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After that, the two of us didn’t talk.

It was awkward.

To put it simply, my older sister’s request was to “let’s just keep things the same as before,” but if I had to hear such a thing, it meant that maintaining the status quo would require quite an effort.

Right now, I was at a loss as to how I should treat my sister.

I couldn’t just pretend I didn’t know… That was absolutely impossible.

Though I had sensed it little by little during that time, my sister had never directly told me, “You look like Siyun.” There was a huge difference between thinking she was just conscious of me and seeing me as almost the same person I was before.

From now on, as much as my sister would be conscious of me, I would also be conscious of her.

With time, things might get somewhat better. However, that certainly didn’t mean we’d return to how things were before.

Our relationship would gradually change from today onward. No, in fact, it was already changing. Today was just the day I became fully aware of it.

I wonder if my sister feels the same way.

We have to meet tomorrow, but I don’t know how to start the conversation.

In the end, during the long subway ride we took together, we couldn’t have a proper conversation at all.

*

When I returned home, it was much earlier than usual.

No wonder, though. No matter how far we had gone, it was still Kyunggi-do. The round trip took just over two and a half hours, and we spent less than an hour talking in the café. Even accounting for the time it took to get to the columbarium, see my ashes, and for my sister to chase after me, it was barely past six.

How embarrassed I was that my stomach let out a loud growl.

Before parting, my sister seemed like she wanted to say something more but couldn’t bring herself to do it. Maybe it was an invitation to dinner.

I usually ate with her.

“……”

Still, I didn’t feel like going around anywhere else.

I guess I was mentally exhausted. The physical fatigue didn’t matter. I had gone through much more strenuous days than this.

However, after confirming right before my eyes that I was truly dead in this world, I was incredibly drained.

Without thinking, I dragged my weary self towards my home.

I passed through the spacious lobby, which was quite large for an apartment, and took the elevator. I held my card key against the sensor, and the elevator began to move. As it quickly ascended, my ears began to feel a bit stuffy.

Feeling even more dazed from that sensation, I entered my door lock code and opened the door.

“Oh.”

I locked eyes with Pia, who was holding a ribbon.

But it wasn’t just Pia. Everyone was holding something. Shiny decorative string used for Christmas trees, scissors, or colored paper. Even Arna, who had shown a bit of indifference toward the extravagant parties of human society, was busy making something.

All four of them were frozen, staring at me at the entrance.

Ah.

Right, today was my birthday.

I completely forgot. I had even received a present from my sister earlier.

Unknowingly, I began fidgeting with the necklace hanging around my neck.

“Um…”

In the slightly awkward situation, Pia, with a surprised expression, struggled to form a somewhat awkward smile.

“Um, welcome… This, is…”

…..

What should I do about this atmosphere?

Now that I had seen it directly, there was no way I could pretend I didn’t see it and just head into my room.

They must have been decorating the house to match the time I returned. To throw me a proper birthday party.

I spotted a cake box over there.

It seemed like my friends didn’t want to end the enjoyment of their trip from Wednesday and wanted to celebrate my birthday properly too.

…Ah, seriously.

I’m really terrible at picking up on situations.

*

Siyun looked strange.

That much I could immediately tell just by looking at him.

The corners of his eyes were slightly red. His eyes were bloodshot. It didn’t seem like he had just been crying, as they weren’t puffy, but I could tell he had shed tears. Even if he hadn’t cried, he had clearly been on the brink of it.

Furthermore, he had returned home much earlier. Had something gone wrong at work, perhaps?

Siyun was wearing a necklace. Since he usually didn’t carry jewelry, that silver necklace stood out prominently.

And he was fidgeting with the necklace with his hands.

I couldn’t know the details, but it was easy to guess that Siyun had some issue with his first love, the “older sister” he mentioned at work.

“Y-you’re tired, aren’t you!?”

Pia was the first to move.

She had jumped up, startled by the sound of my entering the door lock code, and without even putting down the ornament she had been holding, she ran toward the door. Naturally, she bumped into Siyun as he was coming in.

The reason she had rushed over like that was that she intended to somehow smooth over the current situation. Siyun wasn’t likely to be upset about this party preparation, but a party that was discovered mid-preparation felt different from one that was secretly organized until it was ready.

She hadn’t thought about how to delay Siyun’s return but got up anyway.

And for some reason, she ran right into the visibly exhausted Siyun as he entered the room.

Pia flustered, quickly put the ribbon down on the floor and hurriedly went up to Siyun.

She grabbed his left arm with both hands and pulled him.

“Um, but…”

As she was pulling him in while he hurriedly took off his shoes, Siyun’s gaze was drawn to the half-finished decorations.

He must be concerned about the four of us who were preparing a party for him, even with such visible fatigue and sadness.

“You just got home. There’s no need to worry too much. So, shall we wash up first? Or should we change clothes first?”

Pia had decided to pull Siyun in no matter what, but her head was also in disarray.

What should she say? What words would make Siyun smile?

It wasn’t just because the goddess had asked her for a favor. Pia genuinely wished that Siyun wouldn’t feel sad or distressed.

“Yeah, it must’ve been tough to come here, so just relax for now.”

Kalia spoke up as she got up next. She put down the scissors and colored paper she was holding on the table and immediately approached Siyun.

While she gently nudged him toward the room, Siyun still wore a slightly dazed expression.

“Um, but—”

“Right, don’t worry about us, just rest.”

I wasn’t so clueless that I couldn’t catch on to the fact that today was his birthday. Considering he was wearing the necklace he hadn’t before and that today was Siyun’s birthday, along with the fact that he had come home way earlier, it clearly meant something related to the ‘older sister’ he mentioned.

Moreover, Dana knew that the birthday of the identity Siyun was using now was completely different from his original birthday. Having received a present today, she could somewhat imagine what might have happened. Still, it wasn’t clear enough for her to fully visualize.

“……”

Arna silently observed Siyun as he entered the room.

Kalia and Pia went into the room with Siyun, then came out after a moment.

“……”

“……”

“……”

The three of them listened quietly.

“……I can faintly hear the sound of water running.”

Since this house was acoustically well-insulated, the sound of a shower running in the shower room wouldn’t be loud enough to reach the living room. However, with Arna’s keen sense of hearing as an elf, it was different. Especially since she had served as a scout on the battlefield, hearing this sound wasn’t particularly difficult.

At Arna’s words, everyone let out a long breath.

“……What do you think happened?”

Pia said somewhat anxiously. Siyun seemed to be brightening up as time passed. While it seemed like the wounds from the battlefield hadn’t completely healed yet, she believed he was recovering bit by bit every day.

As she quietly observed the anxious Pia, Arna let out a small sigh.

“Do you know anything?”

Kalia asked Arna. At that question, Arna slightly frowned. It wasn’t a displeased expression. Looking away from Kalia and toward somewhere on the table, she seemed deep in thought.

“After all, we all came here at the goddess’s request. Wouldn’t it be better to share any information we have about Siyun? We’ll have to tackle it together eventually.”

At Dana’s words, Arna fell silent for a moment before finally letting out a long breath.

“……Indeed, simply hiding it won’t help at all.”

Slowly, she opened her mouth to begin sharing her thoughts.