The Eldest Sister Is Strangely Cold (3)

Time rewinds slightly, about twenty minutes earlier.

In my room, I was holding a potion and grinning wickedly, like a true manly man.

"Heheheh."

The potion I'd secretly asked Nibuer to secure, passing it off as an elixir. It was none other than an Invisibility Potion.

In the game, it granted temporary invisibility, making you undetectable to enemies, so I used it mostly to avoid tough foes.

Seeing the invisibility cloak Mother had wrapped around me during the Sun Fire Carp Inner Core incident had reminded me of it, so I'd tracked one down.

Its purpose... was to land a decisive blow on Charl, who'd been avoiding me lately.

'With this, Charl won't be able to dodge me either, right? I'll sneak into her room, block the door, and tell her she can't leave until she plays with me. Then how could she possibly refuse? Heh.'

Even I was scared of my own perfect scheme. To concoct such a nefarious plot—I clearly had the makings of a master strategist.

After cackling wickedly for a good while longer, I confirmed the potion wasn't laced with poison or anything and drank it down in one go.

—Glug, glug.

'...This tastes a bit fishy.'

After draining every drop of the slightly viscous liquid, I glanced at the mirror to check the effect.

And what reflected back at me... were clothes floating in midair.

When I moved, the clothes moved too, meaning only my body went invisible while my clothes stayed visible.

That was when I recalled how, in the game, if you walked around like this and triggered a trap, the damage felt oddly punishing.

Back then I figured, "Maybe defense drops while the potion is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠active." But it turned out you had to strip off your armor to go fully invisible.

—Slip, rustle.

Wordlessly, I undressed. Clothes crumpled to the floor.

Once I'd finally shucked off everything, including my underwear, I checked the mirror again.

No matter how close I leaned in, not a trace of me showed. The Invisibility Potion was working just fine, it seemed.

Still, just in case, I cracked the door open and peeked out.

A servant looked this way when the door suddenly moved. I waved my hand at her without a word, but she only tilted her head once, then went back to work. As if she could not see me.

'...Okay. The effect is legit.'

Only then, certain the potion was fully active, did I tremble with glee.

Seriously. Until now, if I even tried to catch a breeze in the garden, escort knights swarmed me and I felt like I would suffocate. And now I could wander freely outside the estate?

As if possessed, I headed out the door. First, I figured I'd take a leisurely stroll around the garden.

But there was one tiny detail I'd completely forgotten.

Even if my invisibility meant no one could see me, I was still stark naked.

* * * * * *

I was basking in the crisp autumn air with my whole body.

A bizarre sense of liberation. I accepted it as the sweetness of freedom, savored for the very first time.

'Haaah... Freedom feels incredible!'

I ambled alone through the garden turning with autumn colors. Walking outside by myself like this was a first. For both Ryu Si-u and Yune.

Maybe that's why. The footsteps that had been so cautious leaving the estate, worried about making noise, grew light and carefree before I knew it. Walking barefoot was new, but the garden's well-kept lawn was soft and pleasant.

As I kept going, the household staff grew sparser.

Eventually, when I reached a secluded spot with no one around, I started drinking in the scenery.

Leaves dyed crimson. A cool breeze. The pleasant scent of autumn. And...

—Bzzzzzt.

'Ah, a bug.'

A fly had suddenly buzzed into my space.

My mood slightly soured, I irritably went to swat it.

—Smack!

'Oh. Got it in one shot. Mark of a manly man: every strike hits home.'

I reached into the air, clapped my hands, and by sheer luck, caught the insect in one go. Opening my hands revealed the fly knocked out cold by my manly strike. I could also see my palm, with the bug flopped onto it.

Without thinking, I brushed my hands off, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a sudden doubt made me let out a dazed noise.

"Hwuh?"

'...I can see my hand? How?'

Hastily, I stared at my hand. Just moments ago, the Invisibility Potion had hidden it even from me, yet now my flesh had regained its color.

Bewildered, my gaze dropped, and I saw myself standing stark naked in the garden, invisibility dispelled.

...Without a single stitch on.

"——!?"

'Right, I stripped off all my clothes! I'd forgotten because I couldn't see myself!!'

The moment I realized, a small shriek escaped my lips. Heek, what is this? I look like some kind of pervert.

Unbearable shame flooding in, I dove straight into a nearby thicket to hide my body.

Only once the grass mostly covered my skin did I calm down enough to assess the situation.

