"You... you remember!" Liang Di's voice trembled with renewed excitement as she grabbed Liang Lin's hand.

Liang Lin looked slightly flustered. She gently pulled her small hand free, scratching the back of her head. "Nah... that was all childhood stuff. I only have a faint trace of memory—can't recall details, just bits and pieces. So... you're the little girl Octavial brought over back then?"

"Mm-hmm."

Though saddened that Liang Lin remembered so little, Liang Di comforted herself: *At least she recalls something. She still holds a place for me.*

"I remember," Liang Di said softly, "back then, Liang Lin said she'd marry me when we grew up."

"Pfft—cough, cough!"

Liang Lin choked on cookie crumbs, wiping her mouth awkwardly. "That was just childish talk—silly games. Don't take it to heart."

"C-Childish games?"

Liang Di froze, then her expression slowly darkened. "What do you mean? So all your past words meant nothing? Liang Lin, I didn't recognize you at first—you're in a different body now. But when you mentioned Octavial... I knew it was you. I thought you were dead... Do you have any idea how long I grieved?"

*Oof... why'd she say that?* Liang Lin's conscience twinged. She'd once wanted to kill her childhood friend. She vaguely recalled promising to protect her... yet now? The irony stung.

"I..." Liang Lin hung her head in shame.

*Wait—why should I feel ashamed? I'm the victim!*

"Hey! How can you blame me like that? Have you forgotten what *you* did to me?" Anger flared. Just recalling how Liang Di had clung to her so intimately sent heat to her cheeks and shame racing through her. *To be toyed with by such a delicate-looking girl... until I collapsed, utterly spent.*

Liang Di showed not a flicker of embarrassment.

"Actually, I'm glad it was you," she murmured, fingers stroking Liang Lin's cheek. "If my first lover hadn't been you... I'd be heartbroken."

*No way—this feels like a confession?!*

"Hey! Talk all you want, but keep your hands off me!" Liang Lin scrambled backward, curling into a small ball in the corner—a picture of a virtuous woman bracing for assault. "Don't you feel even a shred of shame?!"

"Why?" Liang Di tilted her head, genuinely confused.

"Oh~ You're right. I was too rough then," Liang Di replied without hesitation. "If I'd known it was you, I'd have been much gentler."

*Huh...?*

Liang Lin sputtered, frustration boiling over. "I mean—you did *that* to me! Aren't you ashamed?!"

"Why should I be?" Liang Di's confusion deepened. "If I'd known it was you, I'd have been even more eager to do... that."

Liang Lin: "..."

*Sister! There's a pervert here!*

In hazy memories, Liang Di was an adorable little girl with baby-fat cheeks. How did she grow into *this*?!

As Liang Lin teetered on the edge of panic, Liang Di crawled onto the bed. Inch by inch, she closed the distance, gaze locked unwaveringly.

"But... Sister Liang Lin," she whispered, forehead resting on Liang Lin's shoulder, a blissful smile blooming, "your expression back then... you weren't suffering. You were happy too, weren't you? Isn't it joyful... to do *that*... with someone you like?"

*With... someone you like?*

*Doing... that?*

"Liang Di, I... I don't have romantic feelings for you. I mean—not *that* kind between girls," Liang Lin stammered, shrinking back. "Before this, I saw you as a rival. You could tell... I really wanted to kill you." She quickly added, "Not anymore! We... we used to be good friends, right?"

Liang Lin felt Liang Di's body stiffen sharply. Slowly, she lifted her head—eyes wide with disbelief, sapphire-blue pupils flickering with faint green light.

"No... romantic feelings between girls?"

"'Used to be'?"

"'Good friends'?"

"Just that?"

"Is that right?"

A chill ran down Liang Lin's spine. Something felt dangerously wrong. But she nodded stiffly.

"Yes. That's right."

Liang Di didn't grasp "love," but she knew possession. Desire. The ache to merge this girl into her very bones. Those words made her heart bleed. Helplessness flooded her.

"This can't be..."

"It can't be like this..."

She murmured faintly, lips moving incoherently. Liang Lin couldn't decipher the whispers. Within her eyes, a vortex swirled.

*Octavial once said parental love is the world's greatest force—a mother sacrifices freedom, desires, for her child. Because she lived it.*

*But Liang Lin...*

*If it were the old Liang Lin, I'd never let her carry my child. But this one... she's *her*. The childhood her.*

*Now, even her malice feels endearing.*

*Humans really are double standards, huh?*

"Sister Liang Lin..." Liang Di suddenly threw her arms open, lunging into Liang Lin's embrace like a soul-devouring specter, greedily breathing in her scent. "I want a child."

"Hey! Liang Di! Are you having an episode again?!" Liang Lin yanked at her desperately—fabric tore with a sharp rip.

Liang Di's smooth back lay fully exposed.