Chapter 78: 5-4 Sisters

It was time for my final reunion, at least for now. There were a few other people I would like to see, such as Sana and Giogi, the latter of whom I regret to say, but I had completely forgotten in the wake of everything.

Poor Giogi, I really hope you managed to get out alright, even Gustav didn’t bring you up.

He would have been around the Francois Estate when things went down. Although we were not super close friends, if he had gotten hurt because of his involvement with me it would be troubling. The state of those two was something to be discussed with Gustav later, for now, it was time to face the music.

Talking with Jacqueline had eased my nerves about the coming encounter somewhat, however they had returned in force now that I was looking at the door to Rosial’s rooms. Taking a deep breath, and raising my hand to knock, I had to jump out of the way as the door flew open.

“…What do you mean that was too much? Felicity did what you said!”

To the casual observer, Felicity had just thrown the door open, nearly blowing me away, and was now talking to herself. Of course, that was not the case. If I had to guess, I would say that her sense of smell picked me up on the other side of the door, and Claire realized I was waffling about instead of announcing myself. We would need to have words later.

“She’s fine, stand down.”

At my sharp order, the knight who was about to grab Felicity fell back into line. The overblown reaction was understandable when you consider what just happened from his point of view so I was not upset.

“Felicity?” Smiling sweetly at the rambunctious girl, I advanced.

“EEH! Menacing!” Making a dated reference, she turned on her heel and attempted to flee back inside the room, but I was faster and able to catch her by the scruff of her neck.

“Honestly, the things she shows you… Relax, I am not going to hurt you.”

Felicity had done her best impression of a dead fish after I caught her, going completely limp. At my words, she giggled.

“Felicity knows, we were just having fun!”

“That being said, you need to be more careful, and reflect on your actions; no head pats or ear scratchies today.”

The look of sheer mortification and distress on her face at my announcement would have melted even the coldest heart, but luckily I had already died once; my heart was made of sterner stuff. It was damn hard to resist though.

“How is Rosial?” Moving quickly to change the conversation before my decision wavered, I asked after my blood sister.

Felicity’s face turned dark for a brief instant before she wiped the expression away with an innocent enough smile, “Rosial Imoutochan is inside, she wants to meet our big sister!”

…That emphasis isn’t a good sign. I knew Rosial was a few months younger, but if Felicity is fixating on that, it means she’s feeling like she needs to compensate… Maybe meeting them together was the wrong choice? No, if I had picked one or the other, it would make the left-out party feel like I was playing favorites. I need them to get past feelings like that…

“I see, can you, can you introduce us?” Letting my true feelings show on my face, it displayed all of the nervousness and anxiety I was feeling at this moment. My show of weakness had the desired effect, as Felicity’s own expression turned serious.

“Yes, Rosial Imouto is a bit scared too, but she doesn’t think Felicity knows; she doesn’t know Felicity can smell it.”

Taking my hand, Felicity pulled me towards the door. Behind me, one of the knights made a snickering sound, which I ignored splendidly. Upon entering the room, my eyes saw Rosial for the first time in nearly four years. Granted, I had technically seen her just a few months ago, but given what had happened then, I would rather forget it had happened at all.

She was nervously pacing the length of the room, in a manner unlike a child her age. The sight of it reminded me of everything she must have been through, and I recalled the details of what Jacqueline had told me vividly, even without relying on Eidetic Memory. The desire to run up and hug her was strong but owing to our last meeting, my legs seemed unwilling to take that action.

A moment later she saw me and stopped her errant pathing. Looking where she had just been walking, I would have sworn she had worn the carpet down somewhat. We locked eyes in a silence so thick that I could hear my heart thumping in my chest.

“Rosial,”

“Sister,”

Both of us started talking at the same time and fell silent in turn.

““You go first.””

““No, you go first.””

I was about to continue the cliché, but thought better of it and held my tongue. After another moment of waiting to see if I would speak, Rosial began talking.

“Stahlia, sister, I… Wait, where did you go!?”

Whirling her head around, as though searching the room for someone, Rosial seemed to be in a panic over something, by the sounds of it someone was missing.

