My Sister is Bronya

"Ishiu, I know you care about Seele—I do too—but how many times do I have to tell you? Even if the experiment fails, nothing will happen to Seele. Can't you trust your mother for once?" Cocolia's voice was thick with exasperation. Thinking about it, she'd already answered Ishiu on this question no fewer than a dozen times, even showing him past experimental data, but still couldn't convince him to let go of his worry.

"Mom, listen to me—this experiment really can't go on any longer. Seele will get hurt!" Ishiu was practically hopping with anxiety, but he had no way to prove the truth of his words to Cocolia. He couldn't exactly say there was a system in his head telling him Seele was in danger, could he?

That would probably have Cocolia calling someone to check him into a hospital right away.

"Don't worry, Ishiu, nothing will happen. With me watching over her, Seele won't come to any harm... Alright, I have to go now. Seele's about to enter the lab. You be good, and when I get back, I'll bring you a gift."

"Hey!..."

Before Ishiu could say anything more, Cocolia had already hung up. He tried calling again, only to get a message saying the phone was turned off.

"Damn it!"

Ishiu punched the wall. The feeling of knowing disaster was coming but being powerless to stop it nearly drove him mad.

Gritting his teeth, Ishiu didn't stay to wallow in self-pity. Instead, he turned and bolted for the door.

He had to stop this experiment!

But before he could get far, Bronya blocked his path.

Bronya's expression was no longer its usual warmth; it was cold as frost. She'd felt something was off earlier. When she'd asked Cocolia about the experiment date yesterday, Cocolia hadn't told her, just said not to rush and that news would come in a few days.

Only now did she realize—Seele had gone to take her place in the experiment!

"You... kept it from me, and let Seele do the experiment?"

Bronya's voice was soft, but the suppressed tension in her words made even Ishiu's hair stand on end.

"Bronya..." Ishiu opened his mouth, wanting to explain, but looking at Little Pudding's icy expression, he could only let out a long sigh and silently nod.

Chapter 18 — You Just Drive; Bronya Will Handle the Route

'Bang!'

The next second, Bronya landed a vicious punch to Ishiu's stomach.

"Ugh..." Ishiu doubled over in pain, clutching his gut and dropping to one knee.

This time, Bronya hadn't held back. One punch nearly killed him.

"What did you mean earlier, that Seele's in danger?" Bronya took a deep breath. She really wanted to beat Ishiu to a pulp right now, but this wasn't the time.

"The experiment won't succeed, and Seele will fall into danger." Ishiu pressed his lips together and said.

Hearing that, Bronya immediately leaped onto Ishiu's back, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, her crutch held in one hand.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go save Seele!" Bronya shouted.

She didn't ask how Ishiu knew the experiment would fail, or why he hadn't spoken up before—none of that mattered now. What mattered was Seele's safety.

"Yeah!" Ishiu said no more, hitched Bronya's thighs up, and sprinted down the stairs to the Orphanage's parking lot.

The Orphanage barely had any cars. The only one was a small truck for transporting food and supplies. It wasn't exactly suitable for driving out, but there was no other option.

The Orphanage was in a remote spot. Walking to the main road to catch a bus or hail a taxi would waste who knew how much time.

Ishiu set Bronya in the passenger seat, then slid into the driver's seat. Luckily, since it was the Orphanage's car, the keys were always left inside—no one would steal it—saving him the trouble of hunting for them.

"You... know how to drive?" Bronya only thought to ask after getting in, eyeing Ishiu with suspicion.

"Relax, I've driven bumper cars before." Ishiu grinned at her, then ignored Bronya's suddenly pale face as he smoothly pressed the clutch, turned the key, and shifted gears.

'Vroom—'

The little truck let out a rumble, like an old man on his last legs giving it his all.

Ishiu started in second gear and floored the accelerator. The truck shot out of the parking lot like an arrow from a bow, speeding onto the main road.

"Bronya, navigate me to Mom's company." Ishiu kept his eyes on the road, not turning back.

Seeing how smoothly Ishiu drove, Bronya realized he'd just been messing with her. She shot him an annoyed glare, pulled out her phone, and started navigating.

"You just drive; Bronya will find the route."

It was nine in the morning, peak traffic hour. Ishiu piloted the nearly wrecked truck through the bustling streets in a display of speed and adrenaline.

He'd pushed the speed to the max, thanks to the Seven Nights Assassination Technique giving him superhuman reflexes and perception—otherwise, he'd have crashed and burned long ago.

