All Chapters of Raise the Fake, Reward the Real: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Fine. I'll transfer the money right now," I said.My adoptive parents, Frank Moreno and Nadia Westerson, were stunned as they watched me pull out my phone and transfer the money to them."You're actually doing it?" they asked.It was obvious that their question was meant to test me.My chest ached. I had so many words stuck in my throat. Just breathing made my heart squeeze painfully.Frank thought I was mocking them and roared, "That's a shared bank account, Matthew! You're just taking care of it for the time being. Don't forget your place!"Of course, I could never forget my place.I was just the fake heir of the Moreno family, whom they picked up off the streets, while Ethan Moreno was the true heir.Frank and Nadia even set down a few house rules just to make Ethan happy.The first rule was that everything had to revolve around Ethan. The second rule was that if I had any objections, we were to refer to the first rule.Due to these rules, I was forced to give my room, my

Chapter 2

I worked for the entire night. I had just fallen asleep right before dawn broke on the horizon when I was jolted awake.Ethan slapped me hard across the face and exclaimed, "Mom and Dad want to throw a party for me to celebrate that I'm furthering my studies. I want you to head over to the villa on the mountaintop and start decorating right now."I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth. I was just about to speak when Ethan suddenly raised his voice and screamed, "Mom! Dad! Matt doesn't want to go with me! I bet he thinks that I don't deserve to further my studies!"I still had no idea what was going on when Frank whipped me across the face.The whip was the punishment that they had prepared for me after Ethan returned.I immediately snapped awake at the excruciating pain of having part of my skin torn off. I hastily scrambled off the bed and exclaimed, "I'll go right now!"Ethan looked pleased as he sauntered away to pack his clothes.…It was nearly noon by the time Et

Chapter 3

It was Holly Nottings.She greeted Frank and Nadia before convincing them to let me stay, saying that she needed someone to tend to her needs.I scoffed silently in my heart.Ethan and Holly were already together, even though I had just transferred the money to Ethan the day before. It seemed that their goal wasn't marriage but to swindle me out of the rest of my money.I spent the rest of the night following Ethan and Holly around while balancing a tray of drinks, watching them kiss each other intimately.Halfway through the party, they asked me to follow them to the restroom and wait for them outside the door.My gaze gradually darkened as I listened to the muffled moans coming from within.I remained silent during the entire party and only spoke when it was about to wrap up."Mom, Dad, I have some good news to share."Frank scoffed and asked, "What good news could you possibly have?"I pulled out an application form and explained, "This university is really prestigious, bu

Chapter 4

Surprisingly, Frank, Nadia, and Ethan didn't antagonize me for the next two weeks. I guessed it was because they had already swindled me out of all my money.Ethan ended up enrolling in his preferred school.In my past life, Ethan didn't further his studies abroad. Instead, he enrolled in a local, private university. He mingled with a group of good-for-nothings, which resulted in him becoming a VIP for nearly all the clubs in Breeville.At first, he only indulged in alcohol and fooled around with women, but he eventually began gambling and getting himself involved in things that he shouldn't have been.I had no doubt that Ethan's descent into a hedonistic lifestyle would be expedited now that he had moved abroad.As expected, he stopped calling Frank and Nadia soon after he left the country. Even if he did call them, he would only chat with them for a few minutes before hanging up.Frank and Nadia were worried out of their minds about Ethan and pestered me to visit him. I agreed

Chapter 5

Frank nearly jumped out of his skin and almost dropped the whip. When he snapped back to his senses, he glared at the newcomer and his entourage of bodyguards."Who are you? The Moreno residence isn't a place where you can barge in as you please!"The newcomer completely ignored Frank as he stared at me. His calm and steady eyes seemed to redden.I looked into the newcomer's eyes that were identical to mine. Tears streamed down my face as I murmured, "You're finally here…""It's all my fault," the newcomer said as he hurried over to stand before me. "It took too long for me to find you. I'll let you down right now.Frank's temper exploded upon being ignored multiple times. He aimed the whip at the newcomer and tried to land a blow on him, shouting, "Who gave you the right to cause trouble here?"His pained cries echoed around the living room in the next second.The newcomer had managed to catch Frank's whip. He wrapped it around Frank's neck with a twist of his hand and yanked i

