Before Grandpa passed, he left behind two things: a billion-dollar fortune and three matches.

He said, "Each of you gets to pick one. Renee, you're the oldest, so you go first."

I did not hesitate for even a second and chose the fortune. That left my adopted sister, Vera Gallagher, with nothing but three matches.

What none of us could have known was that those three matches were no ordinary matches. Each one, when lit, could make any wish come true.

Vera resented our parents for favoring me, so she immediately cursed them a terrible death. Sure enough, Dad suddenly suffered a heart attack and died on the spot, and Mom was hit by a speeding semi-truck on her way to the hospital.

I grabbed a kitchen knife and went straight to Vera to settle the score. I growled, "Didn't I tell you that once you turned 18, I would split Grandpa's inheritance with you? Our parents opened their home to you and gave you everything I had growing up. All these years, you ate the same food and wore the same clothes as I did. How could you betray them?!"

Vera's face was filled with greed. "Since they chose to adopt me, they should have thrown you away and given me all the good things instead! I don't want your handouts. Once you're all dead, the money will be mine anyway!"

With that, Vera sneered and lit the second match. "I wish Renee would be trafficked to some remote backwoods town, forced to carry and deliver eight babies at once, and die from complications!"

I was horrified. I emptied my savings and hired over 1000 bodyguards to protect me day and night, making sure there was not a single weak spot.

However, one night, every single bodyguard suddenly passed out at the same time, and I was kidnapped and sold deep into the mountains.

I was tortured, abused, and forced to endure things no person should ever have to survive. I did not know how much time had passed before I finally swallowed my last breath in agony and humiliation.

When I opened my eyes again, I had been reborn on the very day the inheritance was divided.

With trembling hands, my grandfather, Gerald Gallagher pulled out three matches. Everyone in the room was confused.

Someone asked, "Has the old man lost his mind? He's seriously taking out three matches as a family heirloom?"

Another chimed, "Are those matches meant to humiliate Vera? That's way too much, even for him!"

Gerald's voice was hoarse and weak as he said, "Between this multi-billion dollar inheritance and these three matches, you two can only choose one. Renee, you're the oldest, so you go first!"

A chill ran through my entire body, and I suddenly realized I had been reborn. Remembering the tragic fate of my family in my past life, I instinctively turned to look at my parents.

My vision instantly blurred from the tears.

In my past life, I had chosen the fortune. However, Vera Gallagher, my adopted sister, had used the three matches to make her wishes, which led to my parents' deaths and my own miserable end in a remote mountain town.

The pain from those final moments still had not fully faded.

I was not about to make the same mistake twice, so I chose the three matches without hesitation.

Everyone in the room froze.

Someone mumbled, "Has Renee Gallagher completely lost it? Those are just three regular matches! It's not like they're made of gold."

"That's a multi-billion dollar inheritance, and she's just handing it over to someone who was adopted? If Renee wants to play the saint, she should at least pick the right time!"

"I can't even watch this. It's driving me nuts! If she doesn't know how to choose, let me do it for her!"

My parents rushed over and tugged at my sleeve.

My father said, "Renee, did you pick the wrong one by accident? My startup just went public, and Mom's health hasn't been great. We need the money..."

My mother chimed in, "Sweetheart, we know you have a good heart and always think about Vera, but even if you chose the inheritance, you could still give half to Vera later. There's no need to do this…"

They tried their best to persuade me, but I did not waver. I insisted, "I want the three matches. Vera lost her parents when she was little, and her life has been harder than mine. I don't want a single dollar of the inheritance. It's all hers."

Vera was so happy she could barely contain herself. While she signed the inheritance papers with a huge grin plastered on her face, she pretended to thank me.

"Thank you, Renee, for being so generous. Don't worry. When you're broke and begging on the streets one day, I'll make sure to toss a couple of dollar bills your way!"

My parents were so angry that they could not even form words.

I had spent three full years at my grandfather's side while he was bedridden, taking care of him without complaint. Vera, on the other hand, could not stand being around him. She would only ever pop in during the holidays, looking for gifts or some cash.

