Chapter 3

I floated in mid-air, looking down at my own corpse on the ground.

It was strange. I had expected death to be an agonizing and heart-wrenching pain, but all I felt now was just a sense of weightless ease.

My body lay slumped in the corner of the tent. The wound where the silver knife plunged into my body remained open and unhealed, even though the blood had already congealed.

The tent was in a state of chaotic bustle.

Dad held Selena in his arms as they walked out with the pack healer. Mom brought the wolf-stabilizing herbs with her as she hurried to catch up to them. Everyone was busy making sure Selena made it to the healing center in time, but none of them even bothered to spare me a glance in the corner.

"Hurry! The healing center is waiting for us!" Dad said, his voice thick with anxiety.

Mom suddenly paused halfway, stopping in her tracks as she glanced at the tent subconsciously.

"Where's Cami?"

"Forget about her! Lena's condition is much worse and more urgent!" Dad chided, picking Selena up and hurrying forward.

Mom hesitated for another moment before gritting her teeth and leaving with them.

I floated over to the tent opening and watched everyone leave in a hurry. Mom had accidentally left her phone behind, and the screen lit up just then. I saw the photo she used as her screensaver.

It was a family photo of the four of us. Selena was right in the middle of the photo, surrounded by Mom and Dad on her left and right. They looked like a very close-knit family. Meanwhile, I was squished in the corner, all curled up so I didn't take up too much space. I looked like I didn't belong there.

The phone had lit up with a text message notification from Mindy.

"Mrs. Shaw? Why didn't Camellia show up for the hunting training today? Is she not feeling well?"

I had initially planned to go and learn hunting and tracking techniques again later, but unfortunately for me, I wasn't able to do that anymore.

I couldn't stop my soul from following Mom and Dad to the healing center with Selena. At the center, Selena ate the medicinal herbs and finally calmed down.

The healer checked her thoroughly and slowly said, "She just got a mental shock, causing her wolf to be unstable. She'll recover after some rest."

"Oh, thank god," Mom exclaimed, slumping onto a wooden bench nearby, covering her face as she sobbed softly.

Dad reached out and steadied her shoulders.

"It's alright now. Lena will slowly recover with time."

I stood right in front of them, wanting to scream, "Mom, Dad, look at me! I'm dead! Your eldest daughter is already dead!"

However, none of them could hear me.

The nursing staff stepped forward and asked, "Should we arrange a private recovery chamber for her?"

"Of course!" Dad said at once. "Give her the best possible care."

The staff nodded and jotted it down. He then casually asked, "When we rushed to the tents earlier, there seemed to be another injured she-wolf there. Was she not brought along?"

Mom and Dad exchanged glances. They looked puzzled.

"You mean her older sister, Camellia?" Mom asked, waving her hand dismissively. "She just bumped into something. She's probably resting there on her own at the moment."

The staff nodded in acknowledgement and excused himself before going out.

I closed my eyes bitterly.

Until now, they still didn't know that I was already dead.

Selena let out a pained whimper, and Mom immediately rushed over to her, leaning over anxiously.

"Where does it hurt, Lena? Tell me."

Selena answered weakly, "Cami is trying to hurt me on purpose."

"Don't worry. I will protect you," Mom said gently, reaching out to stroke her gently on the head. "Cami just accidentally made a sound earlier. It was just an accident."

"It's not like that!" Selena screamed, suddenly getting agitated. "She did it on purpose! She hates me! She always says I'm a burden to the pack! She wants me dead!"

Her emotions surged violently, and her wolf began to thrash restlessly once more.

The healer and several other nursing staff rushed over at once, and the small room dissolved into a flurry of frantic activity.

I floated to a corner of the room, watching it all with a detached gaze.

Growing up, whenever Selena said something like that, Mom and Dad would immediately look at me reproachfully as if I had truly committed some unforgivable sin.

"Cami! Lena said that you stole her protection amulet from her. Is that true?

"Lena said that you deliberately made noise while she was resting. Did you?

"Lena said that you mixed something into her drink! How dare you!"

Even now that I was dead, Mom and Dad still believed every single word that Selena said about me.

Just then, Dad's phone rang. He went out of the room to answer the call. However, just a few seconds later, his face turned as pale as a ghost.

"Hello? Yes, it's me—What? Impossible!"

His voice began trembling.

"Are you sure that's my eldest daughter?"

A patrolling warrior said calmly and objectively from the other end of the line, "After some positive identification, the deceased is indeed your daughter, Camellia Shaw. She suffered a fatal penetrating wound to her back from a silver hunting knife. She's also been dead for some time."