One thing I didn't expect from this reincarnation: having an older sister. In my previous life, I was an only child. The sole son of a family that was, well... quite harmonious, quite happy, quite everything—but nothing extraordinary. There was no loving older sister figure who could also slam an adult orc with one hand. And now? I have a sister.
Her name is Aurelia Argwager. Two years older than me. Her red hair blazed like a bonfire in the dead of night. Her gaze was filled with firmness. Her face was like a fire fairy amidst the snow, hot yet charming. And her physique… honestly, if she were born in my old world, she probably would have been a world champion weightlifter, a combat apparel model, and a student council president—all at once. All that power, contained within a body that, from any angle, could only be described as the ideal physique of a teenage girl.
But don't let all those attributes mislead you. Aurelia isn't just strong and graceful. She... loves me too much. Too much. Since I could walk, she was always behind me. Like a shadow. Like a personal bodyguard. Like Guaogle Maps, but creepier because she could appear from behind curtains or on top of wardrobes.
"Alex, you don't have to pick up that apple yourself. Next time call me," That's what she told me when I tried to pick up a fallen apple. An apple. A fruit that even a three-year-old could pick up with one hand. Sometimes I feel like it's not me who reincarnated as a noble's younger brother, but Aurelia who reincarnated as a mixed version of a protective older sister, a lioness, and an automatic security system. I myself wonder when and how this obsessive behavior began in her, and what caused it.
Oh, and she knows everything. "Alex, you haven't drunk your morning milk yet." "Alex, you're wearing the same undershirt two days in a row, right?" "Alex, you stared too long at that passing maid. Do you like her? Hm?" Every day, my life is like a reality show where Aurelia is the cameraman, the director, and the television network owner all at once. Even my own mother once said, "Aurelia, dear, give your brother some breath" and Aurelia simply replied, "I am his oxygen."
However, behind that absurdity, there was something I couldn't ignore. Something that grew and became stronger over time:
An attachment.
I started to feel that Aurelia wasn't just a sister. She was an orbital system. And I—a small planet constantly within her gravitational pull. Every move I made was monitored, every expression I had was studied. Sometimes I joked to myself, "Maybe she has a special journal titled 'Alex: Day 2785'".
But there was something deeper than that. Something I couldn't see with ordinary eyes, but it felt... piercing from behind all that excessive attention. Aurelia wasn't just a possessive older sister. She was like a dragon guarding a cave containing a single treasure: me.
"Even a lion won't let its bones be touched by wolves," she told me one night. I didn't understand what she meant then. But now I know: she wasn't just afraid of losing me. She was afraid I wouldn't need her anymore. The most memorable incident was when a noble guest's child, nine years old, tried to sit next to me at family dinner. Just as he pulled out the chair, Aurelia smiled—sweet as poisoned honey—and said, "That chair is mine. Sitting in that chair means you are responsible for your life." The child? He didn't have dinner that day. He might even still be traumatized to this day.
However, truly, Aurelia wasn't just protective. She... was vulnerable. One night, I woke up from a nightmare—a shadow from my old life, full of regret. Unconsciously, I cried softly. When I opened my eyes, Aurelia was already sitting at the edge of my bed. "Sorry, I heard you," she said. "I don't like hearing you cry, even in your sleep." She hugged me. Silent. Didn't speak again. But her embrace made my nightmare disappear. And that was terrifying. Because her strength was too great to refuse, and her tenderness too real to separate.
I started to wonder—if one day I get married, how would Aurelia react? Would she welcome my wife with a smile? Or would she ask 77 questions like: "Can you remember all of Alex's favorite foods?" or "What's the size of his sleep slippers?" Funny enough, part of me felt that no one would be good enough for me... because Aurelia had set an absurd standard. And strangely, another part of me agreed with that.
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One night, I tried to talk to her.
Honestly. About space, about freedom.
"Aurelia... Sister, let me be honest with you... I need a little time alone sometimes."
She fell silent.
Her eyes weren't red. Not teary. But her gaze was like a sword slowly being resheathed, as if I had just betrayed something unspoken. "I know," she finally said. "But don't we all need a protector, even if it's just from loneliness?" Her words pierced like a poem from a forgotten poet who once wrote about love for shadows. I wanted to answer, but my tongue was heavy. Because I knew, I also relied on her. When this world felt unfamiliar, Aurelia was an anchor. When magic failed and the sword felt heavy, she was home. She wasn't just a sister. She was the first fortress in this new life of mine.
Funnily enough, I often re-imagine my life if she weren't there. In those versions, I am strong, independent, full of achievements. But also... very lonely. Because no one would frantically yell when I sneezed. No one would force rub herbal remedies on my back because I leaned too long against a cold wall. No one would proudly stand when I finished reading an advanced magic theory book and say, "You're smarter than most of the magic council." Aurelia was there for all of that. And I began to understand, the obsession wasn't just hers. I, too, relied on her more than I admitted. Not because I was weak, but because she was too strong not to lean on. I wanted to break free. But I was also afraid. Our relationship was a dance on a tightrope between love and attachment. I knew that a relationship between blood siblings was a taboo emotion that was unnecessary and not allowed; I knew it very clearly.
Fortunately, my current age doesn't allow me to activate large amounts of testosterone. This greatly saved me, because with the closeness we had, if it were my past self, I don't know what would have happened to me and to her... The feelings between the two of us were not normal, I knew that.
At the age of 10, the day when the real test would be conducted for me, was the same year my sister would leave me. I guess, that time was the right time to consider and truly think about our respective feelings. Maybe, with some space and distance, she would find new happiness there, at the Imperial Academy. And besides, I also need to find the best candidates who will become the mothers of my future children, out of the many humans across the continent, there must be at least one person who is worthy, right? A kind, loving, strong woman, and especially, a woman who can raise my children with utmost care and affection. Whatever happens, I will support her decision, as my precious sister, as the orbit in my current life, even if it leads to a forbidden decision... Haha, well, all that is still for the future.
But for now... I choose to dance.