Chapter 5: I don’t need this anymore.

“So, my dear witch brother, you gave up an unprecedented life in another world to come all the way back to me, wanting to rekindle our old connection?”

“Sou dayo!¹” Facing Yukina’s question, Charlotte responded without thinking. “After all, I haven’t seen you for fifteen years, Yukina! I really missed you.”

“But for me, we just saw each other this morning! I’m so sorry, but I didn’t miss you at all, brother!”

“You didn’t miss me? You were just crying all over my body a moment ago…”

“Th-th-th-th-that was just a normal reaction! I wasn’t heartbroken just because my brother died!”
Yukina’s face suddenly flushed red as if a sensitive spot had been poked, and she defended herself at lightning speed.

“Yukina, you’re really not honest with yourself!”

“Shut up!”

Seeing that the clock on the wall was already pointing to nine o’clock, Yukina slung her school bag over her shoulder, ready to leave.

“Alright, it’s getting late. Since you’re back safely, brother, let’s hurry home.”

“Okay, let’s go home together!”
Charlotte nodded with a joyful expression, then followed behind Yukina, humming a little tune as she skipped out of the hospital room.

However, seeing Charlotte just follow her out like that, Yukina looked rather taken aback.

“Brother, aren’t you going to use your original body?”

“My original body? Oh, you mean that thing lying on the bed? It’s all rotten and stinky, I’m not using that! Besides, I’m used to this body now. I wouldn’t be comfortable using a boy’s body again.”

“Eh? If you don’t use that body, how can you be my brother?”

“What? Can’t I be your brother in this body?”

“How can you, a girl, be my brother? And you have no chest, no butt, and you’re short and small. You’re more like my little sister.”

“Who says a girl can’t be an older brother? Don’t look down on me just because my body is small. I can still bear the responsibilities of being an older brother!” Charlotte stared at Yukina with a serious expression.

“What I mean is, do you still want to use the name ‘Bai Shenxinghe’ or not? If you do, then change back into your body! Otherwise, the news of ‘the great Bai Shenxinghe turning into a cute and petite white-haired loli after a car crash’ will cause us a lot of trouble if it gets out!”

“Is that so? I hadn’t thought of that layer of complication, let me think for three seconds.”
After a moment’s consideration, Charlotte replied with a smile, “Then let’s just not use that name!
Bai Shenxinghe died in a car crash in the first place.
If he were to suddenly come back to life now, it would cause a lot of unnecessary trouble. It’s better not to disrupt our ordinary daily life over something like this.”

“No, you’ve already disrupted our ordinary daily life, brother.” Yukina couldn’t help but retort.

‘Whose older brother is a cute and petite white-haired witch that makes you want to keep one as a pet?²’

****

Upon learning that Charlotte had no intention of reviving Bai Shenxinghe, who had been killed by the truck, Yukina had no choice but to go to the hospital administration and handle the paperwork for his death.
Bai Shenxinghe’s body was then taken to the morgue for storage, with a burial to be arranged later.

“It’s not too late if you regret it,” Yukina said to Charlotte, who was standing beside her, as they watched Bai Shenxinghe’s body being wheeled into the morgue.

As long as Charlotte used some of her amazing methods to make Xinghe’s body move immediately, they could pass it off with the excuse that he had been in a state of suspended animation, and thus revive him.

As an all-powerful witch, accomplishing something like that would be a piece of cake for Charlotte.

However, Charlotte remained completely indifferent to her own body being pushed into the morgue, as if the identity of Bai Shenxinghe had been completely severed from her.

“Just let my past self sleep in peace,” Charlotte said softly, a look of relief on her face.

Seeing Charlotte’s calm expression, Yukina couldn’t help but look astonished.

‘My brother seems to have become much more mature than before. Is it because he was tempered by the other world?’

However, Charlotte couldn’t maintain the act for long. She turned her head, unable to hold back a cheeky grin at Yukina.

“How was that? Wasn’t your big bro super cool just now?”

“So you were just trying to act cool! My brother hasn’t changed at all!”

****

After walking out of the hospital entrance, Yukina, with her school bag slung over her shoulder, took out her phone to reply to a few messages.
She subconsciously turned her head and saw that for some reason, Charlotte had suddenly taken out her broomstick.

“What are you doing, brother?”

“Getting ready to go home, of course!
Your brother is a witch now, there’s no need to call a taxi. We can fly straight home.”
After mounting the broom, Charlotte patted the empty space behind her.
“Hurry up and get on, Yukina. Let your big bro show you how to fly in style!”

Yukina was instantly reminded of her previous experience being flown around by Charlotte.
It had been a particularly terrible experience. Just looking down at the night view of the entire city had made her legs turn to jelly and almost spring a leak.
If her… blessed rain… had accidentally sprinkled on some passerby’s head, her life would probably have ended right along with her brother’s.

Yukina’s face soured, and she quickly shook her head.

“No, I think I’ll just take a taxi home by myself.”

“Is that so? That’s a real shame. Then I’ll go home first and wait for you!”

“Mhm.”

Yukina nodded, then watched as Charlotte, riding her broom, disappeared into the night sky.

“Honestly, brother, still so obsessed with taking me flying!”

After complaining a little, Yukina took out her phone and ordered a ride on Didi³.

Once the order was placed, Yukina went to the side of the street to wait for the ride-share to arrive.

However, before long, a familiar figure slowly descended from the night sky.

Yukina couldn’t help but frown.

“Brother, why are you back again?”

“Uhh…”
Charlotte, having returned on her broom, couldn’t help but scratch her cheek with a finger, her gaze becoming shifty.
“Um, Yukina, where do we live again?”

“…” Yukina was instantly speechless.
“Brother, you even forgot where our home is?”

“Well, I can’t help it! I haven’t lived here for fifteen years, after all.”

“Brother, are you some kind of magical creature who can’t survive in this city without me?”

Yukina couldn’t help but sigh.

“Let me be clear, I am not riding that broomstick back with you. So if you want to go home, you’d better get off your broom before anyone notices, and take a taxi back with me!”

Charlotte reluctantly put away her broom and came to Yukina’s side, muttering under her breath, “Flying is obviously the fastest way. Yukina, you just don’t understand the romance of flight.”

“Romance my foot! What if that ‘romance’ gets me killed? You think I can just reincarnate into another world and start a new game like you?” Yukina scolded, pinching Charlotte’s cheek.

“Yukina, Yukina, stop pinching! I’m supposed to be the older brother!”

¹ Sou dayo!: A Japanese phrase meaning “That’s right!” or “It is so!”. Its use in the original Chinese text gives the character an anime/manga-like, playful speaking style.

² makes you want to keep one as a pet: In the original Chinese thought, the word used for Charlotte is 只 (zhī), which is typically reserved for animals. This humorously frames her reincarnated brother as something small and cute enough to be kept as a pet.

³ Didi: Didi Chuxing (滴滴出行) is the largest and most popular ride-sharing service in China, analogous to services like Uber or Lyft in other parts of the world.