"You dare to run, you little brat? Keep beating her!"
"Boss, if we hit her any harder, she might die. She's still Cletus's daughter after all..."
"She's just an illegitimate child. Does she really think she's a genuine Cletus heiress?"
"Keep going. Someone's got our backs if she dies."
Emily's entire body was in agony, though this pain wasn't nearly as bad as being skinned alive by her sister or being torn apart by sharks in her previous life.
Wait... hadn't she died?
How could she still feel pain?
As her consciousness returned, she opened her eyes to unfamiliar surroundings. Suddenly, a flood of foreign memories rushed into her mind.
She had... been reborn!
In these memories, she was Emily, Cletus's second daughter.
Surprisingly, this body shared both her name and birthday from her previous life.
Cletus was a powerful figure in Dragon City, and she was the family's "illegitimate daughter."
Originally, her mother had been her father's true wife, but then her father fell for her mother's best friend. Both women gave birth to daughters around the same time. Her gentle-natured mother endured endless bullying while her former friend took over as the new mistress of the house with her daughter.
The original Emily had been just like her mother - weak and pitiful.
But now that she was in control of this body, she wouldn't let anyone push her around.
"Stop!" Emily's voice rang out sharply. Her eyes, previously shut tight, snapped open. Gone was the former weakness and helplessness, replaced by a steely determination that sent chills down spines.
The thugs froze, startled by her sudden change.
"Boss, she's glaring at us..."
The leader crushed his cigarette and grabbed an iron rod, walking toward Emily. "You little brat, how dare you glare at me? I'll teach you-"
Before he could finish, Emily twisted her body in an unexpected move, kicked him right between the legs, and snatched the rod.
In mere moments, she had all three of them bleeding and crying out.
"You're dead!"
"Help! Someone help!"
Despite her injuries, Emily's years of training made it easy to overpower the three thugs.
"Who sent you to lure me here and beat me up?" she demanded.
"Stop, please stop! I'll tell you everything!" one of them wailed pathetically.
Emily tossed aside the metal rod and leaned against the wall, looking down at the three groaning thugs with contempt. What wimps - they couldn't even handle a little pain.
"It... it was Syd! She put us up to this, I swear!"
Emily closed her eyes briefly. In her memories, Syd was her half-sister from the same father.
Without warning, Emily pulled out a small knife. She turned away and casually flicked it behind her as she walked off.
Screams erupted behind her.
"AHHHHH!"
One of the thugs stared in horror at the knife that had landed mere inches from his precious manhood. He literally wet himself in fear.
The thugs watched Emily's retreating figure with terror. How did that seemingly weak and helpless girl they'd lured here suddenly transform into such a terrifying demon?
Absolutely frightening!
---
Emily dragged her battered body to the hospital. The doctor said they needed to contact her family.
About an hour later, everyone had arrived.
"Dad, you all came," Emily said weakly, playing up her injuries.
"What were you thinking? Who told you to go mess with those thugs?"
Hmph. Not a single word of concern, just immediate blame without even asking what happened. Typical of her dear father.
"Where's my sister?" Emily deliberately ignored Neil's questioning look and addressed the elegantly dressed lady sitting furthest away.
The lady rolled her eyes. "Studying, of course. Unlike some people who prefer causing trouble."
"A young lady skipping class to fight with thugs - you're really bringing honor to the Cletus name," she sneered.
Neil glanced at the lady before speaking in his deep voice: "Xiaxi, who put you up to skipping class and fighting?"
"Why don't you ask my sister about this? Where is she anyway? Too scared to face me?" Emily's eyes sparkled with cunning.
"Watch your mouth, you little brat! Stop trying to drag Syd into this. Don't you dare throw dirt on her name!"
