Chapter 467

It wasn't her alone; there was indeed someone talking to her.

Answer it.

"Um."

Don't you want to see her?

"Um."

Haihara Lily Chou nodded.

Haihara Lily Chou feels sad whenever she sees Kazama Kiriori.

The child seemed to be telling her that she was no longer a child, that she should leave the shadow of her parents' departure and begin to truly become an adult.

And now, the one watching TV here is a child.

So she didn't want to see that person at all.

[Then why did you adopt her?]

Haihara Lily Chou doesn't quite understand why this person would ask such a question:

Don't you know?

[I don't know, because I met you later.]

Later?

Have you ever met someone like that?

I have absolutely no recollection of it.

"What year?" she asked, inquiring about when they had met.

[Hmm? Do you remember the day that Monster named Chameleon was completely defeated by Phantom Wind?]

Magic girl show.

She's not a child anymore, why would she need to memorize these embarrassing topics?

Besides, she didn't remember meeting anyone that day.

I have absolutely no recollection of it.

So, if this person is referring to the day two years ago, the day the Chameleon Monster completely disappeared, then her memory of that day is indeed very vague.

She was busy rescuing a student from the fire and later lost consciousness.

"I don't remember, let's change the subject."

She wasn't particularly interested in knowing who the other person was.

The other person suddenly seemed a little dejected:

[Um...]

[So, you don't want to wake up? Just watch them like before?]

What does "before" refer to?

Haihara Lily Chou doesn't understand.

But by the time she realized it, she had already answered:

"They wouldn't be any different without me. I tried my best before, but I just made a mess of everything. Maybe things would be better without me."

The little girl on the sofa spoke dejectedly, her expression as cold and indifferent as ever, discouraging anyone who wanted to approach her.

Her legs swayed unconsciously and uneasily.

The images on the television continued to play.

"Besides, nothing will happen even if I wake up." Even after waking up Haihara Lily Chou couldn't change anything immediately.

Therefore, it doesn't matter what choice she makes now.

She just wanted to sleep a little longer.

Just like not wanting to wake up and face going to work.

She didn't want to face reality.

I see.

So, do you also think that Ailulu's beautifully woven dreams are wonderful?

The voice called out the Flower Demon King's true name.

"You mean?"

[You Kazama Kiriori never met; you each lived happy lives. Your lives were spared any unfortunate accidents, becoming two parallel lines that would never intersect.]

[There's no dissatisfaction, is there?]

Haihara Lily Chou thought for a moment.

It doesn't seem like such a bad thing after all.

This is a happy thing for them both, and they should each wish the other happiness.

No matter how you look at it, it's a good thing.

But why does it feel strange?

Humans live in the same world and breathe the same air. It's not strange if some people die first or last, or if some people live far apart.

"There's not much we can do. We haven't lived together for very long. She was already quite grown up when I adopted her; it's not like the kind of adoption that happens when you're a baby in a TV drama."

"Compared to me, she has no reason to choose me, and I wouldn't be so willful as to make her choose me."

"My senior definitely treats her better than I do."

Haihara Lily Chou is spouting nonsensical nonsense.

In reality, she couldn't remember her senior's face anymore. Rather, she just had a bad memory and easily forgot many things after being separated from someone for a month or so.

Now, when I see Kazama Kiriori's face, I no longer think of the person I used to like.

What would she think of when she saw the child's face?

Why did she adopt that child?

I really don't understand.

Is it very short?

"It was short, wasn't it? There's not much to reminisce about, after all, I'm a boring person."

Maybe, like the puppy from my childhood, it would be better if someone else took care of it.

When she was little, she would just stay silently by the little dog's side.

If someone were more interesting and better, they probably wouldn't have let that little dog be so boring before it died.

She really couldn't remember what the two of them had done.

Since that's the case, let's try to recall it briefly.

Anyway, I'll finish watching it soon.

Thinking of this, she pressed the TV remote again, changing the channel to one from many years ago. The TV screen immediately showed a picture that looked like it had been drenched in rain, appearing quite old and blurry.

When Haihara first brought the rain-soaked puppy home, her first thought was—this child is so different from the one she remembered.

Not sunny or bright at all, but sickly instead.

He had no smile on his face, was unwilling to speak, and even eating was difficult for him. After a few bites, he couldn't eat anything else, making you feel like he might starve to death one day.

The place Haihara rented for the two of them wasn't very decent; it was definitely much worse than her senior's apartment.

In the beginning, Haihara almost became depressed.

That child was always depressed, with a cold expression, and never said a word.

When the two of them are together, they do nothing, like two puppets, and they have nothing to talk about.

She felt like she was being driven crazy by the suffocating relationship between them.

I should have known better than to impulsively adopt this child.

She completely regretted it.

The child wasn't what she imagined at all, and the whole thing wasn't as interesting as she thought. It was even more terrifying than raising a dog, and Haihara was the kind of person who would just casually raise herself.

During that time, Haihara even reconsidered which method of suicide would be easier.

But she couldn't abandon the child any longer.

Otherwise, it would be too terrible.

What caused their cold, distant relationship to begin to thaw?

It seems that... the child brought a potted plant that was almost withered to her face.

That potted plant was something my senior cherished before she passed away.

Kazama Kiriori brought it with her to her new home.

But a small child obviously can't take good care of this thing, so when she realized she was about to kill it, she cautiously asked Haihara for help.

Haihara wasn't really happy, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

She did help in the end.

But there was no encouraging result. Haihara herself knew nothing about taking care of plants, and the result of their joint efforts was that the potted plant eventually withered and died inexplicably.

Then the child started crying again.

After that, somehow, Kazama Kiriori gradually emerged from the gloom and began to take the initiative to talk to her, although it was only a little bit.

It's boring, isn't it?

And then there are even fewer memories worth mentioning.

However, perhaps it's just a misconception.

When she was with that child, Haihara found that raising animals wasn't so depressing or frightening anymore.

Even her relationship with Kazama Kiriori herself is like that.

One day, she noticed that the child suddenly and naturally smiled at her.

Despite her poor memory, she could still recall that it was a gloomy afternoon, and the room wasn't very warm. She and the child were huddled together under the covers.

That smile was beautiful; Haihara Lily Chou thought that child would grow up to be an extraordinary beauty.

Then one day, naturally, the child called her "Mom" again.

Haihara remembers that the sky was very bright all day.

What Haihara can't forget is that time when the child had a fever in the middle of the night.

She knew nothing about what to do when her child had a fever, and they lived far from the hospital.

But it doesn't seem like a temperature that requires a trip to the hospital?

When Haihara saw the child and his sickly appearance, she was immediately reminded of her own puppy who died of illness when she was a child.

Haihara didn't really remember what she was doing at the time. She only remembered running around and calling the few people she knew left in the middle of the night to check on them, which made Kougami and Ryo quite exhausted.

She stayed by the child's side for a long time, wanting to feel the child's body temperature, not wanting her to become stiff and cold like the little dog.

That time, unusually, she hoped to hear the child say more to her.

What was Haihara thinking at that time?

She actually had some recollection of it.

She didn't want to part ways with this girl like this; she wanted to stay with her longer.

She heard that child call her "Mom".