The year I was at my lowest, a wealthy family came for me, claiming I was their real son.

The school beauty I had secretly admired was officially my fiancée.

While I was still stunned by the surprise, suddenly, comments started scrolling across my view.

[This is the turning point. The male lead’s parents take the supporting male home, forcing him to drop out. His fiancée gets him sick, and in the end, they see him as bad luck and brutally kill him.]

My hand froze around the paternity test report.

My father’s eyes glistened with tears as he took the report from me.

“My child, you’ve suffered so much all these years. Don’t worry, come home with us and rest. You’re our son, and the family company is enough to support you for life. You don’t even need to take the SATs.”

The school beauty lowered her head, her voice soft and teasing in my ear.

“Levi, be good. Studying is too hard. From now on, I’ll take care of you.”

[Haha, the male lead’s family is really putting on a show. They’re pretending the supporting guy is the heir of a wealthy family just to make him give up on himself, all so their real heir can take his place!]

[Seriously, though, the supporting guy’s life is miserable. He grew up poor, hungry, and always getting beaten. After all that, he finally made it into a top high school. His grades were good enough for a guaranteed recommendation to Harvard or Yale, which could completely change his life. And now he’s getting played by these scammers.]

[Serves him right! Who told him to always rank first in the grade? Because of him, our handsome and proud male lead could only be second place every year. His family is just looking out for him!]

[Exactly! He’s just a cannon-fodder supporting character. How dare he steal the spotlight from our male lead? If he’s getting revenge now, that’s just karma!]

The comments streamed past in dense waves.

I lowered my head and looked at the paternity test report that had just been taken away from me. My fingernails dug deep into my palm.

So that was it.

Now everything made sense.

Just a week ago, a well-dressed couple suddenly appeared at my door. They claimed to be my biological parents, tearfully telling me that the babies had been switched at birth years ago.

To make it up to me, they bought me designer clothes, moved me into a luxurious villa, and repeated the same thing to me every single day.

“You are the only heir to the Zimmerman Group. Even if you don’t study or take exams, you can still live a carefree life.”

From that very day on, too, Maddie, the school beauty I had secretly liked for years, began confessing to me every day with roses.

“Levi, you’ve suffered so much.

“As your fiancée, I will never let you be wronged again.”

I thought my suffering was finally over, and I could finally escape the mother who drank, gambled, and beat me.

That was until this moment, when the endless stream of comments tore apart all my illusions and their disguises.

There was never any real or fake heir.

They brought me home and spoiled me on purpose, all just to ruin me through indulgence.

And the parasite parents who raised me had happily taken the money from the Zimmermans. They were more than willing to “sell” me to a wealthy household as entertainment.

“Levi, why aren’t you saying anything?”

Maddie squeezed my wrist hard, the grip faintly vicious.

“You’ve seen the paternity test now. That should put your mind at ease. Even if you stop studying and never read another book, you can still live comfortably as the heir.”

Mr. Zimmerman smiled. “That’s right. My son just needs to live freely. School is too hard anyway.”

I looked up and put on a clean, innocent smile.

“You’re right, Dad. School really is too hard. I won’t go anymore.”

A flash of satisfaction crossed Mr. Zimmerman’s eyes.

I pretended not to see it and, still smiling, took Maddie’s hand.

“Since you’re my fiancée, I’ll spend every day with you from now on. Okay?”

Maddie’s body suddenly stiffened. She stared at me with her dark eyes, then smiled.

“Okay.”

From the comments scrolling across my vision, I learned that I was living inside a novel and was the “cannon-fodder supporting male”.

Maddie was the “female lead”, and the Zimmermans’ real heir, Blaine, was the “male lead”.

The corner of my mouth twitched. Then I spoke, testing the waters.

“Since I’ve returned, shouldn’t the fake one, Blaine, return to his original family?

“He must miss his biological parents, too, right?”

The moment I said that, Mr. Zimmerman’s expression stiffened, and Maddie’s face changed as well.

The comments exploded instantly.

[If the male lead goes back to that devil’s house, he’ll definitely be tortured! Just thinking about it makes my heart ache!]

[The supporting guy really thinks he’s somebody now. He was just recognized by the family! Even if he’s the biological son, how could he be closer than the male lead they raised themselves? Besides, they’re only teasing you!]

[He must hate the male lead. He’s always been jealous of the male lead’s life. That’s why he asked something like that.]

I saw every word of those comments clearly. However, their mockery didn’t bother me one bit.

This time, they were wrong.

I didn’t hate Blaine. In fact, I was grateful to him.

After all, someone like me, born into a hellhole who had never received love in his life, got a good learning environment, regular meals, and a carefree life without being beaten or doing chores, all because of his jealousy.

I even got the chance to win the affection of a beauty like Maddie.

All of it was given to me by Blaine himself.

Before Mr. Zimmerman could speak, Maddie cut in and refused first.

“There’s no rush about that. Blaine is about to take the SATs. Changing his environment now wouldn’t be good for him…”

I smiled innocently.

