I looked down at Mrs. Lloyd, her tears falling down endlessly, and thought, If she knew her daughter was beaten to death with a shovel and then thrown onto the road to be run over by a truck, and that the murderer was the daughter she lovingly raised for 18 years, how heartbroken would she be?

　　Her real daughter never received a shred of warmth, while she meticulously cared for her conspirator's child for 18 years.

　　It's truly tragic and pitiful.

　　Just then, Mr. Lloyd came home.

　　He stormed in, angrily questioning me, "Eliza only accidentally burned you. She apologized. Why can't you forgive her and stop ignoring her along with your mother?"

　　It seemed Eliza had exaggerated and twisted the story.

　　I didn't say anything.

　　But Mrs. Lloyd, who had been holding back her anger, finally erupted, "Why should I? I treated Ruby's daughter so well, and she treated my daughter like this. I can't accept it!"

　　Anyone would feel the same way.

　　Mr. Lloyd then noticed the countless scars on my body.

　　I didn't see an ounce of pity on his face.

　　After a moment of silence, he still defended Eliza, "Ruby is Ruby, and Eliza is Eliza. You can't take it out on her. Besides, she's the child we've raised carefully for years. Now that Mia is back, does that mean you don't love Eliza anymore?"

　　I lowered my head, a mocking smile playing on my lips. He had indeed spoiled Eliza to the core.

　　If Mia could hear this, how heartbroken would she be?

　　His words left Mrs. Lloyd in a daze. After all, eighteen years of affection isn't something that just disappears.

　　I wasn't in a hurry. This was only the first day. Expecting Mrs. Lloyd to stop loving Eliza immediately was unrealistic.

　　Standing between Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd, I spoke sensibly, "I know Eliza didn't mean it. Mom was just too worried about me and overlooked her for a moment. Dad, don't be mad. I'll go apologize to Eliza right now."

　　Saying this, I turned to leave.

　　My sensible demeanor only made Mrs. Lloyd's heart ache even more.

　　When Eliza saw me coming, she first shed a few pitiful tears. But when she realized Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd hadn't followed, her true colors emerged.

　　She arrogantly declared, "Mom and Dad love me the most. As long as I cry, they feel sorry for me. Even if I burned you on purpose, so what? Don't think you can take away my affection."

　　What a shame, I thought, I never wanted their affection. What I want is your life.

　　I smiled and said, "You've lived with Mom and Dad for 18 years, naturally, your bond is deeper. I would never dream of stealing their love."

　　Eliza looked pleased and reluctantly accepted, "Good, you know your place."

　　I looked around with a fawning expression, "Eliza, may I admire your room? I've never seen such a big and beautiful room before."

　　Given her personality, she would usually refuse, but the sound of approaching footsteps made her change to a saccharine tone, "Of course, you're the real daughter of the Lloyd family. If you want to stay here, I'd gladly give it to you."

　　Only Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd could make her act this way.

　　They were clearly worried about a confrontation and had followed us.

　　My hearing is much sharper than Eliza's. I heard the footsteps seconds before she did, so I knew what to say.

　　I was certain she wouldn't refuse.

　　I had my reasons for doing this.

　　I touched everything, praising the beautiful clothes and the comfortable bed linens. Eliza's face grew more and more sour, but with Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd at the door, she had to force a smile.

　　Her focus was entirely on them, unaware that I had secretly smeared something on her bed.

　　Once they left, she glared at me fiercely, "Stop touching my things with your dirty hands."

　　I looked up in confusion, and at her shout of "Get out!" I left quickly, pretending to be scared.

　　Hours later, deep into the night, Eliza's screams pierced the silence of the villa.

　　When I ran to see what was happening, I found a python tightly coiled around Eliza's feet, which were visibly turning blue and purple.

　　Mr. Lloyd blamed the butler for being negligent, wondering how such a large python could have gotten into the house.

　　He scolded everyone, but no one dared to step forward and help Eliza.

　　Eliza, terrified, had wet herself and was trembling all over, looking absolutely ridiculous.

　　Too bad Mia can't see this, I thought, she would have been delighted.

　　Finally, the firefighters arrived and caught the python.

　　It had coiled so tightly that Eliza's ankles were dislocated. She would have trouble walking for a while.

　　After this incident, Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd decided to fire the butler.

　　He pleaded his innocence, saying his whole family depended on his income. Without this job, they'd be destitute, especially since he had a son with leukemia. Losing his income would be a death sentence for his family.

　　He begged Eliza to intercede on his behalf, but she was so humiliated by what had happened that she grew angrier, throwing everything within reach at the butler.

　　Little did she know, the butler was actually her real uncle. He knew all about how she had burned her biological parents to death.

