Chapter 44
Elysia , her head heavy as though weighed down by thousands of pounds , barely registered the sound of the lock turning .
At that moment , a flicker of joy lit up her flushed face .
â The ⦠door .
â
Her voice , hoarse and cracked as if scorched by fire , was far from the gentle tone it once held .
The moment the door opened a crack , she stumbled inside without hesitation .
â Ow ! â A shriek echoed as someone shoved Elysia with such force that she fell to the ground .
Confused , she looked up , her dazed and tearful eyes brimming with confusion and hurt .
â Elysia , are you blind ? â Rowena glared down at her , anger flaring at the sight of her disheveled stepsister .
Elysiaâs wet and muddy clothes had left stain on Rowenaâs skirt , and that alone was enough to spark her fury .
â Disgusting , disgusting .
Elysia , youâre so dead ! â Rowena shouted .
Elysia froze for a moment , realizing belatedly that she had bumped into Rowena .
She shook her head to clear the fog clouding her mind , then struggled to her feet .
a
â I ⦠Iâm sorry , I didnât mean to ⦠â she mumbled , but her voice trailed off when her eyes locked onto what Rowena was holding : Torinâs test admission ticket .
Her hazy mind snapped awake as she gasped , â Give me Torinâs admission ticket ! â
Her voice , though louder than before , betrayed her weakness .
Rowena smirked , her lips curling into a mocking grin .
â You want it ? Sure .
After I shred it to pieces , Iâll gladly hand it to you .
â
She raised the ticket , letting it sway tauntingly before Elysiaâs eyes .
â Without this , Torin canât take the test .
What a pity .
Dad will probably scold him endlessly , â she sneered .
With that , Rowena grabbed a pair of scissors sheâd prepared earlier and began snipping at the ticketâs edges , deliberately teasing Elysia .
â No ! â Panic surged through Elysia , and she lunged forward to grab the ticket .
â Trying to snatch something from me ? â Rowena hissed .
Without hesitation , she turned the sharp blades toward Elysiaâs wrist .
It was at that moment that a housekeeper appeared in the hallway , witnessing the horrifying sight of Rowenaâs scissors slicing across the back of Elysiaâs hand .
Blood immediately pooled , leaving a glaring crimson streak on her pale skin .
Upon closer inspection , one would find that the scars from the previous day had vanished , replaced by a deeper , more jagged wound that seemed carved by a devilâs fangs .
The housekeeper froze , horrified .
But the worst was yet to come .
Rowena , undeterred , raised the bloodied scissors again , aiming once more for Torinâs test admission ticket .
â No ! â Elysia , in a desperate attempt to protect the ticket , thrust her hand in front of the blades .
The resulting gash on her finger was so deep it left viewers wincing .
[ Ouch ! My hand hurts , my head hurts â everything hurts .
Rowena , I swear weâre mortal enemies now .
]
[ Is someone too immersed ? Yes , itâs a brutal scene , but calm down .
]
[ Donât mock them .
Honestly , who wouldnât feel horrible watching this memory ? Iâve gone through three boxes of tissues already .
]
[ Heh , Iâm a VR user with tactile feedback .
Couldnât relate more , but , well ⦠poor people wouldnât understand .
]
Torin , watching the scene , felt his stomach twist in agony .
His trembling hand instinctively reached toward the screen , as though he could touch the injured girl clutching the bloodied test admission ticket .
For him , the ticket had been trivial â practically unnecessary .
â Whatâs going on here ? â Torin asked .
The screen showed Torin from ten years ago , appearing at the top of the stairs and storming toward Rowena .
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Chapter 44
Hearing his voice , Rowena flinched .
Her once arrogant and haughty demeanor melted away as she spun around , her expression transforming like a masterful stage actorâs .
Her wide , tearful eyes glistened with innocence as she spoke in a trembling voice :
â Torin ⦠Elysia was trying to cut up your test admission ticket .
I told her how important it was , that you couldnât take your exam without it , but she wouldnât listen ! She said you punished her by making her kneel , so she wanted to get back at you ⦠â
â She even tried to use the scissors on me , but ended up hurting herself instead .
â
By the end of her story , her voice had dropped to a whisper .
She glanced fearfully at Elysia , as if too scared to continue .
Elysia , still clutching the ticket protectively , said nothing .
Her face betrayed no remorse , but a faint trace of satisfaction lingered .
Seeing her expression , Torinâs anger flared .
He said , â Elysia , how could you ? I canât believe I have such a thoughtless sister !
â Not only do you show no regret for your actions , but youâre smiling ? Do you really want me to fail my exam so badly ? Do you want me to lose my chance at university ? Well , too bad .
