The door to the room opened, and I quickly noticed four girls entering one after another.
The first looked like a wicked noblewoman straight out of a medieval story. She stared at me with those cruel eyes as if I were a toy. Despite that, she was beautiful.
Well… more precisely, a beautiful monster.
When I shifted my gaze, I realized something else.
It seemed they were all beautiful monsters.
The second was a girl who looked like a sorceress. Annoyance was clearly written on her face, her eyes black like obsidian and her silky black hair falling neatly around her shoulders.
The third also had black hair, but her eyes looked like two moons on a clear night.
And the last one… well, I wasn't sure how to describe her.
She was the most enchanting of them all. Her gray skin was pure and smooth like storm clouds, and her teeth were bright like pearls. She wore a velvet dress the color of red wine, standing with calm elegance and natural authority.
Before I could finish my thoughts, however…
I was attacked.
A pair of evil hands suddenly grabbed my cheeks and started pinching and playing with my hair.
Good grief.
A moment later, I felt another pair of hands join them, also messing with my hair while I remained frozen in place.
The truth was, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do.
I mean… no matter how many novels you read, nothing prepares you for something like this in real life. After all, I don't even remember dying.
Maybe that's why I was playing with the snow that night… before I met that woman.
Hmm…
So… did she adopt me as her son?
I guess that's a pretty good start.
Honestly, it's far better than starting life in the sewers as an orphan.
Suddenly, a cold and commanding voice cut through the room.
"Stop. Both of you."
The hands immediately stopped messing with my hair, and everyone turned toward the owner of the voice.
The last girl stepped toward me with calm, graceful steps, carrying herself with regal elegance. She looked directly into my eyes and said quietly,
"Hello. I'm Seishan. You can call me your sister from now on."
I froze.
The only thing I felt was a strange numbness on my scalp.
Gray skin.
Seishan.
Adopted by an incredibly beautiful woman.
At that moment, it felt as if the world around me collapsed.
Oh my god…
W–wait…
Am I in the world of Shadow Slave?
And did I just become Ki Song's adopted son?
The only thing I managed to mutter was,
"Damn."
Slowly, panic began rising inside me as I tried to process this cursed revelation while staring at Seishan.
Is this what they call killing intent?
Before my thoughts could continue, I felt her hand gently brushing through my hair as she said,
"From now on, we are family. And family doesn't curse at each other. These three are your sisters: Eunbin, Selene, and Revel."
I looked around at them again.
Well…
I know that Revel is the Light Slayer.
And Eunbin is the Beastsmaster.
But the names of the other Song princesses were never mentioned in the novel.
Selene… judging by her eyes… could she be Moonveil? Or maybe she isn't one of the Transcendent princesses?
While these thoughts ran through my mind, I answered,
"Hmm… nice to meet you. I'm… um…"
I suddenly stopped.
Oh god…
Do I even have a name?
They said the slum children don't have names.
Should I use my old name?
Hmm… no, that's stupid.
Looks like I need a name first.
I raised my head and gave them my best "wet puppy" look.
Well… at least I tried. I'm not even sure how my face looked.
"I don't have a name."
For a moment, the atmosphere in the room became awkward. It seemed like none of them knew how to continue the conversation.
But before the silence could stretch any longer, a knock came from the door, and a maid entered carrying a tray with several dishes.
She placed it on the table, bowed respectfully to Seishan, and quietly left the room.
"Well, food first. Names later. You must be hungry after sleeping so long."
Seishan said this as she broke the silence and sat on the edge of the bed, holding the tray.
She placed it gently on her lap, and I finally got a good look at the food.
Finally.
I'm starving.
There was a glass of milk, another of water, and a decorated bowl filled with what looked like steaming soup.
Hmm… good. Very good.
I think I can worry about everything else after filling my stomach.
What did Sunny once say?
"Life's cruelty taught me to eat whenever I can, because I never know when I'll get the chance again."
Yeah… I think he was right.
However, when I raised my hand to grab the spoon…
I realized the spoon was already in Seishan's hand.
What are you doing?
Is she… stealing my food?
I never thought Seishan was the bullying type.
Is her personality different from the novel?
Before my train of thought could continue, I heard her voice.
"Open your mouth."
What?
When I looked at her, she was holding a spoon full of soup, gently blowing on it while watching it carefully.
Don't tell me…
Does she want to feed me herself?
Damn.
This is embarrassing.
"Shan, what are you doing?"
That was Eunbin's voice.
I couldn't help but silently agree with her.
Yes! Yes! Tell her to give me the spoon!
But Seishan's calm reply crushed my tiny hope.
"As his older sister, I should take good care of him. Look at how thin his hand is. What if he drops the spoon?"
Oh god… I felt my face heating up as I listened to them argue.
Eunbin looked like she wanted to protest.
However, when she looked at me and saw my red face, a wicked smile slowly appeared on her lips, sending a bad feeling through me.
Then she said calmly,
"You're right. Yes, that's true."
Then she turned to me with a gentle voice.
Gentle my ass. That witch is planning something.
"Come on, little brother. Stop complaining and open your mouth."
Reluctantly… and under the burning gazes of four pairs of eyes… I opened my mouth.
Seishan lifted the spoon toward me.
And just as she placed it in my mouth, I heard Eunbin's voice from the side.
"Open up! Choo choo! The train has arrived!"
Cough! Cough!
I choked on the soup and started coughing violently.
Damn you! She planned that!
While I was choking, Eunbin was lying on the bed laughing hysterically, while Seishan glared at her with murderous eyes.
I'll kill her.
I've decided.
I'll become strong enough… to bully her.
Seishan handed me a glass of water.
I grabbed it and drank greedily as if it were a lifeline.
"Tsk."
Seishan clicked her tongue slightly before feeding me another spoonful.
This time I managed to swallow it calmly, since that witch was still laughing.
But when the third spoon came, the voice returned.
"Open up! The airplane is landing!"
I ignored her.
I had already realized that maintaining my pride as a young man during this meal was impossible.
I just hoped she would get bored of me soon.
And so I continued eating the soup from Seishan's hand while Eunbin kept talking from the side.
"Open your mouth! The bird wants to come in!"
"Open your mouth! The hero is bringing food!"
"Open your mouth! This is the power bite!"
"The ship is coming!"
"The rocket is launching!"
It seemed my hope that she would get bored of me… was nothing more than a child's dream.
—
And so the evening quickly passed while Seishan fed their new little brother, and Eunbin teased him with every spoonful he took.
Even though no one admitted it, everyone was suppressing their laughter while watching his bright red face.
Well… everyone except Eunbin, of course.
Finally, after he finished the milk, a small milk mustache formed above his lip.
That was when everyone burst out laughing.
Even Seishan allowed herself a small smile.
At that moment, the sound of a phone camera could be heard from Selene's direction.
In the end, the Song sisters decided to give him a temporary nickname.
Milk Mustache.
At least until their mother returned… and gave him a proper name.