I was the legitimate daughter of the Holden family. Growing up, I loved my wise and brave stepbrother, Callum Smith, the general.

I am outgoing, but I tend to hide my feelings deep within. Unfortunately, someone with bad intentions found out and exposed my feelings towards my stepbrother to everyone.

They all accused me of being shameless and even my father scolded me, saying I disgraced our Holden Family.

My stepbrother, who used to be kind, suddenly became cold and handed me over to the army's deputy general for discipline.

Three years later, he remembered me and brought me back. He asked if I still had feelings for him and I only shook my head to deny it.

Not until he caught a glimpse of my scars and hickeys all over me did he suddenly understand that his soldiers had used me and took advantage of me out of my will.

At that moment, his eyes widened in astonishment and he started to regret everything…

Part 1

In my third year as a washerwoman in the military camp, my stepbrother, Callum Smith, sent someone to pick me up here.

"It's been three years. How has Vera learned manners? Anyway, bring her back tomorrow for mom's birthday banquet." Those were Callum's exact words.

When the servants from the Holden Family came to fetch me, I was washing clothes for a group of soldiers.

I had to endure washing all the sweat-stained clothes, batch after batch, for three days. That was quite tiring, but I had no choice. It was what I should do.

It was December, in a cold winter season and the surroundings were too cold. If I hadn't washed quickly, the water would have already frozen, so I had to immerse my hands in cold water all day long. My hands were already covered in frostbite, swollen and painful.

Even if I kept on working tirelessly all day long, the sergeant, Henry Sanders, who supervised me here, kept on cursing and yelling at me as if I was not doing anything at all.

"Who do you think you are, acting like a princess here?! You're just a condemned woman, so you better work, or else you'll suffer! You chose it!" Henry always shouted at me that way.

Three years ago, Callum had sent Henry to supervise me. He instructed him to be tough on me.

Henry was the sole sergeant to supervise my duties here in the military camp, but many times, I was so exhausted that I nearly fainted.

While I was doing all my duties, Henry just sat aside, ate snacks and lashed out at me when he was displeased.

As much as I wanted to be lazy, I also didn't want my skin to be torn apart. Well, I wasn't anxious over that. All I thought was he would just be furious and burst out his frustration on me and would also halt hitting me once he calmed down. However, he kept refusing to help with the laundry. He even didn't hesitate to use the whip, causing my skin to split open.

Everyone thought they had hit too hard and feared General Smith, my stepbrother, would punish them. However, Henry smiled scornfully, showing no fear.

Henry exclaimed, "The general confessed that he was killed because of this woman's disobedience. Come on, he won't chase after us! It will never happen!"

That was one of the reasons I worked harder all day long to avoid being hurt by them.

When someone delivered a message saying that Callum would pick me up and take me back to the Holden Mansion, all I thought was a joke from the soldiers just for me to hope to escape this hell place. Well, they used to behave like this before, so I didn't take them seriously.

They would even tear my clothes like jackals, which would only make me sob, shouting at all of them to halt, but to no avail. None of them would dare to listen to me.

"If my brother takes me back, you will all die a miserable death!" I shouted at them out of frustration.

However, they only laughed at their asses out loud, as if what I had told them was just a hilarious joke.

"You still think you're important when you return to the Holden Mansion? It will never happen. Wake up! You've been abandoned here by General Smith as a military prostitute for a long time and you still want to go back?!" one of the soldiers jeered, mocking me.

Everyone continued to tease me while starting to tear my clothes and their subordinates didn't intervene at all.

"Look at her. She's been with us already. Why hasn't her brother come and picked you up?" one of the soldiers on the side added, mocking me.

With what they all had done to me, I lost my voice.

Only tears streamed down from the corners of my eyes. After they left, I wrapped my clothes tightly around me and thought I would face my death anytime soon. Since then, I never looked at him the same way I looked at him before. The moment I realized it, the time I started never referring to him as my older stepbrother nor mentioning Callum ever again.

