On my first day back with the Cannon family as the true heiress, I heard the voice of the family’s guardian spirit.

“You must stop your father from investing in the West City project. There’s an ancient tomb beneath the site. He’ll lose everything.”

I convinced my father, Aaron Cannon, to abandon the project and invest in North City instead.

But a factory next to the North City site had a toxic gas leak. Dozens of workers died overnight.

Aaron lost his entire fortune to the compensation.

While the family was drowning in despair, the guardian spirit spoke again.

“Money can be earned again, but it’s a pity your mother will die in a car crash tomorrow when she goes out to borrow money from an old friend.”

I immediately stopped my mother, Sally Cannon, from leaving the house. She avoided the car accident but tragically died from a sudden heart attack.

With tears streaming down his face, Aaron told me she had been having chest pains for days but had endured the pain. She had only decided to go to the hospital today because she could not bear it any longer.

My blood ran cold. By stopping her from going out, I had ultimately caused her death.

Overwhelmed with grief, Aaron drank pesticide and died on the spot.

Overnight, there was no one left in the family but me and the fake heiress, Pearl Cannon.

To repay the debts and support my education, Pearl took on three jobs a day.

Then, the guardian spirit spoke to me once more.

“Your sister has been dragged into an alley. Go save her now!”

I rushed to the location. I arrived breathless and frantic, but I was already too late.

My sister lay in a pool of blood. She was not breathing anymore.

I thought, ‘Mia Talbert, it’s all your fault! You’re a curse. You should’ve died instead!’

Consumed by despair, I jumped from a tall building and ended my miserable life.

When I opened my eyes, I had traveled to the past.

“You’re the daughter of the Cannon family. Your biological parents are coming to take you home.”

My hands, which were busy throwing away a bucket of greasy dishwater, paused. My heart started pounding.

I had returned to the past.

In my previous life, I was working part-time in the school cafeteria when I first heard that voice. It claimed to be the guardian spirit of the Cannon family. It proved itself by predicting several events before they happened, which was why I later believed it when it warned me about a problem in my father’s project.

However, it was that very same spirit that ended up destroying my family.

This time, I did not look around in confusion or ask who was talking like I did in my previous life.

Instead, I pretended not to hear a thing and quietly focused on my work.

“Mia Talbert, you are a Cannon by blood. I know you can hear me. I know you don’t believe me now, but soon, you’ll see the truth.”

The voice was cut off by the sharp screech of tires.

“My daughter! My baby girl!”

An elegant, impeccably dressed woman rushed over and pulled me into her arms. Her face was streaked with tears.

“I’ve finally found you! Oh, my dear, you’ve been through so much.”

“Do you believe me now? I really am the guardian spirit of the Cannon family.”

Feeling the warmth of my mother’s embrace, something inside me softened. I wrapped my arms around her in return.

Just like in my previous life, she did not mind that my clothes were filthy or that I reeked of cafeteria food.

I silently swore to myself that I would do everything in my power to protect my family this time.

I went home with my parents, Aaron and Sally Cannon.

On the way, I heard the guardian spirit’s voice again.

“There is an adopted girl in the house, but you needn’t worry. She is a good person. Finding out that she has taken your place all these years, she’s going to leave.”

Hearing these familiar words, I watched my parents’ faces carefully, but I could not detect anything out of the ordinary.

Noticing my intense gaze, Sally gently stroked my hair.

“What is it, sweetheart?”

I asked, “Mom, did you hear someone talking just now?”

She looked at me with a puzzled expression before glancing at my dad. Then, she shook her head.

“No one’s talking.”

It was just like my last life. I was the only one who could hear the guardian spirit’s voice.

The moment I stepped through the door, I saw a girl about my age standing there with a suitcase. Her eyes were glistening with tears.

“Mia, you’ve suffered so much out there. All these years, I’ve been living the life that should’ve been yours. Don’t worry. Now that you’re back, I’ll get out of your way immediately. I won’t be a nuisance.”

Just as she said that, she took her suitcase and moved to leave.

My parents looked reluctant, but they did not stop her.

Having lived through this once before, I knew that Pearl Cannon was not putting on an act. I knew her suitcase contained only a few cheap outfits.

She genuinely believed she had wronged me and wanted to give everything back.

I remembered that, in my previous life, after I had trusted the guardian spirit and our parents were gone, it was Pearl who had worked three jobs, all just to put me through school.

The memory of her tragic death in my past life flashed before my eyes. I immediately grabbed Pearl’s hand and said earnestly, “You don’t have to go. You’ll always be our parents’ daughter and my sister.”

Tears welled in Sally’s eyes as she pulled us into her arms.

“Mia, you’ll always be my one and only biological daughter. Pearl isn’t your replacement. When you went missing all those years ago, we did everything we could to find you, but we never succeeded. Pearl is the daughter of a distant relative who abandoned her. We only took her in because we felt bad for her.”

I nodded. The guardian spirit had told me the same thing.

Last time, I had been skeptical of the guardian spirit in the beginning. That changed only after it accurately predicted a series of minor events.

That evening, during dinner, its voice echoed in my mind again.

“Your dad is about to knock over his water glass. Later, he will change into his blue pajamas.”

A minute later, Aaron knocked over his glass.

The voice said regretfully, “If you’d stopped him from picking it up, he wouldn’t have burned his hand.”

