Chapter 217
Leia gritted her teeth and said furiously, "You still have the nerve to ask how you’ve wronged me? When Noelle came back, you all told me that I would always be your daughter and their sister, that you would always love me no matter what. But look what happened after Noelle returned! Everything changed."
She continued, "Eli has been biased toward Noelle from the very beginning, siding with her and targeting me. He speaks to me with sarcasm but treats Noelle with kindness. Even at school, when I greeted him, he ignored me. Didn’t he know how much his attitude affected me? He was already the student council president, but he didn’t even stand up for me. I find it disgusting to have a brother like him."
Eli’s forehead veins bulged with anger as he opened his mouth to retort that she brought all this on herself, but Charlie stopped him before he could speak.
The next moment, Leia shifted her focus to Charlie. "Charlie is nothing but a hypocritical and despicable person, shelved by Lightning Media all because of him. He knew exactly what Reyna was up to but didn’t warn me, letting me walk right into a trap. He pretends to be neutral, but every time, he sides with Noelle and even helps her to report me. Does he really deserve to be my brother? He never considered my fate. He never treated me like a sister."
After her tirade against Charlie, Leia turned her gaze to Damon, her eyes filled with resentment and sorrow. "Damon, didn’t you always say you loved me the most, that you would always stand by my side no matter what? But when Noelle got sick, you were more anxious than anyone else. You even ran all over the city to find medicine for her. Did you ever think about how I felt! You were supposed to be the brother I relied on the most, but even you sided with Noelle. You don’t care about me as much as you claimed. I hate you. I hate you so much."
Damon listened to Leia’s accusations, his lips pressed into a thin line. He clenched his teeth, unable to utter a word. He had always cared deeply for Leia, and even as he grew to appreciate Noelle, he never forgot Leia’s position in the family. Damon knew that without someone standing firmly by her side, Leia would be devastated and might go astray. He had desperately tried to get her back on track, even willing to give her everything he had. But in the end, it had still come to this point of no return. Damon didn’t want to defend himself; he just couldn’t understand how things had escalated to this point or who had pushed Leia down this irreversible path.
After finishing with Damon, Leia turned to Kimberly. "You used to be good to me, but everything changed when Noelle came back. You were so biased, yet you didn’t even realize it. Also, Nicolas has always been pursuing me. I just didn’t think it through at the time and let him go to Noelle, but I regretted it. I wanted him back. Yet you all condemned me. I don’t understand what I did wrong. I just wanted to reclaim something I had carelessly lost, but you all turned against me. No one stood up for me. Am I really your most beloved daughter? If so, it’s pretty worthless."
She went on. "And Vincent always claimed to treat us equally, but did he? He’s the most vain and hypocritical of all. He was so mean to Noelle at first, but as soon as she showed her talent and could bring him glory, his attitude changed completely. Both of us skipped class, but he only scolded me. When Noelle made mistakes, he turned a blind eye. He’s so biased, yet you still ask me what you did wrong? Ugh. Even if I had the chance to do it all over again, I would still poison him. He deserved to die."
Watching Leia’s increasingly deranged state, Kimberly felt a mix of heartbreak and confusion. I never realized Leia felt this way all along. Have we really been that biased, causing her so much pain? she thought to herself.
As Kimberly was lost in her agony and confusion, Eli could no longer contain himself. He stepped forward and shouted, "Leia, do you have any shame left? How can you say these things so brazenly? Is this your excuse for poisoning Dad! You don’t mention your own faults but only point fingers at others. Do you think you’re in the right? Who was the one who first insincerely said we should treat Noelle equally and be nice to her? But as soon as we did, you were the most jealous. The [have] been targeting you? You don’t realize why you’ve been targeted? You’ve forgotten all the despicable things you’ve done, haven’t you?"
He continued, "Alright, you’ve forgotten, so let me help you remember. When did my attitude start to change? It was when the school rumors started flying. Noelle was being called an illegitimate child by everyone. The rumors circulating in your class are the most serious. Everyone was targeting Noelle, but you pretended not to see it. You told me you didn’t know about it. If you hadn’t been fanning the flames, who would have labeled Noelle like that! You just wanted everyone to despise her so you could elevate your own status, didn’t you?"
He went on. "Then there was the Reyna incident. Reyna didn’t even know Noelle at first. With so many people spreading rumors about her, why did she specifically target Noelle? You know very well who told Reyna about Noelle, and the fact that Noelle was the creator of The Shadows. Didn’t you start spreading that in the classroom! But what did you tell Charlie? You said Noelle was being vain and talking out of turn. You twist the truth, spread rumors, and never say anything genuine. I’ve seen through you. How could I possibly still be nice to you? Do you think I’m crazy?"
Leia’s face turned pale as Eli spoke, making her look somewhat pitiful.
But Eli didn’t care about her feelings or what others thought. He pressed on. "You blame Charlie! When Reyna asked you to sign that contract, it was already clear there were issues. Didn’t Charlie tell you to be careful? Did you listen! I heard about it. Charlie even planned to persuade you, but you went behind his back and signed it anyway. Now that things have gone wrong, you blame Charlie! You’re really ungrateful. If we don’t do everything for you, we’re in the wrong, right? Who do you think you are? Does everyone have to indulge you?"
He continued, "Nicolas has been chasing [you]? Have some shame. Has Nicolas ever given you a good attitude? The last time he came to our house, did he even look at you? Nicolas always buys gifts for Noelle whenever he sees her. Has he ever bought anything for you? He’s [not] yours, and you let him go first! How ridiculous. You have the nerve to say that! Now that you see Noelle is doing well, you’re jealous and want to take him back. And you still think you’re in the right? Leia, I never realized how shameless you could be."
He went on. "The worst part is the poisoning. Dad only scolded you a few times, and you were already in the wrong. But you completely ignored the eighteen years the Anderson family has raised you and poisoned him. You only remember how the Anderson family has wronged you. When Dad was coughing up blood, you still tried to frame Noelle. Did you ever think about Dad’s feelings? You even said he deserved to die. Leia, you’re absolutely disgusting. I’ve never met anyone more malicious and willing to turn things around on others than you."