Family

The soft lighting illuminated two stunningly beautiful faces that were almost indistinguishable from each other.

Their movements, expressions, and even the rhythm of their breathing were all trying to mirror each other, as if they were looking in a living mirror.

Every subtle adjustment is made to perfectly replicate the other person's movements.

Discovered a hidden sentry?

This was not unexpected for them.

That boy who left a deep impression on their childhood memories.

Tanaka Yukishin, who made them taste an unprecedented, series of defeats.

How could it be ordinary?

After a brief pause, they resumed their breathtakingly exquisite imitation practice.

Their figures intertwined, overlapped, and separated, like two drops of mercury flowing.

This was the grandest bet they had meticulously prepared for their upcoming reunion.

I need to hone my skills over the past decade or so, elevating imitation to a level that surpasses authenticity, all so that I can "win" at that moment.

Sitting opposite them was their father, Momobami Takuma.

This former head of the family, now relieved of his burdens, exudes a relaxed air, yet still retains a hint of the aura of someone in a position of power.

As he listened to the housekeeper's report and watched his daughters' indifferent calm, he felt a pang of unease.

Especially when the daughters were so dedicated to this "bet" and even honed their imitation skills to such a high level, an indescribable bittersweet feeling welled up in my heart.

"Ahem," Momobami Takuma cleared his throat, trying to get his daughter's attention, "Kirari, Ririka. That kid named Tanaka Yukishin... you really just held a grudge for over ten years because you lost to him when you were kids? You even used your family's resources to secretly protect his family?"

His tone carried a clear disapproval and a hint of barely perceptible jealousy.

"Although our Momobami Clan makes its living through gambling, you are my daughters! You are perfectly capable of choosing partners for love and attraction, just like ordinary people. The Hyakki clan's wealth is vast enough that you don't need to solidify anything through marriage. You only need to choose the people you love! Why be so fixated on a childhood victory?"

As a father, he hopes his daughters will choose partners based on pure love and attraction, rather than this almost obsessive competitive spirit.

However, he had barely finished speaking.

Momobami Kirari and Momobami Ririka, who were imitating each other's gesture of picking up a teacup, both stopped simultaneously.

They slowly put down their air-filled teacups, and their two almost identical faces turned to their father at the same time.

The calm, placid expression that belonged to an imitator vanished instantly from his face.

Instead, there is an almost instinctive, sharp gleam bearing a strong family imprint.

"Father," it was Momobami Kirari spoke, her voice clear and firm, carrying an undeniable authority.

"You say we're fixated on childhood wins and losses? No, you're wrong."

Momobami Ririka spoke immediately afterward, her voice almost synchronized with her sister's, like an echo.

"This is not simply a matter of victory or defeat. You seem to have forgotten who we are. We are the Momobami Clan."

Momobami Kirari slightly raised her chin, and her eyes, which inherited the genes of the Momobami Clan, shone with an almost devout light.

"For us Momobami Clan, especially those of the main lineage, gambling has long transcended the realm of interest, hobby, and even skill. What is it?"

Momobami Ririka responded in unison, her voice deep and powerful.

"It's like breathing to life, blood to the body. It's an instinct etched into the bones, a mark imprinted on the soul!"

Momobami Kirari's fingertips gently tapped the edge of the tatami mat, producing a subtle and rhythmic sound, as if striking the drumbeat of fate.

"For hundreds of years, generations of our clansmen have used their wisdom, courage, and even lives to practice and refine this word—at the gambling table, on the battlefield, and in the invisible game of strategy. It is no longer an external thing, but a part of our lives, our way of being, and the language by which we understand the world and communicate with it!"

Momobami Ririka's gaze became distant, as if she could see through time and space, witnessing the legendary figures of her ancestors dominating the gambling games.

"A martial artist hones their skills from rudimentary to profound, until it becomes second nature, every gesture embodying martial arts. We, the Momobami Clan, are the same. The essence of gambling is already ingrained in every thought, every decision, every heartbeat of ours. When we're hungry, we eat. When we're thirsty, we drink. And when we face an opponent worthy of our gamble..."

