"Yawn~"
A yawn crept out of him first. It was long and unguarded. He tugged a lazy stretch from his arms as his fingers curled against the fabric of the sofa.
His eyes unhurriedly opened at last. He stayed there for a moment, breathing slowly, letting the comfort linger since he felt that this was one of those rare awakenings where sleep had actually done its job and given him the rest he needed.
The most likely cause of this was probably not the sleep itself, but the fact that he was finally back to his parents' house—a place where his mind could still relax due to the familiarity.
He'd been back since yesterday morning, and his parents' reaction made him feel silly for feeling nervous about meeting them.
Even his dad's usual stoic face and sharp remarks were absent.
Nothing to be said about his sister. She was the usual little gremlin, constantly hovering over him and hanging on his every word. She still acted like a cute, clingy girl despite being almost twenty-one…
Ashen didn't know if he should give in to the cuteness and turn a blind eye or try to fix her problematic personality.
His mother had smothered him with her usual motherly care, fussing and fretting over him, from his health to his mental state, especially the part of his mind. Despite trying his best to appear the same old Ashen, some things were bound to show up in his mannerisms after what he'd been through. And his mother easily picked up on it.
Thankfully, he was able to attribute his maturing demeanor to the environment in the army. And it wasn't even that far from the truth, just that the army was supernatural, and their enemies were horrific monsters.
Truthfully, Ashen constantly felt sharp pangs of guilt whenever he had to lie so blatantly to his family. His chest would tighten, his throat would go dry, and he'd have to force himself to maintain eye contact.
But what could he do? This and that place were completely different worlds. He couldn't possibly introduce them to the Blighted Seravelle just so that he could soothe his conscience now, could he?
Above all else, the act of talking about the supernatural to anyone unrelated was forbidden in itself, and being caught guaranteed a visit to the second layer of the Pit for a couple of years.
'And I'm not keen on going back anytime soon…'
He shrugged, letting his arms fall to his sides.
BAM—!
"Bro Bro~!"
The peace did not last long. It never did when the bundle of chaos called Lapis Hart was around.
The door of his room was blasted open with the force of a hurricane, and the white-haired whirlwind didn't waste time pouncing on his cover and pulling at it like it was her worst enemy.
"C'mon, rise and shine, sleepyhead! It's morning already!" She tugged harder, nearly yanking him off the sofa.
"Stop it you little…" He grabbed the edge of the blanket, resisting. "I'm up already…"
"Really!?" She released the blanket, clapping her hands together. "Great! Yesterday we didn't get any alone time due to mom's pestering, but now I can have you all to myself… hehe…"
Those pink eyes eyed him as if he was caught prey, gleaming with mischief.
With twitching lips, he asked, "Oh yeah? Now that you have him all to yourself, I wonder what you'll do with your helpless brother."
He sat up properly, feet touching the floor.
"Hmm, I'll start by asking the most pressing question!" She plopped down beside him, close enough that their shoulders touched. "I understand lying to our parents, but why do you keep lying to me?"
Ashen's heart skipped a beat, but his expression gave nothing away. He tilted his head curiously, blinking slowly. "Lying? What are you talking about?"
Lapis continued as if she didn't hear him, her fingers drumming against her thigh in a familiar nervous pattern. "I mean, I've always stood by your side and helped you in all your endeavors, so how can your trust in me be so little?"
"Lapis." He turned to face her fully. "I don't understand what you're talking about."
Her pink eyes narrowed, while her smile turned enigmatic. It was a look that perfectly conveyed that she knew that he knew, so his feigning ignorance was cute at best.
She leaned back, crossing her arms. "I can understand that the situation is right out of a fantasy story, and it's really hard to believe… I bet our parents won't believe it anyway… but not me."
"Lapis…" He ran a hand through his hair, forcing his voice to stay light. "What story are you talking about? Is this Alice's influence? You should really stop binging anime… look at how delusional it's making you."
"Bro…" She leaned forward again, uncrossing her arms to poke his chest. "Stop deflecting, it's useless. I already know everything about the other continent."
"..."
"Seravelle, right?"
The moment the name left her mouth, she witnessed as her brother's confusedly awkward expression melted away in real time, leaving a blank face.
He slowly stood up from the sofa. Then he grasped both her shoulders tightly. "Who is it?"
"W-what? Who?" The voice was so devoid of emotion that Lapis got involuntary goosebumps, her skin prickling. She had always thought that she knew every part of her brother's personality, but it seemed not to be the case.
His grip tightened. "The one who told you about Seravelle. Who is it?"
"I-it's a man…" She swallowed hard, throat bobbing. "Roland… he said his name was Roland."
"What else did he say?" His eyes bored into hers.
"He said that if I signed this contract…" Her voice grew smaller with each word. "That I would be able to meet you… I would be able to help you… that your life is in danger…"
She readily spilled everything to him. No matter how mysterious that man was, she didn't care. She trusted her brother, so she didn't hide anything.
As he listened to Lapis talk about this Roland—from the nonsense he spouted to even his physical appearance—only one thought kept running through his head.
'I'm going to kill you.'
His jaw clenched so hard he heard his teeth grind.
⛧
⛧
⛧
After the nuclear bomb his dear little sister dropped on his head, Ashen had to take a moment alone and clear his head. Otherwise, he was sure he would have done something stupid.
The first thing he did was contact Lucia and fill her in on what happened. From what he'd heard, he was sure this Roland was another recruiter, which was why he thought she was the best one for the job.
That was why he was currently sipping an espresso at the coffee shop right under his own apartment, waiting for her to come down. The bitter liquid burned his tongue, but he barely noticed.
He set the cup down with more force than necessary, the porcelain clicking sharply against the saucer.
{...You should calm down. Either way, Lapis will not die, even if she is brought to the other side.}
'You talk as if it were a done deal…'
He rubbed his temple, feeling a headache building.
'And how can you be sure of it, anyway. What happened the first time around…?'
{The first time… I didn't go back until years later, but before I even went back, she found me first.}
'Damn it…'
His hand curled into a fist on the table.
'Her passing the tutorial once doesn't mean she would be lucky enough to pass it a second time.'
His expression darkened further, eyes fixing on nothing as he stared out the window. 'Besides… I don't want her to be subjected to that kind of life.'
The other Ashen kept the silence for a moment, since he also agreed, but then he spoke lastly to correct the younger soul's misconception.
{The tutorial… she didn't pass it by luck.}
'What do you mean…?'
Ashen's fingers drummed against the table, then stopped abruptly.
{Lapis is insanely talented. More talented than us with the Brilliant Trait.}
"..."
'Oh.'
He slumped back in his chair, the fight draining out of him for a moment.
'Doesn't matter. She's not going.'