"Something's off... It's hard to intervene in this atmosphere..."

Bang! Bang!
From inside the room came a continuous series of harsh noises.
Charlotte stood by the door, her arms crossed, clicking her tongue.

A creepy, creaking sound rang out.
It clearly sounded like someone choking.
But there was no scream, not even a groan of agony.
It was as if a large beast was being soothed, with only the sound of someone gently stroking its head faintly echoing.

‘I thought their relationship was really bad...’

Every time Irene and the uncle crossed paths, they always created a cold, hostile atmosphere, so Charlotte thought they had a very bad relationship.
But after seeing the two recently, it didn’t seem to be the case...
Maybe no matter how much they hated each other, if they were family, it was different?
Since she had never experienced family, it was hard to understand.

‘Should I imagine Yuri or Yulia?’

Though she didn’t have a real family, Yuri and Yulia were probably the closest thing to it.
What if Yuri or Yulia suddenly went crazy and rushed at her like a madwoman?
Ah. If that happened, maybe she’d be like the uncle, not retaliating at all and just accepting it...

As soon as Charlotte considered switching places, she immediately understood with a long sigh.
‘If you’re a part of the uncle’s family, you protect them no matter what.’

Charlotte suddenly felt a little envious of Irene.
Of course, she wasn’t blind to the fact that the uncle treated her very well.
But somehow, it felt different...
Still, there was a strange, unexplained sense of envy rising in her.

‘Oh!? They're coming!’

Then she heard the door creak open.
Charlotte quickly hid in the shadows and covered her mouth.
Aslan and Irene were heading toward the lab.

They were probably going to continue the experiment they couldn’t finish yesterday.
From Aslan’s back, she could see that his body was covered in wounds.
Looking at those injuries made Charlotte feel unexplainably down, as if she were about to cry.

"I don’t like people who hurt the uncle..."

She didn’t like the uncle being hurt either.
So, she wasn’t particularly fond of Irene.
But seeing the uncle protect her like that, she couldn’t completely hate her either.

What was this feeling?
This feeling of simultaneously resenting and envying them...
Charlotte puckered her lips, deciding to go look for the first aid kit.
She just couldn’t stand looking at those wounds, so once the experiment was over, she planned to wrap them up with bandages.

When Irene came out of the lab, her eyelids swollen and red,
Charlotte, spotting her from a distance, immediately dashed to the first aid kit and wrapped bandages around herself.
There seemed to be a lot of wounds, so she was going to use as many as she could...!

‘Too late...’

She thought she’d been the quickest, having moved right after Irene left, but she found a small band-aid left in front of the door and immediately grew glum.
Yulia beat her to it.

What was going on inside was predictable.
Yulia, carrying the bandages she had been gathering from magazines, was probably sticking them all over the uncle.
She must’ve been planning this, saying something like, “I knew this would happen,” while doing it.

Charlotte knew very well that Yulia only carried around a couple of bandages.
She must’ve discovered the uncle’s injuries, rushed to her drawer, grabbed all the bandages she had collected, stuffed them into her pockets, and hurried over.
Yulia was so quick when it came to this...

‘Huh. Shouldn’t I just leave them be?’

Annoyed, Charlotte was about to open the door, but then she stopped short and froze.

Wait, would it be wrong to barge in now?
Yulia was alone with the uncle...
It was such a romantic situation, her putting band-aids on his wounds...
Wouldn’t this leave the way open for Yulia and the uncle to become closer?
She had planned to help Yulia, to help her feelings toward the uncle blossom, but wasn’t this just the right moment for them?
So, she shouldn’t interfere...
Charlotte felt a strange impulse to open the door, as if her heels were moving on their own.

‘What is this feeling...?’

From the gap in the lab door, nothing came out—no noise, no light.
But to Charlotte, it felt like the door was transparent, and she could see Yulia laughing and teasing, hearing the joyful chatter coming from inside.
This should be something to be happy about,
Her friend’s love was progressing smoothly, so she should feel proud, but instead, her heart felt tight, and an aching sensation spread through her chest.

What was this?
A completely unexplained, inexplicable phenomenon...
Charlotte stood frozen, unsure how to handle the situation.

"Charlotte, what are you doing there? You’re all wrapped up in bandages..."
"Huh?!"
"You really got a big shock, huh..."

The sensation of someone touching her shoulder made Charlotte jump in surprise.
Turning around, it was Yuri.

It had been a long time since Charlotte had been startled like this, especially since ever since she started swinging the super-strong sword, she could usually sense any moving object within 100 meters.
But right now, she hadn’t noticed Yuri approach until she was right behind her.