A startling light shone in Momobami Kirari's eyes as she looked directly at her father and said, word by word, "That yearning and excitement from the depths of our blood will erupt like a volcano! It's the call of life's instinct! It's the resonance of our souls! Tanaka Yukishin, he's the one who made us deeply experience the ultimate allure and cruelty of gambling in the very beginning and purest stage of our lives! He let us taste the bitterness of defeat, but he also ignited the inextinguishable fire of victory in our blood!"

Momobami Ririka's voice carried an almost fanatical longing.

"Father, you ask why we are so persistent? Then please tell me, for a woman who sees gambling as one of her life instincts, just how strong is the attraction of a husband she can forever pursue and never truly defeat? You should know this better than anyone else!"

Momobami Takuma was speechless at his daughters' resounding words, which were full of the family's fatalistic view.

He opened his mouth, only to find that his rebuttal was so pale and powerless.

Because they were telling the naked, cruel truth.

He certainly understood.

That soul-shaking moment, that life-or-death gamble, that... attraction that makes you willingly succumb even after losing.

After all, he himself had been deeply involved in it.

I've experienced the thrill of being in control of the entire situation and fighting to the death.

However, as a father...

When a potential "rival" becomes a son-in-law, and the daughters seem to regard him as the highest standard for choosing a spouse.

His protective instincts as a father and his traditional values made him feel uneasy.

He hoped his daughters could have a more "ordinary" kind of happiness.

"Hmph! That's just sophistry!"

Momobami Takuma somewhat embarrassed and angry, feeling utterly humiliated by his daughters' "lecture".

"You two unfilial daughters! How dare you speak so rudely to your father?"

"Rebellious daughter?"

Momobami Kirari and Momobami Ririka exchanged a glance.

Both of them simultaneously displayed the same mischievous smile.

The somber feeling from the impassioned speech about "gambling among the Momobami Clan" vanished instantly, and the atmosphere became subtle.

"Father," Momobami Ririka began slowly, her tone tinged with a hint of mockery, "Speaking of rebellion and filial piety... we are reminded of something."

Momobami Kirari gracefully smoothed out non-existent wrinkles on her kimono and continued, "Who was it that, after having had their fill of the position of head of the family, felt the responsibilities were too heavy and the constraints too numerous, so nonchalantly shed this immense burden and dutifully returned it to Grandmother?"

Momobami Ririka covered her mouth and chuckled softly, but her eyes sharpened.

"But we sisters, as Grandma grew older and needed to enjoy her later years, took the initiative to step forward and share her burdens, shouldering this heavy responsibility early on. So it seems..."

The two sisters spoke in unison, their voices clear and melodious, yet every word pierced the heart.

"Aren't we the truly filial ones, Father?"

"You... you all!"

Momobami Takuma was hit where it hurt, his old face turned red, and he pointed at his two daughters, his fingers trembling with anger.

It's true that he grew tired of the tedious affairs of being the head of the household and pursued a free and unrestrained life, and it's also true that he left the burden to his mother.

He was utterly ashamed to be exposed in public by his daughters.

"You've rebelled! You've rebelled! I'm going to tell your mother! I'll have her discipline you two unruly daughters!"

Faced with their father's threat to "tell on" them, Momobami Kirari and Momobami Ririka showed no fear; instead, they smiled even more brightly.

They stood up gracefully, side by side, their dignified aura as heads of the household naturally radiating outwards.

"Father," Momobami Kirari tilted her head slightly, her smile sweet yet carrying an undeniable authority, "You are free to tell Mother. However, allow us to remind you of something..."

Momobami Ririka took a half step forward, her voice calm yet filled with a sense of oppression.

"A person can have multiple identities at the same time. We are your daughters, and that will never change. But..."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over her father's casual clothes, a symbol of his leisurely status. "At the same time, we are the current heads of the Momobami Clan, bearing the heavy responsibility of leading the entire clan."

Momobami Kirari continued, her tone slightly playful.

