Chapter 4

I leaned against the door and yawned. "Man, your language. You kiss Bella's boo-boo with that mouth?"

"Marceline!" Magnus snarled.

He drew a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. "Come home with me. Bella has been running a high fever since last night. She keeps calling for you and says she feels guilty.

"Mom and Dad are worried sick. Go back, apologize, and we'll treat all of this as water under the bridge."

I narrowed my eyes and let a slow grin spread across my face. "A fever? Oh, the Lord really does punish injustice. Has it started eating away at the pitiful number of brain cells she has left? You know, you could always institutionalize her in that mental asylum you were scouting for me."

In my last life, my dear family had forcibly institutionalized me for being "hysterical and aggressive." It had been pure torment.

Magnus's face darkened. "What the hell are you talking about? Since when did you turn into such a douchebag, Marceline? Bella is one of the kindest, purest girls I've ever met. How could you curse her like that?"

"Kind? Pure?" I snorted. "What kind and pure soul tries to steal her sister's fiancé? What kind and pure soul steals her sister's engagement dress? Magnus, are you slow?"

"That's not what happened. Bella was just—"

"Can it. I don't care," I snapped. "You just want me back so Bella can have her unwitting blood-donor cattle, right? Well, not a snowball's chance in hell."

Magnus roared and lunged for my shoulders, "You fucking bitch! I tried playing nice, but you keep forcing my hand. Dad made it clear that if you're not back by today, you're dead to all of us."

Before I could strike back, a mechanized voice rang inside my head.

[Quick Quest Unlocked: Let Magnus Blanc get a taste of free fall. Reward: 51% of Lumos Entreprise's stocks.]

Lumos was the largest business empire in the city. Gabriel's company barely qualified as a warm-up act beside that juggernaut.

I grabbed Magnus by the arm and flipped him over my shoulder.

It took almost no effort. Magnus was the type who lived behind a computer screen, a basement-dwelling nerd with the physique of a couch potato.

He hit the floor with a hard slam and let out a groan. I seized his leg and dragged him toward the balcony.

"Marceline!" he screamed and struggled in vain. "What do you think you're doing? Have you lost your mind?"

He could not break free. My strength was absurd, likely thanks to the MRS.

The balcony sat on the 38th floor. I shoved him against the railing and tipped him forward until half his body hung over open air.

The wind howled. His face drained of color as he clutched the rails with everything he had. "P-Put me down! I'm your brother, damn it. D-Don't kill me!"

I tapped his cheek. "Brother? You really think I see you as one? Tsk, tsk.

"Pass this message to the Blancs. Don't piss me off. Because next time, my grip might turn magically weaker. Now get the hell out."

Magnus bolted from my residence in a blur. He even left a shoe behind.

I watched him flee and smiled.

[Quest completed. Your reward can be found in the safe box in the study.]

"Well, well. Things are only just getting started," I muttered.