The next morning.
Ling Ling woke up to a familiar cold touch.
“Mm…”
She opened her eyes groggily, and the first thing she saw was her little sister’s face just inches away.
Lin Jiu’s index finger was pressed against her forehead, the tip still carrying the chill of a milk carton just taken out of the fridge.
“…Can’t you wake me up in a normal way?”
“But big sis looks too cute when she’s still half-asleep. I wanted to see a little more.”
Lin Jiu tilted her head, her smile perfectly innocent. “Plus, big sis took the initiative to hug me to sleep last night, so I’m in a great mood today. That’s why I wanted to wake you up in a special way.”
Ling Ling stared at her expressionlessly for three seconds, then reached out and pinched Lin Jiu’s cheeks, pulling them apart.
“Mm—big sis—it hurts hurts hurts—!”
“If it doesn’t hurt, you won’t learn.”
“But big sis said last night, ‘I will always be your big sister’—mmph mmph!”
Ling Ling increased the pressure of her fingers.
***
Five minutes later, the two sat down at the dining table.
Breakfast was a simple bacon-and-egg sandwich with hot milk. Lin Jiu’s cooking was as good as ever.
Ling Ling took a few bites of the sandwich, then picked up her glass and drank some milk. She suddenly noticed her sister sitting across from her, cheek resting on her palm, watching her with a smile, her own breakfast untouched.
Seeing that smiling expression, Ling Ling remembered the mushy words she had said last night. Her face flushed red without her permission.
Watching her shy, blushing sister, Xiao Jiu’s smile deepened.
Ling Ling decided not to think about last night anymore. She finished the rest of her breakfast in a few quick bites, then stood up and walked toward the entrance.
After finishing her own breakfast, Lin Jiu followed along. She naturally crouched down and helped tie Ling Ling’s shoelaces, the motion so smooth that it gave Ling Ling no chance to do it herself.
“I’m not a child anymore…”
Ling Ling looked down at her sister, who was crouched at her feet.
“I know that.”
Lin Jiu looked up.
“Even though big sis isn’t a child, tying big sis’s shoelaces is a privilege that belongs only to a little sister. Big sis can’t take it away~”
***
The moment they stepped out of the apartment, the morning light poured through the old buildings of the neighborhood, casting dappled patches on the stone pavement.
The early morning air was refreshing, clearing her head.
Ling Ling took a deep breath. She felt that today was going to be a peaceful day—until that thought shattered the instant she turned the corner.
Standing by the vending machine in front of the apartment building was a person who shouldn’t have been there.
She wore a slightly modified version of the Luter Academy uniform. The skirt, which she had altered, barely reached mid-thigh, and black knee-high socks hugged her slender, shapely calves.
Her long pink hair was tied into a side ponytail. A lollipop dangled from her lips.
It was Hua Jianxi. She was leaning against the vending machine, holding two cans of coffee. When she saw the sisters walk out, a smile broke out on her face, and she raised a hand in greeting.
“Good morning, Zero! And little sister Jiu!”
The moment she spotted Hua Jianxi, Lin Jiu’s smile shifted from spring warmth to a winter chill.
“Good morning, Senior Hua.”
Her voice remained polite, but every word seemed squeezed through clenched teeth.
“What brings you here so early to see big sis? Anything special?”
“Nothing particularly special~”
Hua Jianxi completely ignored the dark aura radiating from Lin Jiu. She walked naturally to Ling Ling’s other side and handed her one of the coffee cans.
“Here, Zero.”
“You worked late last night. Consider this a treat~ It’s sweetened. I know you like your morning drinks sweet.”
Ling Ling took the coffee without changing her expression, but she accepted it without a moment’s hesitation.
Lin Jiu caught that detail perfectly. Her smile turned a few degrees colder.
“How did Senior Hua know that big sis likes her drinks sweet?”
“Because I’m Zero’s devoted fan~”
“In all those forum posts where Zero wrote ten-thousand-word analyses about herself, she completely revealed her daily habits.”
Hearing Hua Jianxi’s declaration, Ling Ling’s eye twitched. ‘That post was just me writing for fun back then. I never thought anyone would actually read it seriously.’
“But not a single word in the ten-thousand-word analysis mentioned me. I’m so sad~”
“Say that again and I’ll delete the post.”
“No worries, Zero! I’ve already copied the post content thousands of times, ready to show the world~”
“If you dare to post it, I’ll pull out your tongue.”
The two of them chatted like old friends who had known each other for years—bickering, teasing, and bantering.
Ling Ling took the coffee from the other girl, popped the tab, and didn’t bother with unnecessary politeness.
Lin Jiu walked silently beside them for a few steps. Then she reached out and gently tugged at Ling Ling’s sleeve.
“Big sis.”
Her voice was low. “When did you and Senior Hua become so close?”
Ling Ling’s footsteps faltered.
She turned to look at her sister, whose face was painted with a deliberately pitiful expression—like a child whose favorite toy had been snatched away.
Ling Ling was silent for a moment.
She didn’t say “We’re not that close,” nor did she say “You’re overthinking it.” She simply held the coffee can, from which she had already taken a sip, and offered it to Lin Jiu.
“Want a sip?”
Lin Jiu blinked. She looked down at the coffee can, then up at her sister’s eyes, which betrayed no emotion.
Then she took a small sip from the can, her lips landing precisely where Ling Ling had drunk from.
“…Too sweet.”
“Don’t you like sweet things?”
“Because big sis drank from it, it’s even sweeter.”
Hua Jianxi stood beside them, lollipop still in her mouth, watching the “sisterly affection” scene with an amused curve to her lips.
“Zero, you really spoil your little sister too much.”
“It’s compensation.”
“Compensation for what?”
“For not coming home to eat last night.”
Lin Jiu’s eyes lit up for a moment, but quickly returned to a slightly dissatisfied expression.
“Big sis doesn’t think a can of coffee is enough to buy me off, does she?”
“Then what do you want?”
“Big sis has to watch a movie with me tonight. Just the two of us. Senior Hua and Sister Ye aren’t allowed.”
Hua Jianxi raised both hands in surrender.
“Fine, fine, I won’t come. I wouldn’t want to intrude on the two of you lovey-dovey sisters.”
“Besides, I’ve already got Zero booked for a strawberry frappe at noon today. I’ll leave tonight’s time for little sister Jiu.”
Lin Jiu’s smile became even colder.
Ling Ling drank her coffee expressionlessly, pretending to be an emotionless cardboard cutout.
***
The morning light fell on the three of them, casting long shadows across the concrete pavement of the old neighborhood.
Their shadows sometimes overlapped, sometimes separated—like some sort of intricate, delicate diagram of human relationships.
Hua Jianxi walked on Ling Ling’s left, her steps light and airy. Lin Jiu held Ling Ling’s right arm, clinging tighter than usual.
And Ling Ling, stuck in the middle, felt the starkly different auras radiating from both sides. She began to seriously contemplate one question: ‘What kind of sin did I commit in my past life to be caught in this level of shuraba, surviving by the skin of my teeth?’
Ah, such a hassle.
What was even scarier was that they had only been out of the house for less than ten minutes. At school, there was still a tsundere young lady waiting for her.
She looked up at the sky. The image of Ye Fengxue, perpetually ready to flare up like an angry cat, already floated in her mind.
Then she took another sip of coffee. She suddenly felt that today’s cup could use a bit more sugar.
When they arrived at the academy gate, Ye Fengxue was indeed waiting for her there.