Geniuses seem to be born different. Little Herta's brain cells were hyperactive far beyond those of ordinary people, and her difficulty falling asleep was a clear manifestation of this trait.
Herta's mother had always been worried about it. Every night, when she was utterly exhausted, Herta would still stay by her side, blinking her beautiful eyes.
Wearily, she would pat Herta's back again and again, softly humming a lullaby.
But it had little effect. Only after tossing and turning until late at night would little Herta finally drift into a shallow sleep—until the day her mother discovered that the hypnotic songs you hummed were exceptionally effective at helping her fall asleep.
From then on, whenever night fell, Herta's mother would bring you along to practice vocal music, and you gradually developed the habit of singing before bedtime.
Thanks to this, Herta's sleep improved significantly.
Herta's mother cherished you deeply. To her, both you and Herta were good children she needed to love and protect.
However, because you were still very young, you had not yet awakened your original Memory.
You called Herta's mother "Mom," and she would always smile and respond to you gently, just as she did with Herta.
Likewise, although Herta's father was a man of few words, he also regarded you as his own child, never sparing care or affection.
As time passed, you—endowed with extraordinary talent—laid a solid foundation in vocal music under Herta's mother's guidance.
Day after day, Herta, who could only fall asleep while listening to your singing, grew accustomed to your presence and became deeply reliant on you, her "older brother."
Every night, after the two of you had finished playing and grown tired, the scene would always unfold the same way:
"Brother… it's time to sleep…"
Little Herta would sweetly call you "Brother" and invite you to sleep together.
You would then begin to sing softly. Herta's neurons would gradually calm under your voice. Only three years old, yet unbelievably adorable, she would blink sleepily.
She would let out a small yawn and say to you, "Good night, Brother…"
And you would reply, like the most responsible brother in the world, "Good night, Herta…"
Moments like these always passed quickly. Gradually, both of you turned six.
It was the night of your sixth birthday—a joyful evening where guests and hosts alike were filled with happiness, a night of bliss.
After the banquet ended and you had received blessings from friends and family, the two of you stepped out onto the balcony.
"Brother, come here!"
Herta stood by the railing she could barely reach, waving at you. You walked over with a smile and gently patted her head with a tenderness and composure her mother would have shown.
"What is it?"
You lightly tousled the loose strands on her forehead, then smoothed them back.
"Look!"
The young girl stretched out her small, tender hand and pointed toward the horizon.
Two dazzling stars hung at opposite ends of the night sky, echoing one another from afar.
"Do you see them? Those two stars!"
The girl seemed a little excited.
"Dad said those two planets are very far from us. Even though they look so bright, they're tens of thousands of light-years away…"
You listened with only partial understanding, not quite grasping the meaning of her words.
Still, that did not stop you from nodding gently, listening quietly, and smiling from time to time.
"In other words, the light we see now was emitted by them tens of thousands of years ago."
"Isn't that magical?"
The girl's large eyes curved slightly as her small hand pointed at the sky, presenting the vast starry heavens to you.
"Yes."
You nodded, your gaze fixed on the two stars as well. You felt the night was exceptionally beautiful.
The starry sky shimmered, cloudless. As you looked into the distance, you felt refreshed and relaxed, while certain deep memories stirred within your heart.
Cowherd… Weaver Girl…
Two terms, both unfamiliar and strangely familiar, gradually surfaced in your mind.
Just as confusion arose, a sharp pain struck your head.
Su Xiaobai. Life Simulation. Herta.
You finally remembered.
You were a simulated individual. This was merely one of your life experiences. You had to live a life without regrets.
You also remembered that, due to the existence of the system, you had been an abandoned baby.
The "Mom and Dad" you spoke of were only your adoptive parents. Herta was not truly your sister.
Yet as you looked at little Herta beside you, still pointing at the starry sky, and recalled the years you had spent together, a wave of warmth surged through your heart.
They had treated you as genuine family.
Did the truth really matter anymore?
At that thought, you nearly shed a tear. Gently, you wrapped your arms around the girl from behind in a light embrace.
"Haha—stop it."
Your emotional hug tickled her, and she laughed as she grabbed your hands.
Then she took your hand and pointed again at the two brightest stars.
"Dad said he doesn't know what has happened to those two stars now—whether they still exist, or whether they were swallowed by a black hole and became a nebula drifting through space…"
"Brother, if you had to name them, what would you call those two stars?"
Herta suddenly turned her head. Her tender face was filled with seriousness as she asked.
Those two earlier terms flashed through your mind, and you were about to speak them aloud—but then you gently shook your head.
The girl's innocent eyes sparkled like the most beautiful stars in the night sky. Her intuition told her that was not the answer she wanted.
"Then how about calling them the Black Tower Star and the White Star?"
"Oh? Naming them after us?"
Herta laughed, very satisfied with this way of naming them.
You nodded. To you, it was nothing more than an innocent childhood joke.
But the girl did not think so.
Herta's father had told her that to name a planet, one had to be ahead of others in discovering its state and orbital trajectory.
Only then could a star be officially named.
Thus, from that day onward, whenever night fell, a small figure would appear on the rooftop balcony, gazing into the vast sky, contemplating those two brightest stars.
Quietly calculating their states.
It was not easy.
But you were unaware of all this, assuming only that the girl simply loved the boundless starry sky.
Sometimes you would accompany her to stargaze, humming songs from your hometown.
Your vocal foundation was already solid, and as you sang, little Herta would stay beside you, gently keeping the rhythm.
Every time she listened to your singing, her beautiful eyes shone even more than the stars above.
She did not say, "Brother, you're amazing," perhaps because she was still young and lacked the words.
But the joy in her eyes was unmistakable.
You cherished days like these. You felt truly fortunate. Though you had begun life as an abandoned baby, you had gained such a warm home.
How happy it would be to live a life this peaceful.
You thought you would leave behind no regrets.
Your singing gradually faded as the night deepened. You sighed softly in your heart.
Another perfect night.
Truly wonderful.
Clap, clap.
Herta's mother approached from behind, applauding softly as she spoke.
"You've improved again, Xiaobai."
She draped warm clothes over both you and Herta.
"It's time to rest… good night, little ones…"
Herta's mother spoke gently and placed a soft kiss on each of your foreheads.
As night settled in, you lay in your warm little bed, feeling utterly at ease.
Recalling the moment earlier, you looked at little Herta, who was gradually drifting into the world of dreams.
You cradled the back of your head with your hands and gazed at the ceiling, where two words in warm colors seemed to glow faintly.
This is happiness.