Strangeness

Ten minutes earlier.

“Whoa, you actually live here?”

In the residential area bathed in the setting sun, the policewoman stepped out of her car, looking at the townhouse before her with some surprise.

“Not me. My mom lives here.” Bai Hai got out from the other side of the car, stowing his camera in his bag.

“Isn’t that the same thing!” The policewoman turned to look at the man, her tone still tinged with disbelief. “This is Professor Jiang Yue’s place, a renowned scholar from Xingchuan City University. If we want her cooperation in an investigation, we have to file an application with our superiors first… You really hit the jackpot with this family search.”

Bai Hai ignored her chatter, his gaze fixed on the townhouse.

While not overly luxurious, it was still impressive.

His eyes swept over the meticulously kept small garden in front, the warm and welcoming style of the house’s decor.

He could see a Chinese crabapple tree planted in the backyard, with a handmade wooden swing beneath it, swaying gently in the breeze.

The people living inside must be very happy.

Seeing Bai Hai lost in thought, the policewoman stopped her teasing.

His feelings must be complicated right now, after all, he was about to meet the mother he hadn’t seen since childhood.

So she clapped him on the shoulder and smiled.

“Alright, I should head back to the station. The Anomaly’s been dealt with, but there’s still a ton of paperwork to handle.”

“Oh, thank you for your trouble… Should I write a thank-you letter or get a commemorative banner made?”

The policewoman laughed heartily and got back in her car. “None of that formal stuff. After all this, we can consider ourselves acquainted. My name is Liu Xiaoxiao, stationed at the East City Police Department. This whole area is our jurisdiction. Remember, if you’re in trouble, find a police officer. Bye…”

As the police car drove away, Bai Hai’s gaze returned to the two-story building.

His phone vibrated. He glanced at it and quickly sent a reply.

Then he took a deep breath and walked towards the house.

If possible, he would have preferred never to disturb the lives of the family of three in this house.

Bai Hai held no resentment towards his mother, nor any particular fondness.

He truly had no memory of her.

Having lost his memories, he was now going to meet a stranger connected only by blood.

But he had to go now… he must go.

This time, it wasn’t for the world, but for his family… more precisely, for his little sister.

“Ding…”

After the doorbell rang for a moment, just as Bai Hai was about to press it a second time, the fingerprint-authenticated security door slowly opened.

Before him stood a very young-looking middle-aged woman.

Her life must have been very comfortable for her to look so young.

Her clothes were also of the expensive kind.

Bai Hai didn’t greet her immediately, because he saw her mouth open as if to say something, but she was too nervous to speak.
After a long moment, he heard a phrase.

“Um… uh… you’re here?”

“I’m here,” Bai Hai responded, hesitating for a thoughtful moment before continuing, “Mom, it’s been a long time.”

“Yes, it has been a long time. We met once and then lost touch, all because we were too busy… It’s been a long time.”

A smile appeared on Jiang Yue’s face, and she finally returned to her normal conversational state.

But at that moment, a wave of deep sadness washed over her—they were too much like strangers.

When she heard that Bai Hai and his father had died in a cruise ship disaster, Jiang Yue had just remarried.

At that time, her heart was breaking with grief, unable to believe the reality of it.

Even though the police provided a detailed investigation report, she refused to believe it without seeing a body, even going out to sea several times on her own to search for clues.

But time passes.

More than a decade had gone by.

No matter how sad Jiang Yue was, no matter how much she refused to believe, life had to go on.

Besides Bai Hai, she had another child to care for.

In fact, even she didn’t know when she had started to believe that Bai Hai was probably truly dead.

Until that phone call, everything changed.

She was truly happy, but when she actually saw Bai Hai, Jiang Yue realized that the person standing before her was no longer the little boy who used to cry for a hug, but a grown man taller than her.

He was polite and well-mannered, and his features strongly resembled his father’s.

The DNA test proved their relationship, yet Jiang Yue felt as if there was a thick wall between them.

She could never face Bai Hai the way she faced Xia Cheng.

So at that time, instead of embracing him and crying as she had imagined, she had woodenly said, “It’s been a long time.”

Then she had fled.

Today, Jiang Yue had invited Bai Hai back to the country to meet, hoping to build a connection and dispel the strangeness between them.

But now, meeting again, she found that she could still only say, “It’s been a long time.”

She still hadn’t figured out how to face this son who had been dead for so many years.

She even started to wish, just a little, that it would have been better if Bai Hai had never come back…

But when she realized this thought had surfaced in her mind, she felt even more sorrowful.

Bai Hai watched his mother, this woman who had never appeared in his memory.

Her thoughts were very easy to read.

Her expressions, tone, and unconscious little movements almost wrote her inner thoughts on her face.

So he steered the conversation elsewhere, carefully avoiding any mention of reunion or hardship.

