"Xing?" She mumbled vaguely, subconsciously thinking it was her gray-haired companion.
"Isn't she being held by Ms. Herta in the simulated universe to 'atone for her mistakes'? Could it be... she snuck back?"
This thought instantly sobered her up a bit. With a hint of excitement at "catching her in the act," she tiptoed forward a few steps, ready to speak.
However, in the next second, her steps and thoughts halted simultaneously.
On the bar stool next to Xing, there was another person sitting!
Due to the lighting and angle, she hadn't noticed immediately.
Now, seeing the person's profile and part of their face clearly, March 7th blinked, wondering if she was still half-asleep and seeing double.
She looked harder and finally saw that it was a young woman dressed in a black and red gown, leaning lazily against the bar, toying with an empty wine glass.
March 7th was stunned, her eyes wide.
(Wait... this person... why do I feel like...)
(She... looks a bit like me?)
The young woman—Long Night Moon—seemed to have sensed her presence earlier, and slowly turned her head.
Her crimson eyes seemed to glow faintly in the dim light, and her gaze drifted lightly to March 7th, a playful curve forming on her lips.
She said nothing, just smiled and gently waved to March 7th.
As if pulled by invisible strings, March 7th, against her better judgment, walked over.
She first went to Xing, who seemed unconcerned, and cautiously tugged at the gray jacket sleeve, asking in a low voice, "Xing... who, who is she?"
Xing's reaction was unusually calm.
She merely turned her head, looked at March 7th with those dull golden eyes, then, without a word, picked up the glass of liquid—whether it was water or something else—in front of her, turned neatly, and went to sit on the sofa area, isolating herself from the subtle atmosphere.
March 7th was baffled, watching Xing leave.
(Hey! Xing! Don't go! What's going on?!)
March 7th silently screamed in her heart, feeling even more helpless and alone.
Now, she had to face this strange yet somehow familiar young woman by herself.
At this, Long Night Moon smiled mysteriously and said, "Guess?"
Her voice carried a hint of a low huskiness, distinctly different from March 7th's clear tone, yet it was like a stone dropped into a calm lake, rippling through March's heart.
March 7th's attention was drawn back by the voice. She forced herself to calm down and properly observe the young woman in front of her.
The more she looked, the stronger that peculiar sense of familiarity and incongruity became.
Aside from the differences in hair and eye color, and temperament, the person before her was almost like... herself seen in a distorted mirror!
An absurd yet incredibly natural thought emerged.
March 7th hesitated, then cautiously offered an answer: "You... you wouldn't happen to be my... relative?"
After all, in the vast universe, having a long-lost sister seemed even more plausible than some of the plots in the sixty-seven backstory stories she had prepared for herself.
Hearing this answer, Long Night Moon chuckled, her laughter like a night breeze rustling wind chimes, carrying an indescribable meaning.
She shook her head, her crimson eyes shimmering, and said in her unique voice, "Not quite~ Guess again? A hint: my name is — Long Night Moon. 'Logically' speaking, I should be considered your... older sister."
Then, she elegantly extended her hand.
(Long Night Moon? Older sister?)
The information overload caused March 7th's brain to short-circuit again.
She looked at the outstretched hand, then at the other person's face with its confident smile, and instinctively reached out her own hand.
Then, Long Night Moon's fingers, gently yet irresistibly, intertwined with hers.
The warm touch of their palms meeting sent a jolt through March 7th.
Before she could react, Long Night Moon gently pulled, bringing them closer, so close that March 7th could clearly see her own dazed reflection in the crimson eyes, and feel a faint, midnight-orchid-like fragrance emanating from the other person, distinctly different from her own.
Long Night Moon looked at March 7th, who still wore a silly expression of "Who am I, where am I?", and couldn't help but find it amusing, her crimson eyes curving into crescent moons.
"You... you're really my sister?"
March 7th mumbled in disbelief, her voice so soft it was almost a whisper to herself.
Long Night Moon toyed with March 7th's fingers and said, "Yes, a biological one."
Her fingertips lightly stroked March 7th's hand, causing a subtle tickle.
The words "a biological one" were like a small clap of thunder, finally waking March 7th completely.
She suddenly snapped back to reality, realizing that the distance between them had exceeded the safe limit, and her cheeks instantly flushed red.
Like a startled rabbit, she abruptly jumped back a few steps, breaking free from the intertwined fingers, her heart pounding.
Long Night Moon tilted her head, maintaining her mysterious smile.
"Wait, wait... this... I..." March 7th was a bit incoherent, unsure what to say.
She felt she desperately needed backup, and her gaze involuntarily darted left and right, hoping Xing could help.
(Xing! Xing! Say something! What on earth is going on?!)
However, Xing in the distance ignored the dramatic family reunion scene.
She had, at some point, prepared a bucket of instant noodles and was now holding the bucket, slurping the noodles with full concentration.
The rich aroma of food wafted through the air, standing out sharply in the tense atmosphere.
It made March 7th, upon smelling it, involuntarily swallow.
(Oh no, oh no... now there's no one to even consult with!)
March 7th refocused her gaze on Long Night Moon.
The young woman before her, with a silhouette strikingly similar to her own, yet cloaked in a completely different night and mystery, was like a reflection emerging from one of her forgotten dreams.
"You... who exactly are you?"
March 7th's voice trembled in a way she didn't even notice. This question wasn't just directed at the other person; it was more like an inquiry into her own blank past, sealed by ice.
Long Night Moon tilted her head, her crimson eyes shimmering with a lazy yet profound luster in the dim light, as if she had long anticipated this question.
Her tone was matter-of-factly calm, with an almost imperceptible hint of playfulness: "Didn't I tell you? Long Night Moon, your older sister."
"How is that possible?!"
March 7th blurted out, the answer so shocking that her brain instinctively resisted.
"Why is that impossible?"
Long Night Moon countered, her voice soft yet possessing a strange persuasiveness.
She raised her hand, elegantly drawing a line in the air with her fingertips. A mirror, its edges shimmering with flowing light, seemingly condensed from shadows and memories, silently floated between them.
The mirror clearly reflected their appearances—the same pink hair base, the same delicate faces; one like a sparkling ice crystal under a clear sky, the other like the tranquil moonlight of midnight.
"See how much we resemble each other."
The image in the mirror impacted March's vision and stirred the silent ice lake in her heart.
"But... but..."
March 7th's bewildered expression almost solidified into question marks. In her limited understanding, she was a lonely traveler who awoke from eternal ice, bound to the Astral Express family, with a past that was a void.
A sister?
Such a term, full of blood ties and shared memories, was more incredible to her than Pom-Pom suddenly growing taller.
"How... how could I have a sister? No... this..."
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