Chapter 2

The Trials were getting closer, and the tension at school was suffocating. Everyone had their heads buried in textbooks, terrified of scoring low.

I played it cool and acted like I couldn't care less. But late at night, when no one was watching, I studied until I wanted to scream. The stack of practice exams I'd gone through could've filled a small room.

Vivienne strolled over to my desk with that sly little smile of hers. "The Trials are right around the corner. How come you don't seem nervous at all?"

I knew exactly why she was here. She was fishing for information, so I decided to give her what she wanted to hear.

I stretched and yawned like I didn't have a care in the world. "Why would I be nervous? I've got it all figured out. When exam day comes, I'll get my score one way or another."

"You, on the other hand—piano lessons, dance classes, helping your father run the pack. That doesn't leave much time for studying. Better use every minute you've got."

A knowing smirk spread across Vivienne's face. She thought I was telling her to study hard because I planned to swap our scores.

"That's none of your concern. Starting tomorrow, I won't even be coming to school. My father's sending me to the Royal Academy. The teaching there is a hundred times better. I'll be the top scorer in the entire wolf territory."

The comments went wild.

[The heroine's telling her about the Royal Academy on purpose—she wants the villain to believe she'll ace it, so the villain will go through with the swap. Our girl is brilliant.]

[The heroine isn't actually studying at all. The villain's just going to end up swapping for a zero.]

We were both playing each other, but I was two steps ahead.

"I'm my father's only daughter. Even if I didn't study, I'd still inherit his pack and become the next Alpha. But I'm going to take first place anyway. As for you..." She looked me up and down like I was trash, then pinched her nose. "You can take the girl out of the slums, but you can't take the slums out of the girl. You smell just like your mother—cheap."

"People like you can only change your life through the Trials. Not everyone has an Alpha for a father, you know. Some things are decided the moment you're born. What some people chase their whole lives, others are handed on day one."

I smiled at her. "Thanks for the concern. I'll do my best."

Vivienne scoffed, rolled her eyes, and walked away.

Just like that, she stopped coming to school.

Her social media got a lot more active, though. She thought she'd blocked me, but I had a second account.

She was out every night at bars and clubs making out with different guys. Her photos showed her looking flushed and satisfied, her skin covered in marks that left nothing to the imagination.

The caption read: Last hurrah before graduation.

The comments were all praise. The few people who told her to focus on studying got torn apart by her fans.

[Do you even know who she is? She's the Alpha's daughter. She doesn't need to study—she'll inherit the pack either way.]

[Exactly. Who asked for your opinion?]

The validation only made Vivienne party harder. She didn't go home for an entire week.

I didn't care what she did. We were both adults, and she could make her own choices.

She chose to throw herself away. I chose to stay and study.

Without Vivienne around to bully me, I finally had the time and space to focus.

The comments told me she'd sent spies to watch me, so I kept up my careless act in public, to lower her guard. Once school let out and everyone left, I'd sneak into an abandoned classroom to study.

Nobody at home cared when I came back. My mother would've been happier if I never showed up, so I stayed in the school study hall until the middle of the night.

I studied like my life depended on it. Vivienne drank like hers didn't matter.

I couldn't wait to see her face when she realized her scores hadn't been swapped at all.