It was this very comment that had convinced me last time. I began using its prophecies to help my parents avoid every little risk it foretold.

Yet, in the end, Aaron went bankrupt, Sally had a heart attack, and Pearl died too.

Having lived through it all once, I swore I would rewrite our destinies.

The next morning, I used the hundred thousand dollars Aaron had given me as an allowance to hire a private investigator to conduct a thorough check on the West City project.

Our city was not a historic landmark. No kingdom in history had ever established a unique civilization here.

The investigator reported, “We consulted a history professor to survey the terrain. He confirmed there’s no possibility of an ancient tomb being there.”

Only then did I finally breathe a sigh of relief.

A few days later, Aaron was in high spirits at dinner. He could not help but smile as he said, “The West City project is finalized. The projected profit is at least a hundred million!”

He looked at me in joy as he said, “When it comes through, Mia, my darling, you will get seventy million, and Pearl will get thirty million. I won’t play favorites with either of my girls.”

Pearl quickly waved her hands. “I’ve taken enough from Mia all these years. Give her my share too.”

Sally gazed at us with gentle affection, while Aaron laughed heartily.

A wave of warmth washed over me as I thought to myself, ‘Have I finally managed to protect my family this time?’

Yet the very next day, a newspaper headline screamed the news.

[Major Ancient Tomb Complex Discovered in West City; All Development Projects Indefinitely Halted]

My body went cold, as if I was plunged into an ice pit.

How? How could a tomb complex suddenly be discovered in West City in this life?

That never happened in my last life.

Besides, I had deliberately ignored the guardian spirit’s advice this time. How did my father still end up going bankrupt?

At that moment, Pearl’s scream came from the living room.

“Dad! What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

The shock of the news had given Aaron a stroke.

Sally and Pearl rushed him to the hospital in a frenzy.

Sally cried until she fainted, while Pearl stayed by his bedside and took care of him for days.

When Aaron finally came home, he looked ten years older. Yet, he did not let out a single word of blame toward me.

A guilt so heavy it felt physical settled in my chest, a suffocating weight that made it hard to breathe.

Just then, that haunting voice returned.

“Your mom will leave the house tomorrow to borrow money. You must not let her out, or she’ll be hit by a car.”

My fists clenched so tight that my nails dug into my palms.

I attempted to stop her from leaving before, and she had a fatal heart attack.

This time, no matter what, I would not repeat that mistake. I had to keep my mother alive.

I knocked on Sally’s door and went straight to the point. “Mom, are you having heart problems?”

Sally’s face was pale, but she shook her head. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.” She began to cough.

“The most important thing now is figuring out how to pay off your dad’s debts. The house is already mortgaged, and I’m worried about you and Pearl.”

Tears welled in her eyes as she clutched my hand.

“My poor girl! Our family went bankrupt just after you come home. You never got to enjoy a good life with us.”

My eyes welled up, and my voice grew thick with emotion. “Don’t say that, Mom. Just being back by your side makes me happier than you know. Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

With that, I immediately pulled out my phone and dialed 911.

The guardian spirit had said Sally would get into a car accident tomorrow. So, if I took her to the hospital tonight, that should keep her safe.

Mom insisted she was fine and did not need to go to the hospital.

But I stood my ground.

“Mom, your health comes first. Don’t worry about the money. I… I can borrow some from my boyfriend. He’s from a wealthy family. You’re going to be okay, I promise.”

Sally looked at me with gratitude. Tears streamed down her face.

“Mia, you are such a comfort to me. Having you back by my side is the greatest blessing.”

Just to be safe, I rode with Sally in the ambulance.

The whole way there, my palms were slick with sweat.

Thankfully, nothing happened.

As the hospital came into view, I finally began to let my guard down.

Then, there was a deafening bang.

The world spun violently around me.

The accident still happened!

As darkness closed in, one thought echoed in my mind. ‘Why did it end like this?’

I tried to crawl toward Sally, but my body would not move.

With a final, bitter surge of helplessness, I was swallowed by the darkness.

When I woke up again, the first thing I heard was Aaron’s and Pearl’s muffled sobs.

I forced my eyes open and turned my head. On the bed next to mine lay a still form, covered by a white sheet.

Sally was gone again.

It felt like my blood froze in my veins as I was engulfed by an icy dread.

Could it be that everything the guardian spirit said was true?

I stared at Aaron. I was terrified he might do something desperate like he had in my previous life.

I had already lost Sally. I could not lose Aaron, too.

Just then, Aaron noticed I was awake. However, the warmth and fondness that used to fill his eyes were gone. It was replaced by despair.

His voice was hoarse as he asked me, “Why? Why did you have to kill your mother? You did this for revenge, didn’t you? You hated us for losing you back then, right? You wanted to destroy this family!”

Tears streamed down my face as I tried to apologize. I tried to explain about the guardian spirit.

Even though I clearly said the words “guardian spirit,” Aaron insisted that my mouth moved soundlessly, and no voice came out of my mouth.

“Mia, what do you want from us? This is no time for your games!”

Frantic, I turned to Pearl and tried to tell her about the “guardian spirit.”

She only stared at me in confusion and said I was not making a sound.

“Enough!” Aaron roared.

He lunged at me with bloodshot eyes. His hands locked around my throat.

“You cursed child! You’re still lying? Our family will only know peace if you die!”