1 Funeral

"Thea, my dear, we're heading to the funeral. Tidy up, I will be waiting downstairs," the middle-aged woman choked out, covering her mouth as she left the room.

"Alright, Mom, I'll be there in a moment." Seated on the edge of the bed, Thea Queen watched her mother's silhouette vanish from sight. Thoughts flooded her mind as she acknowledged her situation, having crossed over, or rather, merged, three days ago. Gradually, she accepted her current identity.

She had transitioned from being a successful young man to a tragic heiress whose family had suffered a misfortune. Memories of her past life, or what could be referred to as such, flashed like movie clips – birth, education, graduation, marriage – all feeling both real and dreamlike. There was no joy or resentment, just a detached perspective, calm and indifferent.

What was her original name? She couldn't recall. In contrast to her past life, her current emotional state was primarily controlled by Thea Queen's original feelings – sadness, sorrow, despair. Whether in the past, present, or future, she could only be Thea and would always be Thea.

Disregarding the black dress, though her consciousness mostly merged, she still resisted female clothing. She put on the white tank top, black suit pants, and black mid-heel shoes her mother had prepared. Fortunately, Thea was still underage. If she were forced to wear high heels to attend such a solemn occasion, it would have been a disaster.

She tidied her hair in front of the mirror. Thea had thick brown-black long hair, fair skin, and light green eyes. Even in her calm gaze, there was a longing for her departed loved ones.

After watching the news on the first day of her merging, she confirmed her situation. This was a world similar to the TV show "Arrow," or maybe not. There was too little information to judge the specifics. She had watched part of the show in her past life. If she remembered correctly, she was the sister of the main character, Green Arrow, a rebellious and unreasonable teenage girl.

Grabbing her handbag, Thea walked down the stairs. Fortunately, at this stage, Thea was still in her obedient phase, not yet tainted by a slew of bad habits due to her family's passing. With both souls merged, her mental strength surpassed that of an ordinary person. From mental feedback to her body, despite being a frail fifteen-year-old girl, her steps were still strong.

Reaching her mother, Moira Queen, Thea whispered softly, "Let's go, Mom."

Moira didn't speak, just hugged Thea, and the two silently entered the car.

"Robert Queen, born in 1958, died in 2007 at the age of 49. He was an outstanding entrepreneur in our Starling City, a great mentor and friend. His departure has deprived us of a great father, a sincere friend, he..."

"Oliver Queen, born in 1985, died in 2007 at the age of 22. He was a child of our Starling City, a gift from God, he..."

Listening to the priest's eulogy, Thea's thoughts were somewhat scattered. The priest praised her father, Robert, excessively, but had little to say about her brother, only a few words. Her brother indeed had no noteworthy achievements to be praised. He was charming but irresponsible, with no virtues besides his good looks. Yet, who would have thought that the saintly father had sown the seeds of disaster in the city, and it was this playboy who saved everyone in a critical moment.

The departure of her loved ones left Thea feeling deeply saddened, holding back her tears. Though she knew her brother hadn't died, her father, who had always treated her as his own daughter, had indeed passed away.

Yes, treated as his own, it was ironic. Thea wasn't actually a Queen. Her father had always known the truth but still treated her as his biological daughter, never showing a hint of dissatisfaction.

Unable to suppress the surge of emotions any longer, Thea leaned on her mother's shoulder and cried bitterly.

"My dear, it's okay to cry. Let it out," Moira gently stroked Thea's hair, speaking softly.

Shortly after, the funeral ended. Two empty coffins were buried in the Queen family's cemetery.

"Take care, Moira, take care, Thea," a stern-faced middle-aged man dressed in extraordinary attire calmly approached the two.

Seeing this person, Thea immediately recognized him as her biological father, Malcolm Merlyn. This man was a thorough conspirator and ambitious individual. He orchestrated the sinking of the Queen's Gambit, which can be considered the final boss of the first season of the Green Arrow TV series.

Although he appeared refined and powerless on the surface, Malcolm was actually highly skilled in martial arts. Codenamed "Dark Archer," he was proficient in archery, swordsmanship, and combat, and he gave Green Arrow quite a challenge on two occasions in the first season.

Furthermore, his presence was quite significant. He was exceptionally active in the first four seasons of Green Arrow. Thea hadn't finished watching the fifth season before she transmigrated, so she wasn't sure of his fate, but given his survival skills, she presumed he was still alive.

Based on his portrayal in the show, although he was extremely cunning, Malcolm did love his children. Perhaps Thea could learn martial arts from him? In the original plot, Thea received training from Malcolm and became Green Arrow's sidekick, Speedy, in the third season. Could she go through this process earlier? Thea felt very insecure at the moment. Although it was still five years before the official plot began, Oliver was still stranded on Lian Yu. However, in the guest list just now, she saw a prominent name: Wayne Enterprises. If she remembered correctly, this was Batman's company! What kind of world had she come to?

She wasn't sure if he currently knew that she was his daughter. Moira, as her mother, must know, but would she tell Malcolm? What did the show say about this? Thea couldn't recall. Malcolm was not a benevolent person. If he didn't know the truth and she accidentally revealed it, it could cost her life.

At the same time, Thea was very resistant to the idea of acknowledging Malcolm as her father. After all, he was the one who caused the death of her foster father and made her half-brother wander for five years, enduring physical and emotional trauma. Although this was the price of becoming a hero, it was still too high a price.

For now, she didn't have a good idea and could only set aside this thought for the time being.

Standing silently beside Moira, she watched her mother express gratitude to every guest for their condolences. Moira was truly a complex woman. She knew about Malcolm's plans, so did she not love her family? The fact that she had invested all her emotions into this family, willing to give up her career and even her life for her children, yet she had allowed her husband and son's maritime accident to happen, and the remorse and guilt she showed afterward were genuine. It was truly contradictory. Perhaps the only way to describe her was with the psychology of an ostrich – as long as it didn't happen in front of her, she could feel at ease? Perhaps Malcolm had taken advantage of this mentality.

"Thea, let me introduce you. This is Walter Steele, your father's trusted assistant," Moira introduced the bald African-American man in front of her.

According to the plot, this man would become her stepfather in the coming years. Thea responded with a detached nod, not saying a word. Her feelings towards Moira were currently very vague. She wasn't close, but she wasn't distant either. She neither opposed nor supported Moira finding another man. Perhaps the original Thea had this attitude as well.