Paradiso Castle was the most expensive property in the entire city. Having enough money did not guarantee the right to buy it, which only proved how absurdly generous the MRS truly was.

I stood behind a 600–square-yard, floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the city's nightscape while red wine sloshed gently in my glass. I had never felt more at peace.

In my last life, I must have been genuinely brain-dead to believe they would love me simply because I obeyed every command. Oh, I was so "loved."

I turned my phone over and braced myself for the flood of messages and missed calls.

"Where the hell are you?!" My dear mother, Lucy, shrieked in a voice message, her voice sharp enough to pierce stone. "Get your ass back here and apologize to Bella, now! Do you have any idea how much shame you brought on us today?! Poor Bella hasn't stopped crying!"

Damien's text followed soon after.

Damien: [Running out of money already now that Dad terminated your cards? Once you finally get tired of starving yourself, you can come back on your knees and beg for forgiveness. We might consider mercy if you show enough sincerity.]

And finally, Gabriel.

Gabriel: [Enough with your theatrics, Marceline. You embarrassed me today, but I am willing to be magnanimous. Come to my office tomorrow, and I may consider not canceling our marriage.]

I stared at the screen and laughed. "Look at all these clowns. They truly believe I am homeless and penniless just because I left the Blancs."

I sent a photo to Damien, showing a small glimpse of my bank balance: 10,000,000 dollars, give or take.

I added a caption: [Call me Mommy, and maybe I'll buy you a wife.]

Then I blocked his number.

Next was Gabriel. I sent him a voice message. "I've always been curious about something. Are you actually impotent? One would think Bella would have stopped being a virgin by now, given how often you two are together. Instead, she looks like she's wilting."

Satisfied, I blocked him as well.

Finally, Lucy's turn arrived.

[Stop screaming into the void. Just pretend I died and move on with your life. After all, the only one you ever needed was Bella, right? I was just an accessory. May you all live like royalty during the Revolution, with lives as long as the space newspapers reserve for obituaries.]

I blocked the last number. Silence reclaimed the world.

[Delivering emotional damage to family. 3-Star madness. Reward: 7,000,000 dollars.]

I collapsed onto my Yeetalia genuine leather couch and sighed in contentment. Making money really was not that hard.

Still, it was not enough. The pain and suffering they had inflicted on me in my last life ran too deep. I wanted them to see who their precious, innocent Bella Summers truly was.

After that, I wanted them to stare up at me in despair, forced to acknowledge my dominance and the height I had reached. I now stood at an apex they would never touch.

…

The next morning, the doorbell dragged me out of sleep.

I peered through the peephole and saw Magnus. How the hell did he find out I lived here?

Of course. He was a hacker. Tracking my phone would have been effortless for him.

There was no reason to rush. I brushed my teeth and washed my face at my own unhurried pace, then opened the door.

He looked livid.

"How the hell did you get in here? Where did you get all this money? What is this place, a rental?" His eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Don't tell me you debased yourself and sold your body just to get a pathetic edge over us, Marceline. How else could you afford this place after Dad terminated your cards?"

I leaned against the door and yawned. "Man, your language. You kiss Bella's boo-boo with that mouth?"

"Marceline!" Magnus snarled.

He drew a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. "Come home with me. Bella has been running a high fever since last night. She keeps calling for you and says she feels guilty.

"Mom and Dad are worried sick. Go back, apologize, and we'll treat all of this as water under the bridge."

I narrowed my eyes and let a slow grin spread across my face. "A fever? Oh, the Lord really does punish injustice. Has it started eating away at the pitiful number of brain cells she has left? You know, you could always institutionalize her in that mental asylum you were scouting for me."

In my last life, my dear family had forcibly institutionalized me for being "hysterical and aggressive." It had been pure torment.

Magnus's face darkened. "What the hell are you talking about? Since when did you turn into such a douchebag, Marceline? Bella is one of the kindest, purest girls I've ever met. How could you curse her like that?"

"Kind? Pure?" I snorted. "What kind and pure soul tries to steal her sister's fiancé? What kind and pure soul steals her sister's engagement dress? Magnus, are you slow?"

"That's not what happened. Bella was just—"

"Can it. I don't care," I snapped. "You just want me back so Bella can have her unwitting blood-donor cattle, right? Well, not a snowball's chance in hell."

Magnus roared and lunged for my shoulders, "You fucking bitch! I tried playing nice, but you keep forcing my hand. Dad made it clear that if you're not back by today, you're dead to all of us."

Before I could strike back, a mechanized voice rang inside my head.

[Quick Quest Unlocked: Let Magnus Blanc get a taste of free fall. Reward: 51% of Lumos Entreprise's stocks.]

Lumos was the largest business empire in the city. Gabriel's company barely qualified as a warm-up act beside that juggernaut.

I grabbed Magnus by the arm and flipped him over my shoulder.

It took almost no effort. Magnus was the type who lived behind a computer screen, a basement-dwelling nerd with the physique of a couch potato.

He hit the floor with a hard slam and let out a groan. I seized his leg and dragged him toward the balcony.

"Marceline!" he screamed and struggled in vain. "What do you think you're doing? Have you lost your mind?"

He could not break free. My strength was absurd, likely thanks to the MRS.

The balcony sat on the 38th floor. I shoved him against the railing and tipped him forward until half his body hung over open air.

The wind howled. His face drained of color as he clutched the rails with everything he had. "P-Put me down! I'm your brother, damn it. D-Don't kill me!"

I tapped his cheek. "Brother? You really think I see you as one? Tsk, tsk.

"Pass this message to the Blancs. Don't piss me off. Because next time, my grip might turn magically weaker. Now get the hell out."

Magnus bolted from my residence in a blur. He even left a shoe behind.

I watched him flee and smiled.

[Quest completed. Your reward can be found in the safe box in the study.]

"Well, well. Things are only just getting started," I muttered.