'So strange.'
'Something's wrong, look again.'
'Still so strange.'
"Mm? What's wrong?"
As if feeling a bit embarrassed by Kaito's strange gaze, Togawa Mizuho tilted her head slightly, brushing back a stray lock of hair near her ear in a somewhat self-conscious manner. Every motion was very natural, and full of girlish charm.
"…No, nothing."
After the initial surprise, Kaito had already figured out why Sakiko's mom would show up here.
Her daughter was living alone outside, with a somewhat distant personality. It was natural to worry. Just dropping by to take a look was perfectly normal.
"Mom, move over, you're in the way."
A little head with blue twin-tails peeked out from behind, or more accurately, "squeezed" her way out with difficulty.
The space in front of the entrance was very narrow, forming a terrain where one person could block the path. Even though Togawa Mizuho was quite slender, she still took up most of the hallway.
'In the way? Is this idiot daughter indirectly calling me fat?'
Togawa Mizuho still maintained a gentle smile. This rebellious little Sakiko, just like sticky rice cake, really needed a good smacking, she couldn't go a day without being disciplined.
Unaware that her mother had already marked her down in a little mental notebook, the rebellious Sakiko instantly switched to a sweet, soft persona in front of the president. Even her voice was much more delicate, and her high-pitched voice had quite the flavor of a certain familiar person.
"President, welcome back!"
The green-haired girl behind her also opened her mouth, and softly said, "Onii-chan, welcome home."
Kaito nodded at them in response, though he still found it a little odd, "How come Mortis isn't here?"
Considering how sticky the great Mortis-san is with her onii-chan, hearing he was coming home should've prompted a joyful headbutt straight into him, yet now she was nowhere to be seen. He found it a bit disorienting.
"She's hiding in her room."
Wakaba Mutsumi hesitated, then added, "She seems to… be in a bad mood."
Kaito: "?"
He released his divine sense to scan the direction of the bedroom.
Sure enough, he found someone hiding with her head buried in a pillow like an ostrich, shutting herself off.
The girl's silk-stockinged feet were kicking about restlessly in dissatisfaction, muttering something under her breath.
Kaito listened carefully, and roughly picked up words like "blue-haired evil witch."
"W-wait! Who's this Mortis you're talking about?", Togawa Sakiko was a little confused. She had only been gone for a couple of days, but it felt like two years had passed.
Togawa Mizuho also perked up her ears quietly, paying attention to this sudden piece of information.
"Strictly speaking…" Kaito thought for a moment, a bit unsure himself, and said, "You can treat her as Mutsumi's little sister, or big sister, either is fine?"
Togawa Sakiko: "?"
Togawa Mizuho: "?"
Mother and daughter looked at each other and saw a familiar confusion in each other's eyes.
'Aunt Mori/Minami… when did she secretly give birth to another daughter?'
———
"Why isn't Onii-chan back yet…"
The girl with light green long hair rolled on the bed, her slim but nicely proportioned legs clamping down on the pillow in her arms, visibly distressed.
Though born from Mutsumi's second personality, Mortis was different from Mutsumi. She did not like the girl named "Togawa Sakiko."
There were many reasons: because Sakiko seemed to want to steal her onii-chan; because Mutsumi, out of consideration for her existence, had become hesitant and timid.
And, most importantly, she didn't know how to face Sakiko.
Even though she now had a body, in this world, Mortis was still completely undocumented.
Even if she shared origin and soul with Mutsumi, and even if Mutsumi was Sakiko's childhood friend, that didn't mean she was.
Mutsumi's elder was not necessarily her elder.
Mutsumi's onii-chan was not necessarily, ahem, forget that. That one could stay.
Perhaps in their eyes, the name "Mortis" was just a wild girl who appeared out of nowhere but had a face exactly like Mutsumi.
That kind of thought made Mortis feel even more depressed in her already gloomy mood.
So, when the Togawa mother and daughter arrived earlier, she hid in her room alone and specifically told Mutsumi not to reveal her existence.
Of course, that was a dumb solution. Could avoid for a while, but not forever.
But it very much fit a child's mindset: when faced with scary situations, the first instinct is always to hide.
"Mm… Onii-chan…"
When people feel insecure, they always want something to rely on.
Mortis once again hugged the pillow tightly, and her mood, though low, improved somewhat. To her, her onii-chan's existence was like the safety word in an SM scene, just hearing it made her feel secure.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
The closed door was suddenly knocked on. In the next second, a familiar, clear male voice rang out.
"Mortis, may I come in?"
———
[Five Minutes Later]
The previously spacious bedroom suddenly became a little crowded with four people inside.
Togawa Mizuho looked at the girl in front of her, dressed only in silk sleepwear, same green long hair, same delicate features, even the curves on her chest looked like they'd been carved from the same mold as Mutsumi.
If Kaito hadn't just given a quick explanation of the context, suddenly seeing Mortis appear like that would've definitely made her suspect that Minami had actually given birth to twins back then.
'Come to think of it, if even crafting a physical body can be done, is this Kaito-san really a walking god on earth?'
It felt like the situation ran pretty deep.
'Can Sakiko, this silly girl, really handle it?'
While these thoughts raced through her mind, she still wore a gentle smile on her face, and reached out tenderly toward the girl hiding behind Onii-chan.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Togawa Mizuho. Mortis-chan, Mortis… is it okay if I call you that?"
Togawa Mizuho and Mori Minami had been close friends in their youth. This was the reason why Sakiko and Mutsumi became childhood friends. Without that connection, just being a famous actress wouldn't have qualified her daughter to be the companion of the Togawa family's future heir.
Mutsumi was someone she had watched grow up. In Togawa Mizuho's heart, she was like half her own daughter. And by extension, her attitude toward Mortis was naturally gentle.
What's more…
Even if Minami didn't want to admit she had another daughter, at least in Kaito's eyes, Mortis was still his little sister.
Just based on that relationship, Togawa Mizuho would still treat her as one of their own. After all, Kaito was her lifesaver, and Kaito's sister was of course also her.... 'Cough! Cough! Wait, this generation might get confusing, Surely Sakiko shouldn't call Mortis-chan "Auntie," right?'
'Then won't that mean she'll have to call Mutsumi "Auntie" too?'
'A childhood friend she grew up with suddenly became an elder, if my dumb daughter found out, she'd probably explode.'
'…So."
Togawa Mizuho pondered.
'How should I help her accept this?"
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