The revolving doors of the hotel spun round and round,swallowing people inside,while golden chandeliers hung from the ceiling.

Bouquets were stacked upon bouquets in the private room,a champagne tower bubbling under the lights.In the center sat two birthday hats—yet the only one truly crowned was Fiona.

Dressed in a white puffed dress,Fiona smiled sweetly."Callista,come on,everyone’s waiting for you."

I silently set the gift box down on the long table at the side.

It was Jason who told me to bring a gift,saying that since Fiona had also prepared one for me,I couldn’t show up empty-handed.

When Fiona saw the box,she looked both touched and delighted.Without hesitation,she reached out to unwrap it,her fingertips tugging at the golden thread.

In the very next instant,a dead rat tumbled out of the box.Its tail flicked as it hit the thick carpet,leaving behind a dark,glistening arc.

The room fell silent at first—then erupted.

"Ah,disgusting!"someone screamed.

Ethan let out a cold sneer."Callista,are you deliberately looking for trouble?How dare you give a dead rat as a gift!"

Simon’s face darkened on the spot."Today is Fiona’s birthday and you bring something like this…Do you have no shame at all?"

Jason’s expression turned grim,his voice icy."I clearly prepared an LV bag for you to give her—when did you turn it into a dead rat,Callista?"

I lowered my eyes,staring at the stiff rat and found I no longer even had the desire to defend myself.

It wasn’t me who put it there,but any explanation would be useless.

After all,nothing I said would ever be believed.

"It’s fine…"Fiona shrank back behind Jason as if"frightened,"clutching his arm with reddened eyes."Maybe she was just…joking.Simon,Ethan,Jason,don’t blame her."

The more she acted this way,the more disgusted they all felt toward me.

Jason cast me a glance,his eyes as cold and distant as snow."Don’t make a scene.Sit down.I’ll deal with you later."

For the sake of not ruining their beloved sister’s—or woman’s—birthday banquet,the men swallowed their anger and carried on with the celebration.

I sat at the very edge,close to the door,like an outsider who could be thrown out at any moment.

A waiter pushed in a two-tiered strawberry cream cake,candles arranged in the shape of a heart.

Someone called out,laughing,"Fiona,make a wish first!"

Fiona pressed her hands together with a beaming smile—yet her eyes were fixed squarely on me.

She spoke slowly,her voice soft and sweet."My first wish…is to be with Jason forever."

The crowd immediately erupted into cheers."Kiss!Kiss!"

Rising on her toes,she pressed her lips to his.

Jason didn’t turn away—instead,he even slipped an arm around her waist.

Applause,whistles and laughter crashed over me in waves,each louder than the last,drowning me.

"And the second wish?"someone asked.

"The second…"Fiona lowered her gaze,her cheeks tinged red."Jason,let’s rehearse the wedding,okay?The wedding is only three days away and I’m afraid I won’t be a good bride."

She seized Jason’s hand and,imitating the tone of a wedding officiant,said,"Groom,please kneel on one knee and give me a promise,okay?"

I heard the scrape of a chair leg against the floor.

Jason actually knelt down.

Right in front of me—his still-legally-wedded wife—he knelt to propose to another woman.

Looking up at her,his voice low and steady,he said,"I will treat you well,Fiona."

I sat in the corner,as if watching a drama that belonged to someone else’s life.

On the screen,the two kissed,embraced,exchanged vows.Outside the screen,my chest felt hollow—so empty that I couldn’t even summon the strength to feel bitter.

It didn’t matter.I was leaving,I thought.

From now on,we would never see each other again.

Fiona looked at me,but her smile gradually faded.

My calmness had taken away from her joy.

Suddenly,she turned and pouted playfully at the crowd."I want to spend a little private birthday time with my girlfriends.Can you all go outside and help me pick up the party favors the hotel sent to this floor?Just treat it as a surprise for me,okay?"

Simon was the first to stand."Alright,we’ll go check with the front desk."