That was why, in every lifetime, my grandfather had given me the priority to choose first.

I ignored the mockery around me. After all, they did not know that the matches could grant wishes.

That night, I heard my parents tossing and turning in their bedroom.

Mom whispered, "What on earth was Renee thinking? We raised her for over twenty years, and she turned out to be a fool!"

Dad grumbled, "The creditors are coming tomorrow to collect the debt. If we can't pay them back, we'll lose this house!"

My grandfather had always run a strict household with the expectation that every generation would stand on their own two feet.

Dad's startup had been struggling since day one, and he had racked up serious debt from high-interest loans. The plan had been to use my grandfather's inheritance to bail him out, but I had taken the matches instead.

After getting the inheritance, Vera immediately went out partying and blowing money. Expecting her to pay off my parents' debts was nothing but a fantasy.

Seeing my parents unable to sleep all night, my heart ached.

So, I quietly struck the first match.

"I wish for Mom and Dad to become rich overnight!"

After making the wish, I felt satisfied and crawled into bed. However, early the next morning, Mom's scream jolted me awake.

"It's over! Everything's over! The company suddenly caught fire, and everything burned to the ground! The flames even spread to the neighboring stores. We're going to have to pay tens of millions in damages!"

Dad crouched on the floor, clutching his head, his whole body shaking uncontrollably.

I tightly gripped the charred matchstick in my hand, and my entire body went cold.

'How did all of this happen?!'

Mom was already at her breaking point, and the moment she saw me standing there in a daze, everything she had been holding in came pouring out.

"It's all your fault for choosing those stupid matches! Matches… Fire… It's over! This was meant to happen. If you had chosen the inheritance, none of this would've happened!"

Mom broke down in tears, while Dad silently pulled her into his arms and closed his eyes in exhaustion, saying nothing.

My head spun as I wondered how it ended up like that. I had clearly wished for my parents to get rich overnight, so why had they suddenly gone bankrupt instead?

Was it because my rebirth had changed something?

Did the wishes come true in reverse?

At that thought, I rushed back to my bedroom and grabbed the second match. However, before I could make a wish, the front door was kicked open with a loud bang.

A man shouted, "Well, look at that! We ran all the way over here chasing what we're owed, and you people are just sitting around living your best life?

"This is your final warning. If the money isn't paid by tomorrow, I'll chop off your hands! Word is your oldest daughter's real pretty. Maybe she can make it up to us another way."

After that, they grabbed wooden sticks and smashed my house into rubble. The high-interest loans had not yet been paid off, and the sudden fire had left my parents owing tens of millions in damages.

With no other choice, my parents called Vera. They called ten times before she finally picked up, unhurried.

"Sweetheart, we're in trouble right now. Grandpa left you a multi-billion-dollar inheritance, and we're not asking for much. We just need thirty million dollars, okay? If we can't pay the debt, the collectors are going to chop off our hands…"

On Vera's social media, the emerald necklace she had just bought was worth 50 million dollars. However, when she heard my parents begging, she sighed as if she had no choice.

"Mom, Dad, it's not that I don't want to help, but Grandpa left me the inheritance, and I can't just spend it however I want. If you want to blame someone, blame Renee for choosing those three matches!"

My parents tried to say more, but Vera hung up. Right after that, she posted another update online.

It was a post of herself cradling a little dog wearing a tiny, solid-gold crown. There was a caption with it.

[Money should only be spent on what's worth it.]

My parents trembled with anger.

To gather enough money for the payment due tomorrow, I sold all the trading cards and celebrity autographs I had collected since childhood. I even sold my phone and replaced it with a cheap secondhand one worth a few hundred dollars.

Mom sold her wedding jewelry, and Dad sold the car.

After scraping together several million dollars, Dad's frown finally eased a little. He said, "It's not everything, but it should be enough to hold off the loan sharks for now."

