Chapter 1

In the living room, everyone crowded around my younger sister, Jada Spencer, as if she were the center of the universe.

Mom was incredibly proud. "My precious daughter has really made something of herself. Now that you've become the Alpha King's chief advisor, you'll have endless wealth and glory to enjoy."

Dad, who was usually stern, was all smiles today.

He grabbed Jada's hand and said excitedly, "That's my daughter. You outdid yourself and ranked first in the pack. You've really brought honor to our family."

At that moment, my brother, Jerome Spencer, suddenly asked, "The Alpha King personally calls whoever places first in the werewolf trials to invite them to join the Werewolf Administration. Why haven't you gotten a call yet?"

A trace of unease flashed across Jada's face.

Her eyes darted around as she said, "The Alpha King has countless matters to deal with every day. Something must have delayed him. I'll probably get his call tonight."

Everyone in the family nodded, completely convinced by Jada's explanation.

Only I stood in the corner of the living room, secretly laughing to myself. There was no way Jada would receive a call from the Alpha King, because the one who truly ranked first was me, Janice Spencer, the daughter they had ignored.

I didn't know how much time had passed before Mom finally noticed me standing off to the side. The moment she saw me, the warmth and affection in her eyes instantly turned icy.

She waved impatiently at me. "The whole family is happy for Jada. Why the long face? Are you jealous because Jada scored better than you? It doesn't matter even if you failed. Your dad and I won't hold it against you.

"When the time comes, you can find some work near Jada's workplace. That way, you can help us take care of her."

The invitation from the Alpha King was still glowing on my phone screen. I turned off the screen and placed my phone face down on the coffee table.

"Sure. Got it," I said.

Jada nestled in Mom's arms and said coquettishly, "I heard Percy Jones also works at the Werewolf Administration. I want him to take care of me."

Jerome stroked her hair affectionately, his voice filled with pride. "You're the Alpha King's chief advisor. That's a very high-ranking position in the Werewolf Administration. When the time comes, who knows which one of you will be taking care of the other?"

The whole family laughed happily together, completely forgetting about me. No one even asked how I had done on the trials. It was as if it were only natural that I couldn't compare to Jada, and that I deserved to be trampled beneath her feet.

After they finished joking around, Dad clapped his hands. "Enough about that. To celebrate Jada taking first place with such an outstanding score, I've decided to throw her a banquet. This afternoon, I'll take you sisters out to pick evening gowns for the party.

"Go to your rooms and get ready. We'll leave right away."

My heart gave an almost imperceptible jolt.

I couldn't even remember the last time I had gotten new clothes. Whenever they went shopping, they only took Jada with them. Meanwhile, I could only wear the old clothes she had gotten tired of and thrown away.

Filled with anticipation, I returned to my room and pulled out a white floral dress. It was the first piece of clothing I had ever bought with the money I earned from a part-time job. I treasured it too much to wear it and had kept it tucked away in my closet. Today, it finally saw the light of day again.

I stood in front of the mirror in my floral dress, looking at myself over and over again before taking a deep breath.

Perhaps, deep down, they did care about me at least a little.

But when I opened the door, the living room was completely empty. Even their shoes by the front door were gone.

I stood frozen in place for a moment.

Then, I cautiously checked with the housekeeper, Viola Zahn, who was wiping down the table. "Viola, where are my parents, Jerome, and my sister?"

Viola didn't even look up. "They took Ms. Jada out to buy clothes."

I felt as though a bucket of ice-cold water had been poured over my head. My entire body trembled uncontrollably.

Tremblingly, I tried to reach Mom via mind-link.

It took a long time before I finally heard her voice. "What is it, Janice?"

"You already left?" I tried my best to make my voice sound normal.

Mom merely replied casually, "Well, the car only seats four people. We figured you could just tell us what you want, and we'll get an outfit for you."