　　Driven to desperation, the butler was about to expose her cruel actions, willing to risk everything.

　　But I interrupted, knowing it wasn't the right time yet.

　　"Dad, Mom, maybe the python was sent by the spirits of the dead. It's not the butler's fault he didn't see it," I said, blinking innocently.

　　Mr. Lloyd, who didn't believe in ghosts, looked displeased with my explanation.

　　He was about to scold me for being superstitious, but I quickly interrupted him.

　　"When I was a child, I heard a story in the village," I began slowly. "It's said that if someone dies unjustly, on the first anniversary of their death, they transform into a large python to seek revenge on their killer." I walked slowly toward Eliza, my voice turning eerie. "Eliza, did you kill someone a year ago, using a particularly vicious method? Is that why this python is here, wrapped around you?"

　　My spooky demeanor and words visibly terrified Eliza. She looked around frantically and couldn't help but scream, "Stay away, stay away!"

　　After all, she was just an eighteen-year-old girl, easily frightened.

　　If only Mr. Lloyd wasn't here, I thought, I could push her further and make her slip up.

　　Mr. Lloyd, seeing how frightened Eliza was, felt sorry for her.

　　He raised his hand and slapped me hard, shouting, "Stop talking nonsense! How could I have a daughter like you?"

　　He raised his hand to slap me again, but Mrs. Lloyd pushed him away.

　　She held my hand tightly and scolded him, "Mia's ignorance is because Ruby didn't let her study. Instead of teaching her properly, you hit her. Are you even her father?"

　　I'm not a cold-hearted person. Mrs. Lloyd's actions touched me.

　　But that didn't mean I would abandon my plans because of her.

　　Mr. Lloyd looked at me, seeming a bit guilty, but said nothing more. He told Eliza to rest and then took Mrs. Lloyd back to the master bedroom.

　　As for the butler, my interference had made Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd temporarily forget about firing him.

　　He gave me a grateful look. I understood that he now owed me a favor, and when the time came, I would call upon him to repay it, adding fuel to the fire.

　　After returning to my room, I started reminiscing about the times I spent with Mia.

　　Born without hair, I was often mocked and isolated by my peers.

　　The death of my parents left me even more alone and vulnerable, making those days incredibly tough.

　　Thankfully, Mia came into my life during that dark period. She became my playmate and my confidante, and I was no longer lonely.

　　We grew up wild and free, foraging for fruits on the hills when we were hungry and catching fish in the river. When we wanted to study, we would hide in the school's corners, using discarded pens and paper from the trash bin to take notes.

　　We dreamed of going to New York to make our mark once we turned eighteen.

　　But just a year before we could make our dream a reality, Mia crossed paths with Eliza.

　　Eliza didn't know Mia's true identity.

　　If she had known Mia was the real daughter of the Lloyd family, her actions might have had a twisted justification.

　　But Eliza was a deranged person. Just because she didn't like Mia, she wanted her dead.

　　I found Mia just as a truck was running over her. I was so devastated that I couldn't even scream.

　　If I hadn't seen Eliza and a middle-aged man hastily driving away, I would have thought Mia's death was a car accident.

　　Later, I realized they were trying to destroy the evidence.

　　The man was a public figure—I recognized him immediately as Mia's biological father, Byron Lloyd.

　　To protect Eliza, he allowed Mia to suffer and die in such a cruel and undignified manner.

　　He knew everything, which is why he was so agitated tonight when I scared Eliza—his guilt was eating him up inside.

　　I had secretly brought the python into the house. In the afternoon, I had smeared rat blood on Eliza's bed.

　　Pythons, drawn to blood, naturally followed the scent.

　　I knew that with the Lloyd family's resources, a python bite wouldn't be fatal.

　　That's why I chose a python.

　　It wasn't venomous, but it could coil around a person, making it impossible for them to escape.

　　Just two days of peace, and Eliza was at it again.

　　While Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd were out on business, she used her injured leg as an excuse to order me around.

　　I was doing laundry one moment and standing in line to buy her desserts the next. Like a little servant, I was exhausted from running around for her, and she even threw punches and kicks at me occasionally.

　　Eliza watched me, sweat dripping from my brow, with a smug smile and a mocking glint in her eyes.

　　But soon enough, her laughter ceased. Thirsty, she took a big gulp of coffee, only to be struck by intense pain, coughing up blood.

　　She tried to speak but couldn't. When she was rushed to the hospital, they discovered she had swallowed a small thumbtack.

　　Though it was removed, her esophagus was damaged. From then on, she could only survive on liquids, forever deprived of the pleasures of solid food.

　　When Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd arrived, Eliza immediately accused me of putting the thumbtack in her coffee on purpose.

