"Alright, that's it." "Is it over?" "Yeah. I was going to check the endpoints, like the hands and feet, but the neodymium reaction is so close to zero that it wouldn't mean anything."

"···."

After finishing the experiment, Irene quickly got dressed, pursing her lips tightly. She was honestly losing her mind.

‘Why is my heart pounding like this...?’

Her heart had been racing the entire time during the experiment, and it was beyond confusing. Had she embarrassed herself too much yesterday and today? No. Paradoxically, after showing so much embarrassment, it felt like she was finally calming down.

The one she hated most had now become the one who gave her the most relief. Acknowledging that fact made her feel a little at ease.

"I’m leaving now." "Sis. And..." "I know. You’re talking about the fee for breaking the skull bones last time, right? I’ll send it. I mean, how much could it cost to fix a few broken bones?" "I’m just glad you understand." "···."

But still, Irene couldn’t get used to the sight of her younger sibling being this different. Even though she was still sneering at her with that familiar, venomous expression, it didn't bother her as much anymore. She couldn't understand what had changed.

‘Is this what it means to value family?’

When she was younger, she couldn’t stand them. Now, the only person she could rely on was her younger sibling. Emilia was too clueless to count on...

‘Black magic research wasn’t as bad as I thought either.’

When she was asking where the neodymium chunks were, Irene thought that her sibling had finally gone insane like their father, but seeing the actual research made her realize that had been an overreaction.

Irene believed that Aslan would be fine. This research presentation would not only save the Vermond family from ruin but would also elevate its standing. She had doubted and obstructed him before, but now, she decided to give him her full trust.

If he messed up again and lost his mind... then she would kill him herself.

That was the mindset she had.

‘At least before the academic presentation, I need to handle the disturbances.’

Of course, Aslan had full control over the family’s management, but there were still things he didn’t know.

Aslan couldn’t even imagine how much the forces jealous of the Vermond family were scheming in the shadows. He didn’t need to know. Irene would handle it all herself.

The darkness of the shadows could be managed by someone like her.

"Hmm..."

Irene climbed into the carriage heading toward the city. She gazed out the window, lost in thought. No matter how much she tried to forget, the dreams she had kept coming back to her.

[Hide yourself. Close your heart, silence your voice. Later, you must hide yourself so thoroughly that you forget who you are.]

It was definitely a memory from her childhood...

Who had she been talking to back then, with that young voice?

[Someone you can trust will appear. Just wait until then.]

And who was the "someone you can trust" they had spoken of?

She had tried to forget, but now, as she thought about it again, it seemed that the reason she could act like the villainous Irene Vermond was thanks to the owner of that voice.

After all, she had believed that someone would come, that someday, the painful act would end.

She could only start pretending to be the villain because she believed there would be an end to it.

But where was that end?

‘The one I can trust isn’t Aslan, right?’

Aslan was certainly her ally now, but he wasn’t the "someone you can trust" the voice spoke of. After all, he was the one who made her hide her true self and play the villain.

He was someone who had undergone a miraculous change, but the person she could trust had not appeared yet.

"Could it be that someone else has taken over Aslan’s body...?"

She muttered the possibility without thinking, and immediately her expression froze. Huh?

"Pff... Yeah, that’s impossible..."

Then, realizing how ridiculous her own words sounded, she burst into laughter and shook her head. It couldn’t be. Her imagination was running wild and had entered the realm of fantasy.

"I wish it were true..."

If that ridiculous fantasy were true, then she would be able to confirm once and for all the cause of the fluttering in her heart every time Aslan was near. She could stop pretending to be the villain and return to the mansion.

As Irene imagined that unlikely "what if," she smiled bitterly.

"Ugh, seriously. You’re not a cat, you know."

[The evil god, 'Kali,' proudly shows off your battle scars!]

After Irene left, I couldn’t hold back the groan I had been stifling. I had just been strangled by my sister, scratched up all over... It felt like I was the butler of a house that kept a giant cat.

