Chapter 4

Everyone froze. They clearly hadn't expected me to agree so quickly.

Something flickered in Emily's eyes, a flash of satisfaction she couldn't quite hide.

I grabbed the pen and signed "Olivia Turner" across both documents without hesitation.

Then I tossed the pen onto the table and looked straight at them. "But I have one condition."

Julian's eyes narrowed. "What kind of game are you playing now?"

"Your company's thirtieth anniversary gala is in seven days, isn't it?" I kept my voice steady and met his gaze.

"When the time comes, I want you to beg me in front of all the media and every single guest to donate my kidney to your precious daughter Emily."

"In your dream!" Lyla's voice shot up into a shriek.

I ignored her and kept my eyes on Julian.

I said, "You all keep saying I owe her, right? Fine. I'll let everyone see exactly how the Foster family collects their debts. But if you can't do it—"

I smiled, and my expression held a finality they couldn't understand. "Then I'd rather let this kidney rot inside my body than give it to Emily."

I turned around after I finished speaking and walked upstairs without looking back.

Their furious cursing followed me from below.

I told the System, "The stage is set. Now we just wait for the show to start."

*****

The Foster family fell into an unsettling silence over the next few days.

They stopped coming to find me, and I figured they were plotting their next move.

I welcomed the peace and stayed in my room all day without going anywhere.

I started packing my things.

There wasn't much to pack, honestly.

I had a few old clothes and some belongings that my foster mother had left me.

Among them, I found a small wooden bird with rough, uneven carvings.

My foster father had spent an entire evening carving it for my tenth birthday. He had told me, "I hope you can be free like a little bird, going wherever you want."

I gripped the wooden bird tightly in my palm and felt the cold wood gradually warm from my body heat.

I whispered, "Mom, Dad, I'm sorry I've been such a terrible daughter. But I'm just so tired."

That afternoon, Charles burst through the door without warning.

He spotted the suitcase by my feet and let out a cold laugh.

He sneered at me. "What? Can't wait to get the hell out?"

I ignored him and kept packing my things.

His gaze landed on the wooden bird in my hands, and his expression darkened. He frowned and reached out to snatch it from me.

He grabbed at it. "What's this piece of crap?"

I jerked back and clutched the bird against my chest protectively.

I shot back at him. "Give it back!"

My reaction only fueled his interest. He used his height advantage and easily yanked the bird from my arms.

He tossed it carelessly in his palm, contempt written all over his face.

He scoffed. "A chunk of wood? This is what you treasure?"

I panicked and stretched my arm out desperately. "Give it back!"

He made a dismissive sound. "Huh."

He raised his hand and threw it. The wooden bird sailed through the air in an arc, then crashed to the floor with a sharp crack. One of the bird's wings had snapped off.

My mind went blank. A ringing filled my ears, and I couldn't think.

I stood frozen, staring at the broken bird on the ground.

It was the only thing my father had left me. The only piece of him I still had.

Charles looked at me and sneered, "It's just a cheap toy. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

He didn't apologize. Instead, his voice dripped with contempt. "Olivia, can you get it together? Stop clinging to this pathetic garbage."

I bent down slowly and picked up the bird with its broken wing.

I didn't cry. I didn't scream.

I just looked up at him with an expression he had never seen before. My eyes were empty, dead.

I said his name. "Charles Foster."

My stare made Charles uneasy, and he took an instinctive step back. "What do you want?"

"You'll regret this," I said. "Everything you did today, every single word you said, it's all going to come back for you one day. And when it does, it'll cut deeper than anything you can imagine."

My voice was quiet and steady, but it landed like a curse.

Charles shivered, and anger flashed across his face. "You're insane! Regret? The only thing I regret is the Fosters ever bringing you back!"

He stormed out and slammed the door behind him.

I sat on the floor holding the broken wooden bird. I didn't move for hours.

"System," I whispered. "In the new world, will I see my adoptive parents again?"

"I'm sorry, Host. Once a soul enters reincarnation, all ties to the past are severed. But the new world will provide you with family relationships perfectly suited to you, and they will make up for every regret from this life."

"I see." I looked down and pressed a soft kiss to the wooden bird's broken wing. "Mom, Dad, I'm not coming to find you. Take care of yourselves. I'm going to live my new life."

Over the next few days, I became invisible.

I locked myself in my room and stopped eating.

The servants left trays outside my door, and I left them untouched.

They probably assumed I was throwing a tantrum, but no one came to check on me.

I could feel my body getting weaker with each passing day.

But my mind had never been calmer.

I was like a prisoner on death row, waiting for the final hour to arrive.

Meanwhile, the Foster family was busy preparing for their grand celebration.

I could hear Lyla's sharp commands drifting up from downstairs, and Emily's bright laughter following close behind.

They were counting down to that day.

I was counting down too.