Beating the System

The year I was at my lowest, a wealthy family came for me, claiming I was their real son.

The school beauty I had secretly admired was officially my fiancée.

While I was still stunned by the surprise, suddenly, comments started scrolling across my view.

[This is the turning point. The male lead’s parents take the supporting male home, forcing him to drop out. His fiancée gets him sick, and in the end, they see him as bad luck and brutally kill him.]

My hand froze around the paternity test report.

My father’s eyes glistened with tears as he took the report from me.

“My child, you’ve suffered so much all these years. Don’t worry, come home with us and rest. You’re our son, and the family company is enough to support you for life. You don’t even need to take the SATs.”

The school beauty lowered her head, her voice soft and teasing in my ear.

“Levi, be good. Studying is too hard. From now on, I’ll take care of you.”

[Haha, the male lead’s family is really putting on a show. They’re pretending the supporting guy is the heir of a wealthy family just to make him give up on himself, all so their real heir can take his place!]

[Seriously, though, the supporting guy’s life is miserable. He grew up poor, hungry, and always getting beaten. After all that, he finally made it into a top high school. His grades were good enough for a guaranteed recommendation to Harvard or Yale, which could completely change his life. And now he’s getting played by these scammers.]

[Serves him right! Who told him to always rank first in the grade? Because of him, our handsome and proud male lead could only be second place every year. His family is just looking out for him!]

[Exactly! He’s just a cannon-fodder supporting character. How dare he steal the spotlight from our male lead? If he’s getting revenge now, that’s just karma!]

The comments streamed past in dense waves.

I lowered my head and looked at the paternity test report that had just been taken away from me. My fingernails dug deep into my palm.

So that was it.

Now everything made sense.

Just a week ago, a well-dressed couple suddenly appeared at my door. They claimed to be my biological parents, tearfully telling me that the babies had been switched at birth years ago.

To make it up to me, they bought me designer clothes, moved me into a luxurious villa, and repeated the same thing to me every single day.

“You are the only heir to the Zimmerman Group. Even if you don’t study or take exams, you can still live a carefree life.”

From that very day on, too, Maddie, the school beauty I had secretly liked for years, began confessing to me every day with roses.

“Levi, you’ve suffered so much.

“As your fiancée, I will never let you be wronged again.”

I thought my suffering was finally over, and I could finally escape the mother who drank, gambled, and beat me.

That was until this moment, when the endless stream of comments tore apart all my illusions and their disguises.

There was never any real or fake heir.

They brought me home and spoiled me on purpose, all just to ruin me through indulgence.

And the parasite parents who raised me had happily taken the money from the Zimmermans. They were more than willing to “sell” me to a wealthy household as entertainment.

“Levi, why aren’t you saying anything?”

Maddie squeezed my wrist hard, the grip faintly vicious.

“You’ve seen the paternity test now. That should put your mind at ease. Even if you stop studying and never read another book, you can still live comfortably as the heir.”

Mr. Zimmerman smiled. “That’s right. My son just needs to live freely. School is too hard anyway.”

I looked up and put on a clean, innocent smile.

“You’re right, Dad. School really is too hard. I won’t go anymore.”

A flash of satisfaction crossed Mr. Zimmerman’s eyes.

I pretended not to see it and, still smiling, took Maddie’s hand.