My Sister is Bronya

To be fair, Ishiu's face was quite deceptive. He looked so young that it was hard for anyone to dislike him.

"Huh? You're just a kid?" The girl sized Ishiu up for a few moments. It seemed she thought she had misunderstood him, and she lowered her guard.

Ishiu's lips twitched. He suppressed the urge to punch her and said, word by word, "I just look young. I'm not a kid!"

"Oh, and what's that got to do with me?"

"..."

"Alright, since you're not here to take advantage of me, you should leave quickly. This place is mine now," the girl said unceremoniously.

"Why should I leave? This is a park, not your private property. Besides, there's more than one bench here, so why should I leave?" Ishiu raised an eyebrow, getting a little annoyed.

He had always been someone who responded to reason, not force. Honestly, at this late hour, if it weren't for the recent incident, he would already be comfortably asleep in his warm bed. Being forced to flee had left him with quite a bit of pent-up anger.

And now, being told to leave by this girl, if he didn't get upset, he'd truly be a saint.

"Do you understand the concept of 'first come, first served'? You don't look that old, why aren't you home sleeping? Did you run away from home?" The girl puffed out her cheeks, looking like a pufferfish, also somewhat displeased.

She had been sleeping soundly, only to be woken up by Ishiu. Naturally, her temper wouldn't be too good.

"I'm an orphan. I don't have a home," Ishiu said flatly.

"..." The girl was speechless. After a long while, she lowered her head and whispered, "I-I'm sorry... I didn't know you..."

Seeing the girl's ashamed expression, Ishiu sighed and suddenly lost his temper.

He shook his head. "Never mind, you can have this place. I'm leaving."

As he spoke and turned to leave, he heard the girl call out, "Hey, hey! Don't go! If you do, doesn't that make me look like I'm bullying a child?"

Ishiu turned his head back, his face full of dark lines. "Let me reiterate, I am not a child!"

"Okay, okay, I get it." The girl waved her hand dismissively, then boldly pointed to herself with her thumb. "My name is Kiana Kaslana. What's yours?"

"My name is Ishiu."

"Great, Ishiu, right? You can stay. It's not like I'm not kind. It's so late, if you wander out and get hurt, wouldn't that be my fault?" the girl named Kiana said righteously.

"So, you're saying you'll let me stay?"

"Yeah, I'm only staying here for one night anyway." Kiana swung her thick twin braids and returned to the bench. "You can find your own place to sleep. But I have to warn you, don't get any weird ideas about me. You've already seen how vigilant I am."

Looking at Kiana, who had settled back onto the bench, Ishiu didn't know what to say for a moment. He felt like he had a whole stomach full of complaints he couldn't voice.

He scratched his head and could only sit down on a bench not far away, parallel to Kiana's.

"Hey, you don't have a place to stay?"

Not long after Ishiu sat down, Kiana spoke.

"Yeah, at least not right now," Ishiu replied casually. "I was at an orphanage before, but for some reason, I left. So now I guess I don't have a place to live."

"Is that so? You seem like an unfortunate soul..." Kiana's voice lowered. Ishiu couldn't tell if she was reminded of something, but he felt her tone carried a hint of... well, how to put it, a sense of having a story behind her.

"It's alright," Ishiu thought. Since he couldn't sleep anyway, he might as well chat with this girl. "What about you? It's so late, and you're not at home, sleeping out here. And you're a girl. Aren't you afraid something might happen?"

"I'm like you, I don't have a home either," Kiana said leisurely. "But I'm used to it. And don't let my looks fool you, I'm very strong. Ordinary petty criminals won't be able to take advantage of me."

"I see..." Ishiu pursed his lips, unsure of what to say next.

He had no experience talking to strange girls and didn't know how to strike up a conversation. Just then, a series of strange sounds suddenly echoed through the quiet night sky.

'Gurgle—gurgle—'

Ishiu's expression turned strange as he looked towards the source of the sound, Kiana.

Damn, that girl's stomach is loud! Have you not eaten for three days or something?

"Mmm..." Kiana clutched her stomach, feeling her face burn like fire.