With Ishiu's reckless driving, what should have been a half-hour trip took them only fifteen minutes, even after shaking off a few traffic cops along the way.

"That's Mom's company up ahead." Bronya pointed at a tall building.

"Good." Ishiu narrowed his eyes, lightly tapped the brake, and the truck screeched to a halt just before hitting the gate.

He threw open the door, ignoring the stunned onlookers, and sprinted for the building.

"Don't think you can leave Bronya behind!" Bronya was decisive. Knowing she couldn't keep up on her crutches, she tossed them aside and lunged toward Ishiu.

She'd just gotten out, and Ishiu was already ten meters away. There was no way she could jump that far—if he didn't catch her, she'd hit the ground hard.

But she jumped anyway, because she trusted that Ishiu wouldn't let her fall.

Sure enough, seeing her leap at him, Ishiu had to stop and catch her in his arms.

"Hurry!" Bronya quickly looped her arms around his neck, flipped around, and landed on his back.

"If you hadn't jumped, I'd be inside the company by now." Ishiu grumbled, but he still carried Bronya on his back and jogged into the building.

Cocolia's Anti-Entropy was an organization that fought against the Honkai, but for some reasons, its existence had not been exposed to the public eye. As far as ordinary people knew, Anti-Entropy was just an animation production company, nothing more.

And this tall building, on the surface, was also just an ordinary animation production company. But no one would ever imagine that beneath that building lay the true face of Anti-Entropy.

Because Bronya had previously carried out some missions assigned by Cocolia, she was no stranger to this place. After the two entered the Anti-Entropy building, Ishiu followed Bronya's guidance. First, they took the elevator to the underground parking lot on the third basement level, then Bronya tapped a few times on a wall that looked perfectly ordinary—and that wall actually split apart.

Inside the wall was a new elevator. After they got in, Bronya directly pressed the button for floor -17, and the elevator quickly began descending.

When the elevator doors opened again, Ishiu stared at the ultra-sci-fi massive underground factory and research facility before him, and was so shocked he sucked in a cold breath.

"Save your surprise for later. Right now, we need to find Seele first." Bronya patted Ishiu's head, snapping him back to reality.

"Do you know where Seele is?" Ishiu asked.

Before him now were several branching paths. As a newcomer, he had no idea which way was the right one.

"Not sure, but she should be over by the lab. Let's go left." Bronya shook her head and offered a suggestion.

"Alright..."

"Ishiu, Bronya! What are you two doing here?" Before Ishiu could say anything, Cocolia's somewhat angry voice rang out from the leftmost corridor.

Along with the voice, Cocolia's free-spirited figure appeared before Ishiu and Bronya's eyes.

In fact, she had already received word the moment Ishiu and Bronya entered the company. If she hadn't given prior orders to her subordinates, Ishiu and Bronya would have been surrounded by Anti-Entropy personnel back in the parking lot. There was no way they would have been allowed to peacefully enter the Anti-Entropy headquarters base.

"Mom..."

"Old lady."

Upon seeing Cocolia, Ishiu and Bronya reacted differently, but the one thing they shared was the deep determination in their eyes.

"Ishiu, Bronya, I need an explanation." Cocolia walked up to them, crossed her arms, and let out a deep breath.

"The experiment has to be stopped. Seele is in danger." Ishiu said again.

"Ishiu! How long are you going to keep this up?! I've told you dozens of times—the experiment won't have any problems, and Seele won't be in danger either!" Cocolia practically shouted, her voice so loud it even made Bronya stagger backward.

In her view, Ishiu was just making a fuss. She had confirmed many times that while the experiment carried some risk, it wasn't a major issue—everything was under her control.

"I'm not making a fuss." Ishiu lifted his head and calmly met Cocolia's eyes. "Mom, please trust me just this once, okay?"

"..." Cocolia sighed. The anger that had just risen on her face instantly dissipated. She raised her hand and gently stroked Ishiu's hair. "Ishiu, I know you care about Seele. I do too. Do you really think I would let Seele take part in a suicidal experiment?"

"And Bronya, I understand what you mean. But this was Seele's own choice. Besides, she has awakened her Stigmata. Right now, she truly is the most suitable candidate for the experiment."

"So please, trust your mother just this once, okay?"

Cocolia's words were already quite sincere. The fact that she hadn't simply ordered her subordinates to throw Ishiu and Bronya out was already a sign of respect for them.

