Her consciousness sank into a deep sea.
Like a half-awake dream, everything was hazy and indistinct.
In the deep sea of her mind, the heavy golden chains wrapped around her flesh and bone, the blood-soaked floor, and a chaotic jumble of figures appeared and disappeared, over and over again.
It felt as though... a very long time had passed.
A long-lost, covetable warmth and softness.
Kaila slowly opened her eyes.
The weather was clear, and the sun shone brightly.
What met her gaze was a familiar wooden ceiling, along with a few beams of morning light filtering through the gaps of the half-drawn curtains, dancing with specks of dust.
She nudged her neck, feeling an elastic softness beneath the back of her head, radiating a warmth where she could feel the faint pulsing of blood vessels underneath.
A faint, unique fragrance belonging to a certain silver-haired vampire lingered at the tip of her nose.
Kaila looked up, her gaze meeting a pair of crimson eyes that reflected a groggy sleepiness, yet lit up the instant they saw her open her eyes.
Sophie was looking down at her.
To make the posture more comfortable, Sophie sat with her legs parted on the bed, allowing Kaila's head to rest securely on her lap.
The iconic lap pillow.
“Good morning, Miss Hero,” Sophie greeted with a smile, her hand naturally stroking down Kaila's golden hair. “Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?”
“Is this... the world after death?” Kaila murmured. “Why am I still... troubled by Sophie even when dead?”
Sophie: “...”
“Yes, this is indeed the world after death.” Sophie nodded solemnly. “I missed Miss Hero so much that I came down to accompany you.”
“Sophie, you really are...” Kaila's gaze went blank for a moment, but she quickly calmed down. “Listen closely, Sophie. If some witch tries to coax you into drinking some soup later, you must not fall for it. Once you drink it, you won't remember anything.”
“If they try to force you, hold the soup in your mouth first, then quietly spit it into the River Underworld. That way, we won't forget each other in our next lives.”
“Of course, we must also consider the possibility of having to fight our way out. If that happens, call out for help loudly...”
Kaila trailed off, falling into deep thought once more.
Sophie: “...”
This was the only bad thing about Miss Hero.
She couldn't take a joke.
Still, Sophie did not doubt Miss Hero's resolve to fight her way out of the Underworld in the slightest.
By the way, where do people go after they die? Why was there a plot point about the Soup of Forgetfulness?
Judging by the worldbuilding, souls after death under the Red Moon should return to the divine kingdom.
From her own experience, shouldn't people go to the Reincarnation Queue pretty quickly after they die?
“Um, Miss Hero, actually...” Sophie cleared her throat twice, preparing to debunk this terrible joke.
Rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle.
Along with the faint rustling of fabric, something began to squirm inside the thick pile of blankets beside Sophie.
Kaila's sharp Hero instincts flared instantly.
She sat up.
But it was too late.
In the next instant.
A caterpillar wrapped in blankets launched a Headbutt.
Sophie let out a tragic shriek as she was hit head-on by the Headbutt and sent flying.
“Where does Elder Sister think she's going? Do you want to go to hell with Miss Knight? Flying away together as a couple? How romantic.”
“Ah, wasn't the lap pillow service only supposed to last until Miss Knight woke up? Why are you still hugging and refusing to let go?”
“I would be more than happy to help Elder Sister exchange those hands and feet for a clean new set.”
“Sophie? No... this voice...”
Kaila was about to move, but she found the voice somewhat familiar.
This form of address, this tone.
There was no doubt about it.
It was the Puppet Witch, Shironaka Fueno.
But if this was the world after death, why had the Puppet Witch come along too?
What in the world could possibly kill her?
Distracted by this, Kaila finally noticed her surroundings.
Miss Hero stared blankly for two seconds.
Weren't they clearly in an inn?
They weren't...
...dead at all?
Then Sophie just now was...
But Kaila's thoughts were quickly interrupted by something more interesting.
Nearby, the caterpillar bundled in the blanket finally revealed its true form.
It was a little girl.
Her sky-blue hair fell messily over her tiny shoulders.
She looked to be only around ten years old. The dark blue dress that was once magnificent now looked incredibly oversized, hanging loosely over her petite body.
The girl's cheeks flushed with an abnormal feverish glow, and she let out a sickly, muffled cough from time to time, but her purple eyes burned with unvarnished hostility.
Shironaka Fueno, the world-renowned Puppet Witch, was currently occupying Sophie's embrace like a small beast protecting its food.
Her two pale, tender little hands gripped Sophie's collar as her head rubbed continuously against Sophie's chest, not forgetting to look up every now and then to deliver a resounding Headbutt to Sophie's chin.
