you need to face the consequences. Just accept the punishment." I wasn't about to let them touch me. I pulled a sharp, pearl-handled letter opener from my boot. "Anyone who comes near me," I hissed, "gets this in their throat." I turned my disgusted gaze back to Marcus. "Honestly, if you love Lily so much, why don't you just marry her? You're already acting like a married couple without the ring, hiding her in your penthouse. You're the one with no shame here, brother." Lily immediately burst from his arms, tears streaming. "Miss Vance! You can hate me, I can take it... but Marcus is your brother! How can you slander him like that?" Julian chimed in, pretending to defend me but twisting the knife. "Sera, I don't know what's gotten into you, but this... this behavior is really disappointing me..." "This is the Vance family home," I snapped. "Who gave you permission to speak?" "Seraphina!" Marcus shot to his feet, his eyes boring into me. "Have you no decency at all!" 3 I saw the flash of pure disgust in his eyes and had to laugh. "As they say, 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.' Isn't my 'upbringing' your responsibility?" In my past life, he was always cold. I thought that was just his personality. I thought if I was just perfect, just proper, he would finally be proud of me. Then I saw how he doted on Lily, and I realized the truth. He wasn't a "stern older brother." He was just an asshole. The stalemate finally broke when my mother arrived. Lily immediately started in, "Mrs. Vance..." My mother silenced her with a single, icy glare. "It's late," she said to Julian and Lily. "You should both leave." Once they were gone, it was just the three of us. My mother looked at me and Marcus with profound disappointment. "Your father's 60th birthday gala is coming up. Do not make this family look bad." Ah, yes. Her precious "image." I was just like her in my past life. But this life, I didn't give a damn about appearances. So I doubled down. I used my status as the Vance heiress to make Lily's life a living hell. Throwing her in the estate's lake at midnight became a regular occurrence. I had cockroaches put in her food. Finally, during a public class we both attended, I ripped the medical mask off her face. "Everyone, look!" I shouted. "It's the freak!" Tears streamed down her scarred face, her eyes filled with a hatred that finally matched my own. She was no longer the calm, collected victim. She dropped to her knees. "Miss Vance! Please, I'm begging you, spare me!" "In your dreams!" I slapped her hard across the face, aggravating the healing wounds. I expected her to run to Marcus again, but for days, there was nothing. Then I found out why. They were waiting. I was lounging in my villa when Marcus showed up. "What are you getting Father for his birthday?" he asked. In my past life, I spent half a month hand-embroidering a massive tapestry: "Golden Prosperity." I wanted to wish my father success. But Marcus took it from me. He said he was the heir, so his success was the family's success. It was only right that he give it. Then he turned around and gave it to Lily. At the gala, Lily presented the tapestry as her own. My father was so impressed he gave her a manager-level position at Vance Consolidated. I, having had my gift stolen, presented a simple painting. It was the beginning of the end for me and my father. The memory of my own stupidity made me sick. "I don't have a gift," I told Marcus flatly. "I am the gift." He was speechless, but he regrouped. He knew I was skilled at embroidery. "You know, I've been so stressed with the company, I can barely sleep. Maybe... maybe you could embroider a 'Golden Prosperity' tapestry for me?" "Sounds like a you problem." His face darkened. "Fine. But you'll regret this." On the day of the gala, just as the sun was setting, I found out what he meant. As I was heading to the event, Julian blocked my car. My entire security detail had been mysteriously reassigned. My heart hammered. I tried to run, but he grabbed me. He gripped my wrist, his voice sickeningly gentle. "Don't blame me, Sera. You're the Vance heiress. You have everything. Lily has nothing. Just let her have this." Then I heard a sickening SNAP! The pain was so intense I almost blacked out. My wrist was broken. As I gasped, he reached into my bag and pulled out the finished "Golden Prosperity" tapestry, which I'd been hiding. He handed it to Lily, who had just walked up. I had hidden it, only working on it in the dead of night. They still found out. Lily's eyes were full of malice. "So what if you're the heiress? Your fiancé doesn't love you. Your brother doesn't protect you. You can be arrogant now, but what happens when Marcus is in charge?" She leaned in close. "I'll be Mrs. Vance. And you? You'll be nothing but dirt under my shoe." 4 I stared at the two of them, my vision blurring with pain and rage. "Bitch!" I swung my good left hand and slapped her across the face. SLAP! Her mask fell off. Her scars were already mostly healed. Marcus must have spent a fortune on her recovery. She clutched her cheek, laughing at my "powerless" rage. "You just stay here and cry. I wonder what Chairman Vance will