"..." Ishiu pressed his lips tightly together. He knew everything Cocolia said was true. If it weren't for the system's warning, he wouldn't have thought Seele would be in danger either.

But the problem was, he couldn't make Cocolia believe him.

"...Lady Cocolia, this is bad! The X-10 experiment has encountered a Quantum Entanglement Phenomenon!"

Just then, a middle-aged woman in a white lab coat and glasses ran over, her face panicked as she spoke to Cocolia.

"What?!" Cocolia's beautiful eyes flew wide open. She instinctively grabbed the woman's shoulders, her purple eyes radiating a sharp, piercing aura. "What happened?! Wasn't everything fine just now?"

"I-I don't know why either. The experimental process seemed flawless, but just now, when the test subject was on the final step, for some reason... she seemed to be undergoing Quantum Assimilation."

"Th-this can't be..." Cocolia swayed unsteadily, nearly falling.

"Mom! If we stop the experiment now, there might still be time!" Ishiu grabbed Cocolia's arm and said seriously.

"Mom..." Bronya also looked at Cocolia, her eyes filled with pleading.

"...I need to see the situation for myself." Cocolia bit her lip, turned around, and strode briskly back the way she came.

"Ishiu, Seele will be okay, right?" Bronya leaned against Ishiu's shoulder, her small face full of worry.

"..."

Ishiu kept his lips tightly shut, saying nothing. He moved swiftly, following the direction Cocolia had gone.

He couldn't promise Bronya anything—not even a simple nod—because he didn't know how bad the situation really was.

Ishiu followed Cocolia for only a short while before they reached the laboratory where Seele was.

The lab was currently in a state of full lockdown. A group of researchers in white lab coats stood behind the transparent glass wall on the left side of the lab, observing and recording the experiment's progress.

Inside the lab, Seele lay on an experimental bed. Her eyes were tightly shut, and her expression seemed somewhat pained. But what was most astonishing was her body, which flickered in and out of solidity like a projection.

Seele's body constantly shifted between solid form and phantom image. As time passed, the duration she spent as a phantom was slowly exceeding the time she remained solid.

"What the hell is going on?! Why has Seele become like this?" Cocolia slammed the table in fury, her eyes fixed on Seele inside the lab.

"L-Lady Cocolia, we don't know why either. Everything was fine before. We had successfully collected data on the quantum readings. But just as the experiment reached its final step, a strange energy suddenly emerged from the test subject's body. That energy seemed to attract the Sea of Quantum, and now she is being assimilated by it."

Cocolia's face alternated between pale and purple. Almost instinctively, she shouted, "Then what are you waiting for?! Stop the experiment immediately!"

She had allowed Seele to participate in the experiment, but that didn't mean she didn't care about Seele. On the contrary, she cared about her daughter more than anyone else. Yet the experiment had to proceed; otherwise, she couldn't guarantee the children's future.

Even so, she had absolutely no intention of sacrificing her own daughter to obtain those precious data.

Unfortunately, her choice came a little too late.

"S-sorry, Lady Cocolia. The experiment can no longer be terminated. The subject is too deeply entangled with the quantum state—simply stopping the experiment won't reverse it." The researcher explained, sweating profusely.

"Useless! A bunch of useless trash! If you can't even manage this, what use are you?!" Cocolia erupted in fury, but she had no solution at the moment. After all, she was an executor, not a researcher. She didn't know much about the mysterious power of quantum, which rivaled Honkai in scale.

"Mom, tell them to open the lab door. I'll go bring Seele back!" Ishiu said in a low voice.

"No, you can't! The lab is now filled with Honkai and quantum energy. The situation inside is extremely dangerous. If you go in, you might—"

"Shut up! Open the goddamn door!!!" Ishiu glared fiercely at the researcher, his eyes turning red. He couldn't bear to see Seele get hurt right in front of him—that would be worse than death.

The researcher shuddered, feeling as if he had just been stared down by a wild beast.

"Open the door!" Cocolia said coldly.

The researcher dared not defy Cocolia's order and obediently opened the lab door.

"Mom, take care of Little Pudding for me." Ishiu tossed Bronya off his back and into Cocolia's arms, then activated his Flash Step technique, charging into the lab at top speed.

"Ishiu! You bastard! Mom, let me go! I have to go too!" Behind him came Bronya's furious voice, but Ishiu had no time to care. The moment he rushed into the lab, he felt a powerful wave of energy surging toward him. If not for his special Flash Step technique, he would have been blasted away.

Chapter 20: Sea of Quantum