“It’s over…” Akino Hoshiko squatted on the ground, clutching her head in agony. “Everything’s done for.”
No, it wasn’t completely ruined yet. Akino Hoshiko reignited her hope and lunged forward, grabbing Akino Kazuko’s arm and shaking it vigorously. “Did you tell her? Did you tell Liang Sheng anything about what you remembered?!”
Akino Kazuko froze, turning to exchange a glance with her host.
“I was just talking nonsense earlier,” Akino Kazuko said awkwardly, trying to pry Akino Hoshiko’s hand off. “I knew you two were hiding something from me. Spill it.”
Now it was Akino Hoshiko’s turn to be stunned. Damn it—could she pretend nothing had happened?
It didn’t look like it. As she met Liang Sheng’s and Akino Kazuko’s deadpan stares, sweat beaded on Akino Hoshiko’s forehead. Yeah, that wasn’t going to fly.
“Sayonara! Bye-bye!” Akino Hoshiko spun around, aiming to zip back to Ni Sihan’s side.
But the moment she turned—
“Gah—!” Akino Kazuko was right on her tail.
No way. If she flew to Ni Sihan now, the kid would be totally exposed. It wouldn’t just be suspicion anymore; it’d be a dead giveaway.
After weighing her options, Akino Hoshiko had no choice but to fly back.
Under the piercing glares from Liang Sheng and Akino Kazuko, her mind raced, desperately concocting a story that could convince this girl and her system.
“Don’t even think about pulling any tricks or spinning some wild tale to fool us.” Liang Sheng—who was no stranger to lying herself—spotted Akino Hoshiko’s intentions immediately.
“N-No…” Akino Hoshiko felt utterly defeated.
She couldn’t run, and she wasn’t one of those magical attack girls either. All she could do was sit primly in midair, enduring the interrogation.
“By the way…” Liang Sheng eyed Akino Hoshiko up and down, then gave Akino Kazuko the same once-over. She rubbed her chin. “Do all you Akino girls just… not grow boobs?”
“Hah—?” Akino Hoshiko and Akino Kazuko whipped their heads toward Liang Sheng in unison. At that moment, this pair of plastic sisters decided to band together against an outsider.
Liang Sheng cleared her throat awkwardly and immediately backed down. “Ahem, just kidding. Just a joke to lighten the mood, you know? Things were getting way too heavy.”
“You can talk now, right?” Akino Kazuko ignored her host and pressed Akino Hoshiko again.
Akino Hoshiko avoided her gaze, mumbling under her breath, “We’re from the same roots—why so eager to boil each other alive?”
If Ni Sihan—who got chewed out by Akino Hoshiko all the time—saw this scene, she’d probably spit blood from sheer frustration. Turns out, she was the real underling here.
“Spit it out! Don’t change the subject!” Akino Kazuko clamped down on Akino Hoshiko’s arm, afraid she’d bolt.
Akino Hoshiko had no choice. She let out a heavy sigh.
“For real, for real…” The atmosphere grew tense once more. “Actually, at the rate things are going, you’ve got a sixty-five percent chance of… sigh, breaking free from fate. But, but… you guys just had to go and…”
She trailed off again, unwilling to continue.
Liang Sheng stood up, brushing the dust off her butt. “You say you’re not pursuing this for our own good, but as our enemy, why would you even tell us something that’s good for us? Why warn us not to dig deeper—that it’ll be better for us if we don’t?”
Akino Hoshiko hung her head, at a loss for words.
Sis, the task you gave me is too hard. You know that, I…
“Kazuko, stop pressing me…” Akino Hoshiko’s eyes reddened. “Just remember this: I would never harm you. Never. Everything I’ve done… it’s all for your own good.”
For… my own good? Akino Kazuko and Liang Sheng frowned in perfect sync, equally baffled.
“Can you let me go now?” Akino Hoshiko looked up. Liang Sheng and Akino Kazuko saw the tears streaking her cheeks.
Instinctively, Akino Kazuko released her grip.
Before either of them could react, Akino Hoshiko shot off into the distance.
“Y-You just let her go?!” A few seconds later, Liang Sheng whirled on her system, stomping her foot in fury. “Look what you did! You grabbed her so hard you made her cry!”
Akino Kazuko looked wronged. “I-I didn’t use much force! There’s no way I hurt her!”
This conversation felt so weird.
“Sigh~” Liang Sheng let out a leisurely sigh and plopped back down on the ground, facing the sea. “Still, we got quite a few takeaways from this~”
Akino Kazuko followed her gaze toward the sea.
“You know what?” Liang Sheng continued on her own. “I’ve noticed something off for a while now. Why does my favorability toward Su Ze show up as the original Liang Sheng’s? Why do I sometimes glimpse her memories in a daze?”
Akino Kazuko fell silent.
Liang Sheng turned her head, fixing her favorability system with an utterly eerie stare. The words that followed sent chills down the spine.
“Akino Kazuko, I’ve actually always been the ‘cold’ Liang Sheng, haven’t I? The one with the ‘liang’ from conscience—she never existed at all!”
“She does exist!” Akino Kazuko blurted out the words before she could stop herself.
“Then…” Before Liang Sheng could press further, Akino Kazuko clutched her head again.
“W-Wait! I think… I think I’m remembering something!”
Liang Sheng wisely shut her mouth.
“Only this one method has a real shot at success.”
“It has to be this one?”
“It does… Go ask that child if she’s willing.”
“Are you willing, Liáng Shēng?”
“Even though I also (static, intermittent)… but I’ve never felt this kind of life before. Even though the one feeling it isn’t (static, intermittent)… but (static, intermittent), so yes, I’m willing.”
The static was heavy, but Akino Kazuko pieced together the gist.
She opened her eyes, too focused to rub her aching head, and turned to Liang Sheng. “Liang Sheng, I have to tell you the truth. Actually, you might be (static).”
“Kazuko?!!” Liang Sheng’s eyes went wide. She grabbed her system’s hand. “What happened? Why’d you glitch out like that??”
Akino Kazuko was even more shocked. She touched her throat. “I-I don’t know! What was that just now?”
“Try saying it again.”
Akino Kazuko nodded. “Actually, you might be…”
“Don’t say it!”
“Don’t say it!”
“Don’t say it!”
“Stop!”
“Stop!”
Shrill screams echoed in Akino Kazuko’s mind, stabbing at her ears like knives.
Don’t say it? Why not? Akino Kazuko was fed up. Every time she tried to tell Liang Sheng something crucial, voices stopped her. This time, she was determined to speak—no matter what happened after!
“Liang Sheng! You’re actually…!”
