Chapter 11: Mommy

The deaths of their children were detrimental to any parent. It was understandable that my mother suffered the most during the huge boar incident to the point of losing her mind; she had already lost two of her Hatchlings during the dengue incident four years ago, and now she had lost another three.

It was saddening to hear her cry every now and then. Her voice could be heard all over the tribal territory, and no one could do much to help her ease the pain—not even my own father. I was also grieving for the loss of my siblings; they were precious to me since I had never had any siblings in my previous life.

I also cried while blaming myself for not being able to save them while embracing myself to sleep every night. I was already there. I had a better view from that tree, despite being at a distance. If only I hadn't been too emotional over a simple matter at that time, like a real child, I might have spotted the danger right before it happened. I was not an ordinary child; I should have been mature enough to understand those children who didn't understand my situation. I didn't understand why I was born different from the others.

In my sleep, I dreamed again about the beautiful woman, but there was a girl with the same black hair and fair skin as Lindie. I thought she was Lindie and tried to call her; however, my words didn't quite come out right. I blurted out "Ayla," a name I had never heard in either of my previous or current lives. I thought it was just a random dream, so I didn't pay much attention to it.

The random dreams kept on repeating until I finally recovered from the shock and the minor injuries I acquired during the incident. I decided to go out and bask in the morning sun since I had been stuck inside my room for a few weeks because my father and the Elder Healer insisted that I recuperate indoors, and they strictly monitored my condition.

I decided to look for my father and ask him if I could help with anything in the tribe, and I saw him near the pavilion, talking to the other tribe members. I tried to run in his direction, but someone suddenly attacked me and grabbed my hair in front of many tribe members, just a few steps away from my father.

"It hurts, let me go!" I screamed in pain while struggling and trying to look at the person who was pulling my hair.

I was stunned. I couldn't believe my eyes and felt exasperated. My mom was so furious while she pulled my hair as she was screaming her heart out, "You killed my children—you are the reason they all died—you should have been the one who died back there!"

"M-mother, please, it hurts," I begged, trying to hold onto my hair to lessen the pain.

"Why did I ever give birth to such a cold-blooded monster like you—what fault did I make to deserve such suffering?" she muttered without listening to my plea.

"Freya, what are you doing with your own daughter—have you really gone mad?" My father roared with a horrified look on his face as he demanded, "Let her go this instant—I command you as the Alpha of this tribe!"

He furiously grabbed her hand, forcing her to let go of my hair while hugging me and protecting me from further abuse.

"Let go of my hand, Lev; give me that monster; she killed her brothers—my children!" she demanded as she struggled from my father's grasp. "She should be sacrificed to the goddess for her sins to be forgiven—as her mother, I should teach her a lesson so she won't do such things in the future."

The tribespeople helped restrain my mother, but her male partners suddenly appeared and saw her.

"What are you doing to her—have you all gone crazy?" Dov shouted, shoving off the other tribespeople who were holding my mother while Drake punched one of them.

When my mother got away, she ran towards me again and tried to take me from my father's embrace. My father shielded me, then grabbed both of her hands before shoving her off.

Drake and Dov transformed into their Aggressive Forms and attacked my father simultaneously. My father transformed and let out a loud and horrifying roar, fighting back. The other tribespeople also transformed into their Aggressive Forms to backup my father, their Alpha.

I was too confused at that time as I looked at the pitying eyes of the other elders, who guided me back to Grandma Lony's abode and tried to calm me down. I was shaking as I left ahead, leaving my father fighting with the other males of my mother.

When we arrived at my room, they explained to me why my mother was so furious with me. They said that Lindie was not able to explain the situation the moment she was found by an elder in the forest, but as soon as she heard that I was found unconscious in the forest, she started saying that I was the one who lured the boar to their direction, killing my brothers and another Cub while injuring the elders accompanying them.

Everyone was so shocked by her words. They found it hard to believe her words because the tribespeople saw me bathing in blood from the huge boar that I fearlessly killed using my own hands. There were also no signs of my presence in the place where the Cubs and the elders were attacked.

The huge wild boars live on the mountain, quite far from the other direction of the tribal territory. Their numbers were limited, but the strength of a single huge boar was equivalent to ten beastmen. Their skin was thick around its back and head, so it was too hard to attack them at close range without preparation.

The elders were already weakened due to their age, so they would never lead the Cubs to that location, and it was rare for those kinds of creatures to enter the thick forest unless their Cubs were threatened or disturbed.

Only my mom believed Lindie's words and demanded a thorough investigation.

The investigation showed my innocence, as traces of my blood were found on the trees and broken branches from the opposite direction where the boar attacked, trailing to the area where I was found unconscious.

The elders who were injured also testified that I was not there when the boar suddenly attacked them aggressively. They weren't able to retaliate since everything was so sudden.

The boar attacked Lindie first, and she ran in their direction, shoving everyone in her path, including our siblings. The elders tried to stop the boar, but it was too strong and fast, and it tackled them all, including the Cubs that Lindie shoved off desperately before chasing her again.

The reason for the attack was still unknown since Lindie didn't confess what happened and insisted that it was my fault, causing her to be chased by the boar without explaining the reason.

I felt hurt knowing that my sister, whom I saved with all my might, insisted that it was my doing, and the mom, who had already avoided me for years, began to totally despise me without even asking my side of the story.

My chest ached as tears started to blur my vision. I was so sad.

I suddenly miss my mom from my previous life, even though she nags me so much every day. She always took my side, even though sometimes it was hard for me to explain the situation. She always made sure to understand my side and protected me from anyone who bullied me.

"M-mommy," I trembled as my tears kept falling from my eyes. The elders pitied me and hugged me as a consolation, while the Elder Healer prepared calming medicine for me.

My father, who had just returned from a fight, went into my room to check on my condition without treating his wounds first. He lifted me up in his arms and hugged me to calm me down. The elders bid their greetings to the Alpha and quietly left the room. Elder Healer Lony was left standing by the door and scolded him, insisting that he should treat his wounds first, as they might become infected. He insisted that he had only obtained a few scratches, so he could treat them later after calming me down. I felt a little embarrassed for acting like a spoiled child and crying my heart out a few times in front of this gentle father of mine, so I tried to calm myself down.

When I finally stopped crying, my father told me that he would bring me with him anywhere he went from that day until everything settled down. He said that I would be exempt from schooling since I was already more capable than the younglings a few years older than me. I was so happy because I could finally accompany my father the whole day, every day, and help him manage the tribe.