Chapter 1

My name was Julia, and my sister was Marian.

In my previous life, I spent every ounce of my energy chasing my mother, Dora's love.

I left school and worked so Marian could stay in class. I paid off the crushing debts she owed to loan sharks.

I even gave up my wealthy boyfriend so she could have him.

In the end, all I received was coldness and contempt.

When Marian's car ended my life, Dora didn't shed a tear. Standing at my grave, she still justified everything in the name of sisterly duty.

Now, reborn into the same life, I was done living for anyone else. This time, I'd live for myself.

*****

My grandma always favored boys. From the day I was born, Dora never had a good day.

It was like I was a shadow hanging over her head, something she could never get rid of.

When I turned one, my mom finally hardened her heart and left me deep in the mountains.

I didn't starve, freeze, or get eaten by wolves. Instead, a kind stranger found me and brought me home.

When what she'd done came to light, the whole village mocked and spat on her.

The following spring, Dora left with my father, Ryder, to work in another city and never once came back to see me.

The next time I saw her was ten years later. Grandma had passed away, and the three of them came back for the funeral.

That was the first time I met my sister, Marian. She wore a princess dress with a bow in her hair.

She could sing, dance, and, from what I'd heard, even play the piano.

Whenever she saw someone in the village, she would greet them sweetly, calling them uncle, aunt, grandpa, or grandma.

People liked her instantly. And her glow outshone all the boys in the village.

For once, Dora finally held her head high. She went on and on about how amazing her Marian was.

The two of them looked like true city people, and the villagers—whether out of sincerity or flattery—fawned over them.

After showing Marian off to the entire village, Dora led her back home.

Meanwhile, I spent the whole day in the fields digging clams.

That night, I cooked a pot of clam chowder to welcome the three of them.

But as soon as it was served, Marian wrinkled her nose and said it was dirty and smelled bad. She wouldn't take a single bite. She even lectured me, saying, "Wild stuff like this is full of bacteria. Don't you know that?"

Her tone carried the kind of superiority that made it clear she thought she was above me.

Dora's face twisted in disgust. She said impatiently, "You're serving us this? What if Marian gets sick?"

I didn't respond. It had taken me the whole day to gather just one bucket of clams, and that bucket barely made this one small plate.

If they didn't want it, that was fine. I sure did. So I ate every last bite.

Marian's eyes went wide, and then she burst into tears. She cried that I had eaten all the meat and left nothing for her.

I let out a full burp and went straight to bed.

"The nerve on this kid…" That was Dora's first comment about me after ten years.

In my previous life, I bent over backwards to win her approval.

When she told me to drop out of school and work so Marian could study, I did it.

When Marian racked up over a million in debt chasing her idols in college, Dora told me to pay it off, and I did.

When Marian graduated and couldn't find a job, Dora told me to hand over the company I had built from the ground up, and I did.

Even when Dora told me to give my wealthy boyfriend to Marian, I said nothing and agreed.

And in the end, she said, "Julia clearly hates me, yet she keeps trying to please me. It's disgusting."

Marian never missed a chance to trash me in front of others—saying I was ungrateful, rebellious, and unfilial.

Before I died, lying in a pool of my own blood, I still wondered why Dora couldn't love me even a little.

This time around, I didn't need her love anymore. I just wanted to live well for myself.