Ethan left with a few of the guys,muttering under his breath as he walked,"Better not let anything else go wrong…"

As he stepped out the door,Jason glanced at me,his look like a warning."Don’t cause trouble."

The door clicked shut,the lock falling into place.

Inside the private room,only I,Fiona and her so-called"girlfriends"remained.

The music was turned down and the sweet,cloying scent of cake suddenly became nauseating.

Fiona’s stilettos clicked against the floor as she walked step by step toward me.She bent down slightly,smiling."Are you satisfied with this birthday banquet?Everyone worked so hard for me—oh,pardon me,for you too,since it is your birthday as well."

Fiona patted my shoulder with a feigned apology,then quickly drew her hand back as if afraid of dirtying herself.

"Don’t misunderstand,Callista.I’m not targeting you.I just…couldn’t help wanting to share my happiness with you."She blinked playfully.

"See?Simon booked the venue,Ethan ordered the flowers,Jason chose the ring design.It hasn’t been made yet,but the way he knelt down—wasn’t it romantic?"

I lifted my eyes to her.

Her smile grew even sweeter."Don’t be upset.It’s simply the truth—my brothers dote on me and Jason loves me.You’d be better off letting go sooner,so things won’t get ugly for everyone."

Fiona had expected to see humiliation or sorrow on my face.Yet all she got was a soft"Mm."

She froze for a second—my composure doused the flicker of excitement in her eyes like cold water on flame.

"You’re not angry?"she pressed,staring hard at me."Or…are you just pretending,putting on a show in front of me because you can’t bear to let go?"

My gaze fell on a rotten strawberry on the table and suddenly,I found it almost funny."Neither.Fiona,I’m leaving.From now on,the brothers and the male lead—they’re all yours.I don’t want them anymore."

Fiona clearly hadn’t expected that answer.After a moment of dazed silence,her lips curved slowly,carrying a sharp,mocking sneer.

"I don’t believe you.You talk big,but deep down,you’re not willing to accept it.Besides—"She tapped her chest lightly."I’ve never handed my life over to anyone else.I only believe in one thing—keeping fate in my own hands!"

The words had barely fallen when she suddenly raised her hand.

A sharp slap rang out—landing squarely on her own cheek.

Before I could even react,several sharp,vicious blows landed in rapid succession.Her pale,radiant face quickly became streaked with red welts.

I narrowed my eyes."What are you doing?"

But it was as if she hadn’t heard me.She lowered her head,tugging at the strap of her gown until it slipped off her shoulder,exposing a sliver of collarbone.Then,with her fingernails,she raked across her own skin,leaving faint red marks.

At the same time,she suddenly lifted her gaze—sending a quick,deliberate wink toward the girls behind her.

One of the girls instantly caught on and rushed forward,pretending to block me."Don’t go near Fiona!"

Another seized Fiona’s arm,feigning a struggle,her sharp voice echoing in the room."Callista,how can you be so vicious!"

A chair clattered to the ground,plates rattled and crashed—chaos carefully staged,filling the air.

They clustered protectively around Fiona,their positions calculated to perfection.

So that when the door swung open from the outside,at just a glance,it looked exactly like they were holding me back from bullying Fiona.

Fiona let out a piercing scream,sobbing,"Simon!Ethan!Jason…help me—!"

The private room door flew open.Simon,Ethan and Jason all stormed in at once.

She threw herself into Jason’s arms,weeping like a broken blossom."Callista said I should give her back my blood.I told her if I did,I’d die and then she said she’d ruin me—she even hit me…"

Simon’s palm struck across my face.My whole body staggered,crashing into the dining table,a ringing filling my ears.

"Callista,having a sister like you makes me sick!"he spat,teeth gritted.

Ethan’s gaze was even colder.His hand shot out,seizing my collar."Callista!You want to fight for favor,is that it?Fine.You lot—come hold her down.Strip her.Let’s see who gets ruined first!!"

Instinctively,I struggled,but Ethan’s strength was overwhelming.The sound of fabric tearing ripped through the air,sharp and humiliating.

