Chapter 67: Parents

“They don’t know.”

“I didn’t tell them.”

Ephnel smiled at Yukina.

“Actually, I didn’t plan to hide it from you all at first, but a lot of things happened back then, and it made me reconsider for a long time…”

“In the end, I decided to hide it for a while, as long as I could.”

Ephnel didn’t finish her sentence.

Her first battle as an Agent was a tragic one.

At that time, she and Yukina were always secretly protected by some mysterious, armed individuals.

Ephnel could occasionally sense their presence and vaguely understood that they were there because of her parents.

Protecting their children was the Human Federation’s reward to important personnel, or in other words, a kind of “exchange.”

Ephnel had never liked the eyes that stared at her.

In her opinion, it was more like surveillance than protection.

But it was undeniable that they had saved her during that life-altering Erosion incident.

The casualties from that sudden incident were immense.

Ephnel’s miraculous survival was all thanks to them.

A single person’s ability was ultimately limited.

Ephnel couldn’t protect every classmate around her.

When she tried to escape with others, she was eventually intercepted by an Erosion Organism.

It was those people who arrived in time, buying time for Ephnel and the students, and giving Ephnel the opportunity to come into contact with “Ephnel.”

By now, Ephnel no longer held a strong resentment towards those who had passed away.

Occasionally, Ephnel would visit their graves.

That was also a turning point for Ephnel.

She learned one thing: battle is accompanied by unavoidable sacrifice.

The average age of active Agents had dropped from their twenties to their late teens in just two years.

No one knew how the road ahead would unfold.

Blue roses don’t bloom at the bottom of the sea, and miracles don’t just happen in the world.

If, when she first became an Agent, Ephnel would have naively chosen to share her story with her sister and tell her parents, then the Ephnel who had experienced battle could no longer take that step.

After that, Ephnel dismissed the mysterious protectors who were once again dispatched by the Federation and picked up her own weapon.

And then, came what was happening now.

…

Ephnel and Yukina were talking as her gaze fell on the check-in counters of the terminal.

She looked around again and took out her phone, preparing to call her mother again.

Just then, Yukina suddenly tugged gently on her sleeve.

“Onee-chan, I think I see Uncle and Aunt…”

“Where?”

“Over there…”

Yukina pointed in a direction.

Due to the changes in her body, Yukina’s eyesight was much better than Ephnel’s.

Ephnel looked in the direction she pointed and soon, a familiar pair of figures appeared in her field of vision.

They were looking around as they walked this way.

It was her father and mother.

Father, Yanase Takuma, and mother, Yanase Kaoru—those were their names.

Although she hadn’t seen them for several years, the two of them didn’t seem to have changed much.

From a distance, they still looked the same as in her memory.

Her father was as upright and serious as ever, dressed in a sharp indigo suit.

His figure was not burly, but he had a rather restrained sharpness.

Her mother, on the other hand, held her father’s arm, delicate and gentle as water.

Time seemed to have left no obvious marks on her face.

They blended into the background behind the walking passengers and soldiers, not at all conspicuous.

Ephnel’s eyes lit up, and a smile appeared on her face.

“Yukina, let’s go this way.”

“Follow me!”

Ephnel suddenly turned back, hooked Yukina’s finger, and jogged a few steps, weaving through the passersby to circle around to the other side.

“Let’s give them a ‘surprise’ too.”

“Hey, wait… Onee-chan…”

Yukina hurriedly kept up, holding Ephnel’s hand tightly.

People around them cast glances their way, showing a hint of amazement.

Some glanced at Ephnel and then looked away.

It seemed that with Ephnel’s current attire, no one would find it strange whether she was called “older sister” or “older brother.”

Her current style was very androgynous.

“Onee-chan, isn’t it a bit much to go over like this…”

“What if we scare them…”

Yukina could roughly guess what Ephnel was planning to do.

It was nothing more than circling around behind her aunt and uncle, then suddenly appearing to startle them, or just following behind them to see when they would notice their daughters.

But that wasn’t a surprise, it was clearly a ‘fright.’

“We won’t scare them.”

“We’re just going over to take a look…”

Ephnel glanced back at Yukina and reminded her, “And, whatever you do, don’t call me ‘Onee-chan’ later, or the cat will be out of the bag right now.”

Ephnel’s current identity was the real “fright,” and it had to be saved for the “grand finale.”

“Mm…” Yukina held back for a long time before finally uttering, “Then… Onii-chan?”

“Pfft!”

Ephnel suddenly burst out laughing.

“Why so sudden…”

“Did I say it awkwardly?”

Yukina looked embarrassed.

“No, it’s just been a long time since I’ve heard you call me ‘Onii-chan.'”

“I’m suddenly not used to it…”

“I’ve always called you that in front of Aunt and Uncle…”

“Let’s go with that then!”

Ephnel suddenly squeezed Yukina’s hand and quickened her pace.

Yukina hurried to keep up.

She looked at her sister’s back in front of her, feeling a bit dazed.

She was suddenly struck by a strange illusion at that moment and realized that her “Onii-chan” hadn’t laughed like that in a very long time.

Ephnel and her sister were clearly the same person, yet there was a severe, undeniable sense of disconnect…

Ephnel was always smiling, confidently standing in front of everyone, breaking through the fog without a hint of confusion, as if nothing could ever stop her.

But her sister was different.

She often spaced out, staring at one spot for a long time, always coming home with injuries.

Even her occasional smiles seemed as if she had just been crying.

‘Maybe she doesn’t want to seem happy…’

Such a strange thought suddenly popped into Yukina’s head.

“Yukina, it’s been three years since you’ve seen Aunt and Uncle.”

“Do you miss them?”

“Mm…”

Yukina still didn’t know what the feeling of missing her parents should be like, but she had seen it a lot among her peers, and there were naturally times when she felt envious.

She didn’t even remember what her own parents looked like.

For her, this was home.

“Don’t forget, don’t call me Onee-chan.”

“Yes, Onii-chan.”

Ephnel squinted and smiled, letting go of Yukina’s hand.

Yukina was a little reluctant to let go of her sister’s hand, but she also knew that such an action was indeed a bit strange for a “brother and sister.”

As they got closer, the Yanase couple, not far away, did not notice them.

Just then, a phone rang.

Naturally, the Yanase couple also looked over suspiciously.

“Is that Naoto… and Yukina?”

They had already recognized the two of them.

“Uncle, Aunt…”

“Dad, Mom.”

Yukina and Ephnel called out.

…