　　Mrs. Lloyd, favoring me slightly, didn't take Eliza's words at face value and asked me seriously, "Mia, did you really do this?"

　　With tears in my eyes, I shook my head, giving her a firm denial.

　　But Mr. Lloyd didn't believe me. He angrily shouted, "You served the coffee to your sister. If not you, then who?"

　　Frightened, I quickly hid behind Mrs. Lloyd, afraid of his fists raining down on me.

　　Mrs. Lloyd, angered by his actions, questioned, "Byron, without any evidence, you're blaming Mia. Are you really her father? Why won't you even give her a chance to explain?"

　　Mr. Lloyd scoffed, "Who else could it be? She thinks Eliza stole her life, and her heart is full of jealousy. Is it surprising she would do such a thing?"

　　"You!" Mrs. Lloyd pointed at him, furious.

　　To prove my innocence, Mrs. Lloyd had to check the surveillance footage.

　　However, before the matter of the thumbtack could be found, what she saw almost made her lose her breath in anger.

　　At first, she watched me being bossed around like a servant, which she could barely tolerate.

　　But when she saw Eliza kicking me in the stomach, making me writhe in pain, she couldn't hold back any longer. She slapped Eliza hard across the face,

　　leaving one side of her face swollen.

　　Poking Eliza's temple forcefully, she shouted, "Who do you think you are? Know your place. You're Ruby's daughter. Mia is my daughter, the true heiress of the Lloyd family. How dare you treat her like this? Are you looking for trouble?"

　　This was why, in Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd's absence, I obeyed Eliza and let her bully me.

　　I hugged Mrs. Lloyd, choking out, "Mom, don't blame Eliza. It's my fault. I bought the wrong things, so it's normal for her to be upset."

　　My words only made Mrs. Lloyd feel worse. There were maids in the house, yet Eliza forced me to run errands.

　　Just as she was about to slap Eliza again, Mr. Lloyd stopped her.

　　"Olivia, please be reasonable. We need to find out who put the thumbtack in the tea, not argue about this."

　　"How can I be reasonable? You didn't carry her for ten months, so of course you don't feel the pain," Mrs. Lloyd yelled, breaking down.

　　She couldn't believe Mr. Lloyd was so biased.

　　They started arguing, almost coming to blows.

　　Eliza watched coldly, a subtle smile playing on her lips. She seemed to enjoy watching them fight.

　　I started crying and begging, which finally made them calm down.

　　After taking deep breaths, they continued reviewing the footage.

　　They watched today's video multiple times. Besides the moment when I handed over the cup, I never touched the coffee.

　　Moreover, Eliza was right there; I had no chance to do anything.

　　Mr. Lloyd, still not satisfied, began looking through yesterday's footage.

　　Everyone gasped when they saw the footage.

　　Just after 11:30 PM, a woman in white drifted into the living room. She scattered a few thumbtacks and then grinned at the camera.

　　Her face was half decayed, and one of her eyes bulged grotesquely.

　　She left behind a chilling message, "I want you all to join me in death!"

　　Eliza screamed, covering her eyes and crying loudly.

　　The ghost looked exactly like Mia before she died, no wonder Eliza was so terrified.

　　Mr. Lloyd, furious, smashed the player on the floor. "Whoever is behind this trickery, I'll make sure you wish you were dead," he shouted,

　　glaring at me as if accusing me of dressing up as the ghost.

　　He didn't believe in ghosts, but Eliza did.

　　Clinging to his waist, she begged, "Dad, please save me. Find a priest to exorcize that ugly ghost."

　　To ease Eliza's fears, he agreed.

　　This played right into my hands.

　　Feeling wronged, I quietly complained, "Dad is so biased. He'll hire a priest for Eliza, but when I mentioned a legend, he slapped me and called me ignorant."

　　My voice was just loud enough for Mrs. Lloyd to hear.

　　Without hesitation, she refused to hire a priest and mocked Eliza for being so ignorant despite her education.

　　Initially, Mrs. Lloyd still had some feelings for Eliza, but Mr. Lloyd's blatant favoritism stirred her rebellious spirit.

　　Without her approval, no exorcism would happen.

　　Mr. Lloyd could only comfort Eliza, insisting it was all fake and urging her to trust in science.

　　Mr. Lloyd was right—there are no ghosts in the world.

　　But Eliza had a guilty conscience, so she believed in them.

　　That night's ghost was me in disguise, and I planted the thumbtacks. I knew Eliza's true nature too well. She only revealed her vicious side when Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd were absent.

　　A scratched esophagus was nothing compared to the suffering Mia endured. It didn't even come close to one percent of her pain.