'...Why did the potion suddenly wear off? The duration should've had ages left.'

Using Appraisal, the potion's duration was one hour. No matter how distractedly I wandered the garden, there was no way I'd roamed around for an hour. The effect hadn't ended from time running out.

But what else could have canceled the effect...?

'...No way. Did swatting that bug count as an attack?'

A sudden realization hit me. The act of catching the bug might have been registered as an "attack."

In the original game, you could not attack while the potion was active, not even by accident. The moment you attacked, invisibility broke.

So if the fly-swatting registered as an attack, it made perfect sense the invisibility ended.

Still, I blushed furiously in my indignation.

'Shhhhit... Do you know how much this potion cost? It canceled over one stupid fly? Does that make any sense?'

A spectacular situation where shame, resentment, and frustration all hit at once.

But the reality of standing stark naked in the garden wasn't going to change on its own. So first, I resolved to figure out how to handle this mess.

Should I yell and summon the servants? No. They'd all swarm over here and see me naked. Maybe Chloe or Nibuer would be one thing, but I'd sooner die than let ordinary household staff see me like this. Even a manly man has his sense of modesty.

So the only option was calling Chloe or family, but... judging by the distant yelping, Chloe was probably getting pummeled into the dust by Mother alongside Mar. Albert would be out training the domain army.

Which meant the only person who could save me right now was...

'Only Charl...?'

Just then, I heard footsteps approaching, crunching through fallen leaves.

Peering through the brush, it was Charl.

Ah. Indeed, life doesn't just let you die. Even when the universe screws you over, it always tosses a lifeline too!

It was my own sister, so I figured showing her my naked body wasn't the end of the world. ...Though I still covered my crotch, obviously.

"Charl."

"Yune!?"

"Bring me some clothes...."

* * * * * *

"...So that's what happened."

After bringing Yune some clothes, as soon as he finished dressing, she swiftly demanded what disaster had occurred. Yune meekly answered that he'd "used a potion to come see her."

When she heard that, a chill crawled down her spine.

'...So he was planning to come to my room naked? And to everyone else, I'd look like the worst kind of scumbag, a woman who brought a naked ten-year-old boy into her room? Ugh. Just imagining it makes my head spin.'

The mere thought of what would've happened if the Head of House had witnessed that scene sent a cold shudder through her. She shook her head vigorously to banish the possibility from her mind.

She'd intended to scold Yune firmly, but...

'...Still, it happened because of me, so I'd feel guilty scolding him.'

Seeing Yune red-faced with genuine embarrassment, she couldn't bring herself to say anything and closed her mouth.

This disaster was Yune's own carelessness, but... the sight of a young boy shivering naked outside was simply too pitiful.

And gazing at Yune's damp eyes, she felt that scolding him any further here would be an utterly inhuman thing to do.

Instead of reprimanding him, Charlotte resolved to offer comfort.

"...Yune. Were you scared? It must have been hard."

At those words, Yune's eyes flew wide open.

'...? Her tone just changed?!'

Up until now, Charlotte had been acting cold and cynical, performing the role of the Northern Grand Duchess...

But the shock ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of seeing her one and only little brother shivering naked in the garden had shattered the act, exposing her true personality. And her real voice, now that the performance had crumbled, was so sweet and gentle that it was utterly impossible to imagine coming from someone who had been rejecting Yune until now.

That voice brimmed with the kindness befitting the eldest sister who had long served as the emotional pillar for younger siblings who lost their father so early.

Yune was so profoundly moved that he threw himself into her arms.

"S-Sisss...."

"There, there. You were so scared, weren't you? It's okay now. Good boy, good boy."

And this time, she did not push away the sniffling Yune who burrowed into her embrace.

A complete departure from just a few days prior, when she'd resolved that she alone would be immune to Yune's influence—that she would, in fact, be strict with him.

But oblivious that the persona she'd so carefully maintained was crumbling, her entire focus was devoted simply to soothing the trembling little thing in her arms.

"There, there...."

As she patted Yune nestled against her, she felt a deep sense of déjà vu.

'I think something similar happened before... Ah.'

And then she recalled a forgotten memory—something from Yune's early childhood that he himself likely couldn't even remember.

The smile on her lips deepened.

"Yune. Shall we go to my room together?"

"...?"

"I have things to tell you. Why I've been avoiding you. And... an old ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠story you probably don't remember."