Chapter 1

On the day the college entrance exam results came out, my entire family went insane.

They were on their knees, begging me to forgive them.

It all started with my grandfather, a tech mogul, who decided to host a "Startup Pitch Competition." A high-stakes game between me, Ava Stone, and my adopted sister, Chloe Stone.

The goal was simple: see who could secure the most venture capital for their startup idea.

Chloe had been working nonstop. While she was coding, I was out networking. While she was debugging, I was dreaming up new ideas.

It sounds like I was slacking off, and that' s exactly what my family thought.

The winner of this competition would get a ten percent stake in the Stone family' s main tech conglomerate. A massive prize.

But it got worse. Every member of the Stone family was allowed to bet on the outcome.

What was supposed to be a fun competition turned into my public execution.

My parents, disgusted with my "laziness," bet three of their tech incubators on Chloe.

My brother, who always called me a failure, wagered ten data centers on Chloe.

Even my own fiancé, Liam Miller, put up a brand-new AI patent he had just developed. He bet it all on Chloe.

"Grandpa," Liam announced to the whole room, "while I am Ava' s fiancé, she is truly uninspired. She's a disgrace to the Stone name. I can' t possibly bet on someone who is guaranteed to lose."

The room was filled with reporters and distinguished guests. The media started buzzing, pitying the poor Stone heir who had no one in her corner.

Just as everyone was shaking their heads, I spoke up, my voice calm and clear.

"I' ll raise the stakes. Whatever you all bet, I' ll match it."

Chloe smirked from across the room.

"Ava, you' re so foolish. Don' t you know you can only bet on yourself to win? And what could you possibly wager? You have nothing."

I finally looked at her, at her arrogant face, and let out a small laugh. I had been waiting for this exact moment for years.

"Of course. I' ll bet my right to the family inheritance. Do you dare to match that?"

The room went silent, then erupted.

My biased family went crazy. They saw a golden opportunity to secure Chloe's future and get rid of me for good.

"All my luxury EVs!" one uncle shouted.

"My downtown high-rise!" my aunt screamed.

I stood there silently, watching them. My "closest" "family," all scrambling to put up enough assets to match the value of my inheritance.

In the end, they had wagered almost everything they owned.

Any last flicker of hope I had for them, any tiny bit of affection, vanished in that moment. It turned to ice in my veins.

"Ava, are you sure?"

Grandpa, who had been smiling faintly this whole time, finally looked serious. He sighed, looking at the greedy faces around him.

"I' m sure," I said. "As the heir to the Stone family, I have this conviction."

I gave a slight bow to my grandpa, giving him a look that I hoped was reassuring.

"Ha! Conviction? That' s rich coming from you!" my fiancé scoffed. "An unmotivated, lazy, and manipulative person claiming to be a Stone heir."

My father snorted, his face filled with unconcealed disdain.

"Chloe is so much better. At least she wouldn' t cheat, frame others, or party all night."

My own mother walked over to Chloe and linked arms with her, her eyes full of affection for my adopted sister. Her words hit me hard.

"If it weren' t for Chloe, you' d drive us all crazy."

When I was first brought back from the foster home years ago, I thought my life was finally going to be happy.

But in the vast Stone mansion, everyone except Grandpa hated me.

They believed I was there to steal the affection that belonged to Chloe. They conveniently forgot that Chloe was the one who had taken my place.

In the years that followed, Chloe used every dirty trick in the book to frame me.

She "accidentally" broke Grandpa' s prized vintage drone, then blamed it on me while I was studying in my room. The security cameras showed I was nowhere near it, but no one cared. I was grounded for a day and a night without food.

In my junior year, Chloe threw a wild party with a bunch of influencers. When things got out of hand and the police were called, she shamelessly pointed the finger at me. I wasn't even there; I was at the library. I was publicly shamed and labeled a "party animal" by everyone at school.

My family could have easily investigated. A single phone call would have cleared my name. But they never bothered. They just punished me.

If Grandpa hadn't stepped in on several occasions, I might have ended up in real trouble.

Even when I started pretending to be incompetent, just to make them leave me alone, Chloe didn't stop. She became even more aggressive.

I quickly realized that trying to appease them was useless.

So I waited. I waited for this day, for my chance to take back everything that was rightfully mine.

The value of their bets now equaled my inheritance. The trap was set.

Everyone was gathered around Chloe, showering her with praise.

"Chloe, in a few days, you'll officially have the Stone family inheritance."

"This was always meant to be yours. You can finally claim what's right."

"Too bad we can't just kick Ava out of the family."

They didn't seem to care about the immense price they had just paid. My fiancé had put up nearly all of his family's assets.

In their eyes, I couldn't possibly win.

Once the competition's terms were finalized, the news exploded on social media.

"Tech Mogul' s Competition: The Incompetent Heir vs. The Prodigy."

"Doesn't that useless heir know only the winner gets the 10% prize pool?"

"Only a fool like Ava Stone wouldn't understand the rules."

Meanwhile, the Stone family started an impromptu celebration party right there in the hall.

Seeing that the betting was done and Grandpa had left the room, I stood up to leave.

But my fiancé, Liam Miller, stepped in front of me, blocking my path.

"Aren' t you going to stay and enjoy yourself? This might be your last taste of the high life."