When I turn 18, my family suddenly strikes gold.

Dad makes a fortune in business. We move into a huge house with a driver and a housekeeper.

My younger brother, Vincent Becker, is sent to study in Basmar. After that, he graduates and marries a rich heiress.

Their partnership makes our family's business soar.

I'm the only one who misses my college entrance exam because of stomach cramps, and my parents marry me off to a lonely man in some rundown countryside.

He locks me in a basement and hurts me every single day. I crawl my way back home, half-alive, but my parents only look at me with disgust.

"Useless brat! How did you not die out there?"

Vincent says that he'll take me out to clear my head. Instead, he shoves me in front of a truck. I'm rushed to the ICU with nearly every bone in my body broken.

Right before I die, he leans down in his designer suit and whispers in my ear. "Let me tell you the truth before you die. Our family didn't get rich from business. We got rich because of the hundred-million-dollar lottery ticket you bought.

"We cashed it behind your back and never told you."

I die full of resentment, and right after my death, they sell my organs for 120 thousand dollars.

I open my eyes, and suddenly I'm there again—to the very day I bought the lottery ticket.

"This is your lottery ticket. Hold onto it. Maybe you'll win big."

I stared at the lottery ticket in my hand, and my mind spun.

I had been reborn. I had actually returned to the day I bought this lottery ticket.

In my last life, I had bought the same lottery ticket. However, my brother, Vincent Becker, had rushed into my room and stolen it.

I never had good luck and never believed that I could win anything, so I forgot all about the lottery ticket.

Soon after, my family's business started booming, and we moved into a huge house.

My family became one of the rising wealthy in Uskax, while Vincent was sent off to study in Basmar.

I once asked if I could study abroad, too, but Mom shut me down right away. "You're a lady. You're supposed to get married in the future, so what's the point of studying abroad? It's just window dressing."

I was ranked first in my entire grade. But the moment I bought that lottery ticket, it seemed that I had entirely run out of luck.

On the day of the college entrance exam, I had stomach cramps so bad that I fainted in the room, which led me to fail the exam.

My parents married me off to a lonely man in a rural town. His family locked me in a basement and beat me every day.

I finally escaped and made it back home.

But when I stood at the door covered in bruises, all I heard were my parents' cold voices.

"Look at you—you look like a beggar. You've completely embarrassed our family. Why didn't you just die in that village back then?"

Vincent's wife, Chloe Webb, stood there in designer clothes, covering her nose and frowning at him. "Is that really your sister? Even a beggar looks better than her."

Only Vincent held me tight, saying, "Mikaela, you've suffered so much."

He took me out for a walk to clear my head. Then, in a spot with no security cameras, he shoved me in front of a speeding truck.

I was rushed to the ICU with almost every bone in my body broken.

Right before I died, Vincent leaned close in a fancy suit and whispered in my ear, "Let me tell you the truth before you die. Our family didn't get rich from business. We got rich because of the hundred-million-dollar lottery ticket you bought.

"That's what allowed us to start the company, and that's how I got to study in Basmar. If you think about it, we really should be thanking you.”

He paused, then let out a cold laugh as he added, "But as long as you're alive, there's always a chance you might figure things out. What if one day you lose your mind and cause trouble?

"That's why Mom and Dad deliberately dumped you in that village and told the villagers to make your life a living hell. We didn't expect you to survive and escape, though. But this time, you're done for. Just die peacefully. We will be grateful to you."

I was filled with hate and rage as I drew my last breath. Right after I died, my family even sold my organs.

My chest tightened as I remembered everything from my previous life.

I clenched the lottery ticket in my hand and made a silent vow, "This time, I won't let them steal that 100 million dollars from me again!"

"Mikaela, you really are here!"

I spun around in shock. Vincent was suddenly standing right behind me.

His eyes lit up when he saw my clenched hand, and he reached straight for me.

"Mikaela, what are you holding? Is that a lottery ticket? Let me see," Vincent asked, grabbing my hand hard. His eyes flashed with pure greed.

When he couldn't pry my fingers open, he kicked my leg.

Pain shot up my body, and my hand slipped open.

He sneered. "I knew you were hiding a lottery ticket!"

He lowered his head, then froze. There was nothing in my palm.

"Where's the lottery ticket? Where did you hide it?" Vincent looked stunned. He sized me up like I was some criminal.

I rubbed my aching legs, pretending to look wronged as I said, "What lottery ticket? I just passed by the grocery store. I didn't buy anything at all."

He didn't believe a single word of it. He searched every pocket and every fold of my clothes. When he found nothing, panic flickered in his eyes.

He ignored me and stormed into the grocery store and grabbed the lottery office manager by the collar. "Who bought a lottery ticket just now?"