“Elder Sister is a big meanie! While I was sick and sleeping, you actually sneaked around behind my back and did such shameless things with another woman here!”
Little Dino's voice was nasal, carrying an unconcealable sob.
“Cough, cough... Dino was clearly here first! I made the clothes, I bought the snacks! Even this bed was made by Dino!”
As she coughed, she burrowed even harder into Sophie's arms.
“Stop rubbing, stop rubbing! If you keep rubbing, something's going to happen!”
Sophie was jostled left and right, her hands shielding her own hair as she cast a helpless, pleading look at Kaila.
But Kaila watched the scene in silence.
If it had been a few days ago, she might have felt tense because of the Puppet Witch's appearance.
But after learning Sophie's true identity, Kaila recalled the scene when Shironaka Fueno first came knocking on the door.
Looking at it this way, this was just Sophie reaping what she sowed.
And looking at Sophie—though she cried for help, her actions were solely focused on protecting the other girl to keep her from falling.
Kaila fell silent for a moment.
She slowly withdrew the hand she had extended out of vigilance, moving her body slightly toward the edge of the bed to create some distance.
“It seems Sophie is enjoying herself very much.”
Kaila's tone returned to its trademark flatness.
“You two can take your time talking. I won't disturb you.”
“Huh?!”
Sophie widened her eyes, staring at Kaila in disbelief.
She wanted to reach out, but the little koala hanging around her neck yanked her collar, pulling her backward.
Kaila silently smoothed out the skirt of her nun's habit and sat upright on the edge of the bed, clearly adopting the stance of a spectator.
She... still needed some time to digest Sophie's previous words, and to figure out why she wasn't dead.
“Serves you right! Who told you to look at her! You are only allowed to look at Dino!”
Seeing Sophie still peering around, Shironaka Fueno flew into a rage. She wrapped her entire body around Sophie's neck like a koala, pressing her damp little face against Sophie's cheek.
“Elder Sister is not allowed to go anywhere today, you must stay here and accompany Dino the whole time! Cough, cough...”
As she spoke, she coughed again.
“Alright, alright, I'll stay with you.” Sophie sighed and gave up struggling, letting Shironaka Fueno turn into her human accessory.
She reached out, gently patting Little Dino's back to help soothe her breathing.
Was the Puppet Witch... catching a cold?
Kaila watched this scene with a strange expression.
“It's like this. Little Dino completed her mana ascension long ago, so her body is composed of pure mana,” Sophie explained, pointing at the little girl in her arms who was still muttering, “I hate thieving cats.”
“So when her mana is severely overdrawn, her body inevitably shrinks.”
“Furthermore, the mana backlash has caused her mana to become unstable, which manifests physically as... something like a severe cold.”
Sophie explained to the puzzled Miss Hero.
“Who is Elder Sister talking to?” Amidst the conversation, Sophie took another Headbutt. “Is this how you take care of your gravely ill little sister?”
“Alright, alright, from now on I will only speak to my dearest little sister.” Sophie immediately gave a French military salute.
“That's more like it.” Shironaka Fueno hummed with satisfaction.
It was one thing for her body to regress into a childlike state, but why had her personality become so aggressive as well?
Kaila was somewhat bewildered.
Crunch, crunch, crunch.
The distinct sound of chewing coming from the corner of the room caught Kaila's attention.
Kaila turned her head.
Black hair, purple eyes, and bare, fair feet.
It was the New Moon Witch.
Miaoyue's cheeks were puffed up as she crunched away on something.
This gave Kaila quite a shock.
As the Hero, she hadn't sensed a Witch nearby at all?
Back then, she could sense a Witch's presence from far away and charge in to fight for three days and three nights.
Was it because she had just woken up and her senses were dull, or... had she become weaker?
“I was actually hoping to see a more exciting conflict between a sister-in-law and a wife,” Miaoyue said with some regret as she chewed, noticing Kaila looking over.
She waved at Kaila.
“Hero, you're finally awake. Seeing you look so drained and on the verge of dissipating earlier, I thought you were a goner. I even prepared a funeral wreath. How are you feeling now? Any better?”
Before Kaila could reply, Miaoyue's attention immediately shifted to the blue-haired little girl in Sophie's arms.
The fire of gossip flickered in her purple eyes.
“But speaking of which...”
Miaoyue pointed a finger at Little Dino, then at Sophie.
“My Saintess, you never told me you had a little sister?”
“And why does she call you Elder Sister? Your hair and eye colors are completely different, aren't they?”
She looked back at Kaila and waved. “By the way, do you want me to teach you some wonderful little tricks for handling sister-in-law conflicts?”
Kaila: “...”
S-She couldn't recognize her?
Didn't you two fight before?
And... wait.