Iâm going to disappoint you .
â
Torin snatched the bloodied ticket from Elysiaâs grasp .
His disdain was evident as he carefully wiped the blood off with a tissue , treating it as though it were something vile and filthy .
The sight felt like a sharp sting to Elysiaâs eyes , and the faint smile at the corner of her lips faded slightly .
Torin couldnât know â her joy had nothing to do with his failure .
It never had .
[ Do we really need to see this all over again ? How many times have I watched this exact scenario play out ? Elysia , do you not have a voice or hands ? Youâre just pathetic .
]
[ Iâm getting tired of it too .
Itâs always the same thing â no matter what she does, Elysia ends up taking the punishment in the end .
]
[ Whatever , Iâve been watching Torin in the top â right corner instead .
His facial expressions are absolutely hilarious .
]
[ Sheâs still underage , so Iâll give her that .
But if sheâs still this spineless as an adult ⦠I swear , production team , you owe me some compensation .
]
Elysia took a step forward .
Though Torinâs instinctive step back stung her , she still spoke with her most earnest tone .
â Torin , please , you have to believe me this time .
I didnât do what Rowena said .
How could I possibly want to destroy your test admission ticket when college is so important ? â
Elysia said , â It was me .
I was the one who protected your test admission ticket .
I should be happy that youâll be able to take your exam .
â
Her last sentence came out as a desperate cry , her voice breaking with emotion .
But it was all for naught .
No one seemed moved .
A nanny had been there , witnessing the entire confrontation between her and Rowena .
Elysia turned her hopeful gaze toward the nanny standing at the end of the hallway .
She shouted , â Please , tell Torin the truth about what
Torin frowned deeply but followed her gaze toward the nanny .
The audience in the live chat seemed to collectively remember her presence .
[ Oh , right ! Thereâs a witness â finally , some justice for Elysia ! ]
[ Could this be Elysiaâs chance to turn the tables ? Iâm so nervous .
]
[ Have you all forgotten what Fenwick said earlier ? In their version , itâs still Elysia who tore the ticket .
Which means ⦠]
you saw ! â
The housekeeper , visibly nervous , glanced at Rowena .
Under Rowenaâs threatening glare , she hesitated before stammering , â It ⦠it was Elysia who
tried to cut the test admission ticket .
Rowena stepped in to stop her , and Elysia accidentally hurt herself .
â
Elysia clung to a shred of hope through the nannyâs first few words , thinking perhaps Rowenaâs years of living here had influenced her .
But the final blow snuffed out every flicker of optimism .
At that moment , she understood with crystal clarity : this house was no longer her home .
A wave of indescribable sorrow crushed her , leaving her breathless .
Yet , no tears fell .
Across from her , Rowena wept delicately in Torinâs arms , the very picture of a wronged angel .
By contrast , Elysia seemed cold and emotionless , as though her tears had been taken from her in some cruel experiment .
Torinâs suspicions only deepened .
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Chapter 44
Torin said , â So youâre not even pretending to cry anymore , Elysia ? Youâve truly outdone yourself today .
â
His words , sharp as a blade , pierced through her remaining hope for familial warmth .
[ This housekeeper is just as vile .
Flip â flopping like Rowena with those crocodile tears â disgusting .
]
[ Torin siding with his stepsister over his real sister ? Iâve only seen this in novels , and even they didnât go this far .
]
[ Has anyone ever seen Elysia cry ? Sheâs so beautiful â imagine how moving it would be .
]
[ Cry ? With her wet hair plastered to her face ? Honestly , that would just look messy .
]
Torinâs face twisted into a smile more pained than tears , his voice trembling as he slowly turned to Fenwick .
His gaze , heavy with mixed emotions , settled on him as he said , â This is what weâve done to Elysia all these years .
And this is what your dear sister Rowena has been doing all this time .
â
His words were drenched in guilt and anguish , rising into an angry , accusatory roar by the end .
Fenwick sat there , frozen , his face as pale as a sheet of paper .
The air seemed to thicken , pressing down on everything in the room .
His mind raced in a chaotic loop , stuck on one thought , â Why ? Why had the maid chosen to cover for Rowena and lie to Torin ?
â Everyone in the villa knew Rowena wasnât their fatherâs biological daughter , yet the maid still sided with her .
â How much pain must Elysia have been in at that moment ? Just yesterday , Torin misunderstood her .
And today , sheâd ended up battered and bruised , all to protect his test admission ticket .
â Why couldnât she be kinder to herself ? Why did she have to endure so much? â
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