Mom also calmed down and apologized to me, her tone sincere. "Renee, I lost my temper with you this morning, and that wasn't fair. None of this is your fault. I'm sorry."

My throat tightened, and I nearly lost it right there. I mumbled, "Maybe I really did make the wrong choice..."

Dad gently patted my shoulder and said, "Hey, what's done is done. Let it go. We can find ways to earn more money, but people are what matter. If losing all this meant seeing who Vera really is, then maybe it was worth it. To think we felt so sorry for her, took her in out of the goodness of our hearts, and this is what we got in return."

Dinner that night was just some leftover bread and whatever we had in the fridge, but the three of us sat together and somehow made it feel like enough.

Dad talked about his plans for the future, and hope slowly returned to his eyes. "As long as I've got two hands and the will to work, I'll build it all back."

That night, I clenched my teeth and lit the second match. "I wish for Mom and Dad to become disabled and live in poverty for the rest of their lives!"

If the first wish had worked in reverse, then maybe wishing for the opposite would flip it back. I held onto that hope, squeezing the spent matchstick so hard, and I refused to close my eyes.

I was terrified of falling asleep and waking up to another disaster, like yesterday. I did not need wealth or luxury; I just wanted my parents to be healthy and okay.

By 5 a.m., exhaustion finally dragged me under without warning. My body slumped, and my mind went dark for just a moment.

When I woke up again, everything around me was silent. My heart pounded wildly as I quietly walked to my parents' bedroom door and peeked inside.

Seeing that they were sleeping peacefully, I finally let out a breath of relief.

However, just as I turned to go back to my room, two piercing screams exploded from my parents' bedroom at the same time.

I rushed in and flung the door open, and I almost fainted from what I saw.

Just moments ago, my parents had been perfectly fine, but suddenly, every one of their toes had turned black. They clutched their feet and wailed in agony.

My body went numb, and I immediately dialed 911. By the time the doctors arrived, the blackened area had already spread from their toes to their entire lower bodies.

The doctor's face was grave as he said, "It's spreading too fast! Prepare for immediate amputation!"

I nearly collapsed. As I thought about the second wish I had made, I wanted nothing more than to take it all back.

The money we had just scraped together was now all spent on surgery.

"Why is this happening to them? What caused this?"

Watching as I cried uncontrollably, the doctor shook his head and sighed. "We don't know the exact cause... I've never seen anything like this in my career, and neither has any senior doctor I’ve learned from."

I cried until I could barely breathe.

The next day, the loan sharks came to collect the debt.

"Damn it! We've been looking all over for you people! Did you really think hiding out in a hospital would keep you safe? No matter what, we're chopping off your hands today!"

I dropped to my knees in front of them, but one of them kicked me aside impatiently. However, when they walked into the hospital room and saw my parents' condition, they froze.

Their earlier arrogance was replaced with pity.

"Uh... Forget it. Pay us back whenever you have the money…"

Before leaving, they even tossed me 200 dollars and told me to buy some food.

As I put the money into my pocket, my fingers brushed against the third match.

The first time, I had made a good wish, but it turned into a disaster.

The second time, I made the opposite wish, hoping for bad to turn into good, yet the bad came true again.

It was not some wish-granting match. It was Pandora's box. However, if I did not make a wish, we were doomed anyway.

The third match was the only chance for my parents and me to turn things around, but what should my third wish be?

My mind was a mess, but my parents needed me, so I pushed it aside and focused on taking care of them.

After the sudden amputations, they suffered from phantom limb pain and fell into deep depression. Even when the pain kept them awake all night, they still tried to comfort me.

Mom said, "Renee, we're okay. It doesn't hurt that much."

Dad chimed in, "Don't be sad. Maybe this is just a test we have to get through, and once we do, things will turn around. They always do."

I held back my tears and forced myself to stay strong.

To make sure my parents were eating well, I took a job doing manual labor at a construction site. After finally saving a few dozen dollars, I bought a pound of deli roast beef for them.