“How come Blaine needs to take the SATs, but I don’t?”

Maddie paused for a moment, then smiled and took my hand. “You’re different.”

“Yes, you’re different,” Mr. Zimmerman chimed in from the side. “You’re my heir. Even if you don’t take the SATs, you’ll be wealthy and comfortable for the rest of your life.”

I nodded with a smile. “I’m really lucky.”

That evening, they brought me back to the Zimmerman residence.

I had a brand-new bedroom, one that belonged to me.

I had never had a room of my own before. Growing up, I lived in a tiny storage closet. It was windowless, dark, and damp, with mold spreading across the ceiling.

Whenever my mother got drunk and beat me while my father watched as if nothing was happening, I understood that studying was my only way out.

I worked hard, and I was talented.

Passages that other students had to memorize for hours, I could recite them perfectly after reading them just a few times.

I could infer the patterns and solve complicated math problems that confused others easily.

However, I also knew that in my family, being too good at studying was not a good thing.

When I ranked first in the entire state on the high school entrance exam and proudly showed my parents the results, I was met with a ruthless slap from my mother.

Holding a liquor bottle, she slurred drunkenly, “What are you so happy about? What’s the point of studying so much? Don’t expect me to pay for your high school!”

In the end, it was my middle school teacher who brought my high school acceptance letter and my scholarship papers to my house.

After repeatedly guaranteeing that I wouldn’t have to spend a single dollar in high school, my mother finally agreed to let me continue studying.

Even then, she still said coldly, “The moment you stop getting scholarships, you’re dropping out and going to work to make money!”

So I never dared to relax.

To keep my scholarship, I had to be first every year.

That was how Blaine ended up stuck in eternal second place.

It was also because of the heir’s intense pride that I was given this chance to step into a wealthy family by mistake.

I’m not like them.

A gutter rat like me would never let any opportunity slip away.

Dragging my suitcase behind me as I walked into the room, I closed the door and lay down on the bed, enjoying the rare moment of quiet.

The comments popped up again, wildly mocking my relaxed expression.

[What an idiot! No wonder he’s just cannon-fodder. He actually believed their nonsense so easily!]

[Do you think he really believes he’s become an heir now? Maybe he’ll just turn in a blank SAT paper.]

[That would be perfect. Then the male lead can show up with acceptance letters from Harvard and Yale and throw him out of the house. Just imagining that scene is hilarious. It’s like beating a drowned dog!]

I stared at the floating comments without expression.

They all thought I was stupid.

However, I was sincerely grateful to Blaine’s family for the “rich man’s dream” they had carefully prepared for me.

I opened the suitcase I had brought with me.

On top were just a few simple changes of clothes. Underneath them were stacks of wrinkled exercise books, stuffed tightly together.

[Wait, what? Why is this cannon-fodder guy’s suitcase full of worksheets and problem books?]

[Pretending not to study? This supporting character’s acting is insane!]

I opened my mistake notebook and began reviewing each problem one by one, carefully studying the places where I had gone wrong before.

I kept going until two in the morning.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps outside the door.

I quickly turned off the light and lay down.

Blaine pushed open my door and casually glanced around the room.

“Levi, are you asleep?”

I didn’t answer.

Seeing that I seemed to be sleeping soundly, he let out a cold laugh and turned to leave.

He was really afraid that I might study seriously. It was already so late, yet he still came personally to check on me.

There were one hundred days left before the SATs.

Every day, I rode to and from school in Maddie’s driver’s car.

However, whenever I tried to study seriously in class, whether reading or working on problems, Maddie would walk over and irritably pull the pen out of my hand.

I looked at her blankly. “What’s wrong?”

She stared at me for a long moment before lowering her gaze.

“Levi, you don’t need to study to live a good life. If you’re still studying and reading now, does that mean you don’t trust me?

“I don’t like you being like this. I want you to depend on me completely. That’s what a good fiancé should do.”

Facing the girl I had liked for so many years, I naturally couldn’t refuse.

“If you don’t like me studying, then I won’t study.”

She suddenly leaned closer to me.

It was the first time she had ever done something so intimate. I could even smell her faint scent.

“Then don’t study anymore, okay?

“That way… you can depend on me completely.”

My heartbeat suddenly sped up. Even so, my sharp senses still caught the disgust hidden in her eyes.

Not that I cared, though.

The only thing I was interested in was my own happiness.

I hooked my arm around the back of her neck and made my first request.

“You said I’m your fiancé, and that I should depend on you.

“Then I want a grand confession.

“Maddie, let me see your sincerity.”

In the past, when I liked a girl, I wouldn’t even dare to make the slightest move.

Now, if she wanted something from me, she had to offer something in return.

That was a fair trade.

So, that very afternoon, on the school field, she arranged nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine roses and made a grand confession to me.

When those soft, slightly cool lips hesitantly pressed against mine, I finally understood.

In order to turn me into a complete failure, they were willing to put in any amount of effort.