An Yu: A Little Grass-Cutting Did Wonders for His Mood; Elysia: ...; Kalpas: ... (Continued)

Should I believe that?

Who was that girl who'd stolen my manga, snatched my game console, eaten my cake, and even worn my little dresses since we were kids—and then acted all cute and tattled on me first?

Sigh, forget it... she sighed inwardly. What could she do? She was her big sister.

"Sorry, An Yu."

Kiana rolled her wrist, her gaze turning dangerous. That was what he got for being a traitor!

I'd even run away from home and flown over seven thousand kilometers just to escape that awful big sister of mine. Seven thousand!!!

"W-wait, Kiana!"

Bronya hurried to speak, but didn't take a step. She just closed her eyes on instinct.

But she was too late. With a dull thud, An Yu slapped Kiana right into the floor.

Kiana curled up, her body trembling uncontrollably, unable to move. She didn't show the slightest defiance. All she felt was a piercing pain, and she let out faint, broken moans without realizing it, her breaths thin and shallow.

Sirin: You—! If he'd really bullied you, would you have made it back alive to complain to me?

Only then did Bronya dare open her eyes. She hurried over and helped her good friend up, her eyes full of concern. "Why did you fight him? An Yu can score over 52 points with five shots at the sniper range using one hand at Anti-Entropy."

An Yu's scores hovered between 10.1 and 10.9. In every way, his constitution was monstrous.

"And are you sure she's your biological sister?"

She looked at Sirin in the distance, who still had some backbone and was forcing herself to lift her little face, and asked the question that cut to the heart of the matter.

"Ask that again and you'll be the one with a sister!"

Kiana had barely regained enough ability to think to answer on instinct.

The family's dignity could go to hell. Kiana's body still trembled as she pulled open her clothes. Thanks to the flexibility of her waist, she managed to catch a glimpse of the injury on her back. It was bruised purple, and spots of blood were beginning to seep through.

"W-wait! You hit my little sister, so you can't hit me too!"

Only when Sirin saw An Yu turn to look at her did she recover from her shock. Her mouth, which had fallen open, snapped shut, and her raised chin dropped at once.

She still couldn't understand how her specially admitted little sister, who was strong enough to seem like a monster, had been perfectly dodged and then taken out on the spot.

If you're that strong, why were you still experimented on in the dream?!

An Yu put on a bright smile. "Sorry, but I've believed in gender equality since I was a kid."

"An Yu! I'm the eldest daughter of the Kaslana Family. You dare—mmph!"

Waaah!! (?﹏?)?

An Yu, we're not done! Not even close!

Waaah...

The first volume: Chapter 33: Stop Making Your Kiana-Sis Laugh

"You little brat."

An Yu gave the wailing Sirin one last glance. Only then did he remember that this was the boss's office, and he turned to Bronya apologetically.

"You really don't show women any mercy, do you?"

Bronya's mouth twitched. She hadn't intended to stand up for Kiana.

If anything, the fact that she hadn't stood up for An Yu earlier had been because Kiana was her good friend. After all, An Yu wouldn't bully a child for no reason... even if he could slap Kiana straight into a wall.

"Who shows me any mercy? Just because she has her reasons doesn't mean I shouldn't hit her."

"My family taught me that men and women are equal!"

An Yu spoke with righteous conviction.

Aren't you an orphan?

Bronya had plenty of snarky thoughts, but kept them to herself.

Then

she heard Kiana grit her teeth:

"Ah..."

?

Bronya froze for a moment. What had Kiana just said? An Yu hadn't hit her head. She instinctively tightened her arm around Kiana.

Bestie, don't tell me you're developing some weird fetish!

Just as she was at a loss for what to do, she heard Kiana add, her voice barely above a whisper but every word dripping with venom:

"Sirin, you deserved that!"

"An Yu, keep going. Don't stop..."

Are you two really biological sisters?

Though, she often used to pin Kyo and Liliya, those two little troublemakers, down and beat them herself.

But Kiana hadn't dared say it loudly. She could only stew in her own frustration, so it seemed they really were sisters—ones with years of resentment between them.

"I'll head back to work, then."

As An Yu opened the door to leave, he glanced at Sirin again. The girl stopped crying at once, forcing her tears back into her eyes. Her big, watery eyes looked ready to spill over at any moment.

"Boss, can you handle this kid?"

An Yu's final question came from outside the door, his voice already back to normal.

"I... I'll be fine. Go back to work."

Bronya forced out a strained smile, her sympathy for the girl getting the better of her.

Actually, she wasn't fine. She hated little brats—Liliya, Rozaliya, Kyo, and even Mei back when she was a kid.

After An Yu left, the tears on the other side had stopped, but every so often two little pearls still fell from Sirin's watery eyes. She wiped them away as she sobbed.

"Let me make this clear. If you're planning to use your family's influence to get revenge, Anti-Entropy won't stand by and watch."

Sirin wanted to glare fiercely at Bronya, but the moment she tried, more tears fell.

"I..." She did her best to make her voice sound less broken.

"I would never do something so tasteless."

"But that traitor and I are not done!"

Bronya lowered her head as if sensing something. She saw that after hearing those words, Kiana's pained expression had managed to squeeze out the faintest smile.

