Becoming Aozaki Touko's Life

But as a self-disciplined doll, she shouldn't be judged by human standards, right?

"Doll, isn't the 'ren' character in 'human' in front?"

Aozaki Aoko smiled slyly, "Besides, if you don't say it, who would know Yaya is a doll? After all, no matter how you look at it, you're a normal human."

"...Ugh~"

Yaya seemed to have lost all her energy. After a while, she seemed to remember something and said, "But Master Touko, didn't she also marry a newborn homunculus?"

"..."

"..."

The atmosphere suddenly froze.

Aozaki Aoko froze completely, then turned her head with a creak, like a rusty machine, her eyes filled with disbelief:

"Yaya, you said Sister Touko married a homunculus?!"

"...Huh? Did Yaya say that?"

Yaya blinked, then put on a cute, pleading expression. If it were anyone else, they would likely have been charmed into overlooking it.

But Aozaki Aoko was not just anyone.

"You absolutely said it!"

For the first time in a while, Aozaki Aoko's gaze carried a pressing pressure: "What you said before was, 'But Master Touko, didn't she also marry a newborn homunculus?'!"

"...Yaya doesn't remember saying that."

Feeling the oppressive gaze, Yaya released Aozaki Aoko and turned her head to look at the television, clearly intending to avoid the topic.

"..."

However, Aozaki Aoko's oppressive gaze grew sharper, like a continuously honed blade, its sharpness constantly increasing.

"...Ugh"

After enduring for a moment, Yaya put on a pitiful expression and wailed, "Aoko, can you forget what Yaya just said?"

"Speak!"

Aozaki Aoko's single word conveyed her attitude.

"Alright, it wasn't the right time to tell you yet~"

Yaya put on a look of resignation, "You saw the photos Master Touko sent back, right? That silver-haired, long-haired, gentle-looking noblewoman who smiled so kindly? She's actually the wife Master Touko chose."

"Eh... She's not a man?"

Aozaki Aoko blinked, looking somewhat incredulous.

It seemed this was the first time she realized her older sister's preferences for a partner deviated from common sense. She was also starting to understand why her sister had sent her a female doll.

"Of course not! Mrs. Irisviel is a graceful and gentle woman."

Naturally, Yaya said, tilting her head up with a hint of pride.

She had met Irisviel once at the Einzbern castle. Her elegant figure walking in the snow had not faded in her memory even now.

The nobility of a noblewoman combined with the innocence of a young girl made Yaya sigh; Master Touko truly understood.

"---"

Aozaki Aoko felt her brain short-circuit, falling into a brief state of speechlessness as various complex thoughts uncontrollably surfaced.

And at that very moment.

Yaya, as if to corroborate her previous statement and prove that she could marry Aoko, placed her fair hand on her chest and said matter-of-factly:

"So, since Master Touko can marry Mrs. Irisviel, it's completely fine for you to marry me, Aoko."

"...Even if I were to marry a woman!"

Aozaki Aoko instinctively turned her head and replied without thinking, "I'd choose Sister Touko. I'd never marry you, you perverted doll."

Chapter 80: Grandfather's Arrival

"...Eh, Yaya understands~"

A hint of struggle appeared on Yaya's cute face. After a moment of thought, she put on a reluctant expression, "If it's Master Touko, then Yaya is willing to share Aoko's marriage rights. I'll be Aoko's wife, and Aoko will be Master Touko's wife."

As soon as she spoke, the atmosphere became strangely oppressive.

Aozaki Aoko was somewhat dumbfounded, shocked by Yaya's bizarre thought process. It took about half a minute of silence before she managed to compose herself, then said with a helpless tone:

"As expected, Yaya, you really need Master Touko to give you a good scolding."

Saying this, she focused her gaze back on the television, quickly moving past the matter. She had no intention of arguing about it or beating Yaya.

The reason was quite simple: she herself didn't take these statements too seriously and was already accustomed to Yaya's occasionally shocking remarks.

If she had to be startled by them every day, she might have lost twenty years of her life by now.

"Yaya is growing positively now~"

Beside her, Yaya smiled with full confidence, then snuggled up to Aoko, like a clingy cat, wrapping her arms around Aoko's slender arms, and quietly watched the television.

"You've definitely grown up wrong, you lecherous doll~"

Aozaki Aoko's expression grew fiercer as she spoke, but Yaya calmly accepted the glare and explained in a sweet voice:

"Whether Yaya has grown up well isn't determined by whether her personality is perfect, but by her completion. Whether she's more human-like, whether she can conform to people's perception of humans."

"If you look at it that way, Yaya, you've probably become too human~"

Aoko lay half-reclined on the sofa, her fair hand propping up her cheek. She recalled Yaya's behavior for a moment. It was definitely something unforgettable, a fun memory she could recall even when she was old.

Back in school, there were apparently many people who wanted to pursue her. However, after a period of commotion, they all completely disappeared.

Of course, this wasn't a case of being killed and cemented before being dumped into a river.

Instead, Yaya took it upon herself to act as a knight. Within a single day, she conquered the entire school. She challenged everyone indiscriminately: the judo club, the basketball club, the kendo club, the track and field club, and even the delinquents lurking in the corners.

Then, within that single day, Yaya knocked everyone to the ground.

Although most of the people she beat weren't actually trying to pursue her, but were simply guys who thought it would be fun to join in.

Thanks to that, the pursuers' intentions were basically nipped in the bud.

However, in contrast, Yaya gained a large number of admirers at school, to the point where it was exaggerated enough to form a fan club.

