My Father, the Bloodthirsty Devil

I had two fathers.

One was Vincenzo, who was gentle and cultured. The other was Matteo, who was called "Il Diavolo Sanguinario", meaning the bloodthirsty devil, by everyone.

Both were men my grandfather, Don Rossi, had chosen for my mother, Sofia.

In my last life, my mother had chosen Vincenzo, thinking he was the man she could trust for the rest of her life. But after a woman called Carla came between them, he grew colder toward my mother and me. He took Carla's side and became convinced that my mother had drugged him on purpose and slept with other men.

In his eyes, I was a bastard whose father was unknown.

After my grandpa passed away, Carla framed my mother repeatedly. Vincenzo would let her get away with it every time. He had even forced my mother to apologize and locked us in the basement, to the point of starving to death in the end!

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at my fifth birthday party.

My grandpa was still gravely ill, and he was urging my mother to make a choice. "Sofia, whoever you choose will inherit everything in the Rossi family and protect you and Lia in my place."

Mom held me in her arms, hesitant to make a decision.

I pointed at the man everyone called the Diavolo Sanguinario. "Pick him! Only he can protect us!"

After I shouted to choose Matteo, my mother, Sofia, looked down at me in shock. "Lia, what are you talking about?! You just told me yesterday that Vincenzo treats you the best. Why are you choosing Matteo now?"

Matteo had a terrible reputation among the Families. Everyone said he was bloodthirsty and ruthless, with enough blood on his hands to stain the entire river red. I used to hide whenever I saw him, crying and begging my mother to hold me. But they would never know that in my last life, the terrifying Diavolo Sanguinario was the only one who avenged my mother and me.

I gritted my teeth and grabbed my mother's clothes with my hand. "No! I want Matteo! Vincenzo is a bad man. You can't choose him!"

My grandfather, Giuseppe, had just started to speak when he suddenly started to cough violently. The private doctor immediately rushed over and quickly helped him away.

Before he left, my grandfather looked at Mom and me for a long moment, his eyes full of worry as the guests around us started whispering.

"Don Rossi's cancer has already progressed to Stage Three, yet he's still forcing himself to hold this birthday party. He's obviously doing this to pick a husband for Sofia."

"Why did Lia suddenly choose Matteo? That is a man who won't think twice before murdering someone."

"Vincenzo is a good choice. He's gentle and cultured. Not to mention the Bello family is powerful, too. Sofia can't go wrong with him."

The discussion was just underway when the doors to the banquet hall swung open, and