The manager had seen plenty of unhinged customers in his life. He shoved Vincent's hand away and said, "People come and go all day. How would I remember?"

Vincent wanted to buy the winning lottery ticket himself, but too much time had passed since his last life. His memory was blurry, and he could only remember the first few numbers.

He forced himself to calm down. His eyes sharpened, and a cruel new idea crossed his mind.

He yanked me toward the counter and stared at me with a cold, sinister look. "You buy it. You'd better choose the right one. Otherwise, I won't let you off!"

A cold tremor ran through my heart when I heard those words. At that moment, I finally understood the reason behind Vincent's bizarre behavior.

He had been reborn, too.

Determined to guarantee the winning ticket without making a single mistake in this lifetime, he had actually followed me all the way to the grocery store and even forced me to buy the ticket myself.

I chose a lottery ticket using the numbers he gave me.

Clutching the ticket, he still looked unconvinced. His eyes kept sweeping over me, searching for any sign of a hidden mistake.

He clearly still suspected that I had bought another lottery ticket and hidden it away.

Later that night at dinner, Vincent tapped his fork against his bowl, annoyed.

Mom hurried to pile food into his plate, her tone overly attentive. "Vincent, what's wrong? Did someone at school upset you? I'll stand up for you."

Dad set his plate down, his expression solemn. "Yeah, Vincent. Did a classmate look down on you again?"

Vincent waited until they were hanging on his every word. Then, he lifted his head and pointed at me. "She bought a lottery ticket and won't show it to me."

My parents exchanged a look.

Dad frowned and barked at me, "What is wrong with you? You're the older sister. You should give in to your younger brother! What did you do to upset him this time? Apologize to him right now!"

Mom sighed and placed her slightly rough hand over mine, speaking in a gentle tone. "Mikaela, don't blame me for saying this, but Vincent is the only son in our family. As his older sister, you need to learn to take care of him."

The moment her hand touched mine, a shiver ran through me.

The tragic end of my previous life seemed to replay vividly before my eyes.

"Mikaela bought a lottery ticket and hid it from me. She even lied, saying she didn't buy one. Mom, what do we do?" Vincent looked at me with open hostility in his eyes.

Dad slammed his fork down. "Hand over the lottery ticket! You won't win anything anyway. Let Vincent play with it. What does it matter?"

Vincent let out a short laugh. "Maybe she thinks she's too good for our family now that she might win big."

Mom stood up right away. She dragged me into my room and searched me from head to toe, even checking the lining of my clothes.

"Mikaela, where did you hide it? Give it to me now!" she yelled, pointing at me like I was a thief.

My eyes reddened, and I said in a wounded tone, "I've already told you—I didn't buy any lottery ticket! And yet, none of you believe me!

"I only bought one, and Vincent already has the one I picked."

Vincent frowned and stared at me. He wasn't sure anymore.

After all, in this life, he had rushed over too fast. He didn't actually see if I'd gone into the grocery store.

When the door to my room closed, I pulled the real lottery ticket out of my hair.

Fortunately, I had tucked the lottery ticket into my hair just in time, keeping it from being discovered by any of them.

But it also meant that my room was no longer safe.

While pretending to use the bathroom, I slipped the lottery ticket into a sealed bag and hid it inside the toilet tank.

Vincent even took a few days off from school. He kept barging into my room, refusing to give up.

I watched him pull open drawers and toss my things around, all the while staying calm.

Mom also dragged me out to buy clothes. When I went into the fitting room, she rummaged through my bag like a thief.

They found nothing because I had hidden the lottery ticket somewhere they would never think to look.

Soon, the day the lottery numbers were to be drawn arrived.

Just like last time, my lottery ticket hit the 100-million-dollar jackpot. I was finally about to claim my prize and take back everything I had lost.

But when I got home from school, I sensed something amiss.

The moment I stepped inside, Mom slapped me across the face. My cheek burned hot. "If the toilet hadn't clogged, I never would have found your lottery ticket in there."

She smiled coldly at me and shook the lottery ticket in her hand.

Vincent looked thrilled. "Mom, I told you she hid a lottery ticket. None of you believed me!"

I rushed to the bathroom and found that the tank was empty.

Dad kicked me hard, his fist tightening as he snarled, "So you think you're bold enough to hide things from us now? Do you really think you're some kind of lucky charm?"

He snatched up the lottery ticket with a disdainful snort. "Today, I'll snap you out of your little fantasy."

With that, he raised the lottery ticket in both hands, ready to tear it apart.

"Dad! No!" Vincent let out a piercing scream and lunged forward, grabbing Dad's leg in a panic. He shouted, "Don't tear it! That ticket can win us 100 million dollars!"