Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]
Chapter 189 189: Dead and Gone

Third-person POV

Electra's glare was fixed on Deena as if she had lost her mind, and her confusion quickly turned to irritation. "What are you talking about, Deena?" she demanded, her voice laced with disbelief. "I'm sitting right here, in front of you! How could I be dead? And what's this nonsense about today being my funeral?"

Seraphina turned to Deena, expecting her to address Electra's question, but Deena didn't even flinch. She didn't look at Electra or react in any way to her words, and it was as though Electra hadn't spoken at all.

Deena, her tone filled with irritation, turned her attention solely to Seraphina. "Didn't you hear me, Seraphina? Get out of this room," she snapped. "I don't care what kind of relationship you had with Electra, but this is beyond disrespectful. Sitting in the room of a deceased princess, lying on her bed like you own it—have you no shame?"

The words hit both Seraphina and Electra like a slap to the face, leaving them momentarily stunned.

"What the hell is she talking about?" Electra muttered, looking at Seraphina for some kind of explanation. "Why isn't she answering me?"

Seraphina's chest tightened as she processed Deena's words. Deena wasn't addressing Electra. She wasn't even looking at her. She was staring directly at Seraphina, as if Electra weren't there at all.

"Deena," she said slowly, trying to keep her voice calm despite the growing unease that coiled in her stomach. "Are you blind? Electra is sitting right here, on the bed beside me. She's not dead."

Deena's eyes narrowed in frustration. She glanced briefly at the spot where Seraphina indicated—where Electra was seated—but her gaze moved on quickly, her expression unchanged. She crossed her arms, fixing Seraphina with a skeptical look.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, her tone now tinged with concern. "It sounds like you're seeing ghosts because Electra is dead, Seraphina. You should know that better than anyone since you were with her when she died."

Electra let out a bitter laugh. "Ghosts? Are you serious?" She stood abruptly, waving her hands in front of Deena's face. "Hello? I'm right here, Deena! What is wrong with you?"

Deena didn't even blink. She continued staring at Seraphina, as if Electra's voice and actions didn't exist.

"Seraphina," Deena said firmly, "I don't know what's going on with you, but you need to pull yourself together. The funeral is today, and it's important that you attend. Sitting here and acting like she's still alive isn't healthy. Electra is gone, and it's time for you to accept it."

"No!" Seraphina's voice rose, her frustration building. She stood up quickly, pointing at Electra. "She's not gone! She's standing right here, Deena! How can you not see her? She's right in front of you!"

Deena's eyes widened slightly, her lips pressing into a thin line. "Seraphina," she said carefully, as though speaking to someone on the verge of a breakdown. "I understand this is hard for you. Losing someone you care about is never easy, but you can't keep pretending she's still here. It's not real."

"It is real!" Seraphina shot back, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and fear. "She's real, and she's right here!"

Electra, now pacing the room, threw her hands in the air. "This is insane! How can she not see me? How can she not hear me? I'm not dead, Seraphina! I'm not!"

Seraphina turned to Electra, her heart breaking at the desperation in her voice. She reached out, grabbing Electra's arm firmly. "I know you're not," she said quietly. "I can see you very clearly, and I know that you're here."

Deena frowned deeply, watching the exchange with growing concern. "Seraphina," she said, her tone dropping lower, "no one's there. You're scaring me. Please, just come with me. Let's leave this room and—"

"I'm not leaving!" Seraphina snapped, her grip on Electra tightening. "Not until you acknowledge that she's here! Look at her, Deena! Look!"

Deena hesitated, her gaze flicking back to the spot where Electra stood. She stared at the empty air, then back at Seraphina with an expression that was equal parts pity and unease. "There's no one there," she said softly. "Seraphina, you're imagining things."

Electra's hands clenched into fists, her anger bubbling over. "This is ridiculous!" she shouted, stepping closer to Deena. "You're standing here, talking about me like I'm some ghost, but I'm alive! I'm right in front of you!"

Deena didn't react, and not even a flicker of acknowledgment crossed her face.

Seraphina felt a cold chill creep up her spine. Something was horribly wrong. There was something deeply unnatural about the situation—something neither of them could explain.

She let out a heavy sigh, rubbing her temples as she tried to process everything. Finally, she decided to do the one thing that might clear the confusion—or make it worse.

"Deena," she said, "if you're so convinced Electra is dead, then tell me how she supposedly died."

Electra shot her a furious glare, her jaw tightening. "I'm not dead!" she shouted, her voice trembling with anger and frustration. "Why are you even entertaining this nonsense?"

"Electra," Seraphina said firmly, turning to her. "Calm down, and just listen for a second, okay? I'm trying to figure out what's going on."

Electra huffed, crossing her arms but saying nothing more, her gaze smoldering with resentment. Seraphina turned her attention back to Deena, who stood frozen, her face pale and her eyes wide with what could only be described as horror.

"Well?" Seraphina prompted. "How did she die?"

Deena hesitated, her gaze darting briefly to the spot where Electra supposedly stood before quickly looking away again.

"She…" she swallowed hard, her voice faltering as she spoke. "She collapsed during the Revernyn tournament. Right there on the field, in front of everyone in the Kingdom."

Seraphina's heart skipped a beat, her breath catching in her throat. The idea of Electra collapsing during an event as important as the Revernyn tournament, an event she excelled at, felt utterly impossible.

Deena continued, her voice quieter now, almost as if she didn't want to say the words. "The doctors said it was a heart attack, and she was gone before they could even get her to the infirmary."

Electra scoffed loudly, her expression twisted in disbelief. "A heart attack?" she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Seriously? I'm nineteen. Why in the world would I have had a heart attack?"

Seraphina didn't respond immediately. Her mind was already spinning, trying to make sense of the conflicting realities in front of her. On one hand, she could see and hear Electra, and on the other, Deena was standing there, genuinely convinced that Electra was dead.

And then Seraphina remembered something that made her blood run cold. Deena's plans to kill Electra.

She looked up at Deena, her eyes narrowing. "Did you do it?" she asked, her voice low.

Deena's brows furrowed in confusion, her irritation quickly replacing the horror in her expression. "What are you talking about?" she snapped.

"Did you kill her?" Seraphina pressed, her voice rising. "Did you have something to do with Electra's death?"

Deena's mouth fell open, and for a moment, she looked genuinely shocked by the accusation, but then her expression hardened, and she let out a dry laugh, shaking her head.

"You've lost your mind, Seraphina," she said coldly. "I don't know what's going through that head of yours, but I don't have time for your baseless accusations."

Seraphina's hands balled into fists at her sides, her body trembling with a mixture of anger and confusion. "Don't lie to me, Deena," she said through gritted teeth. "If you had something to do with this—"

"I didn't do anything!" Deena snapped, cutting her off. She took a step closer, her tone dripping with contempt. "And frankly, I don't care what you think. You've been acting completely insane since I got here, and now you're accusing me of murder? Get a grip, Seraphina."

She pointed toward the door. "You'd better be out of this room in the next ten minutes. I don't care if you show up to the funeral or not, but you're not staying here."

With that, she turned on her heel and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Electra stood frozen in place, her face pale and her expression blank. Finally, she turned to Seraphina, her voice barely above a whisper. "What the hell is going on?"

Seraphina stared at her, unable to answer for the first few seconds.

"I really don't know," she said finally, her voice trembling. "But we're back to being ourselves again, Electra. You're back to being Electra Vale, and I'm Seraphina Hook again."