“Edmund, this person’s soul is quite unusual, isn’t it?”
The liquor, or rather, the music box of the liquor asked Edmund a question.
Edmund smiled gently at the question and kindly explained who I was, how I had entered this body, and that I was to take a test to inherit a legacy. After hearing the whole story, he smiled and said to me.
“A test, huh? That sounds tough. In times like this, I suppose I should say ‘hang in there,’ right?”
“That’s right.”
“Good to know.”
I couldn’t get used to the fact that a voice was coming from the music box. What kind of ability lets it talk like that? The woman I met just before, was it Lega? She seemed to do everything ‘upside-down.’
“Liquor. We should start introducing you to others. Take care now.”
“You too, Edmund.”
The corners of his mouth lifted subtly, as if it was hard for him to express emotion due to being stitched up.
We quickly left the room and began walking down the corridor. This time, with a clear end in sight, we wouldn’t be stopping long.
“This time, it’s the lounge.”
“The lounge… you say?”
“Indeed. It’s a room for various troublemakers to take a break, so you should be able to meet quite a few people.”
Quite a few people, huh.
What kinds of creatures could possibly be waiting for me this time?
Curiosity and tension mixed within me as I followed him into the lounge. The lounge that came into view was unbelievably large. It seemed to be at least the size of a soccer field.
When I turned my head to take in the scenery of the room, I noticed five humanoid figures each busy with their own tasks. Was I supposed to introduce myself to them now?
“Those in the lounge are those who can’t resist boredom. For example…”
“Hey, you new here? Nyan-an! Just like that!”
Hearing a voice from below, I looked down and found a woman dressed in something resembling a straitjacket lying on the floor. She looked at me and effortlessly bounced back up.
“Peymin! This person is here to take the test to inherit a legacy.”
“Wow, really? That’s super hard~”
The disheveled woman tilted her head at a right angle, looking at me with her mouth wide open. Something felt off.
Can a human’s neck even twist at a 90-degree angle? Memories of common sense that had slightly escaped me due to Millia hit me, making me feel uneasy.
“What’s up? You’re not surprised?”
“I have a partner who can detach their head, you see.”
“Seriously? Is that one of the Quartz family members too?”
“I doubt it.”
“Oh really? There are so many weird things in the world, huh~ I wanna go out and see!”
The woman in the straitjacket began humming cheerfully with a bright smile. I hesitated to engage in conversation further as I felt the atmosphere was utterly unpredictable.
Every single one of them seemed abnormal, making it impossible to gauge what kind of conversation they would like or dislike. Just a moment ago, the woman in the straitjacket seemed to lose interest in me and suddenly toppled backward, rolling on the floor.
I quietly turned to Edmund and asked in a small voice.
“What is up with that person?”
“Her mind is a garden of flowers… but her ability isn’t related to that garden. She is effectively confined here. Whenever a conversation partner drops by, she gets really happy… though that was almost ten years ago.”
“…There are no ordinary people around here at all, are there?”
“Members of the Quartz Family are, in other words, beings who have ‘received the power of a God through blood.’ It’s not strange that they possess unique traits, you know.”
So, since they are descendants of a deity, it wouldn’t be weird for them to have strange abilities… is that what you’re saying? It was a statement that felt both plausible and implausible at the same time.
“Well then, let’s keep the introductions going. Do you see that man over there?”
“The one staring at the wall?”
Edmund nodded at my statement. I took a close look at the man he pointed out. He looked thin and was standing completely still, staring at the wall.
Like a bee in a waiting room.
But there was no reason for him to be standing still like that; there must be another reason. I immediately asked Edmund about it.
“Why is he staring at the wall?”
“Brown is a good person. He tends to face the wall so you won’t be surprised to see his face; he probably doesn’t want you to talk to him either.”
If he feels that way, there doesn’t seem to be any reason for me to force a conversation. There must be a reason he chooses not to show his face.
It wouldn’t be appropriate to disregard someone’s courtesy. Instead, I shifted my gaze from Brown to a girl watching me from the corner.
