| Author: The Sole Survivor | Original Source: SFACG |
| Translator: CatatoPatch | English Source: Re:Library |
I don’t care if you believe it or not, but I do!
—Duanmu Bitong
Well, I don’t know if I believe in a nonsense setting such as amnesia, but if she can give me a valid reason to do so, I don’t mind humoring her once.
Still, this feeling of having nothing in your head really blows. Other than my name, I have nothing else that can verify my identity. And why do I only have a single-word name? Meh, I guess it’s something, at least.
“Ke, how about you sit down first, we can slowly talk about this then.” Seeing that I wasn’t in the right state of mind right now, my self-proclaimed sister walked up to the wall at which point a flowery pattern lit up on the back of her left hand. A second later, the wall reacted in a way I definitely had not expected: a bunch of boards, some big and some small, popped out from the otherwise flat wall and self-assembled into a set of two chairs and a table for us to sit down at. Rather than a table, it would probably be more accurate to call it a board that had clearly been inset into the wall previously. Same with the chairs -they were L-shaped boards. Even so, the fact that a bunch of furniture just popped into existence was an eye-opener for me. No wonder this living room seemed so empty… and here I thought a robbery had just taken place…
“Have a seat first, Ke, I’ll go get some coffee then we can have a chat.” Having led me to my seat, the girl then reached out for the wall once more. A drawer automatically popped out from the wall, from which the girl drew out a couple of teacups, saucers and an assortment of jars. A shake and a tap later, the girl held out a cup full of black powder before the drawer. A tube extended from the wall at that point and boiling hot water began to accurately pour out onto the cup in the girl’s hand.
After stirring its contents a little, she then placed the cup on the saucer before me. “I remember Ke used to like drinking unsweetened coffee, that’s why I always leave out the sugar, just like now.”
Before I could even say anything otherwise, she was done and was even signalling for me to drink. I was a little taken aback by this. This coffee she was talking about was definitely black, but it honestly didn’t smell that bad. With that in mind, I took out the stirrer and licked it… Bitter! I swear my body is quaking from the bitterness. I’ve never drank anything so bitter in my life. Neither have I eaten anything so bitter either…
“Bitter…cough…” Not only was my tongue reeling from the bitterness, even my entire throat seemed to be revolting. Even though this substance known as coffee was fragrant, the moment I drank of it, my senses were immediately overwhelmed. So bitter… My face immediately scrunched together. Had it not been for the fact that I couldn’t feel anything wrong with my body, I would have honestly thought that she was trying to poison me right now…
“Still the same reaction as before.” Seeing me so disturbed by the drink didn’t panic her in the slightest. In fact, she seemed to be sneaking a laugh or two, well, not really. “Hahahaha…Ke’s reaction is exactly the same as before! Even though you’ve lost your memory, your hate of coffee still hasn’t changed in the slightest!!”
It hasn’t? Wait, didn’t you just say that I love it?! Why are you changing your tone now?! No wonder they say that beautiful girls can’t be trusted… even though I don’t remember where I heard that from.
I hate being played…
“Hehe, even Ke’s angry face is so adorable. I bet you’re already going off about how you hate being played.”
“How do you know?!”
Is she telepathic or something?
Seeing the shock on my face, the girl continued laughing while mixing a cup of coffee for herself, with two spoons of sugar and a dash of milk. As her dainty hands continued stirring, her eyes never once left my own. “Because Ke used to always say this.”
“…”
I almost said it out loud too…
My exasperated expression naturally didn’t escape her notice either; she quietly giggled to herself. Still, she knew when not to take a joke too far. Before I got even angrier, she added a couple spoonfuls of sugar into my cup and began stirring for me. “Ke always drinks the same coffee as me -two spoonfuls of sugar. Have a taste, it’s completely different now.”
Having said that, she pulled out her spoon and brought it to my lips.
I was still a little hesitant. It wasn’t that I was hesitant to use a spoon that she had used, rather it was about the taste… and this so-called sugar… it shouldn’t be that bitter, right? Speaking of which, hasn’t she been teasing me up till now? Should I even trust her?
Seeing me not drink for so long, she knew that I was still suspicious of her and thus began a second wave of attack in the form of a pout. “Go on, your big sister isn’t lying to you this time~~.”
So cute… Fine, I’ll believe her one more time. With that in mind, I closed my eyes and put that spoon inside of my mouth. In all honesty, I was already mentally prepared for another trap yet… this taste… it’s not that bad at all…
“How was it? Not bad, right?” She then scooped another spoonful of coffee to my lips. Seeing her slightly blushing face full of expectation, I suddenly had a thought: she wasn’t as bad as I thought after all. It was at that moment that I felt a voice within me counter back, don’t forgive her just because she’s cute!
