Chapter 1: My Death Was Kind of Casual
489words
I opened my eyes and the first thing I saw was a spiderweb dangling right above my nose. I gave it a little blow. It didn’t snap. Just wobbled a bit, like it was waving at me.
“You’re still here? I literally died, and you’re still hanging around?”
I was lying on the damp stone floor of a dungeon. Three ribs broken, my back torn up, blood in my mouth—maybe some mud too, who knows.
Oh, right. Name’s Daphne. Daughter of the Alpha. And currently... a prisoner? Nah. Let’s be honest. A slave.
How’d I end up like this? Well, turns out my mom doesn’t think I deserve to live.
She used to stare at me with this look of pure hatred—like, serious "did-you-mix-up-your-kid" kind of hate. I mean, I was barely a few days old and she already looked like she wanted me gone.
But no, it wasn’t a mix-up. She is my biological mom. The one and only Luna. Elegant. Regal. And the kind who smiles while poisoning your tea.
At this point, I was nearly gone. My soul felt like a limp noodle soaking in boiling water.
“Miss!” someone burst in. It was Lani, my little maid. Tears streaming down her face.
“You again?” I muttered. “I’m already halfway dead.”
“You... you can’t die! You don’t know the truth yet!”
I frowned. “Don’t tell me you’re here to feed me some dramatic plot twist.”
She pouted. “Madam... she killed the young master.”
“What?”
“Your brother. You didn’t kill him. The night you were born, Madam pushed him onto the ritual altar herself...”
I: “...”
“She said she had to sacrifice her own blood to secure her power. But you survived, so she... she’s taken it out on you ever since…”
I blinked. “So you’re telling me this now? What, hoping I’ll die with some extra rage in my soul?”
Lani cried even harder.
I coughed. “Save me a spot on Wolfshade Ridge, okay? Preferably far from my mom. She’s a bit... toxic.”
The moment I said that, my head lolled to the side. And just like that—I was gone.
Darkness.
...
Then—
I opened my eyes.
No more dungeon ceiling. Above me now was a shabby straw roof.
I instinctively felt around my ribs—intact. Sat up—bonked my head on something.
“Ow! What’s wrong with your head?!” the slave girl next to me shoved me aside.
I looked down.
Wait. I’m alive?!
No, hold on—this place... This is the slave hut. The slave hut. The day I was first thrown in here!
I’ve... come back?
I blinked. And then, suddenly, I grinned. “Well. Guess it’s time... to stir up some trouble.”
The girl next to me rolled her eyes. “What are you smiling for? Got beaten silly or what?”
Still grinning, I lay back down, staring at the straw roof above.
And whispered, “Mom... I’m back. And this time? I’m not your punching bag.”
