“Mother, I have done all of my chores. I will be leaving now.”

It was now Saturday, and I wasn’t working. I had gotten up early to complete all of the tasks Mom had left for me. Once they were done, I planned to go out.

“You’re leaving?” Mom looked up at me. “You can’t leave!”

I frowned. “Is there a problem?”

Mom’s face turned red. “It’s all over the news this morning. Look.”

She turned up the television. I looked at the screen to see a video of cop cars and ambulances all around a forested area. There was yellow tape placed everywhere and a pretty girl was standing in front of the scene like only someone who wasn’t there, but in front of a greenscreen, could.

The reporter began speaking. “It’s now been confirmed that the bodies of five people have been discovered in the woods. It still isn’t known if they are the same five high schoolers who went missing after the homecoming just a few weeks ago. Preliminary data suggests that it was an animal attack…”

I let out a breath. “You’re worried I’ll be harmed.”

“It’s a scary world out there.” Mom cried out. “Plus, there are crazy people like that serial killer on death row. Have you heard about him? Thankfully, he’s going to be put to death this weekend, but someone killed those kids too.”

“I don’t know.” I shrugged, looking at the hallway where a head was curiously watching the television. “Why don’t you ask Kio about that?”

“E-eh? Me?” Kio jumped. “Why me?”

“Wasn’t one of the missing boys your homecoming date?” I offered.

“That’s not true.” Kio snapped. “We went to the prom together, but he left with some other girl.”

“Oh, my…” Mom gasped, suddenly breaking into tears.

“M-mom!” Kio cried out before shooting me a glare. “Look what you did! You made mom cry!”

“I didn’t realize how close I was to losing my daughter. Why didn’t you say anything earlier?”

“I’m sorry, Mom, I didn’t want to worry you.” She shot me another glare. “There is nothing to say. He ditched me for a cuter girl. No, I can’t even be mad about it.”

“The truth…” I muttered thoughtfully.

“Are you trying to say I’m lying?” Kio tried to grab me, but Mom stopped her.

The current Kio showed none of the behavior she had shown in my shed earlier. She was much more like the Kio I had known the first few weeks. It was almost like she had a split personality. One version of her hated me and wanted me dead. The other version of her… well, I wouldn’t say she liked me. She was just an angry bully.

I had a good ear for lies, and the words coming out of Kio’s mouth weren’t lies. Just because Kio didn’t lie didn’t mean she told the truth. I did not doubt that this Kio truly believed every word she said. Yet, there was another Kio, a darker Kio.

Why did this not surprise me? Shouldn’t it be obvious? How many split personalities have I dealt with in my life? Among the tortured and insane dungeons, there wasn’t a single one that could be considered sane. Bipolar, Borderline, Psychopathic, Sociopathic… these were all terms I only knew now that I was in a world with psychology books that described them, yet they applied to the demons perfectly.

If anything, I was starting to think my family in this world was a bit too normal. I hadn’t been lying. There was an odd comfort in having a family member who wanted me dead. I’d feel uncomfortable without it. As for resolving her issues, I was a flesh mage, not a mind mage. If I could cure such things, I wouldn’t have lived amongst the insane for so much of my life, struggling to survive.

“I hope you understand.” Mom finished sniffling. “I’d like you all to stay in for a while.”

I rubbed my chin unhappily. This wouldn’t work at all. I had things I wanted to accomplish, and there was no way I could accomplish them if I was stuck inside. As for being worried about a handful of deaths, people die all the time. In my world, I had seen more people die than I could count. I was aware these people died in the forest not too far away from where I had gotten rid of the malicious spirit. Part of me wondered if the malicious spirit had gotten to them before we found it.

It wasn’t hard to imagine. A group of three girls and three guys wander into the forest. It was clear they planned to engage in some hormonal activities. Those were exactly the kinds of things that would have attracted the malicious spirit. Since I had already eliminated it, there was nothing to worry about, yet then there was Kio. She had appeared around the same time. That’s why I knew her statement about being abandoned was a lie.

Could the malicious spirit have inhabited her?

I glanced Kio’s way, but she didn’t show any sign of possession. From what I understood about the malicious spirit, there is no way it would have kept her original personality, or acted so tame these last few months. Such a supernatural being lacked the discipline for such deception. It was little more than an insolent child. Then again, perhaps something else had possessed her.

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I found myself growing a bit interested in that thought. It was a puzzle to solve, and I tended to enjoy puzzles.

“What do you want?” Kio demanded as she noticed me watching her.

“Would it be okay if we went together?” I asked Mom.

“Hm?” Mom looked between us. “Together?”

“If I went to public places and took one of my sisters with me, could I go?” I repeated the question a bit clearer.

“Ah… that… I guess, I can’t keep you here all day.”

“Who says I’ll go with you?” Kio demanded.

I rolled my eyes as she didn’t seem to get the point. I almost preferred her murderous side, because at least they seemed to be somewhat clever. The original Kio was slow to pick up things. It was honestly pretty annoying. I gave the clearest look I could.

“I think you should reconsider… sister,” I spoke through clenched teeth. “After all, wouldn’t it be nice if we hung out as brother and sister… alone?”

She made a disgusted face. “Why would I want to hang out with you? Alone? Are you being perverted?”

