The Potted Plant Incident

“What was that sound just now! Little sister! You’re not hurt, are you?!!!”

Slam!

The bathroom door burst open instantly under immense force.

“Little sister, what just happened?! You’re not… hurt…”

Through the partially obscured mist, a faint image emerged: a petite girl with vivid, jewel-like eyes. She was clutching her lower abdomen with one hand, her delicate face flushed crimson.

A trace of uncleaned nosebleed was still visible. Coupled with the strange sound I had heard from outside the door just moments ago, any man would immediately understand what had transpired.

The little sister slowly turned her face.

****

‘……………………Silence……………………………………………….’

‘……………..A…..deathly…..silence………..’

‘……A…….hellish……silence…….’

“Say, could I ask you to… die once?”

I seemed to perceive a swirling, dark, basin-shaped object, ceaselessly spinning and growing larger before my eyes.

With a resounding thud, accompanied by the crisp, mournful crunch of bones, I completely lost consciousness.

…

Gasp!

My eyes snapped open.

‘What happened to me? Where am I?!’

‘Why do I feel such a massive void in my memory?!’

Pant, pant, pant, pant!

I jolted upright in bed and took a deep, shuddering breath.

Sitting by the bed was my little sister, who was usually incredibly aloof towards me, yet in reality, was “extremely concerned.”

“Little sis… I… what… what happened to me?”

The girl, her back to me, with silver strands of hair peeking out from beneath her neck, instantly turned her face.

A smile of unparalleled purity and gentleness graced her features, a sweet and warm expression reminiscent of lilies in July.

“Onii-chan~ It’s 11:30 PM. Does Onii-chan remember what happened before this?”

Gasp!

‘What happened?!’

This defied all logic! My usually tsundere little sister was speaking with such politeness?!

I scrutinized the girl with silver and black hair, my gaze immediately meeting her eyes.

Her scarlet eyes revealed no trace of emotion, seeming to faintly conceal fissures leading directly to hell itself.

An “unknown poem” suddenly echoed within my mind.

‘One, two, the demon comes for you’

‘Three, four, shut all doors’

‘Five, six, clutch the crucifix tight’

‘Seven, eight, stay awake ’til light’

‘Nine, ten, for…………..’

‘Phew… Even though I feel like I just took a tour of a very unpleasant place… this is definitely my little sister. That “little sister look” is indeed familiar… Yes, that’s right…’

Though I seemed to vaguely recall something, it was utterly chaotic and fragmented. Specific memories appeared to have vanished entirely, yet I was gripped by an inexplicable premonition.

‘If I admit to remembering anything… I will surely die!’

This premonition was overwhelming.

“No, my memory seems to be a complete mess. I don’t seem to remember anything at all…”

“Ohh~ Is that so? Then, what’s the last thing you remember, Onii-chan?”

“Uh… I think it was when you forced me to eat those two cups of Black and White Bear instant noodles… Why?”

“Ohh~ Is that so? Then I can rest easy…”

I felt utterly bewildered.

“Uh, little sis.”

“Huh?”

“What exactly happened before?”

“You know how awful those instant noodles tasted, right? After finishing them, you kept complaining to me. Then, after you got your pocket money, you bravely volunteered to go out and buy food, so I naturally let you go.”

“But who would have thought~ Oh, it was so~ magical~ A potted plant ‘suddenly’ fell from the sky, and then it ‘accidentally’ landed right on your head! And then I ‘accidentally’ opened the window, found you unconscious outside, and then I strenuously dragged you, this fat pig, back home.”

“After that, I patiently took care of you, and then you woke up three hours later.”

My little sister spoke with an extremely “sincere” tone. Her eyes, which moments ago seemed to lead to an abyss, now overflowed with something called: “the radiance of integrity.”

“Yes, that’s exactly what happened.”