“You encountered Anomaly No. 213? Isn’t that in the southern part of the city?” Jiang Yue was a little surprised to hear Bai Hai’s account.

But Bai Hai said “shyly,” “It’s my first time in this city, I got a little lost and happened to run into it.”

“Are you okay then? Are you injured anywhere? Should we go to the hospital for a check-up first?” Jiang Yue asked nervously, looking him up and down.

“A magical girl solved the problem. I had a check-up before coming. I’m fine. An officer brought me back.”

As soon as Bai Hai finished speaking, he sensed someone looking at him.

He turned his head slightly. Jiang Yue’s gaze followed and saw her daughter standing behind her with a dazed expression.

She didn’t greet him or ask any questions, her eyes filled with unfamiliarity and wariness, just like her…

A nameless fire ignited in her heart, and she snapped, “What are you standing there for? Hurry up and call him brother.”

Bai Hai didn’t speak immediately, but silently observed his sister.

She had inherited her mother’s excellent looks, graceful and elegant.

One could tell at a glance that she was the kind of child who had been well-protected, with a clear innocence in her eyes.

But being a teenager, this innocence carried a hair-trigger feel to it, like a bad-tempered cat.

‘As expected, she’s the same as when she was a magical girl.’

Bai Hai withdrew his gaze, maintaining the expression of a friendly neighborhood big brother, and smiled gently. “I’ve heard a lot about you. Nice to meet you, my name is Bai Hai.”

“Why is it you! What are you doing here?!”

However, Bai Hai’s gentle approach was met with Xia Cheng’s stressed questioning, filled with strong hostility, just like the glance from before.

He was not surprised by this.

It was clear that she was a very emotional child who couldn’t hide her feelings at all.

Xia Cheng glared, about to continue her questioning, but was suddenly hit on the head by a large hand.

Wincing in pain, she turned to see her mother’s eyes wide with anger, shouting through gritted teeth, “What did you say! Is that any way to talk to your brother!”

“How can he be my brother! He just…” Xia Cheng started to argue, but caught herself in time.

She remembered that she had met him in her magical girl form.

When she went out to fight, her mother always thought she was in her room doing homework.

There was no way she could explain this.

She absolutely could not reveal her identity as a magical girl, or she would lose the ability to transform.

“What’s wrong? Could it be that we’ve met before?” Bai Hai lowered his head slightly, his face still as gentle as a neighborhood big brother, but inside he was starting to find this amusing.

‘This kid will definitely be fun to mess with.’

“You… I… No!” Xia Cheng fumed for a while, realizing she really couldn’t say anything, which only made her angrier.

She was about to turn and leave, but at that moment, Jiang Yue suddenly grabbed her clothes and said with a stern expression, “Where are you going?”

“Back to my room, to do my homework.”

“You can do your homework anytime. Your brother has come all this way. We’re going out to eat today!”

“You…” Xia Cheng wanted to say more, but she met Jiang Yue’s sharp gaze and immediately fell silent.

She knew that was the sign her mom was truly angry.

Dad wasn’t home today either. If this continued, it wouldn’t be good for her.

So, though she was a thousand times unwilling, Xia Cheng chose to bow her head and obey.

At the same time, she was quite puzzled: why was her mom so easily angered today?

Bai Hai looked at Xia Cheng, this half-exploded firecracker that had fizzled out, now just sulking there.

A playful mood took over him. He suddenly reached out and ruffled her hair, deliberately laughing, “Let’s get along, little sister.”

“Don’t touch me!”

Under Xia Cheng’s resentful gaze, Bai Hai sat in the front passenger seat, chatting and laughing with Jiang Yue.

The initial strangeness between them gradually loosened under his skillful verbal offensive.

This, however, gave Xia Cheng a strange feeling that her mom was being stolen, which made her even more unhappy.

Bai Hai glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, quite pleased.

Twenty minutes later, the three of them arrived at a high-end restaurant.

Jiang Yue had booked a private room several days in advance.

Walking in, Bai Hai noticed that the place was almost full.

To reserve a table in a place like this in advance, it seemed his mom had gone to a lot of trouble for this meal.

At the dinner table, under Bai Hai’s guidance, Jiang Yue finally opened up completely, much more relaxed than before.

The tension in her eyes also quickly eased, and she poured out many family matters.

Xia Cheng just ate and drank there, not saying a word, and even when she heard topics about herself, she would only glare to show her dissatisfaction…

From this perspective, the mother and daughter were quite alike.

But then, Jiang Yue suddenly asked a question: “Xiao Hai, you said you met a magical girl. What do you think of them?”

(TL note: In Chinese, adding “Xiao” (小), which means “little” or “small,” before a part of someone’s given name is a very common and affectionate way to address them. It’s used for people who are younger or of a junior status, especially among family, close friends, or senior colleagues.)

At this, even Xia Cheng looked over.