âLook, even now. If you were really crying, you wouldnât be speaking like that.â
Her mouth trembled at her brotherâs sharp words.
Asterâs face also hardened as she held Harris.
âIs that so, Harris?â
âAh⊠No, Sister! Harris canât do such a bad thing. Heâs⊠always hated me, thatâs whyâŠâ
âHarris, Allen has always wanted to have you as a little sister but you said you didnât like him.â
It was unexpected. Aster, who thought she would take her side, stroked her head and spoke in an emotionless voice.
âBut, but⊠Anyway, my brother is fascinated by that person over there and he keeps saying bad things to me.â
Asterâs gaze calmly turned to Allen.
âNo, Iâve never been possessed or said anything bad, Sister.â
âI think itâs real, Allen. Youâve always flinched when I looked at you.â
âYes, Iâm confident. Sheâs the one whoâs not confident. Do you know how much sheâs made a fuss about Bebe?â
As if remembering what happened, Allen huffed and pursed his lips.
âThis wouldnât have happened if it werenât for her. Itâs all because of that Bebe person!â
âEveryone, stop.â
Aster spat out coldly as if she didnât want to see it. With that voice that sounded exactly like my fatherâs, as well as the same expression, it seemed to work pretty well. The siblings, who were making a fuss just now, hardened as if they had become statues.
âAre you the scary older sister?â
I canât believe she was able to overpower these uncontrollable siblings so easily. I stared at Aster in surprise.
âThen now, instead of listening to the children, Father will tell me. Please tell me what happened so that I can understand.â
âI checked Harrisâs blood using the Imperial familyâs treasure to make sure she was real and it turns out sheâs not. Thatâs all.â
âI see.â
Rather, Aster made eye contact with Harris without much emotion.
âYouâre not my sister.â
âOh, not you. Thereâs no way Iâm not your sister. IâmâŠ!â
âBut they said so.â
âThey would be wrong, SisterâŠâ
Aster stared at Harris. Afraid, Harris quickly turned her head.
âIâm scared⊠Sister, youâve always been kind to me. Youâve embraced and loved me more than anyone else.â
âThatâs why you called for me?â
She even called for her, saying âCome here quickly, itâs urgentâ.
âIf it wasnât for you⊠I think Dad would kick me out right away. Daddyâs gone crazy. He doesnât listen to what I say. I think heâs been possessed by a strange girl.â
And then Asterâs eyes fell on me. As if to examine my existence, her sharp eyes looked at me more fiercely than ever.
âAre you saying sheâs a weird kid?â
âYeah, she showed up out of nowhere⊠and sheâs got some kind of weird power⊠Well, that doesnât mean she should get close. Sister, sheâs very dangerous.â
Aster strode closer to me, setting Harris down on the floor, despite Harrisâs words.
âS-SisterâŠ!â
Then she put her hand on my head without hesitation.
âLady Aster!â
Cecilia came up in a hurry, as if surprised by such an action, but Aster stopped her.
âI have to check with my own hands. What is this?â
As if meeting her father for the first time, Aster spoke emotionlessly. Meanwhile, her hand, which rested on my head, became hot. However, the hot feeling soon became warm and warmed my head.
âHuhâŠâ
âDonât do that!â
Harris, who came running before she knew it, clung to Asterâs feet.
Aster, who came out and looked at Harris, put her other hand on her head.
âS-SisterâŠ!â
âWait a second, Harris.â
But unlike me, Harrisâs face gradually hardened.
âAh, itâs hot. It hurts! It hurts!â
Shortly afterwards, Harris shook her head mercilessly. I felt warm and nice, but Harris frowned in anguish.
In the end, Aster let go of her hand to see.
âHmm⊠twins, come here.â
This time, she called Lexit and Allen. Nothing has changed since just now. As she did to Harris and I, Aster calmly put her hands on the twinsâs heads. Unexpectedly, the twins looked at Aster without much reaction.
âTwins, you didnât turn hot.â
âYes!â
âItâs just warm.â
ââŠI see.â
Asterâs face, which had been looking at me with a sharp expression, had relaxed slightly.
ââŠI guess youâre not it.â
âHuh?â
âNothing. Anyway, Dad, I get it.â
A small smile appeared on my dadâs face at Asterâs change, who had been resolute the whole time.
However, she suddenly stroked Harrisâs hair.
âOf course, I donât think you should kick out Harris.â
âAster!â
âSheâs still my younger sister. I canât believe youâd kick out a kid in a day. Thatâs ridiculous.â
âHah, I donât know who you resemble. Youâre so determined.â
âIâve always been like my father. Youâve always liked it.â
The older sister, who smirked, still looked at Harris.
âAnd even though Harris was not the real daughter of the Grand Duchess, she was able to persist to the end because there was someone behind her. After weâve executed them⊠weâll deal with her then.â
She had her own grace period, but Harrisâs lips trembled.
âDo you think Iâm not real? Sister, Iâm serious. Iâm your real sister. Weâre so alike⊠we areâŠâ
âHarris.â
ââŠI hate you. I hate you too. Everyone says Iâm not real. I mean it⊠Iâm seriousâŠâ
âI know. Youâre real. I believe you.â
âDo you really trust me?â
âSure. Letâs go in now.â
Aster walked with Harris in her arms.
âAsterâŠâ
Dad called the older sister, but there was no way she could turn back.
âTwins, follow me.â
Eventually they disappeared in a hurry. All that was left was my father and the vassals who came to check.
âHaâŠâ
I ran to my dad.
âDaddy.â
ââŠYes.â
âAre you okay?â
Dad nodded, but he didnât look any better. Rather, he just looked at Harris with a regretful face.
âIf you think about it, itâs right for Aster to appease Harris.â
âDo you want to?â
âEven if you force her, she wonât spit out what she knows. Now, who had brought Harris and Ellinâs shawl here⊠I donât know about Harris, but the one who brought the child here must be the one who killed Ellin. Thatâs why I canât forgive her.â
âDaddyâŠâ
âBut donât worry. I wonât get carried away. Shall we go back?â
âOkay!â
I smiled brightly at my friendly father. I didnât see Harris get kicked out, but I at least knew for sure Harris wasnât related to my dad.
That was enough.
âNow I can refute whatever Harris says!â
Seeing me like that, my dad leaned down to affectionately stroke my head.
âAster took Harris away, so thereâs no time left. I think we can talk to Adele as promised. Shall Dad go to Mom?â
Dad smiled pleasantly, as if to reassure me.
âOkay! But Momâs asleep!â
âŠAre you also going to sleep?â
âYes! Sheâs already asleep!â
âItâs been a while since the priest came and went, but sheâs asleep?â
As usual, my dadâs expression looked quite serious.
âYes, canât you?â
There was no answer to my question.
ââŠI think we should call the priest right away.â
âDad?â
As if something had happened, Dad hugged me and walked with a serious expression. Then, he gave orders to the servant that was following him.
âGo and call the priest right away.â
As if waiting for the word, the servant disappeared quickly.
âWhatâs the matter? Did something happen to Mom?â
âOh, no, Bebe. Iâm just calling the priest because sheâs asleep. Adele⊠will be alright.â
Was I mistaken to hear that something was going to happen today but nothing will happen?
âDad⊠are you sure Mom is okay?â
âSure. When the priest comes, sheâll be fine. I may have misunderstood something, so donât worry, Bebe.â
I found out for the first time today that the words âDonât worryâ is the scariest thing in the world.