My soul was trapped in the living room,forced to watch their warm, intimate family scene.

Vampires rarely need sleep.

Yet my father, who usually entered his resting state before midnight, was wide awake now, sitting there in high spirits as he watched Olivia unwrap her Nightfall Commencement gifts.

My mother was browsing the Tailors’ Guild catalog on the light screen, selecting gowns suitable for night travel and banquets, promising to prepare an entire new wardrobe for Olivia’s graduation trip.

“Mom, I already have so many clothes,” Olivia said sweetly.

“My closet is completely full.”

“Then move them into Bella’s room,” my mother replied casually.

“She’s always focused on her own work and never buys new clothes. She doesn’t need the closet space.”

“Is that really okay? Bella might get upset…”

My mother frowned.

“Olivia, you don’t need to be so timid. This is something Bella should do for you as an older sister.”

Leo sat beside them, quietly cracking pistachios for Olivia, one after another.

I couldn’t say a single word.

I could only watch the warm scene before me.

So it turns out—even a soul can cry.

Warmth belonged to them.

Loneliness belonged to me.

“But Bella still hasn’t come back,” Olivia said softly, sounding pitiful.

“She hasn’t replied to my messages either. Is she still angry with us? When she’s not here, I feel so sad.”

At Olivia’s words, the three of them finally shifted their attention away from her

and remembered me.

My father frowned instinctively.

“Don’t worry about her. She just wants everyone focused on her. When will she finally grow up?”

A flash of irritation crossed my mother’s face.

“It’s just an Order of the Night. They give it out every three years.”

“Doesn’t she know Olivia’s Commencement only happens once? Why does she have to throw a tantrum on a day like this?”

Olivia puckered her lips playfully at my mother.

“Mom, don’t say that. Bella would be hurt if she heard it.”

“She practically begged for that award…”

“Oh—did I just let something slip?”

She said it lightly,but the triumph in her eyes was impossible to hide.

I had always known—Olivia was never innocent.

Growing up, her academic results were never better than mine.

Even though Father, Mother, and Leo doted on her and always put her first,

Olivia would still fabricate evidence from time to time, accusing me of cheating or plagiarizing research at the vampire academy.

And every time, Father would punish me without asking a single question.

From a young age, I kept telling myself that one day,I would find my own Consort,and experience what it felt like to be someone’s first choice.

But I never imagined that after knowing Julian for three years,his heart would begin to tilt toward Olivia as well.

I should have felt heartbroken.

But perhaps I was already numb.

My soul was so numb that it couldn’t even feel pain anymore.

A maid brought in a tray of desserts—all of them Olivia’s favorites.

Naturally,they stopped talking about me.

Olivia smiled brightly, showing off her achievements at the academy.

She had already secured a position as a trainee Blood Councilor in the Night Hawk Coven’s council chamber.

For vampires born outside the noble bloodlines,blood rank was almost fixed at birth.

Being able to serve in the Coven council was nearly the highest social honor.

Father and Leo listened, praising her endlessly.

And I simply drifted quietly at the side.

The clock pointed to one in the morning.

I still hadn’t appeared.

My mother seemed to feel a trace of guilt and finally remembered me.

She placed a Cold Blood Pastry—a flavor Olivia disliked—

onto an empty plate and handed it to my brother.

Her expression was a little stiff.

“Leo, save this for Bella. She can eat it when she calms down and comes back.”

“Don’t let her think we only favor Olivia. See? We left something for her.”

I stared at the few pastries,feeling nothing at all.

Leo hesitated for a moment and reached out to take the plate.

Suddenly, Olivia let out a sharp scream and yanked her hand back from the gifts.

“Mom—! It hurts!”

“This gift— it’s silver!”

Father, Mother, and Leo rushed to her side at once.

When they saw the red mark on Olivia’s palm—raw and angry, like a burn—they all panicked.

“We didn’t come into contact with any humans at the night banquet,” someone said sharply.

“What kind of vampire would give a silver gift?”

My mother’s gaze swept across the room before stopping on an opened gift box.

“That gift box…”Her voice hesitated.“Wasn’t it Bella’s?”

Olivia immediately looked as if she were about to cry.

“Mom, please don’t blame Bella. The gift was on my bedside table this morning. I was just happy she wanted to give me something.”

In an instant, disappointment and anger filled Father’s and Leo’s faces.

“I knew it!”

“No wonder she kept dragging her feet and refusing to come home. She was plotting to hurt Olivia!”

“How could I have such a vicious sister?”

“Enough!” Father snapped.

“Stop arguing and take Olivia to the Coven’s Blood Healer, now!”

He kicked the gift box—the very one Olivia had taken from my room—

then slammed his fist down on the table in rage.

“We’re out of bandages,” Leo said.

“I’ll go to the basement and get some.”

He turned to leave.

Olivia’s eyes flickered.

She grabbed Leo’s arm.

“Don’t go,” she said quickly.

“The Blood Healer will have bandages.”

“It hurts so much…”

If Leo had taken even one more step toward the basement,he would have smelled the overwhelming scent of blood.

But that never happened.

At Olivia’s words, the family hurried out together,leaving only my soul drifting in the now-empty living room.

I wanted to scream that I had done nothing.