“Rosial? I did not go anywhere; I am still right here.” I took a step towards her, but a small tug on my back halted my movement.

“Stahlia Neechan, don’t… Rosial Imoutochan doesn’t mean you… I think she means her ‘imaginary friend’…”

Imaginary friend? What does Claire mean by that?

Still, the fact that she had one, and even seemed to have been hallucinating its presence, was a bit concerning. Normally a child having an imaginary friend or two was not a big deal but given Rosial’s past traumas, it was a bit concerning. It was gratifying that Felicity seemed to genuinely care about Rosial, for now I needed to do something to help Rosial. To that end, I gently removed Felicity’s hand from the hem of my skirt.

Slowly approaching her while being sure to stay in vision, I reached out a hand to grasp my sister’s shoulder. The contact caused her to give a start, but after a moment she seemed to recognize where she was and who I was.

“Stahlia? Where did Stali go?”

So the name of her imaginary friend is ‘Stali’?

Everything was starting to make sense, slowly but surely.

“I don’t know where she went, do you want to go look for her?”

My question received a tenuous nod in response, but it was something to work with. Taking Rosial in one hand, I collected Felicity in the other and led the way out of the room. Of course, there was no doubt in my mind that we would find neither head nor hair of “Stali” that being said, we did not need to.

“What can you tell me about Stali?”

“She’s always there to protect me!” My sister’s face lit up at the opportunity to talk about her imaginary friend.

“Really? How long have you known her?”

“Ever since I left the black place…”

Noting Rosial’s change in tone, I decided to change the subject away from her past.

“How has everything been since…”

“Since I died? The nice man gives me whatever I need, but I miss Mr. Five…”

Right, I guess that makes sense. I’m sure that asshole was manipulative as all hell. I’ll have to really twist the knife when our paths cross next.

“The nice man?”

Rosial nodded, “The nice man, the one who found me and the broken tool… Ow!”

Hearing Rosial calling Jacqueline a ‘broken tool’ had caused me to subconsciously tighten my grip on her hand, which had obviously hurt her. Quickly letting go, I apologized, “Sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt you…”

My sister shrugged it off, “It’s ok, it didn’t hurt that much… You really care about her, and me, don’t you?”

It was subtle, but her tone had changed a bit. It was less childish, more like someone who had been through something rather extreme. From what I had seen, this was probably the result of the memories she had gotten back from the third figment.

In this state, she’s probably a bit more stable… But should I encourage this version? That could wind up suppressing her remaining innocence, but if I try and suppress this version of her it would be like denying the past…

“Yes, I care about both of you, Felicity as well. Family is important to me.”

It didn’t seem like treating Rosial like a simple child would be for the best. Much like Felicity, her life had forced her to grow up quickly, though unlike Felicity her mind was a lot more troubled. My feline sister was capable of moments of extreme maturity, but she had a guiding force in Claire. Rosial didn’t have that, so her own mental state was incredibly unstable.

Case in point, creating an imaginary friend. Normally it wouldn’t mean anything, but she’s way too attached.

“Have you seen Stali anywhere?”

Rosial shook her head, “No, but I don’t think that matters.”

…What? You freaking out was the reason I’m entertaining this search!

“What do you mean?”

Frowning, Rosial adopted a voice like this was something obvious that I should know automatically, “Stali isn’t real, so she’ll come back on her own if I just wait long enough.”

So her personality is totally fractured then. The mature version knows and accepts reality, while the more childish version needs constant attention…

“Well, if that’s the case, what do you want to do?”

Rosial’s eyes lit up, “I want to spar!”

“…No, not happening.”

Her expression fell, but this was something that would not be tolerated. The last thing I wanted was to have that kind of relationship with my sister.

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Felicity tugged on my hand, trying to get my attention. When I looked over at her, she motioned with her free hand to get my attention. Lending her an ear, she offered a bit of advice, courtesy of Claire.

“Claire Neechan says that you should do it.”

Claire probably had her reasons, but I couldn’t imagine what they might be. Fighting Rosial was the least desirable outcome here, the one thing that logic dictated should not happen under any circumstance.