"What’s going on?"
"Uh, I... I just don’t know what to do... I thought staying still would be the right thing to do, but it seems like that’s what I wanted, but... my feelings don’t seem to match up. My chest feels tight, and I just keep fidgeting... What should I do?"
"...? "

Yuri tilted her head at Charlotte’s vague question.
It was surprising that Charlotte, who was always rushing into things, was now thinking so much.
Is this really Charlotte? The Charlotte I knew, who never thought about things before acting? Yuri was a bit confused.

It wasn’t really a typical dilemma for Charlotte.
So, Yuri didn’t want to answer her in a teasing way.
If Charlotte was really thinking it through, it must be an important matter.

"Well, I guess you just act on your feelings, right?"
"Huh? How can anyone just act on their feelings?"
"...Well, that’s what you always do."

Yuri almost laughed in disbelief.
"See, right now it’s important, so that’s why you’re not acting on your feelings, right?"
"Staying still, though, what’s the reason behind that judgment?"
"Huh? Reason? The reason is..."
"Isn’t that also your feelings? Past feelings. But those feelings have changed now."
"Oh! You’re right! That makes sense!"
"So, in the end, if you act on your feelings, wouldn’t that be true to yourself? If your feelings change, you just change with them."
"Aha!"

Charlotte’s face brightened immediately.
Of course! How could people’s actions always be consistent?
Feelings could change, and that was okay!
Forcing consistency would only be stubbornness, not integrity!

"Thanks, Yuri! I feel so much better now! No more need to stew about it!"
"Ugh..."

After the realization, Charlotte suddenly hugged Yuri tightly.
Yuri’s face turned bright red at the sudden physical affection.
This... should be for Yulia...
I’d rather watch than join in myself...

"Ugh..."
"Alright! Shall we go in now?"

As Yuri melted into exhaustion, Charlotte finally let go of her and threw open the door.

"Oh, no!"
"I knew this would happen!"

As the door opened, the first thing Charlotte saw was Yulia, who looked flustered as she had run out of band-aids.
And Aslan, whose wounds were half-covered in band-aids.

Heh! I knew they’d need me!
Charlotte thought she had made the right choice in opening the door and wiped her nose in satisfaction.

Yuri was right.
Sometimes you just have to act on your feelings.
It was better to feel relieved than to suffer from unexplainable discomfort.
Sitting still and agonizing over things was something Yulia would do, not me.

Helping Yulia was good, but I’m still my number one priority.
Now that her chest felt lighter, Charlotte began wrapping bandages around Aslan’s forearm.

‘So, why did my chest feel tight when I left Yulia and the uncle alone together...?’

As she gently touched Aslan’s thick arm, Charlotte found herself caught in thought.
When she looked up, her eyes met Aslan’s.
She froze for a moment as his other hand reached out to her.

"Huh? How do I tie this? I’ve never been hurt before..."
"Give it here. Hold the other end tight."
"Ah, okay..."

As Charlotte tightened the bandage, she naturally got closer to Aslan, almost as if they were embracing.
Then, from behind Aslan’s shoulder, she saw Yulia looking at them with a dejected expression.

Every time Charlotte brushed against Aslan’s body, it felt like Yulia might...

Yulia, on the verge of tears, looked as though she was about to burst into sobs.
Watching her, Charlotte felt an inexplicable sense of exhilaration, and for a moment, she didn’t know how to react.
I was supposed to be helping Yulia...
Why am I enjoying this, even while sabotaging her...?

Thinking about it, this wasn’t the first time.
Up until now, she had been interrupting in the same way.
She had always denied it consciously, but unconsciously, she couldn’t help but interfere.
Why...?

‘Ah... Now I get it...’

The brief moment of anguish from this inexplicable sense of exhilaration didn’t last long.
Charlotte quickly realized its source and gave a bitter smile.
I’m really terrible, aren’t I?

It wasn’t that the form was different.
I also liked the uncle...
That aching pain in my chest wasn’t anything else—it was jealousy...
Once she recognized it, the mood she had considered a mystery began to make sense to her.

"…!?"

At that moment, Charlotte’s skin crawled as she suddenly sensed a chilling energy she had never felt before, and she quickly glanced behind her.
A piercing gaze coming through the crack of the door.

‘No way, Yuri too...?’

Could it be that Yuri was also after the uncle...?
Charlotte was momentarily stunned into silence by the shock.
When did Yuri seduce him!?