She had only been in this city for less than three days. She had come here looking for any news of her "damn dad," but her wallet was lost in an accident.

As a result, she had no money to eat all day and nowhere to sleep at night. She had come to the park to drink tap water to fill her stomach and planned to fall asleep quickly, then look for a job the next morning.

But she hadn't expected to be woken up by Ishiu shortly after falling asleep, and now her stomach was staging a rebellion.

"Are... are you hungry?" Ishiu asked hesitantly.

"Mmm..." Kiana replied with a nasal sound.

"Then... can I treat you?"

"Really?!"

Kiana instantly sat up from the bench like a salted fish rolling over. Her pair of sapphire-blue eyes shone brightly in the darkness.

It was like she had spotted a fat sheep ready for slaughter.

Chapter 42: Two in Need

Ishiu suddenly had a bad feeling, but the words were out of his mouth, and he couldn't take them back.

Besides, Kiana wouldn't give him the chance to regret it.

Ishiu admitted that he was a bit soft-hearted.

After all, it was already quite miserable for a girl to be sleeping in a park so late at night, and not having eaten made it even worse.

Plus, Kiana's voice was pleasant and she was good-looking. Ishiu felt that showing her some kindness wouldn't hurt.

Alright, he was just a superficial person who judged by looks.

If she had been ugly, he might not have treated her to a meal.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go!" Kiana wasn't polite at all. She rushed over, grabbed Ishiu's hand, and pulled him outside.

Ishiu: "……"

I know you're starving, but can you at least have a little dignity as a girl!

Ishiu felt like he was starting to understand this white-haired girl's personality.

It was already late at night, and very few restaurants were still open. After wandering around for a while, the two of them ended up at a McDonald's.

At least fast-food restaurants were basically open twenty-four hours a day.

"Order whatever you want," Ishiu said, patting his stomach. He was also a bit hungry. After all, he'd only eaten a piece of bread that evening, which wasn't quite enough for a man.

"Hehe, you said it." Kiana happily rushed to the counter and ordered ten burgers, ten chicken legs, and a bottle of cola in one go.

"Hey! Seriously? You're ordering this much, can you even finish it?" Ishiu was stunned. Damn, is this even human?

He was being kind and treating her to a meal, but that didn't mean he wanted to be a sucker!

"Of course, I can finish it. This isn't even enough," Kiana said, patting her flat stomach. "This will probably only fill me up to about fifty percent."

"???"

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Kiana felt underestimated and couldn't help but puff out her chest proudly. "When I was in the mountains, I once ate a whole wild boar!"

"You're really something else then." Ishiu's mouth twitched. What else could he say? Anyway, if this girl didn't finish it today, he'd definitely make her regret it!

Fortunately, McDonald's had a promotion, otherwise Ishiu suspected his money wouldn't have been enough to pay. Even so, after shakily paying the bill, Ishiu sadly discovered he only had a few dozen yen left.

Well, it looked like he'd have to find a job tomorrow. Convenience store work was scheduled by order, and he had plenty of free time during the day. If he didn't use it to earn money, wouldn't that be a waste?

"Hoo~ This is delicious. Thank you, Ishiu."

Ten minutes later, Ishiu looked at the empty burgers and chicken legs and fell silent.

Damn it, do you have a dimensional space in your stomach?

Although he had heard that girls have two stomachs, one for eating and one for dessert.

But someone like Kiana, she probably had five stomachs!

And the most terrifying thing was that she still said she wasn't full…

Ishiu felt like he had really taken a huge fall this time. Who would have thought that a seemingly ordinary girl would have such a terrifying appetite? It was truly terrifying!

After they finished eating, the two returned to the park. After chatting for a while longer, Kiana fell into a deep sleep.

Ishiu also fell asleep after cultivating his magic for two hours.

The night passed without incident. When Ishiu woke up the next morning, Kiana was nowhere to be seen.

Ishiu wasn't surprised. Through their conversation last night, he had learned that Kiana had come to Changkong City to find her irresponsible father, and she was probably searching the entire city for him now.

As for him, he should consider where to find work later.