The girl, who seemed to be around Millia’s age or younger, was grooming a scruffy bear plushie and humming a little tune.
She looks ordinary, but why is she here? It’s obvious she wouldn’t be here if she were normal, but there was nothing unique about her appearance to identify her as something special.
“That girl is…”
“Whoa, that girl! She’s your grandmother.”
“What?”
No matter how I looked at it, she seemed like she was about Millia’s age—my, or rather, the biological original owner of this body’s grandmother? What on earth is this?
My head momentarily froze at Edmund’s shocking statement.
“She’s your grandmother, so let’s go say hello.”
“…Ah, okay.”
I walked with Edmund towards her. As we approached close enough for our shadows to reach her, the girl turned without looking back and said,
“Don’t come near. Teddy doesn’t like it.”
The teddy bear in her hands waved its arms as if protesting. I pondered how to respond but decided to apologize first.
“I’m sorry.”
“That’s fine.”
“Maria. She’s your grandmother.”
The woman named Maria, my biological grandmother, turned her head sharply to look at me upon hearing that. A face full of skepticism. I silently observed her conversation with Edmund.
“Is this kid it? He’s way too big!”
“Your son-in-law was pretty big too. Looks like he inherited quite a bit of that bloodline.”
“Is that so? I can’t remember since I haven’t seen him in so long.”
“It’s not strange to forget if you’ve only seen him once.”
“Umm, I don’t really want to be called grandmother… just call me Maria.”
…I felt an overwhelming urge to see my family tree as I responded suitably to her words.
“That might be a bit strange, don’t you think?”
Having lived for twelve years, the lingering remnants of Confucian spirit were telling me that it’s not right. Of course, I could ignore it, but I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.
“I don’t care. You don’t have a grandson like you. Your soul is different too. Just call me Maria.”
Can she tell without any words being exchanged? Since the people I met before hadn’t pointed out my soul change, I had assumed everyone couldn’t notice.
But it wouldn’t be a problem if they didn’t.
“Well then, Maria. This person is trying to take the test to inherit a legacy; would you be able to be an admission member?”
“That sounds a bit annoying. I’m too busy just fluffing my husband’s fur.”
The teddy bear in her hands stared at me intently. It seemed oddly comforting yet had a sorrowful expression.
“Hu… husband?”
So that teddy bear is… my biological grandfather?
Feeling as if I had glimpsed into an abyss I shouldn’t have, I covered my eyes with my hands and sighed. To think a teddy bear would be my grandpa… What in the world is going on here?
Noticing my profound shock, Edmund patted my shoulder gently in consolation.
“Don’t be too disheartened. There are all sorts of strange happenings in this world. Your grandfather wasn’t originally like this, you know.”
“Ah, so he was originally human?”
“Indeed.”
I felt incredibly relieved that I wasn’t the first child of a human and a teddy bear. It might not be a problem, but it was still a chilling consideration.
“He’s still a person!”
Maria widened her eyes as if to say, where is such nonsense coming from? She looked no different from my niece, but expecting common sense here is indeed a mistake.
I decided to accept the reality before me.
In any case, it seemed that she indeed was my biological grandmother, and though I didn’t know what the term “admission member” entailed, it would likely be better to have kin involved.
Considering that Edmund had specifically requested her to be the admission member, it seemed evident that having closer family members as admission members would work to my advantage.
“Grandfather, I greet you.”
I politely bowed to the teddy bear wrapped in my grandmother’s embrace. Since he was my biological grandfather, it wouldn’t be wise to treat him poorly.
Seemingly pleased with my attitude, the tension in my grandmother’s eyes softened a bit.
“What a polite child?”
“It’s only natural to show respect to one’s grandparents.”
“Hmm, I like that. Alright, since you’re my grandson, I’ll be your admission member!”
“Got the first admission member safely! For the test, we need a total of three admission members, so you should hurry and find the other two.”
“There’s two of us, including Teddy, right?”
“‘Members’ refers to people, you know.”
Edmund said with a warm smile.
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