Chapter 1

For ten long years, I’ve been just another contender for the throne of the Moretti crime family, living in Lucia’s shadow.

In every single test, no matter how hard I worked, I was always the runner-up, the loser. And Lucia? She was always the untouchable number one.

Three days before the presentation for the Brooklyn docks contract—the final test that would decide the Family’s heir—a cold, mechanical voice echoed in my mind:

[Ding! "Switching System" bound. Host has one chance to switch anything. Use it wisely.]

“Anything? Even our bid proposals?”

[Of course. Please designate your switch target.]

I took a deep breath and answered in my head, “Lucia.”

I looked up, just in time to see her at the end of the hall.

She was wearing an expensive designer dress, the smugness practically rolling off her in waves. She let out a soft, scornful laugh.

I knew. She had definitely heard my conversation with the system.

She was waiting for me to make the foolish move and switch her proposal.

After all, I was the other candidate, the one who could never measure up. The Don and his wife never had eyes for me.

I used to think I just wasn't good enough, that I hadn't done enough.

Until the comments appeared:

[It’s kinda sad for Olivia, though. She has no idea she was the real number one in every family test. Don Vincenzo and her adoptive mother, Emma, falsified the results to prop up Lucia.]

[Yeah, well, Lucia looks just like their daughter who died. That's one of the main character's perks! All the villainess gets to do is be jealous, haha!]

[Once Lucia wins this bid and is locked in as the heir, Olivia will be thrown out of the Family and end up dead in a ditch.]

My breath caught in my throat. My blood ran cold.

So… I was the real number one.

No wonder Lucia was always one step ahead, no matter how hard I trained.

No matter what I did, all I ever got was ridicule from Lucia and her circle.

She’d even had her lackeys put rocks in my food, throw ice water on me, and rip my clothes.

I’ll never forget the way she’d look down on me.

“Olivia, if I catch you trying to take first place from me again, I’ll make you suffer.”

“You should know your place. How many times have you ever won against me? Not once.”

Just because I’m the “villainess,” I’m supposed to be her stepping stone?

In that moment, I made my choice.

I would not be thrown out. I would not end up dead in a ditch.

Because I wasn't going to switch Lucia's proposal. I was going to take what was most precious to her.

At dinner, the air in the Moretti manor’s dining room was thick with the smell of expensive truffles and red wine.

Don Vincenzo and my adoptive mother, Emma, were gently placing food on Lucia’s plate. They looked like a perfect family. And me? I was just an outsider at the far end of the long table.

“Olivia,” Lucia said, daintily dabbing her lips with a napkin, her challenging gaze meeting mine. “For the Brooklyn docks contract, my proposal has the backing of the Family’s best advisors. How’s… yours coming along?”

Her eyes were full of bait, practically begging me: Go on, switch it. Come and steal it.

The Don and Emma watched her with doting eyes.

Only I knew they weren't really seeing Lucia; they were seeing someone else in her face.

My grip on my knife and fork tightened. I let a look of jealousy flicker across my face. “I’m working on it, but it’s not going well…”

Seeing my “jealousy,” the triumph in Lucia’s eyes grew.

She was convinced I’d taken the bait, that I was ready to switch her proposal at any moment.

And if that was the case, she didn't need to waste another second thinking about the bid.

Late that night, I saw Lucia leave, dressed to kill. I followed her quietly.

She ended up in a district of flashy bars and neon lights.

The bass was a physical punch, the colored lights pulsing wildly.

I spotted her immediately in the most lavish VIP booth on the second floor.

She was wearing a skimpy, sequined dress, draped all over some guy’s lap.

“Lucia, baby, shouldn’t you be prepping for the Family bid in a few days?” the man asked with a smirk, his hand on her waist.

“The bid? That boring thing is already taken care of,” Lucia slurred, her face flushed and her eyes hazy. She laughed and downed her drink in one go. “That idiot Olivia will ‘take care’ of everything for me. Tonight, we’re just having fun!”

In the flashing lights, I got a clear look at the man’s face.

He was a lieutenant from a rival family. Lucia was so lost in her fun she’d dropped all her guards.

Or maybe the Don and Emma’s coddling had made her so arrogant she didn’t think she needed any.

I took a few pictures with my phone, then turned and left in silence.

Lucia was about to pay the price for underestimating me.