"Speaking of which, Nia," I suddenly asked her one morning in the dining room, "there’s something I’ve been curious about."

"Hm? What’s got you curious now?" The reply didn’t come from Nia—it came from Mo Mo, perched atop Nia’s head.

"I just want to know your real name. Got curious about it all of a sudden." I meant the name Nia used back on Earth before she transmigrated.

"..." Nia’s gaze lifted from her book to me, rippling with confusion. "Did you swallow the wrong pill? Why ask this out of nowhere?"

Me: "I told you—I’m just curious."

Nia: "What’s so curious about it?"

"Aw, c’mon. Humor me. We’ve lived under the same roof this long, and I still don’t know your real name. Doesn’t that feel weird?"

"What’s weird about it? Basic manners say you share your own name before asking for someone else’s."

"Huh?" Her words caught me off guard. "You’ve got it backwards. My name *is* Luo Sa."

"Tch. And I’m *just* Nia." She clearly didn’t believe me—and honestly, my name did sound nothing like a typical Chinese name.

"No, that’s not what I meant..." I scratched my head, frustrated. Even after transmigrating to this fantasy world, I still had to explain this. "My name really is Luo Sa. It’s on my ID card—*Luo* like Luoyang, *Sa* like ‘dashing.’ Not Lothar."

"..." Nia stared at me with an unreadable expression.

"..." I stared back. She was an eyeless slime, yet her gaze made my skin crawl.

"*Pfft.*" A snort escaped her—she’d failed to hold back a laugh.

"What’s so funny?!" Anyone would bristle after being stared at only to be laughed at.

"Sorry, sorry..." She slapped the table with a tendril, wheezing. "Your name’s just... hilarious. Luo Sa? *Luo Sa?* Hahaha—"

"Whatever. Laugh it up. I don’t get your sense of humor." I rubbed my temples, exasperated.

"Luo Sa? *Luo sa?*" Loli blinked at us, utterly lost.

"Loli, sweetie, ignore her. She bumped her head."

"Nia has a head?"

"Loli, that’s a good point."

"I think you’re badmouthing me." Honestly, Nia’s Truth Eye was terrifyingly useful—she could sense malice even without understanding the words. "Alright, enough joking. My name’s Li Lingle. Happy now?"

"Knew it." Nia had once mentioned her sister was named Li Lingyin. Learning her real name felt inevitable—twins often got matching names like that... Why did *my* name invite so much ridicule?!

"Yeah. Seriously, what’s so fascinating about a stupid name?" Hey, who was the one laughing until she slammed the table earlier?

As she spoke, a faint ripple of disgust flickered across her gelatinous body—gone in an instant. I almost doubted I’d sensed it. But the Truth Eye’s aftereffect confirmed it: that revulsion was real. Just *mentioning* her old name triggered it?

"Nia... you okay?" I searched her form for clues.

"What could possibly be wrong with me?" Of course, reading emotions on a faceless slime was impossible.

"Come to think of it, after all this time here, I’ve never heard you talk about your life be—" I’d meant to say "your past life." Knowing more might help me repay her kindness somehow.

Before I could finish, Mo Mo shot off Nia’s head like a blue streak. She usually floated lazily or rode on Mira’s/Nia’s shoulders—but now, she blurred through the air.

The few meters between Nia and me vanished in a blink. One second she was on Nia’s head; the next, she was barreling straight for my forehead with no sign of slowing.

The old me would’ve been hit. At this range, even her modest speed left almost no reaction time. But that was *before* Mira’s daily beatings.

Mo Mo was fast, but nowhere near Mira’s fist-speed. And Mira’s reach was never *this* short. Compared to her attacks, this was easy. I sidestepped—

"*Whoa—thud!*" Chair and all, I toppled sideways. Mo Mo executed a graceful U-turn, landing back on Nia’s head as if she’d never moved. Mission accomplished: she’d shut me up.

"Mo Mo, what was that for...?" Loli helped me up—my head throbbed.

Mo Mo opened her mouth, but Nia cut in: "Easy, Mo Mo. Luo Sa didn’t know."

"Huh? Didn’t know *what*?" I frowned. What had I missed?

