The three of them stood in silence as a brief, heavy hush fell over the room.
Acheron's parents didn't show much surprise; they seemed long accustomed to her quirks. The young girl, however, looked slightly puzzled. Wasn't this room supposed to belong to the couple standing beside her?
"Ahem, Acheron... Your room is on the third floor. You've gotten it wrong again," the man explained with a light cough and a look of pure helplessness.
Acheron's mother also looked a bit embarrassed, silently hoping this wouldn't leave a bad impression on the young guest.
Hearing this, Acheron took two steps back, carefully observing the hallway outside the door to verify her surroundings, then walked back into the room to speak.
"Sorry. My mistake."
After her calm apology, Acheron intended to close the door and leave, but her father suddenly called her back. The couple had originally planned to finish their private conversation with the girl before informing Acheron, but since she was already here, they decided it was best to lay everything out on the table.
Upon hearing this, Acheron decisively found a seat and sat down.
The young girl took the opportunity to look closely, and Acheron's appearance was finally presented clearly before her eyes. As a fellow woman, she couldn't help but marvel in her heart—how could such a breathtakingly beautiful woman exist in this world?
While the girl was sizing up Acheron, Acheron was doing the same to her. Although this little girl wasn't quite as beautiful as herself, she was still quite stunning. However, the stranger bore a seventy-percent resemblance to Acheron's mother.
So, is she my mother's biological daughter? Acheron wondered. Her mother looked like a young woman in her twenties; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the two looked like sisters. If Acheron didn't already know her mother just happened to look young, she might have suspected her father of having "some issues" on the side.
Her father noticed his daughter's gaze, and though it felt strange, he didn't dwell on it.
"Didn't Little Qian remind you?"
Hmm?
Acheron's CPU burned rapidly as she searched her memory... It seemed... Little Qian really had reminded her of something on the way home... Not to forget to... buy peaches after getting home?!
Seeing Acheron's adorable, dazed expression, her parents understood immediately. They knew their daughter all too well. Rather than guessing whether Little Qian had forgotten to deliver the message, it was safer to assume Acheron had simply forgotten it again.
The two sighed in unison, lamenting their unnecessary expectations.
The girl: (⊙_⊙)?
At that moment, the man broke the awkwardness and got straight to the point.
"Acheron, this is Mo Xi. She is our daughter... and from today on, she will be your younger sister."
Acheron: (⊙ˍ⊙)
This time, even Acheron experienced a momentary flash of surprise, though it passed unnoticed; her face remained as calm as still water.
In truth, Acheron had speculated before that she might not be her parents' biological child. After all, for a black-haired couple to give birth to a daughter with violet hair and violet eyes—if it wasn't some kind of extreme genetic mutation, it was probably the work of the neighbor living next door.
She thought she had finally gained parents in this life, but now she was being handed a "True vs. False Heiress" script?
"Mhm."
Complaints aside, Acheron still responded with her usual calm.
The atmosphere in the room seemed to freeze again. The couple looked at Acheron and their biological daughter with nervous eyes. After living together for nearly ten years, how could there be no feelings? Yet, they also feared that their biological daughter, Mo Xi, would feel resentment toward the "replacement."
Mo Xi was also curious about Acheron's reaction. After all, regarding a sudden intruder who might threaten her status, it was only natural for the existing daughter to feel some dissatisfaction or unwillingness.
Feeling everyone's gaze upon her, Acheron appeared to have finally processed the situation. She tilted her head blankly and asked, with a touch of accidental cuteness:
"...So, do you want me to move out?"
At this, the couple shook their heads and breathed a collective sigh of relief, a trace of gratification surfacing on their faces. As parents who had lived with her for years, they understood Acheron's personality; at the very least, she wasn't showing any resentment.
To them, Acheron was being very sensible—or perhaps she was just burying her dissatisfaction deep in her heart. They resolved to have a heart-to-heart talk with her later.
Their eager gazes then turned back to Mo Xi, their hearts filled with anticipation for her decision. Feeling such warm gazes made Mo Xi feel slightly uncomfortable. She lowered her head, trying her best to cast aside her emotions. After a period of rational thought, she finally made her choice.
Mo Xi looked up and asked seriously, "Can I make one condition?"
The couple didn't hesitate for a second, indicating that any condition would be fine. Mo Xi saw their sincerity, and a soft spot in her heart was touched, but she quickly suppressed it.
"If you can adopt my younger sister as well, I'll agree to come back."
The couple agreed without even thinking about it. They had been searching for their daughter for eighteen years; now that they could finally bring her home, there was nothing they wouldn't do.
"Thank you." After receiving her answer, Mo Xi gave a sincere thanks.
"We're all family, there's no need for thanks. Come here, let Mother take a good look at you. You've truly suffered all these years."
With the major matter settled, the couple finally wore happy smiles. As for Acheron, she silently gave them space after Mo Xi agreed. Although Mo Xi hadn't fully accepted the situation yet, she moved closer as if possessed, her cold expression gradually relaxing.
In truth, Mo Xi was hiding a massive secret: She was a Reborn One.
In her previous life, she had been an abandoned infant adopted by an old man. After he passed away early, she was left to live alone with the old man's granddaughter. Though life was hard, she persevered through the company of her sister.
But as the dark truths of the world were revealed, they were forced into a life of wandering and flight. This world was not as simple as it appeared. There were people with strange powers known as Ability Users, and those people had long since stopped caring for the law. How could two helpless girls survive? Their heaven-bestowed beauty had become a cursed sword that endangered their lives.
Because neither she nor her sister had awakened a Supernatural Ability, she could only take her sister and hide. Ultimately, she had failed to protect her.
Having discovered she was reborn a year ago, she was determined to find another way out. Meeting her biological parents was a pure coincidence, and for someone who had already died once, she didn't feel much joy. But she realized that, at the very least, she could give her sister a stable life here.
However, Mo Xi did not relax. She knew it was not yet time to let down her guard. Her greatest trump card in this life was a jade pendant left to her by her biological parents. In her previous life, it had been ordinary. But in this life, the voice of a middle-aged man suddenly echoed from within it. He claimed to be a Cultivator, though he seemed to have lost his memories.
Mo Xi hadn't believed him at first, as she only knew of Ability Users. It wasn't until she practiced the technique he taught her that she temporarily trusted him, calling him "Old Meng."
But she knew there was no such thing as kindness without a price. Mo Xi, having returned from the darkness, didn't believe in selfless motives. Still, compared to her previous life of fear, she chose to gamble. Even if something happened to her in the future, she hoped her parents would, for her sake, take care of her sister.
Then, she would have nothing left to worry about.