But I could no longer speak.

And I knew—even if I could, they would never believe me.

So be it.

The head housekeeper heard the commotion and came out to clean up the mess.

She sighed softly.

“Miss Bella… why do you never learn how to protect yourself?”

My soul drifted back to my room.

When I saw the notebook on the desk, memories surged forward.

When I was ten years old,the Black Hawk Coven held its once-every-decade Bloodline Awakening.

That day determined every vampire’s future standing within the Coven,as well as the upper limit their bloodline could ever reach.

Leo went first.

His bloodline manifested as the shadow of jet-black blood wings,a sign of power and administrative potential.

Father looked at him without hiding his pride.

When it was Olivia’s turn,

her bloodline manifested as a rare silver-white glow,

carrying a naturally soothing resonance

that gradually calmed the blood of everyone around her.

Mother pulled her into her arms and called her the family’s treasure.

Not wanting to disappoint them,I stepped onto the Awakening platform full of hope.

But when my bloodline responded—everyone fell silent.

My manifestation was painfully ordinary.

No phenomenon.

No rare traits.

Only the most basic blood resonance,so common it could be lost among the rest of the Coven without notice.

From that day on,I became the family’s “ordinary one”—someone not worth investing extra resources in.

Even later,when I received the highest academic honor personally awarded by the Vampire King,they still believed—

bloodline decided everything.

And I was ordinary.Disposable.

My soul followed Olivia to the Blood Infirmary.

Not long after, my Consort, Julian, rushed in.

He went straight to Olivia, grabbed her hand, and anxiously examined the burn mark on her palm. His eyes were filled with concern.

“What happened?”

“What did the Blood Healer say?”

“Julian, don’t be like this,” Olivia said through sobs, her voice trembling, though she still forced a weak smile.

“This isn’t Bella’s fault. She probably just wanted to surprise me and forgot that vampires can’t touch silver…”

The more “understanding” she appeared,the darker Julian’s expression became.

He looked up, his voice heavy with anger.

“Bella? Where is she hiding now?”

“Olivia, don’t be upset. I’ll make sure she’s properly punished for this.”

We had not yet completed the Blood Bond,so he couldn’t sense my death—

nor did he know that I was standing right beside him, silently watching.

After leaving the Infirmary, Julian called me.

When no one answered, he left a voice message.

“Bella, how could you be so vicious?”

“Using silver to hurt your own sister?”

“I always thought you were kind. I never imagined you’d do something like this out of jealousy!”

Julian’s voice was burning with fury.

“I was planning to give you your reward gift.”

“It’s a family heirloom—a necklace meant to congratulate you.”

“But now, you don’t deserve it.”

“Consider this your punishment.”

“You’d better pray Olivia is fine.”

“Otherwise, the Blood Bond ceremony is canceled.”

Listening to his accusations,I was so exhausted that I couldn’t feel anything anymore.

I should have understood long ago.

We had argued countless times because of Olivia.

During a night-hunt training session, his attention was entirely on Olivia’s agile movements;

when I tripped over a tree root, he only said I was clumsy.

When we ate together,he never remembered that I couldn’t tolerate spicy blood infusions,

yet he could personally prepare more than twenty kinds of blood desserts just to make Olivia smile.

I fought with him over these things again and again,but his answer was always the same:

“You’re overthinking it.”

“I only see Olivia as a little sister.”

His indifference made me feel like a madwoman driven by possessiveness.

But I loved him so deeply.

I once believed his appearance in my life was a gift from the Night Mother,

that he would belong to me—to me alone.

I was wrong.

Completely wrong.

My parents loved Leo and Olivia because of their bloodlines.

But why did Julian love her?

I didn’t know.

And now,I would never have the chance to know.

Because at this moment,whether I fell or was struck,I could no longer feel pain.

After midnight, Father, Mother, and Leo finally returned home, exhausted.

I drifted in a corner of the living room and heard Mother sigh.

“It’s a pity Julian’s bloodline isn’t noble enough for Olivia.”

“They were practically made for each other.”

“Did you see how attentive he was to Olivia at the Infirmary?”

My soul froze.

Then I heard Father speak.

“Yes, Julian is very capable.”

“And I think Olivia likes him too.”

“If they could become Consorts, it would be perfect.”

“Don’t think too much about it,” Mother said.

“Julian’s bloodline isn’t worthy of our Olivia.”

“It’s better for him to be with Bella instead. Their bloodlines are a better match.”

“Even if he completes the Blood Bond with Bella,”she added carelessly,“he can still dote on Olivia.”

She lifted her head and noticed that the house was completely dark.

“Looks like the Night Candles…”

“They’ve burned out,” Father said irritably.

“Leo, go to the basement and get a new one.”

Leo muttered his agreement and strode toward the basement.

The closer he got,the stronger the scent of cold iron became.

His instincts made him frown,but he assumed there was a dead rat somewhere in the house and didn’t think much of it.

“What’s that smell?”

Father and Mother followed him to the basement door.

Leo pushed it open.

A rush of frigid metallic air mixed with the stench of blood scorched by silver hit them.

In the darkness,an unnaturally pale body lay in a pool of dried, blackened blood,its eyes not fully closed.

Leo stopped short.

“Bella…?”