Chapter 6

I slowly shook my head. I wanted to speak, but my throat felt as parched as the desert.Mom hastily helped me up into a sitting position before slowly feeding me water.I breathed a sigh of relief as the water soothed my dry throat, saying, "Ethan isn't at the university in Phoston. He's actually in Las Noira. He must have ordered Holly to deliver the fake finger to the Moreno residence after he created it."I didn't expect the bodyguard to shake his head. "We've searched the entire city. Ethan isn't in Las Noira. He's disappeared into thin air.""That's impossible!" I exclaimed, feeling panicked. "The news that I received yesterday stated that he was in Las Noira. I'm not lying—"The rest of my words died on my tongue when Dad gently patted my hair, saying, "I believe you."He turned to the bodyguard and said, "Continue searching for him. We must find Ethan even if we have to turn the entirety of Las Noira upside down to do so!"I couldn't shake off the feeling of uneasiness th

Chapter 7

The next day, news of my death from excessive bleeding was posted online. A copy of my will was attached to the article."In the event of my unexpected death, all my assets, which total up to 100 million dollars, will belong to and be at the disposal of the Moreno family."Frank and Nadia were beyond panicked."Wasn't he fine when they took him away? Why did he suddenly die?""Whether he's alive or dead isn't important right now. We have no idea how many assets he has, but our relatives are already pestering us for a slice of the pie!""He mentioned having 100 million dollars in his will. Where on earth am I going to get so much money? As for Ethan… Why did he suddenly become famous too?"There were the sounds of people hammering their fists on the villa's door."Open up! Matthew's 100 million dollars doesn't just belong to you! We have the right to get a share too!""We also watched Matthew grow up. I can't believe you actually beat such a nice, young man to death. What gives

Chapter 8

Dad, who insisted on coming along with me, lost his temper upon hearing Frank's, Nadia's, and Ethan's exclamation."My son will be just fine even if the three of you died!" he exclaimed. "I'll have no choice but to shoot all of you to death if you keep spouting nonsense." Mom slapped Dad with a disgruntled expression, hissing, "Shut your mouth! We already agreed to let Matthew handle this."I burst out laughing. "You should take Dad's reputation into consideration, Mom. His subordinates are still around."Mom scoffed as she looked at the crowd of people behind us. "I suppose I can keep myself in check for Matthew's sake."Dad breathed a sigh of relief before shooting a grateful look at me.The three of us conversed with each other while ignoring everyone around us, leaving the Morenos and the outlaws stunned as they watched us.Frank was the first one to snap back to his senses."You faked your own death, Matthew?" he demanded. "Did you do it so that the other Morenos would dr

Chapter 9

Holly, who had been waiting outside the door the entire time, was led into the villa. She slowly rolled up her sleeves, exposing the mottled bruises all over her arms."I never wanted to be with Ethan, but he used our intimate photos to blackmail me. He said that he would post the photos everywhere if I refused to help him. "I didn't want to be under the scathing scrutiny of everyone for the rest of my life, so I had no choice but to do his bidding. However, he becomes a completely different person when he gets drunk. He'll abuse me without holding back whatsoever.""Shut up!" Ethan roared. "I'll make the rest of your life a living hell if you say another word. Have you forgotten the way you cried out when I had you pinned beneath me? Have you forgotten that you were the one who wanted those photos and videos in the first place?"Holly covered her ears and shrieked.I shot a glance at one of Dad's police officers, prompting him to walk over to Holly. He covered her mouth with one

Chapter 10

The "Mr. Larkin" whom Frank was referring to was none other than Thomas Larkin, the chief of the municipal police station. They had been friends since they were children.Although Thomas had never actually helped Frank in any capacity, Frank always boasted about having connections within the public security system.It didn't take long for Thomas to arrive on the scene. He showed up at the Moreno residence within ten minutes with a special task force.Frank shot a gleeful expression at Dad before hurrying over to Thomas and greeting him respectfully. "These are the people who trespassed on my property, Mr. Larkin. You'll be able to hit your KPI this month by apprehending them."His smug smile melted away when Thomas clapped a pair of handcuffs around his wrists."Frank Moreno, you're suspected of first-degree assault, illegal detainment, and collusion with foreign forces for illegal activities. We'll be taking you back to the station with us for further questioning."Frank was stu

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