"And what is your current status? Besides being our beloved father, it seems... you've already handed over the position of clan head of the Momobami Clan to the elders, and it's being managed by your grandmother, hasn't it?"

Momobami Ririka nodded slightly, drawing her conclusion.

"So, Father, if you intend to use your position as father to discipline us, the heads of the Hyakki family... strictly speaking, wouldn't this behavior be considered insubordination? We think there should be relevant clauses in the family rules, right?"

"You... you all!"

Momobami Takuma almost jumped up. His daughters silenced him with their talk of their status and the family rules, leaving him red-faced with frustration.

"Damn it! I am your father! Is blood relation less important than a title?"

"We have never denied blood ties," Momobami Kirari's tone softened, but her stance remained firm. "However, the order of the Momobami Clan cannot be transgressed. Father, you should understand the importance of rules better than anyone else."

"Good! Good! Good!"

Momobami Takuma, enraged, laughed and slammed his hand on the table.

"Insubordination? Then I will issue a challenge to the head of the family! Today! Right now! I, Momobami Takuma, will reclaim the position of head of the Momobami Clan! Let's see how you use your status to intimidate me now!"

Faced with their father's sudden declaration of war, Momobami Kirari and Momobami Ririka were not panicked at all; instead, they smiled at each other.

That smile was full of teasing and anticipation.

"I'm sorry, Father. You... are probably not qualified now."

Momobami Kirari's voice carried an undisguised regret, or perhaps a hint of mockery.

Momobami Ririka looked her father up and down, then kindly offered an explanation.

"According to the rules of the Hyakugaku clan, to initiate a challenge to the clan head, the challenger must first be the head of a powerful branch family within the Momobami Clan, or a core member of the main family with sufficient prestige. You are currently neither the head of any branch family within the Hyakugaku clan, nor have you relinquished your position as the head of the Momogaku clan. Your current status is merely that of a esteemed former clan head."

With a smile, Momobami Kirari delivered the final blow to her father.

"So, dear Father, why don't you go and defeat Grandmother first, regain your right to be the head of the Momogami branch family, and then challenge us? We'll be waiting for you."

"..."

Momobami Takuma froze completely, his finger pointing at his daughter slumping down.

His burning anger was doused with a bucket of cold water called "family rules" and "reality," leaving him feeling utterly chilled.

Yes, I gave up power with my own hands back then for the sake of a carefree life, so what right or qualification do I have to challenge it now?

Moreover, asking him to challenge his own mother.

The old patriarch's methods and temperament were enough to make his scalp tingle.

Just to teach two "unfilial daughters" a lesson?

Just imagining the mother's all-knowing, teasing, and reproachful gaze.

And what follows is a nagging that may last for days about "responsibility," "accountability," and "what you did back then"...

Momobami Takuma felt a chill run down his spine, and all the courage he had just mustered vanished instantly.

He slumped back into his seat, looking at his two elegant and powerful daughters who perfectly combined the instinct for gambling with the dignity of a family head. He felt a mix of emotions.

There was pride, helplessness, frustration at being criticized, and a deep sense of powerlessness.

The blood of Hyakki is, in the end, the torrent flowing through their bodies.

It was far more overwhelming than the "ordinary happiness" his father had hoped for.

And that kid named Tanaka Yukishin...

He snorted heavily, and the little grievance in his heart seemed to have grown even stronger.

In the silence, the lamplight cast the shadows of the three people onto the paper door, and the dejected silhouette in the middle was gradually swallowed up by the tall figures on either side.

Momobami Kirari and Momobami Ririka resumed their mirror practice, their movements flowing naturally.

She intended to feed the sheep, and the sheep were waiting.

Waiting to reunite with Tanaka Yukishin.

Waiting for a gamble that has been prepared for over a decade.

Chapter 140, Family Members 139

Due to his condition, Otake Ichiro handed over his shift early to his juniors who had been notified by the butler.

He heard a continuous stream of mocking laughter coming through his headset.

"Hey, Otake, I heard you got instantly subdued by a high school student?" came a teasing voice from a colleague through Otake's earpiece. "Did you drink too much last night?"

"Shut up!"