Miaoyue was so calm.
So the New Moon Witch didn't actually like Sophie?
She seemed so nonchalant...
Rumor had it that the seven Witches were all the Demon King's lovers. It seemed those rumors were mostly false after all?
Kaila found Miaoyue's current aloofness and composure a bit hard to comprehend.
“Ah...”
At that moment, Shironaka Fueno let out a short gasp, covering half her face with her small hand.
“Elder Sister, who... who is this beautiful elder sister?”
She spoke timidly, her gaze filled with admiration and awe.
“She looks just like a goddess stepped out of a picture book... No, even the goddesses in picture books aren't a ten-thousandth as beautiful as her.”
Sophie: “...”
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Kaila's finger twitched, as if she were trying hard to restrain herself.
This is a lie.
But... without using the Hero's Eye, one couldn't tell that the Puppet Witch was actually lying.
Miaoyue's movements, however, came to a halt.
The New Moon Witch's hand, which was about to pop a cookie into her mouth, froze mid-air.
“Cough...” Miaoyue quickly swallowed the food in her mouth, straightening her back and tilting her chin. A sacred and inviolable, dignified aura instantly returned to her.
“What... did you call me?” An unconcealable joy flashed in Miaoyue's purple eyes.
“Goddess,” Little Dino said timidly, shrinking half her body behind Sophie and only exposing her fluffy head. “Because... because who else but a goddess could possess such a pure, beautiful face and such a noble temperament?”
She coughed twice, then continued.
“I'm sorry, Goddess Sister. My name is Suodi, and I'm Elder Sister's little sister. Because I'm sick, my head has been in a daze, and I didn't see you right away... It was so rude of me.”
Flawless.
Miaoyue was clearly extremely pleased by this.
“Oh... cough, there is no need for such formality.”
Miaoyue's tone became incredibly soft, carrying the affection of an elder facing a well-behaved junior.
“You should rest well when you're sick. My Saintess is indeed rather unreliable usually. It must be hard on such a... well-behaved little sister like you to suffer alongside her.”
“Elder Sister is very nice, it's just... she's just too popular.” Little Dino lowered her head, her fingers twisting Sophie's hem. She looked aggrieved but dared not complain. “But if it's a noble existence like Goddess Sister, Dino is a hundred times willing.”
At this point, Little Dino sensibly released her grip on Sophie. Even though her body was still trembling, she still made an effort to stand steadily on the bed.
“Goddess Sister, this inn is so crude. It must be very uncomfortable for you, right? You can't even eat your food properly.”
She pointed outside the room.
“I heard Elder Sister hid some snacks in the third box of the second cabinet in the alchemy room. I wonder if Lady Goddess would be willing to taste them?”
“There's food?” Miaoyue's eyes lit up. “Saintess, did you hide food?”
Sophie: “...”
Those... those were the non-mana-based pre-made desserts she had specially saved to enjoy by herself.
But due to her promise to Shironaka Fueno just now, she couldn't speak to anyone else.
She could only hope that Miaoyue wouldn't believe it.
Out of ten sentences Shironaka Fueno spoke, eleven of them were lies, entirely acted out for others.
A mana imbalance wouldn't affect her memory or personality.
Little Dino's voice was filled with sincere concern, making her look like a model little sister who cared for her sister's honored guest.
“And... and I coughed just now, so I'm afraid I might pass my illness to Goddess Sister.” She rubbed her red nose. “Not only is there sunlight over there, but I also had Elder Sister prepare the best tea. Please enjoy it slowly there. Do not let Dino's poor manners spoil your mood.”
Miaoyue was moved beyond words.
What a sensible child.
Look at this child, then look at Saintess Sophie who frequently displeased her.
The difference was clear as day.
“What a good child,” Miaoyue nodded with satisfaction. “Since you've said so, I must go take a look. Hiding things is what bad children do. Don't learn from your sister.”
With that, she vanished in a flash of moonlight to search for the snacks Sophie had hidden.
Three sentences to make a potential rival leave the battlefield.
Sophie was awestruck.
Everything had happened too fast.
If she hadn't felt the small hand—which had been twisting the hem of her clothes just a moment ago—now pinching the soft flesh of her waist fiercely, she would have believed Shironaka Fueno's acted-out innocence herself.
Shironaka Fueno immediately turned her gaze toward Kaila, who was still in the corner of the room, far from the battlefield, sorting out her thoughts.
Not bad. Miss Knight had a good sense of managing her own territory.
But it wasn't enough.
“If Miss Knight is wondering why she isn't dead, you might as well save your breath. It's a meticulously precise magical operation that you couldn't figure out even if you wracked your brain.”