think when his eldest daughter doesn't even show up to his own birthday party?" She sauntered off, tapestry in hand, ready to claim her manager job and start her corporate takeover. I tried to follow, but Julian blocked me. He was protecting her. I remembered what he'd told me in my last life, when I complained about this very moment: "Lily is Marcus's savior. You're his sister. You should be grateful to her, too. If you expose this, you'll humiliate Lily and your brother. And you know... I really don't like girls who hold grudges." This time, I just screamed the truth in his face. "You've known all along, haven't you! This bitch didn't just save Marcus, she saved you, too! You're both in on it, working together to destroy me! Do you think Father won't find out?" Lily's little speech had given me an idea. Marcus... the heir... Even with her mask of innocence torn away, Julian still defended her. He knew exactly what she was. "Yes, she saved my life," he admitted, trying to look sincere. "So please, just... let this go. Just this once. After this, I promise, I'll marry you in the most lavish wedding anyone has ever seen." He grabbed my broken wrist, his voice a gentle caress. "Go to the hospital and get this set. Otherwise, it'll be permanent." He stroked my throbbing hand. "And as for Mr. Vance... you wouldn't want your own brother to take the fall for this, would you?" His words were poison, his touch was agony. This was a setup. My "good" brother had arranged all of it. I started to laugh, a wild, painful sound. "Am I supposed to be grateful? Am I in her debt? You two owe her, so I have to pay?" "And who the hell wants to marry you?" I spat. "I'm the Vance heiress. Do you think you're my only option? I wouldn't marry a piece of trash like you if you were the last man on earth!" Hatred cleared my mind. "You're all disgusting! Go to hell!" With my good hand, I yanked the long, sharp hairpin from my purse and stabbed it directly into Julian's eye. He let out a bloodcurdling howl, clutching his face as he staggered backward. He stared at me with his one good eye, which was wide with shock and a new, deep-seated hatred. "If you don't get to a hospital, you're going to be blind," I said, my voice suddenly calm. Blood streamed between his fingers. "Seraphina," he hissed, "you vicious, heartless bitch!" "Am I? And you, blocking me from my father's party? What were the consequences for me?" I asked. "But you're right, you should go. If you stay here, you'll definitely lose that eye." "Then we'll go to the hospital together," he snarled, trying to grab me. I raised the bloody hairpin again, aiming for his other eye. He flinched. "Like you said," I taunted, "my hand is broken, but I'm still the Vance heiress. But you? A blind son-in-law? Who's going to want you now? Especially one who's on my bad side." He hesitated. That's all I needed. I bolted, running full-speed toward the gala. He was blind in one eye, and I had a broken hand. He stumbled and fell several times trying to catch me. I didn't look back. The gala was being held at our corporate headquarters. It was a massive event. As I burst through the doors, I saw her. Lily was on stage, presenting the tapestry. My father was beaming, clearly loving the "hand-crafted" gift. "FATHER! THAT'S MY GIFT!" I shouted, stalking down the aisle. I shoved Lily so hard she fell off the stage. The entire hall went silent. I pointed a trembling, unbroken finger at my brother. "He did this! My own brother... stole from his sister for his mistress!" "That 'Golden Prosperity' tapestry," I cried, "it took me half a month to embroider! The calluses on my fingers are proof! I can do it again, right here, right now! Can she? No! She's a thief, and he's her accomplice!" The silence was deafening. My father's face was unreadable. "Seraphina," he said, his voice dangerously quiet. "What happened to you? Your clothes... your..." I held up my grotesquely swollen, broken wrist. "Ask him!" I shouted, pointing to Julian's father, Mr. Chenworth, who was sitting at the head table. "It was his son! Julian! He blocked my path, tried to stop me from coming! And when I fought back, he broke my wrist to steal my gift for that... that whore!" My hand was trembling so violently, it was obvious I wasn't faking. "What!" Mr. Chenworth shot to his feet, his face pale. "He... he broke...?" He staggered, grabbing the table. "That monster! That ungrateful monster! Mr. Vance... I am so, so sorry... Whatever the Vances want... any punishment... it's yours to name!" My mother, sitting beside my father, looked furious. I had embarrassed the family. "A broken wrist can be fixed," she said smoothly, trying to control the damage. "My daughter is... forgiving. Mr. Chenworth, there's no need for such dramatics." "Oh, no need to apologize," I said brightly, cutting her off. "We're even. I already blinded him in one eye." Mr. Chenworth grabbed his chest and collapsed into his chair. "And," I continued, "now that your son has permanently injured me, and I have permanently blinded him, we're basically mortal enemies. This whole engagement is a joke. I'd like to end it. Tonight."
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