She covered her chest, and I felt like slapping her.

“I guess… I can ask Hina instead.” I responded.

Kio’s eyes flickered, and then a half smile appeared on her face. “That won’t be necessary. I’ll watch after brother. He’ll be safe with me. Won’t you, brother?”

I let out a sigh. Her other personality finally took the bait. Mom was just watching our exchange, a confused look on her face.

“I guess, as long as you two stick together.” Mom frowned, looking between the two of us.

“We will!” Kio smiled at Mom and then grabbed my hand. “Let’s go!”

“Uh… yeah, we’ll be back before dinner.” I spat out before Kio dragged me out the front door.

“So, where are we going?” Kio asked, turning back to me.

Her personality was bubbly and confident, two things that could never be used to describe the original Kio. I could only shake my head.

“I plan to go where I want to go, and you go where you want to go,” I responded.

“Eh? But Mom said…”

“As long as we leave together and arrive together, Mom doesn’t have to know anything,” I explained in annoyance. “I thought at least this version of you would have understood.”

“Version? There is only one Kio!” She responded. “Wait, you want to lie to Mom?”

“We can return here right before dinner. If either of us is late, then we’ll both end up in trouble, so be mindful.” I continued, not answering her foolish questions.

“You know, that’s not very heroic of you.” She made a face.

“I never said I was a hero.” I gave her a weird look. “Are you from another world?”

“Other world? What are you saying? Haha… who’s from another world?” She quickly replied, but then gave me a side glance. “Are you Aiko?”

“There is only one Aiko,” I responded distastefully, throwing her previous lie in her face.

“Hmph, you say you’re not a hero, but didn’t you save those girls on homecoming night? Being surrounded by girls is a very Aiko thing.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I responded stiffly.

I didn’t like being compared to that bastard who killed me. I was living his life, but I preferred to be as far removed from him as possible. We were not the same.

“Aiko!” An excited voice came from next door.

“Ugh, what does this bitch in heat want?” Kio muttered under her breath quietly, but I chose to ignore her.

“Lana.” I gave a respectful nod as Lana jogged over to us.

As she jogged, her chest bounced in a very noticeable manner. It wasn’t helped by her clothing, which was a two-piece including capri tights and a strapless blouse. It was something that didn’t fit the school dress code, and perhaps a bit exposed considering it was fall and the weather was growing colder. It was also the kind of outfit she wouldn’t have been caught dead in, but that was before.

If someone were to compare her to her body before, they wouldn’t even be able to recognize her. She had used to be a rather larger girl, but her entire body seemed to have suddenly shrunk several sizes. The only things that didn’t shrink were her chest and her height, making her a rather attractive girl with a large chest and long legs.

“Are you going out?” Lana stopped right in front of me, grabbing and twirling her hair as she bit her lip.

“I am,” I responded. “There is a nursery not too far from here I’d like to check out.”

“N-n-nursery!” Lana cried out, pushing her fingers together. “So-so soon?”

I frowned. “A plant nursery.”

She blinked. “Oh… um… do you want company?”

“I’m his company!” Kio unexpectedly grabbed my arm.

Lana glanced at her in confusion. “You’re going out with your sister.”

“She can drive a car,” I responded consideringly. “I suppose it could save time where I’d need a bus instead.”

“See?” Kio declared. “What can you offer him that I can’t?”

“Me? Um… I got my allowance recently.” Lana started answering her dumb question seriously. “I’ve been thinking about buying some plants, do you want me to buy you some?”

I quirked an eyebrow. “You’re invited.”

Only a fool rejected generosity. Since Lana offered, I would immediately take what I could get. It seemed like currency was currently the thing I was lacking in most. It seemed like money was the most important thing in this society. Money was also important in my old world, but some things couldn’t be purchased with money, like noble bloodlines and background. I found this world to be far fairer. As long as you had enough money, you could accomplish anything, including becoming a world leader.

Lana jumped on the balls of her feet excitedly, her chest bouncing, while Kio’s expression dropped unpleasantly. Thankfully, she didn’t argue with us further.

“Fine, I’ll take you, but you need to buy me something too.” Kio huffed.

“O-okay…”

“I’m not talking about you, I’m saying Aiko has to buy me something.”

“Huh? Me? Like what?”

Kio’s face flushed. “I don’t know! F-flowers or something.”

“You want me to buy you flowers?”

“Not like that!” She slugged my arm. “I mean, like a plant. If I’m driving you somewhere, buy me a plant I want.”

“Fine, I’ll agree to the terms.”

Bus fares would have cost some money anyway, and with Lana offering to pay, I wasn’t one to pass up on a good thing. As for why I wanted to go to the nursery, it should be obvious. I wanted to do a bit of research on this world’s flora to discover ingredients for my potioncraft. If it was something I could grow at home, it’d be a gift that kept on giving.

“You can get in the car, but you both have to stay in the back!” Kio snapped.

It seemed like her original personality had returned. That was probably for the best, as I didn’t trust her other personality to drive.

Lana glanced at me and blushed. “O-okay.”

With the both of us together in the backseat while Kio drove in the front, it was like she was our chauffeur. Regret instantly painted Kio’s face, but she was too stubborn to go back on her words now. Like that, we began our next journey.