"Jason,film her like this!Show everyone what kind of monster she is!"

Jason stood to the side,his brows furrowed tightly.

He knew that when I was a child,I had been violated and left with shadows.He had once held me in his arms the whole night,comforting me with heartache.Yet now,after only a pause,he raised his phone,aimed the lens at me and said coldly,"Callista,you’ve gone too far.I’m starting to regret marrying you in the first place."

"Let her see how shameless she is!"Ethan said coldly.

Despair and humiliation cut into my bones like a knife,inch by inch.

Again.It was happening again!

It had happened countless times before.Clearly it was Fiona who pushed me down the stairs,yet she cried and said I was the one trying to hurt her.My two brothers took the ruler and beat me for a whole hour.

Clearly,it was Fiona who broke the vase,yet she clutched her cut hand and said I pushed her.My brothers punished me by making me kneel on the shards all night.

On my eighteenth birthday,it was Fiona who threw the cake into the trash,yet with red eyes she claimed I deliberately ruined her celebration.My brothers forced me to pick the cake out of the garbage and eat it.

Countless times!

In this family,no one had ever been willing to believe me.

Back then,when the naïve me went to Jason for help,the words he spoke were almost the same as now.

"Isn’t this your fault?Callista,I regret being friends with you.You’re always lying."

Ethan heard my murmur.He had intended to sneer with disdain.

But when his gaze met my hollow,numb eyes,his throat caught.The words of mockery stuck and his hand instinctively loosened.

I slowly stood up,my voice unnervingly calm."Since you all believe I’m the one at fault,then I won’t stay here in your way anymore.From now on…I’ll never be in your way again."

The room fell into a brief silence.

Simon frowned,clearly dismissing my words as nothing more than stubborn refusal to admit fault.

With an impatient wave of his hand,he said coldly,"Enough,stop pretending to be pitiful.Go home and reflect!Don’t ruin today’s atmosphere."

Fiona pressed her lips together,the flicker of a smile in her eyes concealed flawlessly.She seemed utterly certain that no matter what I said or did,it would only ever be taken as a joke.

Jason’s gaze darkened,lingering on me for a moment,yet he did not speak up to stop any of it.He locked his phone and anyone standing behind him would have seen that he never once tapped the record button.

I neither knew nor cared anymore as I staggered toward the door.

The last thing I saw was Fiona’s triumphant gaze.Her lips moved silently,forming words that meant:See?You,Callista,will never beat me.

But Fiona,I no longer wish to fight you for these men who never loved me.If I could make a birthday wish too,then I would wish that I could live the rest of my life in happiness—never again entangled with Jason,Simon,or Ethan.

Not a single person cared about my departure.

The night wind was cold as I hailed a cab and sent the agreement straight to the law firm.

The lawyer flipped through the documents and after confirming there were no issues,he solemnly stamped it with his seal.

After that,I went alone to the City Hall to sever ties with the Corvin Family.

The procedures were so complicated,the required paperwork so endless,that I almost felt like giving up halfway.

But with Ronald’s assistant arranging everything,the process unfolded step by step—authentication,signatures,archiving…each stage handled with impeccable order.

"Miss Corvin,are you certain you want to sever this relationship?This is an irreversible decision,"the staff member asked one last time.

I smiled,my gaze unwavering."Yes.From today onward,I will have nothing more to do with them."

When the red seal came down,it was as though I heard a faint snap deep inside me—a string breaking.

Relieved,yet hollow.

By the time the paperwork was done,dawn had already broken.

I returned to that cold,lifeless house and began packing my belongings.There wasn’t much I could take with me anyway—most of the clothes and jewelry were gifts from them and I wanted none of it.

After placing the divorce certificate and the documents of severed ties neatly on my desk,I picked up my suitcase and quietly closed the door behind me.

When I stepped out of the Corvin residence,the sky had fully brightened.The first ray of morning light fell across my face,like a rebirth.

I did not look back.

No one knew that I had truly left.