Chapter 1

The moment the heating element lit up, tiny blisters bloomed across my bare skin.

Even the slightest touch sent pain tearing through me, making my whole body tremble.

I slammed my hands against the glass door in front of me, my palms turning red as I cried until my throat burned, my voice breaking with sobs.

"Mom, Dad! Please let me out! It hurts so much!"

At the sound of my shrill crying, my mom hesitated.

Then, she turned around and walked toward me.

"Mom, please save me."

Hope flared inside my chest. I knew it. My mom was only trying to punish me a little. She would never really let me suffer like this.

I would never be careless again. I would never let my little sister choke again.

My mom reached toward the oven, but instead of opening it, she stopped a short distance away and pointed at me, her face filled with disappointment.

"So, you still don't think you're wrong," she said coldly. "You're even trying to smash the oven to show how unhappy you are?

"Your sister is so young. How could you be so cruel toward her?

"If you weren't jealous that she'd inherit more than you, why would you deliberately hurt her?

"We raised you like a princess. You got the best of everything first. And yet you're so vicious that you can't even tolerate a child who doesn't have a mother."

The cry for help froze in my throat.

Suddenly, I remembered what had happened the week before. I had rushed out to bring my mom the phone she had forgotten at home when I tripped and fell hard onto the ground.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" she had said, looking down at me from above. "I was just about to take your sister to the amusement park, and you decided to fake a fall to gain sympathy. You want people to accuse me of favoritism, don't you?"

Her words echoed clearly in my mind.

"If you ever dare pretend to be pitiful again, get out of this house."

My body stiffened.

I clamped a hand over my mouth to stop myself from screaming. My teeth sank into my flesh until I tasted blood, but I did not dare make a sound.

The heat grew more intense. My hair began to curl and scorch, falling strand by strand onto the baking tray below.

'I'm sorry, Mom.'

It looked like that I, Yanne Bennett, had made the oven dirty.

I forced my eyes open, wanting to see my parents one last time, but instead I saw them hurriedly dressing while holding my little sister.

"Yanne really disappointed me," my mom said. "First, she wanted to steal Tanya's inheritance, and now she's trying to kill her. This time, she really needs to be taught a lesson."

My mom cried anxiously. "What should we do? Tanya has been coughing for so long that her face is completely red."

"We're going to the hospital right now."

The next moment, there was a loud bang as the front door slammed shut.

Whatever little coolness remained inside the oven seemed to vanish along with that sound.

I curled into myself in agony, my consciousness slowly slipping away.

In a daze, I thought I saw my mom smiling at me, arms open wide.

"Yanne, you're Mommy's only treasure. I'm proud of you, always."

My dad stood beside her, holding the cake he had bought for me, smiling gently.

"This is for you, Yanne. May you grow up happy, like a princess."

However, just as I reached for them, they suddenly shoved me to the ground.

"You did it on purpose, didn't you? You deliberately made Tanya choke!"

"How could we have such a vicious daughter?"

I shook my head desperately. Tears mixed with sweat and evaporated in the heat.

"No…it wasn't me. The bad kids in the neighborhood pushed her into the sandpit. I only wanted to wash her clean. I just didn't know…"

The rest of my words were swallowed by the hot air, scattered inside the sizzling oven, unheard by anyone.