After finishing her words, Jade Xiang turned and walked into the kitchen to start preparing tonight’s dinner.
“Dreamwell, Little Nightburn, hope you have fun, ah-ha~”
Hui Feng said with a yawn before retreating to his room and closing the door. He still had some leftover work to handle.
Watching Hui Feng head to his room, Eve Nightburn sheepishly turned off the game she was playing.
Playing games next to someone who was working was somewhat shameless, though Eve had long abandoned any sense of shame anyway.
Shame was like a brick on a city wall—when it was time to tear it down and discard it, you just had to let it go.
But now clearly wasn’t the time to discard it. Eve understood she was here to mooch a meal, and leaving a bad impression wouldn’t do.
At this moment, Eve had crafted her persona: the sweet, well-behaved girl-next-door Loli!
As for how far away that “next door” was, well, that wasn’t important.
Once Eve stopped playing, Miri Dreamwell also lost interest in the game and put hers down.
Leaning close to Eve’s ear, she asked the question she hadn’t had time to bring up when they first met: “Eve Nightburn, how old are you, anyway?”
Huh?!
Hearing Miri’s whispered question, Eve froze for a moment.
Oh right… I don’t actually know how old I am…
To be honest, Eve had never known her age. As an orphan, how could she possibly know her birthday?
The so-called “23 years old” was just calculated from the day the orphanage took her in.
When it came down to it, even Eve herself didn’t understand her own origins.
Maybe in some sense, she really was the girl from her dreams, just as that girl had said?
But how could that be?
Wouldn’t that mean admitting it was true?
Eve didn’t want to admit it—no, she dared not admit it. She felt that if she did, she might just disappear.
Eve had never dreamed of being someone great, nor did she entertain meaningless ideas like saving or destroying the world.
She was just a simple soul who sought small joys. Those grand narratives had nothing to do with her.
Eve just wanted to be herself, even if she never truly understood what that meant.
“Mm… I… don’t know.”
That was Eve’s answer. After all, she was an escapist at heart—she’d avoid whatever she could.
“Huh?” Miri was surprised. “Eve Nightburn doesn’t know her own age?”
“Nope.”
Eve shook her head, answering firmly.
For things she genuinely didn’t know, there was no need to make up excuses—just answer bluntly.
“This…”
For a moment, Miri felt like her worldview had cracked a little. There were actually people in the world who didn’t know their own age?
In Miri’s understanding, not knowing one’s age was just plain weird!
Whose Mom and Dad wouldn’t tell their child when they were born?
Perhaps, as the saying went, everyone lived in their own ivory tower, with things they couldn’t comprehend.
“Eve Nightburn, didn’t your Mom and Dad ever tell you your birthday?”
“I don’t have a Mom or Dad!”
Eve wanted to scream—could we please stop asking about this? It’s annoying!
Don’t just go around asking people about their parents out of nowhere, okay?
“Ah…”
Miri suddenly realized she might have touched on a sore subject.
“I’m sorry, I hurt you, didn’t I? I just wanted to know more about you.”
Miri felt guilty. She hadn’t known her Mentor was an orphan.
“Hey, it’s fine,” Eve patted Miri’s shoulder, reassuring her not to dwell on it.
“I know you didn’t mean anything by it. Really, I don’t care about these things.”
“Really?”
Miri thought for a moment before suddenly pulling Eve into a hug, stroking her head.
“Then how about Eve Nightburn becomes my little sister~”
“Huh?!”
“Wait, stop!”
“I don’t wanna be your little sister!”
Eve hurriedly shut down Miri’s unrealistic idea.
You Traitorous Disciple, listen to what you’re saying!
“But Eve Nightburn, you’re so short—there’s no way you could be the older sister~”
Why were you so hung up on this?!
And for the record, I wasn’t always this short!
Eve suddenly felt a wave of nostalgia for her past self—back when she wasn’t mistaken for a kid.
Right now, Eve’s mind was overflowing with吐槽 points.
“From now on, big sister will take care of you~”
Huh?!
In an instant, all the吐槽 points in Eve’s mind vanished, replaced by a bright十字星 gleaming in her crimson eyes.
Eve quickly turned around and buried herself in Miri’s arms.
“Sis, how exactly are you gonna take care of me?”
“Guess~”
Miri played a little coy—after all, keeping someone in suspense was the most fun.
Eve’s excitement instantly deflated, and she turned away, ignoring Miri.
Seeing this, Miri panicked.
She placed her left hand on Eve’s shoulder, hoping to turn her back around.
“I’m sorry, I was wrong! Can Eve Nightburn forgive me?”
“I hate riddlers…”
Eve wasn’t about to indulge her. She didn’t want some fake “reach out and I’ll give you a surprise,” only to open her hand and find nothing but air.
Miri quietly leaned in again, whispering into Eve’s ear:
“From now on, if you want something or run into trouble, you can tell big sister. I’ve got your back~”
“Really?”
Eve instantly revived, turning back to Miri with eyes full of期待.
“Really.”
Miri confirmed it. Truth be told, Miri had been pretty lonely too—always wanting a friend to play with but never finding one.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have wasted time on those trashy online games.
Miri didn’t fully understand why she wanted Eve as a little sister. Maybe she pitied her? Or maybe she just thought Eve could keep her company?
Either way, after hearing Eve’s background, Miri had felt a sudden urge to protect her.
“Then… I wanna eat something…”
Eve was still a little wary—she didn’t want to fall for another HR-interview-style trick.
“I’ll buy it for you.”
“Sis is the greatest!”
Without another word, Eve threw herself into Miri’s arms, snuggling up to her.
In an unnoticed corner of the world, another pair of sisters had just come into existence.
To an outsider, it might have looked like a heartwarming日常 scene—but for Eve, this was hitting the jackpot of infinite free meals!
For a moment, Eve felt like the hope of a new life was right in front of her.
The days of nearly starving to death could finally be left behind!
Truly, for the sake of a brighter tomorrow, she couldn’t give up! Who knew—maybe good luck was just around the corner.
Just as Eve was celebrating her newfound meal ticket, Jade Xiang emerged from the kitchen carrying dishes.
“Dinner’s ready, Dreamwell, Little Nightburn.”