On the way back, I imagined the smiles that might light up their faces. However, the moment I reached the hospital room, my mother grabbed a cup and smashed it against my head.

"Get out! Just get out!"

I was stunned. When I turned my head, I saw Vera, who had disappeared for days, standing beside my parents.

She smugly waved her phone at me, then turned and hugged Mom and Dad tightly.

"Mom, Dad, you thought I was out partying these past few days, but I was actually keeping an eye on Renee. I noticed something was off with her a long time ago, so I used a drone to record this video. The footage is completely real! Renee looks kind, but she's actually vicious at heart!"

In the video, I was tightly holding a match and making a solemn wish. "I wish for Mom and Dad to become disabled and live in poverty for the rest of their lives!"

The fury in my parents' eyes was practically blazing, ready to erupt at any second.

"No wonder everything's been going wrong. You've been cursing us this whole time!"

I panicked and started talking as fast as I could. "Please, just let me explain! The matches Grandpa left me have the power to grant wishes. The first time, I wished for you to get rich, and instead, you lost everything. That's why the second time, I tried wishing for the opposite, hoping it would flip..."

A trace of hesitation flashed in their eyes, but then Vera stepped forward and slapped me hard across the face.

"So, according to you, the matches Grandpa left you would bring disaster no matter what you wished for? That's ridiculous! He's your own grandfather. Why would he leave you something like that?"

My parents found that reasoning convincing, and their eyes turned cold again.

"From this day forward, Vera is our only daughter. You're nothing but bad luck. Get as far away from us as possible."

I completely broke down. How had everything gotten so twisted?

Vera started throwing my belongings out into the hallway, and I grabbed the moment to confront her.

"You're behind all of this, aren't you? You already have a billion dollars. Why do you have to take my parents too?"

Vera rolled her eyes. "No reason. I just don't like you!"

With a loud bang, the door slammed shut.

Inside the room, the three of them laughed happily. In the crowded hospital hallway, I stood there like a clown.

In my past life, Vera had hated my parents deeply, but in my new life, she took the initiative to get close to them, which meant she definitely had an ulterior motive.

I had to uncover the truth as soon as possible, or the tragedy from my past life would happen again.

My first suspicion was that Vera had switched the matches in my hand. Perhaps the real wish-granting matches had been swapped with something that brought misfortune.

I sold everything I owned and even borrowed more money to hire a private investigator. However, his findings crushed me.

The investigator confirmed that the three matches were exactly what Grandpa had left me, and that Vera had never touched them.

I wanted him to dig deeper, but he flatly refused.

"You borrowed money to hire me just to investigate three matches? I think you might be out of your mind. I'm not touching this case. I don't need the headache."

Due to my strange request, I was blacklisted by the entire local detective community.

Since science could not explain it, I turned to the supernatural. I posted several threads online, which quickly caused a stir.

A well-known spiritual advisor reached out and offered to help me for free. Overjoyed, I drove out to see him that same night.

He listened to everything I had been through, his eyes welling up, and swore on his word that he would help. However, after turning the matches over and over in his hands for a long time, he came up empty.

In the end, all he offered was a vague reassurance that evil would tend to find its own punishment in time.

Since the matches were not the problem, I started to wonder if there was something wrong with me.

Then again, I had just undergone a full medical checkup weeks ago and was perfectly healthy, both physically and mentally.

Just when I was at my wits' end, I suddenly received a picture from Vera.

[Renee, Mom and Dad gave me your room. Isn't this the stuffed bear you've had since you were a kid? Oops, I accidentally cut it up. Hope you're not too upset!]

I gripped my phone so tightly my knuckles turned white.

It was the only keepsake my grandmother, who had loved me the most, had left behind.

Rage shot straight to my head, and I wanted to tear Vera apart.

However, in the background of the photo, I caught a detail I almost missed. Just like that, something the spiritual advisor had said clicked into place.

Everything suddenly made sense. I finally understood why neither of my wishes in this lifetime had worked the way they were supposed to.

I knew exactly what I needed to wish for with that third match.