Kiana gripped Bronya's fingers tightly, her voice low and full of expectation, as though she were delivering a dying person's last words. "He... doesn't show women any mercy, does he...?"

What did that mean? Did she want revenge too?

"He doesn't."

Bestie, don't do anything stupid!

Good, good. Kiana looked relieved, as if she'd finally settled something on her mind, and went completely limp in Bronya's arms.

"Kiana! Kiana!!! Don't scare me!!!"

"What happened in the office?"

Back at his desk, An Yu was surrounded by a few coworkers he got along with. Lunch break wasn't over yet; he'd barely sat down.

"Some brat showed up. I gave her a beating."

"Nice! I've been sick of those brats for ages. By the way, did the boss say anything?"

"The boss is so protective. She's probably laughing to herself."

An Yu guessed. Bronya was a bit of a schemer too. He'd heard she'd beaten Kyo, Liliya, and Rozaliya into submission when they were little.

Bronya wasn't laughing, though. Looking at Sirin beside her, she felt that the modeler she'd finally managed to poach was about to go home.

Kiana was a master of the Heaven-Tier Technique: Ghost Possession, and the strongest modeler, always striving for perfection in the beauty of her work!

"Leaving?"

Kiana, who'd finally caught her breath, gave a cold laugh and started typing. "I'm staying here this year! If Sirin doesn't leave, I'm not leaving!"

She hadn't seen Sirin cry her eyes out in every possible way yet. How could she leave?

Otherwise, wouldn't she have taken that slap for nothing? Hiss! Her back brushed against the chair again, and she sucked in a sharp breath.

The ointment on her back was still cold. Damn it, An Yu, why didn't you just slap me to death? At least that would've been quick.

Bronya: "Are you sure you don't want to go home and rest today? Concerned.jpg"

Kiana: "Rest? Is Sirin done crying? Angry cat.jpg"

Kiana: "By the way, can you give out employees' home addresses here? I'll pay to rent her a place."

Kiana: "If Sirin doesn't like the feng shui, I'll pay to get An Yu a new place. They should run into each other every day!"

With Sirin's vengeful—well, petty—personality, she was sure to cause another conflict. Maybe she'd get slapped into the dirt again.

Sirin was easy to coax, but An Yu didn't seem like the kind of person who'd comfort a stranger.

Bronya: ...

So you two sisters get along really well, then.

Bronya hesitated for a moment, but still resisted the urge to watch the drama unfold. "I don't think we're allowed to share that."

Kiana: "That's okay. I'll pay someone to find her! I want to see how many times she has to get beaten to tears before she learns her lesson."

Kiana gritted her teeth and stopped trying to work on the model herself. Instead, she asked her senior colleagues for help, then checked her savings.

She still had plenty of money. Since Sirin often stole her things, she'd lost the urge to buy much.

An eye for an eye, a grudge for a grudge. This time she'd been the one to start things, so she was lucky An Yu didn't hold a grudge... but she was keeping a meticulous mental list of everything Sirin, the real culprit, had done.

Bronya: "Honestly, your attitude reminds me of the romance dramas I watched as a kid. Your sister will probably develop some weird fetish, then a bunch of ridiculous plot twists will happen, and it'll all end with everyone living happily ever after."

Most romance dramas followed that sort of plot. The leads would start as enemies, turn into an odd couple, then somehow one would save the other or a small gesture would change their mind, and it would all end with a happy ending.

Kiana: "I'd be thrilled if she got married!!!"

It wasn't as though Kiana could step in and defend her sister after the wedding—she couldn't beat the guy either. But just imagining Sirin getting slapped into a wall made her happy!

No matter how deep the grudge, the thought that Sirin might marry a man who could handle a sniper rifle one-handed without losing accuracy would make Kiana feel instantly at peace. Even if she never married, a few more beatings would still lift her spirits.

What? You think An Yu might actually be a nice guy in private?

Don't make your Kiana-sis laugh. He'll slap you straight into a wall, and then you'll stop dreaming.

The first volume: Chapter 34: Running Away Is Shameful, but It Works

He'd had a pretty good day. Although he'd run into a bratty girl, he'd already taught her a lesson himself, so she couldn't ruin his mood.

When he got home, a fine drizzle fell outside the window. Elysia sat with her shapely legs together, her pale cheek resting lightly against the cold glass as she quietly gazed at the sky beyond the hazy veil of rain.

It should've been a serene, beautiful scene. But An Yu's eyes were fixed on the untouched breakfast on the table.

"I'm not very hungry today."

Elysia came to herself, seemingly only then noticing that the sky had darkened. The gloom no longer came just from clouds covering the sun.

"That's okay."

An Yu shrugged, his tone relaxed, and casually tossed the breakfast into the trash.

He went over to his big sister and leaned against the windowsill too, though he didn't sit on it.

"Sorry..."

Elysia apologized of her own accord. An Yu tilted his head, confused.

"What's there to apologize for? If you're not hungry, don't eat."

He smiled and let out a relaxed breath. "Isn't the point of making money to give yourself more freedom in life?"

Elysia turned her gaze back out the window. The sky had grown dim and gloomy, but the evening breeze coming through the window eased some of her restlessness.