Diona hummed as she deftly slit open the seals on the four cans she’d been saving.

Then she pulled potatoes and carrots from the bag, along with some other ingredients and spices, ready to cook up a fragrant meal.

“Xiao Mo’s sure to love this.”

After chopping the scallions into pieces, Diona seized the right moment and added them to the pot.

At the same time, she couldn’t stop thinking about going back to the living room while the stew simmered and watching the movie with Lin Mo.

But just as she’d added all the ingredients to the pot, a faint tapping suddenly came from the side of the little open window beside the kitchen.

Knock, knock—

“Hmm—?”

The sound caught Diona’s attention.

She pushed the window wider and leaned out to look around.

“Big Sis.”

Following the voice, Diona focused her gaze.

A girl stood there, with flaxen hair and blue eyes. A dark-colored headband was tied around her forehead.

She wasn’t very tall, and wore a pair of dark gray lace-up boots. Over her deep-black tank top, she wore a pair of shabby-looking light brown overalls. Her short leather gloves were stained with plenty of machine oil, so she’d clearly just finished work and hadn’t had a chance to take them off.

All in all, this girl gave off an ordinary, unremarkable air—and in truth, she was one of the most ordinary people in the entire settlement.

Incidentally, the one she’d called Big Sis was Diona. Diona was a year older than the girl.

“Oh, it’s you…”

Diona scratched her back and said, “Just finished tinkering with that broken-down motorcycle of yours, and now you want me to go out for a meal with you?”

“Sorry. I can’t today. I’ve got something really important to take care of.”

Compared to men, everything else had to take a back seat now!

“That’s not it.”

The girl in overalls pressed her lips together nervously, looking hesitant and timid.

She whispered:

“It’s just… um, Big Sis, could you lend me some money first?”

“Huh—whaaat??”

Diona braced one hand against the window frame. Holding onto the window, she turned down the corners of her mouth:

“Hey, aren’t you richer than me to begin with? Everyone comes to you when one of their machines breaks down. You might be the richest person around here!”

“Ah, ahahaha…” The girl in overalls gave an awkward laugh.

She stood awkwardly outside the window, unable to stop her oil-stained hands from fidgeting together.

“But, Big Sis… I haven’t told you about this lately. I mean, I met a guy…”

“!!!”

Diona’s guard shot up in an instant.

After all, this was the girl she’d sent to gather information on the bandits.

“Hmph! You’ve got some nerve bringing up men with me! If I hadn’t led people out to clear that camp today, I still wouldn’t know you’d met a guy!”

The blonde girl had already made up her mind.

No matter how this girl tried to explain herself next, she absolutely wasn’t going to let her have Lin Mo!

After all, whether it was status, identity, or looks, this girl wasn’t fit to get in bed with a guy of Lin Mo’s caliber.

“Huh? What guy?” The girl in overalls looked completely lost.

“I’ve never met any guy there during any of my scouting trips.”

“Uh…” Diona casually looked away. “Oh. So what’s this about, then?”

“So, Big Sis, you know ‘Little Honey’ from the Northern Defense Corps too, right?” (The girl in overalls)

“…………” (Diona)

Of course Diona knew him.

Among the guys around here, Little Honey was quite well-known. But he wasn’t famous because he was especially handsome or easygoing. He was known for being spoiled, rude, and downright awful.

Little Honey had once pursued Diona for a while. But she couldn’t stand a guy like him, so she’d always kept him at arm’s length.

“Oh, you mean him…”

Diona’s face showed a mix of discomfort and contempt.

She shrugged. “I know him, sure. But how’d you get involved with someone like that?”

“I’ve never dared tell anyone before.”

The girl in overalls held her hands in front of herself. Afraid of getting her clothes or the wall dirty, she didn’t dare touch anything.

She said, “Actually, I’ve been pursuing Little Honey for the past six months. And… well, Big Sis, you know I’ve borrowed a lot of money from people, but it still isn’t enough.”

“Huh???”

Diona was stunned.

“N-no, you’re saying it’s not enough?! Good grief, but you’re so rich!”

She stumbled back two steps. Once she’d steadied herself, she grabbed the windowsill and hesitated for a moment:

“All right. I think I get it.”

“So basically, you want to be Little Honey’s girlfriend, and you’ve been throwing money at him, right?”

“...It’s a huge waste of money, but if you’re into that kind of guy, then as your Big Sis, I guess I shouldn’t say too much.”

As she spoke, Diona asked:

“About how much do you need?”

“...” The girl in overalls pressed her lips together sadly and held up three fingers.

“Three hundred? All right. I’ll go get the money now.” (Diona)

“Three thousand.”

The girl in overalls added.

“What did you— That scumbag! No matter how greedy he is, that’s way too much!”

Diona nearly choked on her anger.

But she managed to hold it in. Three thousand… In the entire East Mountain Ridge Region, that was enough for the girl to buy another well-maintained off-road motorcycle with all its parts intact.

Still, even a shut-in who’d been born to tinker with machines had to get lonely and have needs.

“Sigh. Fine, fine. It’s all for your sex life, right?”

Diona waved helplessly. “I’ll go get the money. I can see you’ve had a rough time… Once you’re pregnant, dump that man before it’s too late! There’s no future with someone who’ll eat you alive and spit out the bones.”

“Oh, and you only need to pay me back two thousand five hundred. I am your Big Sis, after all…”

“Ha, ahahaha…” A miserable smile appeared on the girl in overalls’ face.

She lowered her head, deeply sorrowful. Whatever she was thinking, her eyes seemed to hold a faint sheen of tears.

“…………”

Diona noticed at once.

She immediately stopped, alert, and turned back around:

“Hey, where are you two at now? Have you slept together?”

“No…” The girl in overalls stood alone in the alley outside the window, trembling.

Her eyes brimmed with tears. “I-I’m still a virgin…”

“That’s just too—” Diona’s anger nearly burst through her chest.

But she still managed to pound her chest twice, hard, to stop herself from actually exploding:

“Fine, everyone moves at their own pace… But tell me, you’ve at least kissed him, right?”

Diona figured that no matter how timid and useless her little sis was, she couldn’t possibly have spent all that money without getting so much as a peep in return.