There were even rumors that a table tennis coach, with tears streaming down his face, begged Yaya, saying that with her, there would be hope of defeating China in table tennis.

In short... Yaya was quite a unique individual.

"Aoko... is that Touko-shishou on the TV?"

Just then, Yaya suddenly exclaimed. Hearing this, Aoko snapped out of her thoughts and focused her attention on the television. She saw her sister Touko being interviewed by a reporter, stating her willingness to accept this year's Nobel Prize in Medicine.

On the screen, Aozaki Touko wore a white lab coat for research and a pair of rimless glasses. She looked intelligent and gentle, answering the reporter's questions with a mild smile.

She looked like a kind-hearted doctor, someone who easily earned people's favor.

"...As expected of Touko-nee, it feels rather natural for her to do something like this."

Seeing this, Aozaki Aoko sighed.

She accepted the news of her sister going to receive the Nobel Prize in Medicine as a matter of course, without much surprise. This was because she had already anticipated this outcome in her heart.

"It's only natural for Touko-shishou to do such a thing~"

Yaya said matter-of-factly, then hurried to the landline telephone. She familiarly dialed the Aozaki parents, presumably to share the good news with them.

"The Nobel... is that the highest award in the surface world?"

At that moment, Aozaki Grandfather suddenly appeared indoors, his deep gaze fixed on the television broadcast of Aozaki Touko.

Yaya also stopped her phone call, bristling like an angry cat. Her eyes were vigilant as she looked at Aozaki Grandfather, instinctively shifting her feet to shield Aozaki Aoko behind her.

She recognized this old man; he was Aoko and Touko-shishou's grandfather. By rights, he shouldn't be an enemy.

However, Aozaki Grandfather's very existence was chilling to Yaya. If she was someone progressing towards humanity, then Aozaki Grandfather was an existence that deviated from humanity.

Their ways of living were fundamentally different.

"..."

"..."

Chapter 81: Inheriting the Magic Crest

Aozaki Residence.

Terrifyingly silent.

At this moment, the Magic User, who had arrived at some unknown time, was watching the scene playing on the television. His deep eyes showed no emotion; humanity seemed to have been stripped away and discarded from him.

The feeling he gave off was less like a human and more like a part of a grander scheme, akin to the turning of the seasons or the rising and setting of stars.

"Your sister is about to reap all the honors. Receiving the Nobel Prize as a normal person, and the Grand Order as a Magician—this is truly the ultimate manifestation of genius."

The Fifth Magic User spoke as if to himself. "If I hadn't obtained the Fifth Magic, someone like your sister would probably be an object of admiration and jealousy. Someone without talent like me, no matter how hard I tried my whole life, could never reach the Root. In the end, I could only curse in dark corners, yet still feel an irresistible yearning."

"But life is truly wondrous. My luck was as if favored by heaven. In despair, I encountered a hole leading to the Root. When I was troubled about not having an heir, heaven gifted me two geniuses most suited to inherit the Fifth Magic, Aozaki Touko, who possessed unparalleled talent."

As he said this, the Fifth Magic User looked at Aozaki Aoko.

"And Aozaki Aoko, who is most suited to inherit the Fifth Magic."

As his voice fell, Aozaki Aoko's expression turned cold. She knew her earlier premonition had come true. Her grandfather truly intended for her to inherit the Fifth Magic, and his questioning back then had already been a sign.

"Grandfather, what business do you have here?"

She lowered her gaze and asked in a cold tone.

In her heart, Aozaki Grandfather had always been a rather rigid old eccentric. She didn't feel any fear towards him, and she saw no problem with responding to him with a cold tone when she was unhappy.

"From today onwards, you will inherit the Aozaki family's Magic Crest."

Grandfather declared indifferently.

"...What about sister?"

Aoko asked simply.

"She has already agreed."

Grandfather replied so simply.

Then, after a brief conversation, the atmosphere fell into silence again.

The living room was filled with the sound of a TV interview, the clock on the wall ticked rhythmically, and the sound of rain pattered outside, punctuated by the occasional deafening roar of thunder.

However, Aoko disregarded all of this. She watched the images on the television screen, where Touko-nee was as confident and radiant as ever, shining like the sun.

Whether it was now or when she was a child, her sister had always been brimming with confidence. Just looking at her inexplicably filled Aoko's heart with courage.

This was only natural, after all. She was her sister, the sister who gently cherished and protected her. No matter what happened, if Aoko ever found herself in trouble, her genius sister would never stand idly by.

Knowing this alone made her feel secure.

But, if she were to inherit the Magic Crest, would the relationship that was once taken for granted, built on familial bonds, still be able to remain the same?

For Magicians, the Magic Crest held a weight more significant than life itself.

It was considered natural for siblings to kill each other to obtain the qualification to inherit the Magic Crest. She detested this possibility from the bottom of her heart and wanted to avoid it.

She once harbored the thought that she just wanted to enjoy a leisurely life as an ordinary person, leaving all the troublesome matters of magic to her genius sister.

Even now, with her intention to enter the world of Magicians, it was merely because she realized that if she remained in the ordinary world, she would be unable to approach her sister in the future.

That was why she wanted to step into the world of Magicians.

"...Aoko?"

Just then, Yaya called out with a grave expression, looking at Aoko with concern. She was worried about Aoko's current state, as she understood very well the magnitude of what was about to happen, something that could shatter everything.

"..."

Aoko didn't reply. She shook her head at Yaya, then got up, took an umbrella from the entrance, and left the Aozaki residence.

Seeing this, Grandfather also left the Aozaki residence using some unknown method.