Chapter 12: Lost and Wandering Sunday (6)
The day after we received permission to use abnormal items, we took out some of the abnormal items with search functions, and each person held one and split up to begin the search.
However, there wasn’t a breakthrough progress right away. It was much better than the previous state where we had no idea where to start. At least we now had a ‘way’.
Two days passed like this.
On Tuesday evening, I returned home as usual. Entering the living room, I could smell the aroma of food; it had already been prepared before I came back. I haven’t been making dinner lately, it’s been… Ah, in this world, there’s no need to differentiate. To avoid slip-ups, should I change my internal way of addressing people?
From what I understand, Juncheng usually calls her ‘Mom’, it’s his unique way of addressing her. Stepmother also jokes, ‘You cheeky brat, you’re aging me,’ but she’s probably happy about it.
Just like the first time I called Aunt An Yue ‘Mom’… Thinking about it now, Stepmother actually doted on me more than Xinran.
But in this world, Xinran and Juncheng are real siblings. I haven’t told Juncheng about this, and I feel like there’s still some hidden story… Perhaps Father concealed something from us. Before the summer vacation ended, I was thinking of finding time to investigate.
However, all these things are now secondary.
I returned to my room and changed out of my school uniform, putting on Juncheng’s tracksuit. I intended to zip it up directly, but after thinking about it, I took off my jacket and unbuttoned my chest binder to get some air.
Wearing this thing all day made it difficult for me to breathe, and my chest felt a little sore from being constricted.
To prevent accidental contact with my younger sisters, I had to wear this thing all the time.
The Illusion Reversal Magic Circle this time was drawn directly on my body, above my navel. Although it’s troublesome to go to Lily for Mana Replenishment every day, and the replenishment process is a bit suggestive, it’s much safer than drawing it on the inside of my clothes.
About five minutes later, I zipped up my tracksuit and went downstairs to eat. Stepmother, Xinran, and Keling should all be waiting for me.
The abnormal disaster caused by Kaoru Tsukiyose was concealed by the organization’s intervention, appearing superficially as just an ordinary disaster. However, the impact caused by it couldn’t be completely eliminated.
And due to this ‘disaster,’ Stepmother’s work also received special… I guess they’ll have a joint funeral for the victims later.
In short, I don’t need to go out frequently in the middle of the night like usual, so I have time to go home and make dinner. Father, on the other hand, has been working day and night due to the large number of injured people, which really makes me worry about his health.
Speaking of which, Father maintains such an incredibly demanding work schedule, yet he shows no signs of overwork or mental fatigue.
Even though he’s the father of three children, he’s still a handsome middle-aged uncle, admired by many young nurses. These nurses are, at most, like fans, so there’s nothing to worry about. But Dr. Mengyu He is different… They say she and Father were classmates since university and worked together at the same unit for many years. Although nothing has really happened between them… sometimes, it feels like it would be better if something did… We even pity Dr. He.
I don’t know if Dr. He in this world is also infatuated with Father. I used to think if we would have another mother at home.
Thinking about it, Juncheng’s strong spirit is really similar to Father’s.
Yes, his tendency to attract romantic attention is even more pronounced than Father’s.
Coming downstairs to the living room, as expected, all three of them were already seated.
It’s not unusual for Stepmother to be home cooking for me, but it seems rare for ‘this family.’
This is also the biggest difference from ‘our home.’ In this world, Mother is ‘deceased.’ Although I heard she’s still alive in the hidden world underground, having become a zombie and living with Li Nai.
So Juncheng became the cook of the house, but now even Juncheng is gone… I haven’t taken over the cooking role myself to prevent any flaws.
A family that should be happy and harmonious… In this world, it’s full of tragedies… Why is it like this?
“Brother, vinegar.”
“Huh? Ah, vinegar, here you go.”
Xinran’s voice snapped me back to attention. I quickly handed Xinran the condiment bottle with vinegar next to me and then started eating heartily.
I need to finish eating quickly; I still have to continue the search later.
Seeing my voracious eating, Stepmother frowned and tapped my forehead, saying.
“Eat slowly, you’ll get indigestion like this… Is the food not good?”
“Brother often zones out lately.”
Even Xinran noticed this… I need to be more careful.
“No, I was just thinking, and then I suddenly remembered an urgent matter, so I ate quickly.”
“You haven’t been cooking actively lately, and you go out right after eating. Did something really happen?”
“A friend of mine got caught up in the collapse accident that happened last week, and my friends and I are looking for him.”