He was sitting in a chair, deep in thought, when a ball of white fur walked in from outside the park.

Who else could it be but Kiana?

She was also carrying a bag, and it was unclear what was inside.

"Yo, you're awake. Good morning. Here, this is your breakfast." As she spoke, she naturally handed the bag in her hand to Ishiu.

Ishiu subconsciously took it and looked at the steamed buns inside, his brow furrowed. "Where did you get the money to buy these buns? Didn't you say you lost your wallet?"

"Hmph, don't underestimate me. I just lost my wallet, but getting some money is a piece of cake~" Kiana put her hands on her hips, her face full of pride, expecting praise.

"You didn't go and steal money, did you?" Ishiu narrowed his eyes.

"How could I!" Hearing this, Kiana instantly jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Then, without hesitation, she grabbed Ishiu's cheeks and rubbed them vigorously as a form of venting. "Damn it! Is that what you think of me?"

"Alright, alright, I misspoke, okay?" Ishiu broke free from Kiana's claws and quickly raised his hands in surrender.

"That's more like it."

"So, where did you get the money?"

"Um… there's not much to say. I was just out for a walk when I happened to run into a purse snatcher. I stopped him and helped the victim get her bag back. Then, the person was extremely grateful and gave me ten thousand yen as a thank-you fee." Although Kiana said there wasn't much to say, her expression was full of smugness and pride.

No way, officer, that actually works? Ishiu found it hard to accept. I work hard for three hours and earn less than five thousand yen, and it's all spent in one night. But this girl goes for a walk and basically gets ten thousand yen for free? Comparing people is infuriating!

Kiana had already eaten breakfast, so after waiting for Ishiu to finish his, she asked, "Ishiu, what are your plans now?"

"Work. I don't have a single cent on me right now, so I have to rely on working." Ishiu replied.

"Coincidentally, I need to work too. Why don't we do it together?" Kiana said excitedly. "You're the only person I can talk to in this city. We can look out for each other, and at least we'll have company. What do you say?"

"Hmm… alright." Ishiu thought about it and agreed.

As Kiana said, their situations were similar right now. Two people were better than one. Moreover, judging by Kiana's personality, she seemed like the type who was carefree and not overly concerned with trivial matters. It would be comfortable to get along with someone like that.

So the two of them started wandering around the streets, visiting several shops before finally finding cashier jobs at McDonald's.

Chapter 43: Living Together?

McDonald's shifts were rotational, and wages were paid daily, which was very convenient.

The only downside was probably the requirement for identification.

If it were just Ishiu, he obviously wouldn't have been able to produce any ID and would have been kicked out.

But thankfully, Kiana was with him. Although her wallet was lost, she always kept important documents like her ID on her person, so there was no worry about being sent to the police station.

So, the two of them went to apply at McDonald's together. In the end, Kiana fully utilized her shameless personality. No matter what the manager asked, she insisted that Ishiu was her younger brother and that they were looking for work together.

Even though they didn't look alike at all, the manager didn't make things too difficult for them. He was probably short-staffed and let them both pass the interview.

"Phew~ It's a good thing I'm smart," Kiana said, patting her not-so-small chest with some pride as she took the uniforms they'd wear for work. "If it weren't for me, you probably would have been kicked out."

Ishiu's face darkened. "I never said I wanted to pretend to be your brother. Besides, what were you thinking? How could you come up with such a ridiculous excuse? Couldn't you have just said we were classmates?"

"Have you ever been to school?"

"No."

"Then that settles it," Kiana said, shrugging. "You haven't been to school, and I haven't been to school. If the manager had asked any questions, neither of us would have known how to answer, and it would have been over."

"...You do have a point. Fine, I won't say anything this time. But don't do that again next time," Ishiu said helplessly. Since the words were already out, he couldn't exactly go back to the manager and say he wasn't actually Kiana's brother—Ishiu Kaslana, right?

"What do you mean by that? Are you saying being my brother is beneath you? You're younger than me anyway," Kiana said, a little unhappy with Ishiu's attitude.

Ishiu rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. He couldn't exactly tell her that his mental age was over twenty, could he?