But if Claire thinks that I should… Maybe it’s for the best?

This was not going how I had expected it to. On one hand, I didn’t know what I had been expecting. Certainly not a pleasant tea party like with Edith and Sarala, nor a tearful commiseration like with Jacqueline. Maybe sparing with her was for the best after all. It was what she wanted to do after all. But was that really behavior that should be tolerated, should be encouraged?

It felt like we were at a crossroads like whatever was decided here would influence Rosial’s recovery. Because she would recover. Even if she had to be dragged along kicking and screaming the whole way, I would be certain to ensure that much at the very least.

But that was for later, for now… Taking a deep breath, I decided to trust Claire’s judgment, “Once. Only one match, then we’ll be doing something else, alright?”

Rosial’s face immediately lit up at my words.

“Hurray!”

Turning to the knight commander, I inquired about a place where we could do this thing at. Meanwhile, Rosial had become quite fidgety and was excitedly hopping from foot to foot, shifting her weight around as she went.

I really hope I don’t regret this…

Our party was guided to a practice room that was presently unused; normally it would be for the guards of whoever was staying in these rooms, but since Rosial and Felicity were being guarded by the regular palace knights, there was nobody to get in our way.

Rosial moved some distance away from me, gripping a wooden knife. The two of us fell into a ready stance in mirror of each other; both of us were using the same style after all.

The question is, should I win or throw?

The idea of Rosial winning through her own abilities was laughable; the only way she could do so was through a stroke of luck so astronomically unlikely it wasn’t even calculable. That probably sounded incredibly cocky and self-assured of me, but it was the honest truth. The gap between us was simply too large. Even if I did not utilize Blood Magic, the odds of her being able to beat me were slim at best; I highly doubted she was as high leveled as me.

Probably around level ten, fifteen at most.

She would be high for her age, definitely, but knowing how much experience was needed to hit twenty… I really hoped she wasn’t. It was something that could be checked and would be easy enough to do so, but I decided not to do so. At least until after our match, if her stats were known to me beforehand then it would change my plan of approach. That would not be fair to her.

I think, winning would be best, but I should let her showoff a bit before I do it.

Felicity seemed a bit grumpy; even if she had relayed Claire’s message that didn’t mean she wasn’t feeling neglected, but for now she was holding her peace.

…I hope she doesn’t want to fight as well, though if she does, I’ll probably just have to do it.

The guard captain asked me if this was really alright and when I answered in the affirmative, he moved to a position where he could serve as a referee for the bout. Holding up one of his hands, he made a chopping motion. Rosial began to circle me, slowly.

Rotating to keep her in view at all times, my pace being set by her own.

This persisted for a while, neither of us willing to move first. Eventually though, Rosial grew fed up with my passivity and activated a skill of her own. A few mirages matching her own appearance separated from her body and walked in mirror of her. My eyes seemed incapable of focusing on any of them, sliding right off after a second or two.

I was aware of where she and her mirage clones were, but it was like they didn’t exist like my brain refused to register their presence. They were advancing towards me steadily, the cadence of their footsteps synced perfectly with my heartbeat.

Right, well, I can still probably block her attack, but this will make it more difficult. Of course it wouldn’t be so easy.

If I couldn’t perceive her with my normal senses, I would just have to augment them. Using Blood Magic to fill my eyes and ears with mana, I enhanced them. Applying an aspect wasn’t needed here, as all that mattered was overpowering Rosial’s skill with my own mana. I was banking on the fact that my own capacity was higher than hers of course, but that was definitely the case.

Sure enough, the mirages faded away from my vision and it was once again possible for me to properly perceive her existence. Just in time as well, since she was a lot closer than I had realized. Hurriedly throwing up my own wooden blade in a guard, I was able to block her attack as she lunged at me. Knocking her own weapon out of her hand with a quick slap, I assumed that was the end of things.

That was a misjudgment on my part, after all, a battle isn’t won by simply disarming your opponent. Rosial’s foot nearly caught me in the sternum, it would have, had I not leaned back at the last moment. A feat only made possible due to my [Kinetic Perception] skill letting me see the attack coming.