From a certain perspective, it’s not entirely a lie. I can say this level of lie with a straight face.
There’s no need to let my family come into contact with the hidden world… We and Juncheng already reached a consensus on this.
“I see… He got caught up in that accident…”
“So I might be coming home very late these days.”
“Alright, just be sure to be safe. Don’t go to any overly dangerous places; let the rescue personnel handle it.”
“Yeah, don’t worry. You don’t trust me?”
“Heh, that’s true. You’ve hardly ever made me worry since you grew up. Unlike some brat who never grows up and always keeps me worried.”
Mom’s words are of course referring to Keling. If it were the usual Keling, she would have angrily stood up and gotten into a physical altercation with Mom. However, Keling is unusually quiet today.
“Oh my, what’s with this child? Are you siblings practicing Mute Mantras lately?”
…I’m full.
“Huh? Keling?”
Keling put down her chopsticks, ignored Stepmother’s words, and dazedly stood up, leaving the living room and going upstairs.
She’s barely touched the food…
What’s wrong with her?
Is she in love?
Only a girl in love would be lost in thought like this, not eating or drinking.
But, isn’t Keling in this world an incurable brother-complex?
…Well, it’s a good thing she’s not bothering me, so I don’t have to waste extra energy.
“I’m full too.”
After finishing my meal and washing the dishes, I also went upstairs.
I was preparing to put on some necessary items and head out.
However, Keling, who had left before me, was already waiting for me in the room.
“What’s wrong? Keling? Is there something?”
“Brother… are you really my brother?”
My heart skipped a beat.
Did Keling notice?
But no matter what, I can’t panic here. I should respond naturally.
“What nonsense are you talking about? Of course, I’m your brother.”
Keling looked at me with pleading eyes, rubbed her eyes hard, stared for a long time, and then dejectedly lowered her head and murmured.
…Indeed, he is my brother.
Very good.
In terms of appearance, I’m seamless. Internally, there might be some differences, but my thought process is almost identical to Juncheng’s.
As Juncheng’s ‘substitute,’ I can even hide it from my family.
“But why…”
Keling’s eyes showed confusion. She stared at me for a long time, then shook her head and covered her face with one hand.
I proactively sat next to her and touched her forehead, saying.
“What’s wrong? Keling? Do you have a fever?”
I’ve become strange…
“What’s strange? Tell me, don’t bottle it up.”
“I seem to have become…”
My heart skipped another beat, causing my reaction to be half a second slow, but I still managed to feign a ‘Juncheng-style bewildered reaction.’
“Huh? What nonsense are you talking about, Keling? You must have a fever.”
“No! I’ve somehow stopped loving Brother, I don’t have the love for Brother I had before! Although I still like Brother, it’s just sibling affection now! It’s missing that love that transcends sibling affection, the love of wanting to be Brother’s lover and wife!”
“No, no, no, you don’t need that kind of love in the first place.”
“It’s necessary for Keling! Without Brother’s love, Keling will die!”
“You’re not having any problems at all right now…”
“That’s why! The current… I’ve become unlike An Keling…”
Keling lowered her head dejectedly, tears welling up in her eyes. This matter seemed to have hit her hard.
Although the current situation seems to be because Keling vaguely sensed that the brother in front of her is a ‘faker,’ so when facing me, she doesn’t have that brother-complex behavior.
But my woman’s intuition tells me it’s not just that; there might be something else… I should ask about it carefully.
“Keling, when did you start… uh, I mean, stop loving me?”
Keling hesitated, her face flushing as she glanced at me twice. She hugged my pillow, covering half her head, and began to explain.
…A few days ago, I dreamt of Brother. For some reason, I felt a particular longing. Then I pushed Brother onto the bed, and, well, we almost… consummated the marriage. I didn’t expect to wake up at the crucial moment!
This is just a normal wet dream!
Are you sure you’ve lost your love for Juncheng?
“At first, I felt it was a huge shame, but later I didn’t seem to care much anymore… gradually it disappeared… I can’t remember the details… I can’t remember at all…”
…Forgetting?
If that’s the case, it seems unrelated to me.
Then, this forgetting seems too unnatural.
From an extreme brother-complex sister to an ordinary sister just because of a dream?
No, this change is too inexplicable.
Should I investigate? It seems to be related to Juncheng as well.
It’s not just us who know about Juncheng’s death who are lost and wandering. Those who are unaware are also slowly undergoing different changes.
Are all things undergoing subtle changes silently?
