An Unloved Daughter Can Go Farther Chapter 2

After I put the last bowl on the rack, I dried my hands and got ready to return to my room.

As I passed the living room, Paul called out in a rough voice.

“Annie, go organize the things I need for my trial. They have to be loaded into the carriage first thing tomorrow morning.”

Elsa leaned halfway out of her room too.

“Annie, help me organize mine first!”

I stopped in the middle of the hall.

My ten fingers still tingled from the cold water.

Paul frowned.

“I called her first.”

Elsa shot back at once, “But my banquet gowns will wrinkle if they stay folded too long! Annie, do mine first!”

They argued louder and louder until both of them lost their tempers.

Elsa snatched down the gown I had just hand-washed that afternoon and threw it onto the dusty floor.

“Fine. Then do it again.”

Not to be outdone, Paul lifted his foot and kicked over the pack I had neatly arranged.

“Then do mine again too.”

Mom and Dad walked out and saw me standing in the middle of the mess.

They glanced at it.

Then, as if by silent agreement, they looked away.

Mom picked up a plump moonberry and fed it into Elsa’s mouth.

“All right, don’t be mad. Mom washed it twice with Sacred Spring water for you. It’s the best thing for nourishing your bloodline.”

Dad handed Paul a sliced snow apple and patted his shoulder.

“Eat something to build up your strength. The snowfields are freezing, and tomorrow’s trip will wear you down.”

Instinctively, I glanced at the fruit plate.

Mom noticed and tightened her brows.

“What are you looking at? Paul and Elsa are leaving for their trials tomorrow. Do you know how hard the trip will be? Clean up the mess on the floor. Don’t keep them from resting.”

Without another word, they surrounded one son and one daughter and returned to their rooms.

Once again, I was the only one left in the living room.

I picked up the scattered luggage and clothes one piece at a time.

The last time Paul and Elsa fought over a weapon, the pressure they released nearly cracked the pack house.

Mom had rushed out and yelled at me while I was cleaning up the mess.

“Annie, are you deaf? They were fighting that badly, and you couldn’t even go pull them apart?”

Dad’s eyes had been full of disappointment.

“You walk around with that miserable face all day. Having no inner wolf is bad enough, but you’re not even smart. No wonder no one likes you.”

Maybe he thought that was too cruel, because he added, “Dad is only saying this for your own good.”

“You aren’t destined to be a warrior. Learn how to do chores. At least then, you can become a servant someday and make enough money to feed yourself.”

I had stayed silent.

Now, I silently finished cleaning the living room, picked up the folded battle robes, and walked into Paul’s room.

Elsa leaned against the doorframe, still mocking him.

“What gave you the right to order me around earlier? You think you’re so special just because the Warrior Academy admitted you early?”

“I’m your little sister. You’re supposed to give in to me!”

Paul rubbed his forehead, his face full of contempt.

“What kind of sister are you?”

“And I’m your older brother. You’re the one who should listen to me.”

Elsa crossed her arms and raised her voice.

“Why should I listen to you? Taking care of people is work for low-class servants!”

The air went dead silent.

Paul’s smile froze on his lips.

He turned his head and looked at me, where I was wiping the floor nearby.

He finally remembered.

There was another sister in this house.

One the entire family had treated like a servant for eight years.

Elsa’s breath caught too.

Her eyes darted away.

“Annie… I didn’t mean it like that.”

Embarrassment flashed through Paul’s eyes, but he quickly smoothed it over with a careless tone.

“Annie has always been sensible and generous. Why would she care about something that small, right?”

I stopped moving and tugged at the corner of my mouth.

“Yeah. I don’t care.”

Then I lowered my lashes again, folded his heavy wool cloak embroidered with the white pine totem, and packed it into his luggage.

Inside me, my wolf crouched in the dark.

“Why don’t you punish them?”

I answered it.

There’s no need.

There were only twenty hours left before the stagecoach departed.

I didn’t need to stay silent much longer.