Even so, cute was justice. Even my empty-headed self knew that!
“Mhm, I’ll help myself then.” The coffee was good with sugar, but I still couldn’t help but find this coffee substance strange. Either way, I had a spoon myself, so I could drink myself even without her help. If she was up to no good, she would definitely want to keep feeding me this strange liquid.
Best I do it myself.
I casually began feeding myself the coffee. Yet while I did so, that girl wasn’t just idling about either. Her eyes practically shone as she kept watching me, as if I had something growing on me.
“Since Ke doesn’t remember anything, I guess Ke doesn’t remember what happened when he went missing either. We’ll leave Uncle Mo aside for now, today your big sister will just talk about your past.” Without any hesitation whatsoever, she used the spoon that I had stuck into my mouth to drink her coffee as well. “My name is Duanmu Bitong, Ke’s neighbor. I’m older than you by a month so I’m your big sister~~~ We’ve been playing together since we were young…”
It turned out that I lost my mother when I was young, and my father was the kind of artist who liked traveling about to find some inspiration. That was why I ended up being raised at this Duanmu Bitong’s house. As for why I was dumped on this neighbor of mine… that’s because our two families had an engagement, the kind that was signed even before we were born.
Just like our household, the Duanmu household only had one parent as well. According to reliable sources, Aunty Duanmu used to have a little something something with my old man…it’s just that they broke up in the end for some unknown reason and found their respective future partners…
Both of us were raised by Aunty Duanmu, but because of work, she ended up leaving us when we were fourteen. With no way to look after us and because both of us didn’t want to leave Phoenix County either, Aunty Duanmu had no choice but to leave us behind while she went off to work. Thankfully, Duanmu Bitong was mature for her age so she was able to look after my daily needs; our living conditions weren’t too bad because of that. Before leaving, Aunty Duanma even joked as such, since you two are already engaged, I’m sure you two will get along just fine. Also, no children before twenty! That’s a rule, got it? But if you really want to have one, don’t worry, just tell Mama. Mama actually really wants to have a grandchild to hug~~
Teasing us must have been Aunty Duanmu’s pastime…
Unfortunately, that forever-absent father of mine suddenly turned up to whisk me away when I was fourteen and a half, leaving Duanmu Bitong alone at home. I didn’t know what happened after that point, I had amnesia, after all. All I knew was that we’re both sixteen and Duanmu Bitong was now a freshman highschooler.
Still… What the heck is up with this tragic setting? What kind of trashy novel is this? And why must my so-called fiancee enjoy bullying me as well? Are you telling me I have to spend my entire life dominated by her then?! Oh holy potato, where should I even start?!
“And that’s why, Ke, even if you’ve lost your memory, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter at all. What matters is that you’re back with your sister.” Duanmu Bitong looked me right in the eyes at that point. Her cheeks flushed red and her eyes drooped a little. “What’s important is that we create more memories for ourselves, and not get upset about our past… that’s why… that’s why…”
Why what? Why is it that I still don’t get what she is trying to say after all this time?
“That’s why… we should get married!”
Having dropped that bomb on me, she promptly turned away, neck turning red something fierce.
“Marr…iage?”
Hearing me hesitate like that, I clearly saw her shoulders droop a little. Even though her head was still faced away, I could tell that she was very nervous right now. My answer was of great importance to her, like a single word from me could alter her very life.
“About that…”
“Mhm, I’m listening.”
Even my heart was beating terribly fast at this point from her nervousness. This girl… she’s too cute!!
Her constant teasing of me is certaining annoying… but all that is nothing before her cuteness! Still, some things had to be said.
“About that… what does marriage mean?”
“Huh??” Hearing that, she practically whipped her head around to face me, eyes staring daggers while an ominous black aura slowly seeped from her being… How should I say this…she seems really dangerous right now… super duper dangerous… galactic level dangerous…
To be honest, her reaction was truly scary, but I really didn’t know what marriage even meant. That was why I asked her again, “Can you tell me what is a marriage?”
“…”
“…”
Just like that, both of us fell silent for a long time.
Shameless Self-promotion
Announcement: I’ve re-opened my Patreon in case anyone wants to sponsor more chapters. Every end of the month, those chapters in early access will be released for free for all to read. If you sponsored a chapter, you will gain permanent early access to these chapters. Essentially, everyone gets more chapters to read, but those who donated get to read earlier. More chapters will then be translated at the start of the month. Explanation on the Patreon itself.