Chu Xueyue had known from Albert that Muse was his sister. But he never expected her to be this stunning—she was nothing like Albert’s description.

Unfortunately, Chu Xueyue had his principles. He wouldn’t go after someone who already had a crush.

Albert had mentioned his sister had a boyfriend. Seeing her now, Chu Xueyue believed it. With her beauty and a brother who was a former Dragon Slayer Hero, it’d be weird if she didn’t. Even if she had sky-high standards, this world was never short of Heroes. Choices were everywhere.

Well, her boyfriend was a rich, handsome noble. As an ordinary, unremarkable shut-in, Chu Xueyue had zero chance against that tall, rich, handsome guy. Fantasies about underdogs winning? Just fantasies.

“What? What did you say? I can’t hear anything!” Chu Xueyue shouted at the siblings, temporarily deaf from the sonic attack.

Albert could only gesture. He knew the Hero Bracelet was unreliable—writing notes was impossible. The translation system wasn’t that advanced. Reluctantly, he used hand signs. Thankfully, this was temporary. Otherwise, he’d owe compensation for his sister’s accident.

“Oh, oh, oh—eating? Sure! Need my help? No? Okay, I’ll just sit and wait.” Chu Xueyue misinterpreted the gestures. Since you said that, why not cook for me? Food you don’t make yourself is the best.

I probably still can’t hear. I wonder how healing magic works here. A condition like mine shouldn’t be hard to fix. Albert’s sister was harsh—she’d infused magic into her voice. Albert’s high resistance protected him, but I’m just a level 1 newbie. One wrong move and I’d respawn.

“Muse, I remember bringing a healing crystal back. Help heal Xueyue. Not hearing isn’t good for him,” Albert instructed. It seemed fine now, but deafness was inconvenient for everyone.

“Okay.” Muse headed upstairs to fetch the crystal.

Healing crystals were handy—just infuse energy to activate pre-stored magic. For mercenaries, it could save lives. But they weren’t cheap. Albert could casually use one for Chu Xueyue only because, as a former Dragon Slayer Hero, money wasn’t an issue.

Muse walked toward Chu Xueyue while channeling magic into the crystal. Then she performed a legendary move—tripping on flat ground. Nothing was under her feet; her feet didn’t tangle. She just fell. Hey, Muse’s boyfriend—do you know your girlfriend has this “skill”?

“Ah! That hurts! Who threw something at me?” Chu Xueyue felt a hard object smack his head.

A white light enveloped him and vanished instantly. He saw it disappear. “What just happened?” Only three people were here. He turned to them—but too late. Muse, who’d been on the floor, was already up.

“Xueyue, you okay?” Albert asked out of habit.

“I’m fine, just got hit on the head… wait, wait, wait—why doesn’t it hurt anymore?” He touched his head. The painful spot was gone.

Muse walked forward, picked up the healing crystal, and waved it. “This did the trick. Haven’t you noticed you can hear now?”

“Now that you mention it—yeah, I can hear you. This crystal really works.” Chu Xueyue avoided calling it “miraculous.” He and Albert had agreed to keep his identity secret, even from close ones like Muse.

“But is your healing crystal meant to be thrown? Does it only work when it hits someone’s head? If that’s the design, I’d never believe it.”

“Hehe.” Muse giggled, sticking out her tongue. Her face flushed. “I didn’t mean to. The crystal just… flew out of my hand.”

Flew out? You might as well say it has auto-targeting—zooming straight for heads. But Muse was Albert’s sister, trying to help. Though… my deafness was her fault too. And now this hit. Does she have a grudge? Maybe she dislikes me hanging with her brother?

“Oh, it was an accident.” No matter his wild thoughts, he kept quiet.

“Muse, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in your dorm?” Albert asked.

Muse was still a student. Her school was in the city, but she mostly stayed in the dorm. School wasn’t out yet—even as a former Dragon Slayer Hero’s sister, she couldn’t just leave.

“Simple. Today’s the new Dragon Slayer Hero’s triumphant return. School gave us a holiday. And the king ordered your old house given to him. I could stay in my dorm, but I came to sort through your… belongings.” Her eyes welled up again.

“Silly girl, I’m back now,” Albert said gently. He really had that warm-hearted guy vibe.

“Haha, Albert—your ‘belongings’? Most of your stuff’s still in the Demon King’s Castle. Nothing left behind,” Chu Xueyue joked to lighten the mood. It wasn’t funny.

But Muse buried her face shyly in Albert’s chest. This time, no armor—neither cold nor hard.