Another story: Arthur's Arc #2

A pair of white, slender legs dawdle across the long and spacious hallway to somewhere.

The child's mood is expressed thoroughly by her own body. Her feet are covered in bunny sandals stamping on the floor rather eagerly, displaying her agitation with each step.

Flip-flop.

Flip-flop.

Early in the morning, the sound of her footsteps is pretty discernable, especially in the empty and quiet hallway. Luckily, those sounds get absorbed by the thick yet wooly carpet underneath. Or else, she might stir everyone awake with her gait.

She dragged behind her a white, fluffy plushie doll that was way bigger than her body. The determined look on her face seems inconsistent with the childish aura she exudes.

Once the child arrives at her destination, in front of the big mahogany door at the end of the hallway, her head tilts adorably, seemingly pondering about something.

She hesitates to enter. Several minutes pass by, and yet the girl stands there doing nothing.

Then, she seemed to hear something from inside the room.

It looks like the owner is already awake.

She lifts her hand, her fingers trembling, maybe due to her fear or something else, yet before it touches the doorknob, a faint click resounds, and the door magically opens itself.

The child curiously peeks her head from behind the door, and her yellowish brown eyes twinkle as she sees the familiar sight of her brother's back view.

She released a sigh, seemingly relieved about something.

Seiran slowly steps into the bedroom as she suppresses her childish giggling. She creeps in like a shadow, steadily approaching her ignorant eldest brother.

Her wanting to prank her brother had stopped rather abruptly.

Something feel different.

Her brother looked different than the usual him.

He appeared strange today. The golden aura around his body had become thicker and more abundant. The color becomes lighter but more dazzling. It was like his soul had found the missing piece of the puzzle. The young boy finally looked complete, and his body was well-nourished.

It should be good news for them as her brother's Mana seemed to increase in volume, becoming more powerful, and his magic's quality had refined to the finest. It also means that her brother had risen in rank; from the intermediate rank B to rank A.

Something like this warranted a celebration. Everyone will be happy, including the elder brother.

Long ago, the Royal Healer once said that his body lacked something. In this lifetime, he might not reach the pinnacle of his life. He might be stuck in the same rank or gradually lose his magic. Because of this, her elder brother, who is gloomy, becomes even more solitary and uncommunicative. He distanced himself from everyone and holed in his room.

I should be happy, she thought.

Yet, she felt unhappy for no reason. She is grieving about the loss of something. But the question is, what?

Seiran blinked her eyes. She felt something warm pooling around the rim of her eyes.

Without warning, the child suddenly rammed her tiny body toward the clueless figure who had not yet realized her presence inside the room and caught his waist.

She had long abandoned her favorite doll when she rushed inside.

Seiran heard him curse something incomprehensible under his breath. She ignored that as her thin arms tightly hugged the young boy's body.

Is this person the brother she once knew?

"Eldest brother, I miss you."

***

"...Hmmm..." Arthur provocatively rubbed his chin while staring into his reflection in the mirror. His inky, sword-like eyebrows haughtily rise up and down.

Such a sight is quite unbefitting of Arthur's usual graceful countenance. More often than not, the young boy puts an expressionless face that makes people afraid to approach him. He is always indifferent to his surroundings and only willing to show some specks of emotions toward his family. Due to this, people regard him as arrogant, which is not true and far from that.

Arthur is an introvert and especially reticent toward strangers.

When he was small, he found out people kept talking badly behind him and slandering him with something untrue. Rumors about him circulate, and no one willing to befriend him except a handful of people.

Arthur regarded them as his friend and was very dependent on them. Arthur is willing to do anything for his friends as long as it is within his morality. Who knows that the one he trusted the most was the perpetrator who instigated people to distance themselves from him? They betrayed him and wounded his tender and fragile heart.

When he investigates, the truth behind their wicked actions and the reason for them doing such a vile action toward him deeply sadden him. It makes him unable to trust again. Likewise, the effect lasts until today. It is like the saying, once bitten, twice shy, and a burnt child dreads the fire. He is not willing to be hurt again by them, so it is better to be indifferent.

Furthermore, Arthur had been stuck in intermediate B for a long time without the prospect of rising to a higher rank. He knew others were mocking him behind his back, and he was increasingly afraid of people's opinions toward him. So, the gloomy boy becomes gloomier and refuses another human touch or breath.