“The portion belonging to your curse has been pushed back slightly. We regressed your soul a bit, returning you to your strength and soul proportion from about two or three years ago.”
“This way, although you have become weaker, the curse has also weakened accordingly.”
“Since the curse cannot be directly severed, you still need to find a way to balance it within this extended period of grace.”
“Oh, right. That red-haired woman seems to have something to discuss with you. Miss Knight had better go look for her now.”
Something to discuss with her?
Kaila stood up immediately. “Where is she?”
“Just over by the tavern,” Shironaka Fueno said with a grin. “In exchange, I hope that no matter what kind of cries for help Elder Brother lets out next, Miss Knight won't look back.”
“This...” Kaila hesitated, then immediately refused. “I cannot do that.”
“Actually, Elder Brother quite enjoys it; she just won't admit it herself,” Shironaka Fueno said, crossing her arms. “Her so-called cries for help are just her way of seeking excitement. Miss Knight can just pretend not to hear.”
Sophie: “???”
This... was not a lie?
Kaila immediately received the verdict from the Hero's Eye.
In that case, she indeed seemed to have no reason to interfere.
Although Sophie had confessed to her, this was clearly a family matter. As an outsider, she had no reason to meddle.
Unless Sophie truly needed her help.
Kaila was silent for a moment.
“Then... I shall head out first.”
She stood up, glancing at Sophie with some hesitation, but Shironaka Fueno did an excellent job of blocking their gazes with her body.
Thus, Kaila had no choice but to walk out, looking back with every step.
Ultimately, Kaila also left.
Only Shironaka Fueno and Sophie remained in the inn room.
Wait, how did she end up alone with Shironaka Fueno?
In the face of any danger, Shironaka Fueno could be trusted. But when there was no danger, she was the greatest danger of all.
Th-This wasn't right.
Sophie looked at Little Dino in her arms and said softly, “Little Dino, um... is there something you wanted to discuss with Elder Brother?”
Shironaka Fueno replied with a sweet smile.
“Elder Brother has been a naughty girl, hasn't she?”
“Dino said so, didn't she? You are not allowed to truly give yourself away.”
“Th-There was a reason for that,” Sophie said hastily. “Miss Hero was on the verge of death at the time, so I had to...”
Little Dino did not speak.
She merely pressed her small, feverish cheek gently against Sophie's heart.
“Elder Brother's heart is beating so fast.”
She said with a smile.
“Is it because you're nervous about Dino, or... because that Miss Knight just now hasn't walked far yet?”
Sophie: “...”
“Wait, I have another question,” she said hurriedly. “I borrowed power from many Witches earlier. The current situation must be very dangerous, right? If they still remember...”
“They won't. Time has been rewound, and everyone has forgotten. They won't have any impression of it,” Shironaka Fueno said with a grin. “Even if Elder Brother screams her lungs out now, no one will come to ruin the mood or save Elder Brother.”
“W-What are you going to do?” Sophie felt a bad premonition.
“Cough, cough, cough... well,” Shironaka Fueno extended a finger, then slowly bent it. “Just some family discipline.”
What family discipline? I'm a member of this family too, how come I didn't know about this?
Sophie widened her eyes.
...
Laisenia, the Forgotten Snowfield.
There were no bells here, nor any messy coughing from an inn.
Only snow.
Heavy snow fell from the depths of the sky, landing on the frozen soil, the bone tiles, the extinguished fire pits, and those pictographic carvings.
Layer upon layer it covered, flattening yesterday's footprints, burying the names freshly written beside the fire pits, and slowly peeling away certain things that had indeed occurred from people's mouths, songs, covenants, and dreams.
That was oblivion.
The Snow Witch, Aishide, sat by the pot.
The pot was huge, its dark rim eaten into mottled gaps by the frost. There was no fire beneath the pot anymore, only a solidified dark crust of ice that was hard to tell whether it was soup base or time itself.
Yet for some reason, whenever the wind blew from the end of the polar Everfrost Wasteland, a faint, spicy aroma would still drift from the pot. It smelled like meat broth, like strong liquor, and also like someone from a long time ago who used to sit here with a grin, throwing everything in the world that shouldn't be put into a pot into it all at once.
She had not thought of that person in a long time.
No, that was incorrect.
The sentence itself was very strange.
Because if she truly hadn't thought of him, how would she know she hadn't thought of him in a long time?
Aishide lowered her eyes.
Then, in a rusty voice, she uttered that name.
“Hiso.”
The snow stopped for an instant.
Aishide slowly stood up.
Her thick pink hair slid off her shoulders, the tips brushing against the frost on the pot's rim.
She raised her head, looking toward the sky.
Then, the Snow Witch left the large pot.
Rate on N.U.