"Among transmigrators, there’s an unspoken rule: we never discuss each other’s lives before crossing over." Nia explained.

"Why?" Most transmigrators must miss home. The rule felt strange.

"Luo Sa, remember what I told you about transmigration conditions?" Nia asked.

"Accidental death with strong regrets... or exceptional talent paired with despair toward the world?" I recalled the key points.

"Right. The first group guards their regrets fiercely—prying risks offense. The second? They fled oceans of cruelty. Mentioning that world drags up pain. Since most of us fit one category... the rule exists."

"I’m sorry..." If even her *name* sparked such disgust, what had she endured?

"But I guess I *have* avoided talking about my past. You seem curious." Nia’s voice stayed calm. "Might as well share it today."

"Nia—" Mo Mo started.

"It’s fine." Nia smiled, cutting her off. "Mira, fetch Aefina too, would you?"

Mira vanished into flames. Two minutes later, she returned with Aefina—who’d taken human form—through the dining room door.

"Luo Sa, good morning." Aefina plopped onto my lap before greeting the others. "Morning."

"Alright, everyone’s here." Nia scanned the room. "Shame Lilith’s missing."

"Where to begin... From when I first remembered things, those two fought constantly." Her tone stayed flat. "*Those two*—my parents."

"Are you and your sister twins?" I interrupted.

"No. She’s four years older."

"If your parents hated each other, why have you?" I pressed.

"They wanted a son." Nia’s laugh was hollow. "Two daughters only fueled their rage. Everything I did drew scolding—I was a mistake for not being male. Even my sister got dragged into it. When they fought, she’d hide me. Otherwise, we’d get hit."

"We were born into that. My sister became my shield." Nia exhaled, as if shedding weight. "After years of chaos, they divorced. Neither wanted us—girls were worthless to them. Grandma took us in. They vanished. No child support. I barely remember their faces now."

"Scary how parenthood needs no exam," I muttered.

"Grandma was old, sick, poor. My sister carried everything alone." Pride warmed Nia’s voice. "She studied, worked odd jobs, won competitions—the prize money felt like fortunes to us."

"She even drew manga for magazines. By fifteen, she was a published artist. Her earnings lifted us out of poverty. She shone like the sun, burning away every shadow. No matter the crisis, she’d smile and fix it. To be one-tenth as amazing as her—that was my dream."

"Three years later, *they* heard she was rich. Came crawling back for money. Only then did they remember being parents. The man owed gambling debts. The woman demanded my sister fund her lifestyle. When refused, they refused to leave. My sister brandished a knife and chased them off."

Nia’s voice stayed eerily calm. This was despair: no tremor, no hope.

"Grandma’s health had already crumbled from years of strain. Their visit triggered a relapse. She died in the hospital. After the funeral, my sister left me a fortune... and disappeared."

"*They* hounded me next, demanding her whereabouts. When I refused to talk, they gave up."

"Even I don’t know where she is. We only chat online sometimes. She says she’s happy. Found someone who loves her. Might marry soon. She asks if I’m okay, if money’s tight." A flicker of pride crossed Nia’s form—but her words ached. "I’m no genius like her... but I’m grown now. With a roof over my head, I can take care of myself."

"Next thing I knew, I’d transmigrated here as a weak little Slime, surviving anxiously with Mo Mo in this world all the way to today. If I wrote down my story, it might even turn into something like *Survival Notes of a Slime in Another World* or whatever~"

"Nia…" Aefina was also moved; after all, compared to Nia, her own past had been quite fortunate.

"I’m fine~" Nia said cheerfully, even extending a tentacle to pat her own body.

Only now did I realize that Nia, who always seemed so carefree, actually carried such a dark past.

"After a childhood like that, you can still be like this…" I didn’t know how to put my feelings into words.

How could Nia, with such a shadowed past, manage to smile like she does now…

"My sister used to say, ‘Unhappy things stay in the past. If you let them poison the present, isn’t that just spreading the misery? It’s not worth being unhappy over unhappy things.’" Nia stretched her body and casually stroked Mo Mo. "Life now is so happy—why dwell on nasty memories? I love everyone here, and they love me back."

"If that world was despair, then this place is hope. Living in a world brimming with hope… shouldn’t happiness just come naturally?"