Sara murmured, "Damn, it's been so difficult this week," causing my head to bob up and down.
"Huh, why?" I looked up at her as I lay beside her, resting my head on her stomach.
Don't ask me why we are like this.
I personally don't know how we ended up lying down on the ground like this.
"Do you not realize how hard it is to keep up with you?" Sara said it with some frustration.
"Well, it can't be that hard, or is it?" I said, not knowing the answer to her question.
"It is. You who do the amount of exercise in one day that I do in a week," Sara said, huffing and dropping her head on the ground again.
"So? If you want to become strong, you need to push yourself." I simply replied, eliciting another grunt from her.
"As true as that is, We don't need to push ourselves this hard as demons," Sara said, taking another long breath.
"Why? Because we have longer life spans?" I said, shrugging at her question.
Her parents and my newly adopted parents have been away for a week and a day, and they should be returning home any moment now. Calling my parents is going to take quite a while.
Thinking back on the last week, I can see how much my mentality has changed. It's pretty nerve-racking if you think about it. Not even a month ago, I was still a human, and now I am already referring to myself as a demon, although I am only a half-breed, as the attention-hoarding demons say.
It's weird how, no matter where you go, something like racism is there.
It's quite enjoyable to face-slap someone like that with your sister.
I don't know how Sara is adept at getting people's trust. She is pretty naive and innocent, but hardcore at the same time. Maybe it's because I understand demons better now. Or just me wanting a family? I don't know.
Well, as much as my thoughts have changed over the last week, I still have a lot of doubts, but moving on isn't one of them anymore. There might come a time when I regret it, but I don't think it will last long.
Though I trust Sara, it doesn't mean I will also trust my other siblings. Lucas and Julia don't have a lot of trust, especially Julia, who dated the dumb tyrant, so her decision-making skills need work.
Karl is just a bundle of energy and strength. Because he is so young, his strength is no joke. I haven't seen Sara's twin in the past week. He is reticent, I think.
Hendrain has been silent, following behind Karl like a dog looking for a treat.
I'm not entirely sure how it happened, but Karl trained him after I had physically beaten him. Sigh, a lot happened, but the bottom line is that I am moving on slowly but surely. Still, there is a long way to go.
"Hey, Rin, are you there?"
"Hmm, what's up?" I said, looking at her.
"No, you just started to space out there, and I got worried," Sara said, smiling at me.
"Worried for what? I delve into my thoughts and never come back." I said, chuckling.
"Is that possible?" Sara said it worriedly.
"Probably, but I think that's when you join the abyss."
"The never-ending darkness?" Sara said it with a raised eyebrow.
"Correct."
"Sigh, weirdo."
"Ready for more laps?" I said, standing up. Even though I may have grown significantly in the first few days since then, I haven't moved an inch in the past three days. Something that annoyed me a lot. I don't want to become a real Loli.
"Are you thinking about your height again?" Sara responded with a smirk, which annoyed me.
"AH, I think we should double the number of laps left, don't you think?" I looked up at her horrified face.
"Ah, my brother is calling me," Sara said. "Got to go," Sara said, holding her hand to her ear.
"Oh no, not falling for that again," I said, narrowing my eyes at her.
"But it's a twin thing, you know," Sara said, walking backward slowly away from me.
"Yeah, as if," I said, grabbing her arm and dragging her with me as I began to run again.
Since we returned from our shopping trip, I started training in the morning and evening, just before bed, because I wanted to get back in shape. Despite shrinking into a Loli, most of my stamina remained unchanged, so there wasn't much to regain. I can gain a lot more now than I could when I was still fully human.
Sara decided on her own to join me the next morning, something she regrets to this day. She also did the same trick she just tried: she and her twin brother communicated telepathically. Unaware that it was a hoax, I agreed to allow her to abandon her training—not even halfway through—in favor of relaxing on a terrace in the same spot I had discovered her in the front yard of the castle. I must say that it is quite a fun place to work out. There was no wind present, and the sun was not overly intense. It was great to train here in the morning and cool down at night.
"Shit." Sara cursed before running away as fast as possible.
"Get back here!" I yelled, running after her.
[20 minutes of running]
"Pant, pant, I can't. I am going to die," Sara said, panting and dropping to the floor.