That was one of the reasons why every time I started hearing his name, I felt a bit bizarre, as I forgot I knew him.

In the blink of an eye, when I came back to my senses, I happened to see Henry walking past while eating some pancakes. Soon after he noticed me halted from working, he grabbed the whip, ready to strike me once more.

Before Henry could do such cruelty, he caught a glimpse of the servants from the Holden Family mansion; he didn't proceed as he was astounded.

Once Henry understood the reason behind their visit, he had no choice but to greet them respectfully.

"Everyone, look, Vera is somewhat dirty and a bit messy. Wait for me to let the maid clean her up and then return with you," said Henry.

With that, Henry pulled me back to the military camp and instructed someone to prepare hot water for me to bathe.

As his gaze moved from my face, I sensed a hint of desire in his eyes. He approached me to undress, but I tried to avoid his hands from touching me. However, I was terrified seeing his cold gaze at me, which made me pause. With no other option, I allowed him to undress me.

"Come on, you're just a washerwoman, yet you're still going to pretend noble and chaste?! Are you just kidding me?!" Henry mocked and smirked at me. "Since you're going back, then serve me one last time!"

I felt like a puppet, stuck in the military camp, letting them boss me around and do what they wanted, even if I didn't like it. I was furious and embarrassed, but I had no choice but to do what Henry asked.

When the servants from the Holden Mansion lifted me onto the carriage, I had already changed into a clean outfit. Still, it was barely enough to hide the scars on my body.

Before I and the servants left, Henry grabbed my arm. He coldly reminded me, "Vera, you know what should and shouldn't be said. If General Smith finds out what we have done to you, wait to see what we can do. This is your warning."

I had no choice but to nod.

When we arrived at the Holden Mansion, I hesitated to leave the carriage without the servant's reminders.

As soon as Hazel Brown, a maid, saw me respect the servants of the Holden Mansion, I couldn't help but sob. She handed me the mirror so I could see my face.

"My lady, you must have endured so much in the past three years. How did you become like this?” The servant was worried while staring at the reflection of the mirror.

I looked completely lifeless. My face had become so thin I almost lost its flesh.

Still, I tried to force a smile. No matter how joyfully I tried, my expression remained somewhat bitter.

"General Smith is here!" Someone announced it as loud as they could, signaling Callum's approaching steps.

I started feeling nervous, as if my heart almost skipped a beat.

It had been three years since we last met. Every time I dream back at midnight, Callum's face scared me.

At that moment, my worries were exposed to the public. Well, someone had bribed the maid beside me and created the whole drama.

Everyone knew the admiration I had with my brother.

At that moment, Callum already had a cold face. He frowned and looked at me with a distant and disgusted expression.

It felt like my admiration for him was filthy, something I couldn't bear to see. After that, he wouldn't even spare me a glance.

He said, "Vera, as the legitimate daughter of the Holden Family, you're too shameless. It's truly disgusting."

Even after three years, those words still felt like a guilty verdict, filling me with shame whenever I thought of them.

As soon as Callum approached me, my complexion turned pale.

Three years ago, when I felt too clean, he saw me as dirty and disgusting as hell.

"General Smith, this servant has realized my mistake. I have reflected on my mistakes in the army for three years. I have learned the rules for three years and know all the duties. I will never think of Xander again. Please forgive me, General," I said.

Hazel sighed, exclaiming in surprise, "Miss Vera."

She wanted to help me up, so Hazel added, "Why are you calling yourself a slave and calling your stepbrother the general? You are the legitimate daughter of the Holden Family. Please remember that."

With that, Hazel suddenly stopped and started crying.

I kept my head lowered, unable to bring myself to stand up.

However, Callum remained silent for a while. Then, afterward, someone chuckled from above me.

"It seems they have a good job enforcing the rules," he remarked.

"I am indeed much more obedient," I mumbled.

With that, Callum bent down and raised his finger to lift my chin. As soon as we met each other's stares, his eyes widened in astonishment.

"Vera, why have you lost so much weight?!" he exclaimed.