Well, now that he is Arthur, whoever wants to care about the trust issues in other people and being an introvert? He can kick those things at the back of his mind with ease. There's nothing in this world that can faze him.

Ah, he felt a tiny bit scared when he woke up inside that white space(mentally gestures with his left thumb and index finger to express the phrase of tiny-bit) because that's the first time he met an alien.

Because for him, he can act like nothing ever happened even if his girlfriend slept with another boy and he happened to stumble upon the adulterous scene.

He didn't know whether to laugh or to get angry after seeing such a stimulating scene unfolding before his eyes. And to think that his innocent-looking girlfriend could act unbridled, unrestrained, and without any hint of shame, he felt that he needed to applaud her courage.

Truthfully, he felt no remorse toward them. Instead, he was taken aback by their wild and unbridled action inside that cramped and suffocating storage room, and shamefully, the lower part of his body had an intense reaction.

Maybe, something is wrong with his head because instead of feeling angry and betrayed by her cheating, he felt aroused.

How embarrassing.

He and his girlfriend broke up after that, and he couldn't divulge himself into any relationship for a year because of them, but he didn't hate his girlfriend. However, he immensely dislikes her partner-in-crime. And you know what? Until today, they keep being friends despite her past mistake. Even his classmate questioned his sanity for that.

Arthur blinked his eyes and stared dazedly at his appearance. He touched his face again, pinching and kneading the smooth flesh while sighing in resignation.

Forget about the past and focus on the present. Let's admire this handsome face together, okay?

Arthur hummed softly. He too preoccupied with his own appearance that he does not realize that his bedroom door is slowly opening from the outside.

When a small cannonball rammed into his body, he couldn't help but let out a string of curses due to shock. Such a thing happened so suddenly.

A pair of thin arms encircled his waist, and someone buried her face into his stomach, whimpering softly.

A soft, velvety voice belonging to a young child sounded, saying something under her breath.

"Eldest brother, I miss you."

Arthur's body stiffened. His face goes completely white, and his hands hang in the air in a somewhat uncomfortable manner as his fingers shake like a leaf, showing his nervousness. The awkwardness is evident through his small gesture, and such action gets perceived immediately by Seiran's keen eyes.

Seiran's eyes went dim, and she bit her lips. Her arms tightened around the young boy's waist, her fingernails digging deeper into her own flesh.

In the meantime, many things bombarded Arthur's mind.

What? Who is this girl?! His sister? She should be his sister, Right? In the Knight family, there are only two females; the mother and the sister. What is her name? Sofia? Serina?

Seiran.

A small, mysterious voice sounded inside his head as if answering his question.

Hug her and comfort her. She is our precious sister, more priceless than any treasure in this world. No one should ever make her cry, not even yourself.

Strangely enough, his body moved by itself and returned the girl's hug, softly patting her back while whispering something in a coaxing tone. It is a spontaneous reaction.

"What's wrong, Ran?" His voice involuntarily softened, and his palm skillfully pats Seiran's back, soothing her tense nerve. "Are you having a nightmare?"

Once she heard the tone she was accustomed to, filled with familiar warmth and love, Seiran couldn't help but burst into tears.

Her cries are heart-wrenching, and they tug at the listeners' heartstrings. The flabbergasted Arthur becomes distressed and in a panicky state.

Uhhh, why did she cry so sorrowfully as if losing one's lover? Anyone who hears this will undoubtedly accuse him of bullying this child!

"What's wrong? Don't cry, please. Did you really have a nightmare, Ran?" Please tone down your crying, my little ancestor!

"Eldest brother...wuwu..." Seiran kept sobbing, yet she said nothing to appease her anxious brother.

Shing!

Arthur got a goosebump. He felt something cold touch his exposed neck, and his eyes caught a glimpse of silver light reflected by the sharpness of a blade.

Luckily, his soul had perfectly assimilated with the body, and everything he does is within his control. Thus, despite the shock, he could act calmly in this situation. If not, the original him(Xu Mingyu) will undoubtedly scream like a frightened girl and undergo OOC.

Arthur exhaled a heavy sigh before calmly looking behind him. He frowned.

"Get your sword off my neck, stupid."