"Right, you did well. That was twice as many laps as yesterday. If you keep this up, you might have enough stamina to rival a general." I explained with heavy breathing.
Trying to keep up with her with my tiny legs was quite challenging.
"Now. Get up. Let's get you something to drink," I said, holding out a hand to help her up.
"I can't move."
"Fine, I will drag you in then," I said, stretching my arms a bit.
"Thank you."
"Don't worry about it," I said, picking her up onto my shoulders.
"Ugh."
"Man, I'm short. Your feet are going to drag," I said, looking at her feet on the ground.
"…"
"Hmm." Without getting a response, I noticed that her breathing had stopped completely.
"She fell asleep or passed out?" I was baffled.
'I can't even teleport us in. I don't have enough stamina for that.' I thought, humming to myself.
"Right, she arrives today too," I muttered, seeing a shadow running towards us.
Jumping up, I summoned? Not teleported? No? Ah, whatever. My hand held my katana, deflecting all the tiny needles aimed at me.
"Great aim, not even close to Sara," I said, nodding.
"Let her go, you mongrel."
"Mongrol, what the-" I began, glancing to my left and raising my sword.
"Die!"
"Wait, stop. I am not an enemy in any way." I shouted, blocking her sword strikes.
"That's what an enemy would say." The cat girl hissed back, attacking me again with her sword.
I muttered, "I am incapable of enduring this," as I gritted my teeth and barely averted the slashes of her sword.
"What are you muttering about being deviant?"
"Ugh, can someone just stop her before she actually cuts off my head?" I looked at the bushes behind her.
"Heh, calling for backup? Why?" Selena looked at the three castle guards who were stopping her sword and asked, "Why?"
"Sorry, Princess Ren, we didn't think you would need us." Another guard said, bowing before me.
"Ugh, no worries; I was just lacking," I said, frustrated.
"Princess Ren, you are not lacking in anything. If you had more stamina, I'm sure you would have achieved more. The guard paused as I glared at him.
"Don't even start. Let's just go in. It is almost breakfast time."
"Yes, princess." The guard spoke, nodding.
"Huh? Princess? Who are you?" Selena said this, looking at me.
"Your older sister," I said, walking past her.
"What?"
[10 munite]
[Dining hall]
"Ah, I see."
"Huh, what a crappy reaction," Sara said, grunting in annoyance.
"I don't trust her."
"Why? If it's about how she looks, that's mom's fault." Lucas clarified, causing me to sigh in frustration once more.
"Hmm, it doesn't matter. I don't trust her. She isn't fully demonized."
"Huh, you, of all people, are going to use that card," Sara said while glaring at Selena.
One thing I noticed about Sara was her genuine concern for the perception of half-demons. I thought, looking at Sara before going back to my food.
"Hmph, so what? Anyway, what's up with that dumbass?" Selena pointed at Hendrian, who was standing at the wall like a servant.
Karl shrugged at our looks, "Oh, he didn't listen to me this morning, so he is receiving punishment."
"I don't think I should have given Karl that much power over Hendrian." Wait, I didn't actually give him any power. I merely instructed Hendrian to take care of him, failing which I would retaliate with physical violence. I thought, looking at Karl.
"And why is he listening to you, Karl?" Selena looked at Lucas, seeking an explanation.
"Because he is scared of big sister Ren," Karl innocently pointed at me.
"Well, well, well, you have even more explaining to do," Selena said, smirking at me.
"You are one annoying cat," I muttered, standing up from the table to get more food.
"What did you say?" Selena stood up and slammed her hand onto the table, causing the food to fly up into the air.
"Don't hit the table like that. Uwe won't like that." I responded, teleporting all the food back onto the table.
"U-Uwe, how dare you, a half-breed, call father by his name?" Selena said, pulling out her needles again.
Hearing what she said, both Sara and I raised an eyebrow at her.
"Selena, please calm down," Lucas said, trying to defuse the situation.
"Shut up!" Selena yelled, glaring at Lucas with killing intent.
"Hey, what the hell is wrong with you?" I asked, teleporting in front of her and grasping her collar. I pulled her down, making us look eye-to-eye.
"Stop! What is going on here?" A booming voice emanated from the main door.