What do I do? My chest tightened like a drum. I’ve never dealt with a tsundere, not in my circle, so I’ve got no playbook. If only Yuexian could be honest for once. Just as the headache crested—

Before I could finish, Sakurazuki released Yuexian and slid into the seat beside him, her shadow brushing mine as she cut me off.

“Haa—haa—”

Freed, Yuexian folded over the table like a loosened bowstring, gulping air; his clothes sat askew, an image that tugged at stray thoughts—nope, halt, brain, behave.

At her words, even knowing she set the terms, disbelief pricked like cold rain. “It’s that easy to let me pass? You knew Yuexian was here all along, didn’t you?”

“Yup.” Her tone was light as drifting petals. “Thanks to you, I learned why Little Xian ran from home. That alone clears you for the fifth layer. And…”

She turned, fingers sinking into his soft, half-wavy hair like kneading warm dough. “You’ve got nerve, slipping away without a word. Looks like I’ll have to ‘educate’ you properly when we get back.”

!!!

Was I seeing things? Yuexian trembled harder, not with fear but with a feverish spark, like a wire humming under current. Ahem. Stop imagining. Whatever’s between them is their weather. I’m leaving this fifth layer soon anyway.

“It’s really that simple?” The doubt lingered like a stubborn mist, and I asked again.

She eyed me for a few beats, then sighed, a leaf falling. “Isn’t simple good? Do we have to fight to the death for it to count?”

I was speechless, a stone on the riverbed.

“Fine, truth, then.” Her smile curved like a crescent moon. “I have a good habit—if a child isn’t cute, I grind them down; if they are, I show mercy. And you, Yumigawa Sumeragi. Inside and out, you’re cute to the bone. If I didn’t already have Little Xian, I’d keep you.”

How is that a “good habit”?! The protest flickered in my head like a firefly. Still, relief warmed me for no good reason.

“Yumigawa Sumeragi, you cleared so smoothly not just on strength and monstrous talent, but also on looks. You know that, right?”

“Mm… The second and third layers were largely thanks to my looks…” The admission tasted awkward, like biting a sour plum.

“Don’t feel ashamed.” Sakurazuki’s smile softened, gentle as spring rain after dusk, and it caught me off guard.

“Be proud of your cute face. Wherever you go, good looks buy a measure of goodwill and easy doors.”

“Uh… thanks for the advice.” The words fell like pebbles into water, rippling quiet.

Bias or not, she wasn’t wrong. Sometimes looks sway the wind more than steel.

“Mm. I should head back.” Her tone steadied like a lantern’s flame. “Yumigawa Sumeragi, want to rest before the sixth layer? Relax. I said I’d let you pass the Garden of Eternal Sleep, and I won’t take it back.”

“Uh… okay, sorry to trouble you.” Gratitude and fatigue braided together like reed strands.

Thinking it through, my condition was frayed, like a bow at the end of a hunt. Charging into the sixth would be bad, so I took Sakurazuki’s offer.

“It’s fine.” She tugged Yuexian’s hand, light as thread. “Xiao Xian, come back with big sis. And stop being tsundere.”

Sakurazuki rose, pulling him up. Yuexian’s face burned like sunset; head down, voice soft. “Got it… sis… and… sorry…”

“You know you were wrong?” Her smile glinted, playful as moonlight on water. “Make it up to me properly when we’re back.”

He nodded, cheeks red, a maple leaf in autumn.

These siblings… I had no words. Sweet is sweet, but don’t drift into a two-person world and forget I exist.

…

So we followed Sakurazuki back to that shabby old house, its walls worn like weathered bark. Inside, she tossed me food and drink like throwing a bone, then dragged Yuexian into her room to get cozy. Hey, hey! I’m a guest here!

“Sakurazuki gave you anything at all—count it as mercy. Don’t whine,” I told myself, cooling the mood like water over stone. I drank milk, smooth as silk, then bit into bread. Hoo— finally, a rest. My legs felt like lead.

After eating, I didn’t rush off. I found a clean corner, soft as moss, and dozed. Strength isn’t enough; a tired heart needs quiet.

…

Time slipped like sand. I woke to find I’d slept a good while. I headed for Sakurazuki’s room to ask her to open the way to the sixth, and walked into a scene I shouldn’t have seen. I wanted to bolt, but my feet felt nailed to the floorboards, iron through wood.

Thankfully, Sakurazuki didn’t care a whit, so the awkwardness never took root; truth be told, I was the only one fussing, a lone sparrow chirping at the moon.

In the end, we stepped outside the shabby house. Sakurazuki flicked her hand, and a door-sized crack split the air like a blade through silk. “This is the path to the sixth layer. Yumigawa Sumeragi, do your best.”

“Yeah! You can do it, Yumigawa-kun!” Yuexian’s voice came bright as a bell. When did he get here? Whatever. I refuse to be the third wheel forever, so—

“Thanks for the care and the good words!”

As the last syllable fell, I turned and stepped into the path to the sixth, like diving into a moonlit lake.

…