And more than anything else, what made it obvious was the way Layce’s expression had softened even more than when he’d given Yui her gift—he looked so excited, and it seemed almost as if he were ready to sprout wings and fly away at any moment. He was probably imagining Sherina as she happily accepted her present.
“I guess yours were just an afterthought, Yui,” Carlo said.
Oddly enough, Yui found herself agreeing. “You might be right.”
“But thanks to that, you’re able to accept an expensive gift without worrying that it cost too much, so isn’t it fine?”
“Yeah, and I get to match with mama.”
Hearing this, Lydia giggled. “He might’ve put more care into Sherina’s gift, but you were by no means an afterthought. He spent a lot of time on it. Take good care of this set, Yui.”
“Yes, I certainly will,” Yui replied, nodding firmly. She had known that, of course, and she had only been half joking.
Lydia smiled too, satisfied. “Well then, goodbye, Yui. Come again for a visit sometime. I’d love to spend a bit more time picking out clothes for you.”
“I-I’m looking forward to it,” Yui replied, her face tight.
After Lydia wrapped up Sherina’s gift, they said their farewells and left the store.
✦ ✦ ✦
Finally, they arrived at the restaurant where they were meeting up with Sherina. She wasn’t there yet, so they went ahead to their private dining room and waited for her to show up. As they did, a certain thought was bouncing around Yui’s mind, and before she knew it, she found herself preoccupied by it.
“What is it, Yui?” Carlo asked. He was wondering why Yui hadn’t been speaking much.
“Oh, it’s nothing. Just...” Yui was at a loss for words.
Cecil seemed to know what she wanted to say. “Are you still thinking about them?”
Though she was reluctant to answer, Yui nodded. “It’s not really about them at all. But when I think about how she can see you two every day... And then she was acting so close to you, and it felt off...or, how should I put it...?”
Yui had known that she had a sister, and she had even wondered what the girl was like. But now that Yui had seen her firsthand, she was surprised by how little she felt for her. She had expected that she might react with more warmth since they were biologically related, but Yui had been able to clearly see her as just a stranger. Of course, it had still shaken her to see the girl behave with such familiarity around her beloved brothers, whom Yui hardly ever got to see. When Yui thought about the fact that Adele was able to be around them every day, she felt a jumble of hazy, complicated emotions whirling around inside herself.
“Whenever I think about how I’m not your only sister, it’s like I feel really annoyed or something...”
In other words, she was jealous and lonely.
Yui looked pouty because she had the notion that Cecil and Carlo were being taken from her. But the twins, on the other hand, were happy. They were overwhelmed by how cute she was, and they hugged her tightly from both sides.
“What are you saying? You’re our only sister, Yui,” Carlo said. “We’ve never thought of her as our sister.”
“Yeah, you don’t have to worry about us,” Cecil added. “We love you.” They both smiled sweetly. It wouldn’t have been an exaggeration to say that just then, they were smothering her with love.
“Before you complain about my behavior, look at yourselves,” Layce swiftly interjected. “You’re the ones who indulge her the most.” He looked irritated. “Don’t worry, Yui. Next spring, we’ll all be able to live together.”
Yui tilted her head, confused by Layce’s unexpected words. “Why’s that?”
“Next spring, we’re also changing our last names to Curtis,” Carlo said.
“Huh?” Yui exclaimed. She was stunned, and she opened her eyes as wide as they could go. “You can do that?”
“Of course we can.” Carlo proudly puffed out his chest.
Cecil quietly laughed, then explained. “We’re still minors, so we need a guardian with parental authority to approve our leaving the O’Brian family. But anyone who’s an adult can change the family they’re a part of at will without needing permission.”
“Basically, when we become adults on our twentieth birthday, we’ll go through the process to make dad our guardian. Then, Cecil and I will leave that house, and we’ll live with you and mom at the Curtis house.”
I’ll be able to live together with Cecil and Carlo... Yui thought. She had figured it would be impossible, and she had given up on it. If they could really do it, then she ought to have been happy. However, she felt uneasy. “But it won’t be that simple, will it...?”
The source of her fear was their biological father, Arthur. It was hard to imagine that he’d simply part with his two brilliant and talented heirs. She was worried that, even if Cecil and Carlo legally became Layce’s sons, Arthur might take some sort of action against them. That concern clouded her expression.
“There’s no need to worry. Who do you think I am?” Layce said. “I’m the prime minister, and I’m the second most powerful person in the country, right behind the king. I have more connections than that man could ever even dream of. And, if necessary, I can always ask His Majesty to do something about it.” He was smiling deviously.
