novelAnother Ten Years Later
| ← Ch.606 | Ch.608 → |
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Mia was sound asleep when something soft brushed against her cheeks. She slowly opened her eyes and saw the white underbelly of the hammerhead shark plushie.
"It's time to wake up already?" Mia mumbled, rubbing her eyes. She hugged her hammerhead shark plushie and rubbed her cheeks against it."Good morning, Sharkie, " Mia said sweetly.
Then, Mia stretched and slowly got off her bed. Her nightgown slipped down her shoulders to her ankles, then to the rug-covered floor. Mia walked over to her closet and lazily stared at the impressive variety of clothing within. The moment a thought crossed her mind, Mia's eyes lit up.
Mia put her nightgown back on and went to wash her face. After tying her hair into two ponytails, she went to the dining room on the second floor.
Two young ladies were at the dining table — which was long and filled with the nutritious breakfast meticulously prepared by the maids — waiting for her. When Mia walked in, one of the young ladies got up.
This young lady was so beautiful, Mia — sometimes — felt jealous of her. Her ears were long like an elf's, and her pale-blue hair was long enough to reach her waist. Her slender body was dressed in a school uniform — a top suit and a pleated skirt. Anyone that saw the young lady would instantly know that she was graceful and regal, came from a wealthy family, and had been opportuned to receive the finest education.
The young lady stood respectfully at the bottom of the staircase, waiting for Mia to descend. When Mia came downstairs, the young lady smiled and greeted, "Good morning, Big Sister Mia!"
"Morning, Little Vye." Mia smiled. Standing on the last stair to increase her height, Mia cupped Bai Vye's cheek lightly.
The offspring of Baiyi and the Fairy Walker, Bai Vye, who had just had her sixteenth birthday — had inherited her mother's bewitching beauty and her father's firm composure and mature disposition. Having received the best education since childhood, Bai Vye had become a most promising princess of the Imperial family.
After issuing her greeting, Bai Vye took a step back, revealing the other young lady — who was slightly shorter and had a well-trimmed, short black hair — that had been standing patiently behind her.
This young lady was not as beautiful as Bai Vye was, but she had more than enough potential to make up for it. Her pubescent face had a different kind of beauty. Bai Yuu had inherited the cold disposition of her mother Lan You — the Warrior Walker, otherwise known as the 'Ice Queen'— and this made her staid. Many were giddy with anticipation to witness this little flower fully bloom.
"Morning, Little Yuu!" Mia walked forward and rubbed her cheek against that of Baiyi's fourth daughter.
"Good morning, " Yuu replied, closing her eyes as she enjoyed the feel of her big sister's skin."Little Yin isn't here yet. Should I call her?"
"Huh? You mean she's still asleep?" Mia frowned a little."Sorry, then, for the trouble, Little Yuu."
"Oh, I almost forgot. Did Big Sister Dale come by last night?" Yuu, who had begun to head out, stopped and asked the girls.
"No; I'm afraid she didn't. She sent me a text last night that she would not be coming home because of work, " Mia said with a sigh as she waved her phone.
A long time had passed since she saw the Bai Family's eldest daughter, Tisdale.
A mischievous grin appeared on Vye's face."Maybe she got a boyfriend."
"That's impossible! If that was the case, she would have told us about it already. Besides, you know how our dad's like..." Mia said. She held Vye's hand and led her back to the table, changing the topic as she did so."So, has any boy from school confessed to you?"
"At first, I received a seemingly infinite number of letters every day; it was annoying! But lately, things have changed. I haven't received even one letter in a while. It is as though someone has mentioned our family. Honestly, it's kind of bizarre —"
"Yeeoowwww! How could you be so harsh, Big Sister!" A coquettish yelp rang out from the floor above, causing Vye to pause."Can I just not braid my hair? It's such a troublesome hairstyle! By the way, can I also not wear a skirt? The boys at my school keep ogling at my thighs.."
A few moments later, Bai Yuu led a somewhat confused girl down the stairs. This girl was Baiyi's twelve-year-old daughter, Bai Yun, the offspring of Baiyi and Lady Assassin Walker. Unlike the very enchanting Bai Vye and the soon-to-be-enchanting Bai Yuu, Bai Yin — much like Mia — had cuteness as her main charm. Bai Yun resembled a delicate little doll.
"Oh, Big Sister Mia!" Still a bit hazy with her lingering grogginess, Bai Yin made her way to the girl and rubbed her cheeks on the latter's face before throwing her arms around her other sisters for a quick hug.
The girls took their seats around the table with Bai Yin sitting right next to Mia, ignoring her breakfast over her phone. As her little fingers refused to leave the screen, Mia said good-naturedly, "Come now, Little Yin, no phone on the dining table. You'll get an earful if Dad [1] knows about this, remember?"
As she talked, Mia cut a piece of omelet into small chunks and placed them into the Bai Yin plate instead of her own. She then gingerly swiped honey spread on a few toasts — she knew it was her little sister's favorite.
"I know, okay? I was just checking my Friend Space! Just wanna see if anyone finished yesterday's homework, " Bai Yin mumbled sourly before tucking her phone, though it inadvertently exposed a little secret.