If I kept putting up with my sister's hysterics, I might die. Plus, because of Laura’s eyes, I couldn’t even lie properly...

The last 18 hours had been pure hell.

But the one silver lining was that Irene seemed to be improving. Irene, who had been corrupted into darkness by Aslan’s influence, was starting to warm up as she was cared for with kindness.

It still wasn’t the right time for her to stay at the mansion, but she would get better, bit by bit. I could start to see a future where this chaotic household would be on the road to normalcy.

‘Although there’s a chance it might end up in complete ruin...’

Before, whenever Irene approached, she exuded an aura of death, and I could feel a chill from her sharp gaze. I hadn’t realized it, but now, I noticed that Irene actually gave off a pleasant scent when she had relaxed and her tension had eased. It was hard to resist the impulse to react to the sweet fragrance.

‘I’ll have to resist.’

Though this was the first woman I had met since coming into this world, for Irene, I was just her suddenly reformed younger brother.

There was no chance at all.

With that thought, I completely gave up.

...Though, maybe just a little bit of regret remained.

"Aslan, is the experiment done? Where’s the data... Ugh!? What’s going on with your appearance?!" "Ah."

Just then, the door swung open with a force different from when Irene had entered. Yuria appeared and gasped when she saw me.

"You're a complete mess! Was it that woman...?" "Yeah, it was." "She was fine with us, but why does she go crazy over Aslan... Ugh, what’s all this?"

"It’ll be fine soon, don’t worry." "I’m not fine. It pains me to see such beautiful skin all ruined. Come here..."

Yuria grabbed my ear and pulled me close. As I was pulled, Yuria got so close that she startled herself and took a step back with a startled "Eep!"

Her cheek turned slightly red. She then grabbed my chin and turned my face to the side, avoiding eye contact.

"Don’t look at me." "···." "I-I don’t mean I don’t want you to look at me! It’s just... It’s uncomfortable! If I’m aware of your gaze, I feel like I won’t be able to do anything!"

Yuria seemed flustered, trying to explain herself as she added more details, but I knew from the start that it wasn’t because she hated me. She just wasn’t used to this.

"Really, what did you do to get to this point... Hold on, I’ve prepared some bandages for this."

Yuria began rummaging through her pockets, pulling out a bunch of bandages. She must’ve started preparing after the last time I got scratched.

"...Now, hold still."

She began wrapping my arm with character bandages, her movements slow and meticulous. Of course, the long, deep scars would never be covered by such small bandages.

Seeing her struggle, I couldn’t help but smile as I watched her focus so intently.

"Don’t look at me." "Right, right."

She had a way of showing care that was clumsy yet endearing. I couldn’t help but find it amusing as I watched her fuss over me, though I was sure she wasn’t actually annoyed.

"Wait... these bandages are running out!" "Where are these character bandages from anyway...?"

Yuria panicked when she ran out of bandages. Apparently, they were from a magazine subscription that the mansion had.

"...What now? What do I do?" "Don’t worry, I’ve got it!"

Then, the door slammed open again with a different sound, and Charlotte appeared, wrapped in bandages from head to toe.

Is she cosplaying as a mummy?

"Ha ha ha! Fancy bandages! Yuria, you're still such a kid!" "What?!" "When you’re hurt, you should use proper bandages!" "Why did you wrap yourself in bandages though...?" "I didn’t want to waste them, so I only took what I needed!" "Why not just bring all of them here and cut them when you need them?" "Ah?! Yuria, are you a genius?!" "···."

Charlotte exclaimed loudly, and Yuria sighed in exasperation. Slowly, Charlotte walked over and began wrapping my arm with bandages.

"How do I tie this? I’ve never done this before." "Here, let me help. Hold the other end."

Just as I was about to help, a sense of danger immediately alerted me. Sure enough...

‘This is terrifying...’

From the slightly open door, I could see a pair of small eyes glaring at me.

Father-in-law, please, grant us permission for this engagement soon...