Layce’s exceedingly confident smile was enough to dispel any worries Yui had. At the same time, she and her brothers all thought with one voice, Are you sure you’ll only be asking the king and not threatening him? They were overcome by a different worry.
“There’s no way he’d intervene in a problem that involves only a single noble,” Carlo pointed out.
“I’m afraid that dad might actually find a way to do it,” Cecil said. Layce was the type of person to use whatever and whomever he could without any hesitation, king or otherwise. They couldn’t help but feel sorry for the king, who Layce always forced to work hard.
“But dad, are you really okay with it?” Carlo asked suddenly, his voice apprehensive.
“What do you mean?” Layce said.
“Well, when you’re legally our father, that means we’ll be your sons. I was wondering whether you’d really be fine with accepting us, even though we aren’t related by blood.”
Yui understood very well how her brothers felt. She could say the same thing as Carlo. In fact, she constantly felt conflicted about whether it was all right for her to depend on Layce so much.
Layce quickly put their unfounded worries to rest.
“We might not be related, but you’re still Sherina’s children, aren’t you? I love her—every last part of her. Her precious children are precious to me too, blood-related or not. Besides, you already call me dad, so it’s a bit too late to be worrying. It’ll be nothing at all for me to get two new, impudent sons.”
They were all moved by what he said, and they felt love in his voice. He was more fatherlike than their actual father. Cecil and Carlo both smiled, embarrassed.
“But if you interrupt me when I’m spending time with Sherina, I’ll instantly throw you both out on the street!” Layce warned, his voice turning serious.
Cecil scoffed. “You don’t have to tell us—we won’t.”
“Yeah, we care too much about our lives,” Carlo added.
The emotional moment had soon ended.
“So that means I’ll be able to live with you again,” Yui said. Her earlier anxiety had completely disappeared now that they had talked, and she felt overjoyed. She smiled, savoring the feeling, and she started to look forward to next spring.
Meanwhile, oblivious to Yui’s excitement, Layce let slip what he was really thinking. “Heh heh heh, when you two come live with me, that means Yui will join us too.”
Luckily, Yui didn’t hear him.
“If only he hadn’t said that last bit, then his sentiment would have been so nice,” Carlo murmured.
“Yeah, it’s too bad,” Cecil said solemnly.
If one only listened to what Layce was saying, he would’ve come across as a compassionate and devoted husband. Unfortunately, his blissful eyes and slovenly expression ruined everything.
In the meantime, Sherina arrived. With her there, they enthusiastically celebrated Yui’s birthday as a family, and Yui had a fun time from beginning to end.
✦ ✦ ✦
That night, Yui was in her room, tightly gripping the magic communicator she had just bought. She stared at it with a serious look on her face. After spending some time like that, motionless, she summoned up the necessary resolve and turned it on. She had decided beforehand who she wanted to talk to first. In fact, she hadn’t even thought about contacting any other person.
“Who is it?” asked the person on the other end. She had only just seen him, but she felt so nostalgic for his voice that she could almost believe that they had gone years since their last meeting.
“El, it’s me,” Yui said.
“Yui?!” Filiel exclaimed, extremely surprised. But that made sense. She hadn’t contacted him at all since they had parted with each other at the royal palace. “What is it? Did you borrow a communicator from the twins?”
“No, I just bought one today. I wanted you to be the first person I called.”
“I see.”
Yui felt herself grow calm as she listened to his gentle voice. However, what she was about to say would push him away from her. At worst, he might even hate her because of it. This might be the last time we talk like this... Yui thought. She felt a burning sensation in her nose, and her eyes seemed like they would overflow with tears. But this was for his sake as well as hers. No, she was actually afraid, but she had been avoiding thinking about it.
“El... The camp is already about to start pretty soon,” Yui said.
“Yeah, it is.”
“There’s something I want to tell you before then.”
“What is it?”
“At the palace, when you told me you loved me... I was really surprised.”
She heard quiet laughter on the other end of the call. “I bet you were. You can be pretty oblivious sometimes, so I had to say it.” His voice, full of kindness, hurt to hear.
“This is my reply... I can’t answer your feelings.”
There was a brief silence. Then Filiel simply replied, “I see. All right.” There was no sign of disturbance in his voice; it was so normal that it actually made Yui feel a bit shaken.
“Okay. Then, that’s that. Sorry. Good night.”
“Yeah. Good night, Yui. Sweet dreams.”
With those final words, Yui released the communicator.
“This is for the best. It’s for the best...” Yui repeated that to herself several times.
It sounded like a warning.