"What?! You haven't done your homework yet?" Mia picked up, alarmed.
"No, I did my homework, I just didn't finish it, okay?" Bai Yin replied in a somewhat shaky voice. She pointedly lowered her head to avoid Mia's gaze while swiftly munching on the omelet chunks.
Mia set down her dining knife with an increasingly grim expression."You slept very late last night, young lady. Don't tell me it was because you were playing."
"C'mon, it's nothing! It's all basic stuff for babies. I've known all of them already, " The little girl retorted with defiant carefreeness as she reached for the honey-laden toasts, knowing that Mia made them for her.
The plate was pushed out of her reach almost instantly by a furious Mia.
"Little Yin! You failed every single subject in your last exam, remember?! I begged your homeroom teacher not to break the news about your result to Dad because you promised me you would be more serious in your studies from then on!"
"I am studying hard, okay? I just didn't finish my homework this once! Why are you so wound up?"
"How does 'not finishing your homework' count as 'studying hard'?!!"
A quarrel broke out between the duo, and neither Bai Vye nor Bai Yuu dared intervene. Big Sister Mia had always pampered the three of them that they rarely saw her this angry.
As the fight went on, Bai Yin became increasingly agitated that tears welled up in her eyes. Finally, in a fit of indignation, she jumped to her feet and snapped, "I hate you the most, Mia! Who gave you the right to lord over me? You're not even Dad's real daughter!!"
The words pummeled on Mia's chest like a sledgehammer. They froze every part of her body except the red, hot tears breaking out of her eyes and splashing onto the tablecloth.
Realizing her gaffe, Bai Yin slapped her mouth with her hand. Then, with a sniffle, she disappeared.
That was probably one of the most frustrating things about her — she was terrible at school and unremarkable at almost everything, yet she was exceptionally gifted in stealth. Bai Yin had inherited every lick of her mother's gift that she had perfected her stealth techniques at the tender age of twelve. Her skills had already far eclipsed thousands-year-old old-timer like the Hitman to the point where Mia could no longer sense her through mana or her psychic power.
"Little Yin!" Panic churned within the other two sisters' stomach, spurring them to lurch into Bai Yin's position. It was too late; the girl had vanished so quickly that their hands managed to grab only a fistful of air.
"Gone again?' Bai Yuu moaned."What are we going to do now? Should we tell Dad?"
"N-no, let's leave him out of this, " Mia croaked from her seat as she wiped away her tears."Dad's been so busy so lately. I don't want to bother him with something so trivial."
The truth was that Mia was terrified of Baiyi's reaction. Bai Yin would be guaranteed his full wrath for the things she had done, and after her punishment, she would most certainly be bedridden for days. Mia would have been helpless to do anything except weeping quietly to the sound of her sister's sob.
"But what are we going to do?" Bai Vye said worriedly.
"We'll just have to look for her carefully. She wouldn't have gotten far; maybe she's hiding in a closet or somewhere, " Mia said amidst furtive sniffs to stop herself from crying. Looking at the clock hanging on the wall, she added, "We need to be quick! You still have classes, and I have an important mass to conduct."
After enlisting the help from their maids, the girls began the search for their youngest sister around the house.
Each of Baiyi's three biological daughters had their most outstanding traits. Bai Vye was the most brilliant and most promising; Bai Yuu was the most obedient and most dependable (owing to having the Warrior as her mother); finally, Bai Yin was the most babied and the one with the nastiest attitude. It was probably caused by how everyone in the family intuitively doted on the youngest and the cutest.
However, one could also wonder if it was the logical end to Lady Assassin's parenting approach. Bai Yin was born when the New World had just finished its pre-civilization development; it was the time when Baiyi was at his busiest. There was a new empire to create, mass human emigrations to oversee, new laws and constitution to be made — there were so many things on his plate that he had not even gotten the time to care for his latest daughter.
As he hardly returned home, Lady Assassin had to raise Bai Yin alone, which itself was already a red flag. She was somewhat of a womanchild even after she became a mother, so one could hardly be surprised at her unflattering parenting skill. In addition to that, in Lady Assassin's eyes, Bai Yin was a hard-fought trophy and the definitive symbol of her happily-ever-after. Naturally, this sentiment compelled her to coddle the child excessively; it was telling when the amount of doting Bai Yin alone received exceeded all of her elder sisters' combined.
When Baiyi finally finished the most urgent tasks on his hand, he immediately trained his attention to the youngest daughter. Feeling guilty for locking her out of his life when she was a child, the Fifth Walker ended up going a little overboard when he doted on Bai Yin, too.
Growing up, Mia, Bai Vye, and Bai Yuu were semi-frequently disciplined, yet Bai Yin had only been punished once throughout these twelve years. That incident was due to the girl — then a rowdy six-years-old — sneaking into Baiyi's lab. She had fiddled with his Void Crystals behind her mother's back, oblivious to the dangers they possessed. It had really gotten Lady Assassin into a fit.
Honestly, who would be surprised when a child growing up in such an environment turned out to be a pain in the neck?
| ← Ch. 606 | Ch. 608 → |