“That, my brother said he’ll be here soon.”
Not long after the three of them arrived at the commercial center, Lucia received a message from the “Imposter.” Seeing her little sister so happy and excited, Clara couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy inside.
“You two wait here for a bit, I’m going to the restroom~”
At this moment, Fran found an excuse, slung her backpack over her shoulders, and temporarily left.
“Hmm? Oh.”
Clara still felt that something was off, but she couldn’t say exactly what the problem was…
Come to think of it, there was something that hadn’t made a sound in quite a while.
Right then, Lucia asked, “Clara-senpai~ After meeting my brother last time, what do you think of him?”
For Clara, this was a difficult question to answer.
“…He’s pretty good, why do you ask?”
“Because our family’s in tough circumstances, he had no choice but to become a Modified Freak.
Even though he’s got a squid head now, he used to be really handsome, you know~”
Her little sister saying things like this made Clara feel a little embarrassed.
But in truth, Clara could barely remember what she looked like before the modification surgery.
Maybe because of the cold weather, Lucia slipped her hands into Clara’s coat hood from behind, pressing down gently on Clara’s shoulders.
“His dream used to be to become a Masked Hero. If not for us dragging him down, maybe he could have joined a hero company.”
Dragged down by the family?
Clara immediately frowned.
“I think your brother definitely wouldn’t want to hear that… If he really resented you, he wouldn’t work so hard to earn money for the family. He definitely loves you all.”
“I know, that’s why I wanted to talk to you before he comes, senpai~”
Clara’s words made Lucia laugh out loud. She simply hugged Clara’s neck from behind, laughing as she said, “And I’m not the only one who thinks that way, Dad always says it too…
Since I’ve started working, I have to find a way to earn enough money, get big bro the surgery to restore him, use the gear I developed to help him become a hero, and then get Dad a prosthetic body.”
…
You studied mechanics so you could make prosthetics?
“Yep~ Exoskeleton technology can help big bro become a hero and help Dad stand up again, or at least move around normally. It’s just that we can’t afford it right now… But, I can already develop and maintain them myself now!”
Her tone was so proud that Clara felt a twinge in her nose.
Fran had mentioned more than once that Lucia was excellent.
But Clara never really felt it—after all, in her mind, her sister was always the little girl she needed to protect.
But after struggling in Skyreach City all these years, separated from her, that little girl who once hid behind her had become a butterfly she now had to look up to.
“Lucia…”
Clara’s small tentacle peeked out from her hair, curling around her sister’s hand resting in front of her, gently stroking her palm.
“Haha, senpai, that tickles~”
Touching those thick calluses, Clara had so much she wanted to say, but couldn’t because of who she was.
Unaware of Clara’s inner turmoil, Lucia even leaned down to sniff Clara’s hair on top of her head.
“I’m back~”
Wearing her white coat, the JK ran back from the restroom and teased,
“Yo! You two look cozy~ Why are you hugging? Let me in too!”
As she spoke, Fran spread her arms and hugged both Clara and Lucia, then leaned in to take a closer look at Clara, poking her cheek with a sparkly, manicured finger.
“Clara-chan, why are your eyes all red?”
“It’s the wind.”
Clara was putting up a front, and Fran could tell but didn’t call her out. She just said,
“Guess it’s too cold outside? Let’s go inside and wait~”
Whenever this happened, Clara never dared to move an inch, afraid the other would think she was taking advantage—without realizing she herself was the one being taken advantage of.
Especially with someone like Fran, such an outgoing gal who had no qualms about same-sex physical contact. She was the type Clara found hard to handle.
Besides, Fran knew all about her situation!
Back then, because she was an old man, Fran would deliberately keep her distance. When did she start not minding at all?
“Oh, my brother’s here~”
As Lucia spoke, Clara and Fran both looked in the direction of her gaze.
They saw a squid-headed man in a suit and tie, leather shoes clacking, walking out from the mall. Only, that huge squid head rather ruined the look.
Most notably, there was a clear “keep away” zone around him.
The pedestrians nearby automatically kept at least three meters away, forming a path through the after-work crowds like Moses parting the Red Sea.
Only, the endless sounds of people snorting in disdain on both sides were hard to ignore.
And was it just her imagination, or was the Imposter a bit shorter today than before?
“Squire” naturally came over and greeted them.
“Hey, sis, Clara-chan, long time no see. And this young lady is…?”
He looked over at Fran, who introduced herself cheerfully:
“Oh, I’m Fran Rivka, your sister’s coworker and boss~ I was the one who called you when she got hurt!”
“Boss? Miss Fran, you’re really accomplished for your age, I thought you were just a student~”
“Squire” spoke very naturally, none of the hesitation he’d shown in the dream, almost like a completely different person—which left Clara briefly unsure who the real Great Sage Equal to Heaven was.
But with her mind made up to see through his real identity, Clara calmed herself and closely observed this Six-Eared Macaque.
And she really did notice a flaw: this imposter’s actions always seemed…
…just a beat slower than his words?
Unconcerned by Clara’s scrutiny, the Imposter made a suggestion.
“It’s five o’clock. Why don’t we go eat first?”
“Should we eat now?” Lucia asked.
Originally, they’d planned to look around the mall first, but waiting for the Imposter had taken up some time. Unknowingly, it was already dinnertime.
“Yeah, since it’s cold out, how about hot pot?” the Imposter suggested again.
Clara’s brows knit—last time she had hot pot with Nan Gong Xi Wang, and to her, hot pot wasn’t exactly a treat…
Even Lucia asked, “Bro, can you eat hot pot now?”
Hey, how did the Imposter slip up so soon?
Clara wanted to see him make a fool of himself, but the other responded calmly:
“It’s fine, as long as it’s not oily, salty, or spicy, I can still eat it. A plain broth with extra water is fine… I’ve heard there are hot pots with milk or coconut milk, those should be sweet, right?”
“Yeah, there’s Thai-style hot pot like that, though it’s not really sweet… Should we try it?”
Fran pulled out her phone, decorated with plushie charms, and scrolled through some review apps.
“There’s a place in this mall. If no one minds, let’s eat there, okay?”
Yeah, food recommendations.
At last, Clara realized what was off.
At a time like this, Nyx hadn’t jumped out to make a suggestion?
It’s the last day of the month! Dear readers, please throw your soon-to-expire monthly tickets my way!
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I guess Nyx has some role in this