So that skill was mostly working, what gives with Eidetic Memory forcing flashbacks instead of just letting me remember detail?

Questions for later, for now I had a duel to wrap up. Darting forward and grabing Rosial’s foot, I used it to put her on the ground. Gently of course; hurting her through my own actions anymore than had already been done was unthinkable.

“Do you yield?”

She glared up at me and struggled for a moment before going limp, “Fine.”

Not that I was going to fall for that, “Say it.”

“…I yield.”

I let her get up; if she hadn’t admitted defeat clearly she might have tried to continue things. After dusting herself off Rosial fixed me with a pouty face, complete with puffed cheeks.

“You didn’t even try to take that seriously!”

What…? Why would I fight you seriously? I didn’t even want to fight in the first place!

“What do you mean?”

She crossed her arms and glared at me, “When you beat me last time, it was so pretty… But here, you didn’t do anything at all!”

I… I guess that makes sense… She only knows assassin and fighting work, so it’s very likely that she’s somehow equating this to affection in some sort of twisted attempt to interact with me? Or I’m completely wrong… Damn it! Why is this stuff so hard!?

I bit my lip and closed my eyes, “Sorry, Rosial. I did not realize you felt that way… If you want, we can practice more later on, but for now, don’t you think that Felicity feels alone?”

I really hope I don’t regret this… Was this why Claire told me I should go along with her? I want to help her recover what little of her childhood she has left, not mold her into a perfect killer!

Rosial looked over at Felicity, who was watching from the sidelines with a complicated expression that was halfway between jealousy and awe. For what it was worth, the knights as well seemed somewhat surprised by the fight as well. Even I hadn’t been expecting something like that mirage step thing.

Speaking of which, now that the fight was over it would be alright for me to try and appraise her. I activated my Divine Eyes and… couldn’t see her status. Looking at Rosial with my divine eyes, I could see her mana just fine, but her status didn’t show up at all. Looking over at Felicity demonstrated that things were working correctly since her status showed up without issue. To get a third point of comparison, I quickly checked one of the knights but was likewise unable to view his status.

So, it works on Felicity, but not Rosial, and not the Knight. I didn’t check Jacqueline, Edith, or Sarala, but it probably wouldn’t work on them either… It might work on Stil, and if it does then I would know what the criteria is.

My working theory for this new sight-based appraisal was that it required the target and I to be soul-linked, or have been soul-linked before. That was hopefully not the case, since it would make the ability almost entirely useless.

I’ll try it on Stil first, then with permission, on Rupert. Until then, best not to worry about it.

Using my original Appraisal method on Rosial was out of the question, at least until I got my mana control back under control; I did not want to turn my sister into frozen sister pieces.

“Come on Felicity, Rosial, let’s go back to my rooms. It is getting late.”

Rosial looked confused by this suggestion, but Felicity’s face immediately lit up happily.

“Yay!”

“Stahlia, why would we go there if it’s getting late?”

I gave Rosial a warm smile, “To sleep.”

“But our beds aren’t in your room.”

“Correct, but my bed is.”

“So will we sleep on the floor?”

Are you kidding with me?

“No, you two will be sleeping with me.”

“But why though…?”

This exchange was going nowhere, but I had entertained Rosial’s desire to fight me, now she would entertain my desire for a sleepover.

“Because.”

Rosial seemed to decide it wasn’t a topic she would get a satisfactory answer to, so she simply went along with it. We got back to my room and had a meal together, just the three of us. After dinner, it was time for girl talk, or it would be if Edith and Sarala were here. Felicity and Rosial were both a bit young for that stuff.

Instead of talking about boys, I taught them a series of games from Earth. Felicity already knew most of these, but be owing to Claire’s guiding force she at least pretended to be new. At first, Rosial was having a hard time figuring out why things like Patty Cake were fun, but eventually she slowly started to enjoy herself. It probably helped that she was naturally competitive, and Felicity turned out to be a good rival for that.

By the time it was time for bed, both girls had grown tired enough that they fell asleep quite quickly. When morning came, both were sleeping peacefully on either side of me.

 

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