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nThe boss there had a buzz cut with pink hair and swirls of white dotted about.

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n(Unknown POV)

nI’ve come so far from that little ** I was… So much suffering for this one turning point where I could become a key player in my family.

nAfter impressing the head with my skills and knowledge, he finally agreed to take me to the Meeting of Roses, something that happens only once every generation.

nEven the head has only attended once…

nI siked myself up as I placed the smooth dark red mask onto my face, and my newly created hair from the class up was tied up into a neat bun.

n“Don’t be so nervous. It’s not like you’ll be doing any of the talking,” A boy next to me said, and he was the son of the head, the future leader of my family… and probably my biggest rival.

nThough I doubt he saw me as a rival since he’s much stronger and older than me… but one day, I’ll reach his level.

nThinking back on my past, I couldn’t help but shiver at how far I’ve come.

nIt was almost scary how far I was able to climb in just a few years, but that, of course, didn’t come without its suffering.

nWhen I was tricked and manipulated by that boy, I was almost exiled from the family, but my mother sacrificed herself to ease my punishment, allowing me to live in the depths of the main household.

nTons of the kids that visited there every week or so continued to tease me, but I couldn’t really care much due to my numb mind.

nI felt myself slowly dying and rotting away down there as the whip and burn marks ate away at my flesh.

nThey barely had any sufficient treatment for them… and the worst part of it all was my father… my damn father.

n‘DADDY! HELP ME! I WAS IN THE WRONG! SO PLEASE HELP ME!’ I continued to shout as the torturer whipped my naked body dry, and my father just stood next to him, observing the process like a cold piece of metal.

n‘DADDY! PLEASE! IT HURTS! I WANT IT TO STOP! IT HURTS! PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!’

nIt hurt so bad that I would throw up all over the cold stone floor and be forced to smell until the attendee that “took care of me” cleaned most of it up.

nThe food I was fed could barely be called sufficient as it looked to be the scraps that they fed to the dogs.

n‘Daddy! Daddy… Daddy… It hurts… Make it stop… I’m your daughter, right? Am I… Am I no longer your daughter? I’m sorry for disappointing you… so, please… I can’t feel my legs… I can’t feel my arms… my neck… I can barely even open my eyes… Are you there? Please don’t leave me alone. I’ll be good… I won’t disappoint you again,’

nNo matter how much I begged, he held no remorse for his daughter being put under such torture, so I cut it off with him.

nHe was no longer my father, no longer somebody I could trust, and who can you trust when you have nobody but yourself? Well, yourself, obviously.

nI grit my teeth and slowly planned my resurgence upon my sentence ending.

nOne year later, everything changed as I was now “part of the family again,” but you could barely say that I was abused by the other children every day.

nThe ones who I thought were my family only glanced over the situation as a quarrel amongst kids, while some just didn’t care at all.

nBut, everything changed once I had finally managed to put my plan in place.

nI was slowly growing stronger after sneaking into various dungeons and barely making it out alive with scraps of experience points.

nAnd after about a year or so, I was finally able to class up.

nThe kids around me, my teachers, and the relatives I didn’t even give a glance to noticed my shift in power and challenged me a multitude of times.

nBut, since the Wony family follows strict rules as to not enter dungeons before the age of eighteen… I completely overpowered them.

nIt wasn’t even a challenge, and once I had come out on top for the youngest generation tournament that is held every four years, my name began to finally be respected.

nMost would’ve thought that I’d revert to my arrogant and selfish state, but I made sure to stay humble and benevolent.

nI taught and helped out the younger generation, and the kids who were a few years above me just flat out ignored me for the rest of my time at the main household.

nMy reputation grew, and as I reignited past connections, I felt my power surge within the family… finally allowing me to have the chance to talk to the head.

nHe was intimidating…

nHis fiery red hair and aura like that of a lion seemingly pressed me onto my knees as soon as I stepped into his office.

nI was confident in my skills, but before him, I was nothing but a mere bug.

n‘So you’re the kid who’s been causing trouble… I want to see what you’ll become in the future, whether that be an asset for marriage or a leader that will carry our family to a multitude of victories,’ He told me, and the pressure suddenly eased on me.

nI stood up and gave him a firm,

n‘Thank you, sir! I’ll be sure not to disappoint you!’ I shouted back, and I could clearly remember the warm smile on his face.

nIt almost felt like home… but I was too broken to actually trust somebody again, so I closed off myself to these warm feelings and shoved them deep inside of me.

nIt hurt really bad… but if it was for survival… I would do anything.

n“Okay, we’re here. Do not say anything even if you’re asked a question because I will respond appropriately. If you fail to obey this simple rule… I assume you know the punishment,” The head said to me, and I gulped down a large drop of saliva before nodding my head and saying,

n“Yes, sir,”

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