"Lian'er, you're back?" When she walked into the living room, Li Mingxue, who was leaning over the coffee table arranging flowers in a vase, spotted her and called out softly.
"Mm, I suppose I'm back. Although strictly speaking, I never stepped out of the house at all." Holding Anna in her arms, she walked over to the sofa and sat down, keenly noticing the slight tremor that ran through the little girl in her embrace.
Anna really is afraid of Mother... but why? Anna's mother is Tírnas, one of the strongest beings standing at the very pinnacle of the dimensional universe. Her daughter should never be ordinary. And from every sign Anna has shown, that fact has already been proven. She may even grow to surpass her mother one day. But if that's the case, why would someone like her be afraid of a normal human like Mother?
Chu Lian's delicate brows furrowed faintly.
Before, she had not fully understood how powerful those above the Heaven rank truly were. But after witnessing Yukari Yakumo's strength in Overlord, she had come to grasp just how terrifying an existence capable of casually creating an independent world really was.
And Tírnas would only be stronger than that young girl named Yukari—far stronger. Her bloodline must be among the absolute peak. The power hidden within Anna's body should be of the highest order. Logically, things should not be like this.
Li Mingxue's strength had already been told to her by Ayase—it stood at the peak of the Heaven rank. Anna's combat power surpassed the Earth rank, though it was unclear whether she could defeat someone at the Heaven rank. Even so, the gap between them should not be so great that she would tremble at the mere sight of her.
So was Anna hiding something she herself did not know? Or did Li Mingxue possess an even more mysterious background?
Although she knew it was inappropriate to speculate about her mother and her nominal daughter like this, she could not shake the feeling that this was a secret that had to be unraveled.
Unfortunately, there were too few clues. Asking Anna? It would already be fortunate if the girl could manage not to be afraid—getting an answer from her would likely be impossible. As for asking Li Mingxue, she would only smile and pinch her nose to stop her from prying further. She would never give a real answer.
"What's wrong? Unhappy to see Mom?" Chu Lian's every subtle movement might escape others, but not Li Mingxue. She asked gently, pulling her out of her thoughts.
"Of course not. I just suddenly felt that Mom looks so beautiful. When you were young, you must have been a beauty unparalleled in the world." Since Li Mingxue had already noticed her wandering thoughts, Chu Lian simply let them go and instead offered her praise.
"Naturally. Otherwise, how do you think your father ended up so infatuated with me? Back then, whenever your mom walked down the street, everyone would turn their heads. A pure white dress, like a white lotus blooming in water. That kind of transcendent beauty isn't something these so-called celebrities today can compare to." At the mention of her younger days, Li Mingxue immediately became a little smug.
"So Aunt Mingxue liked wearing white dresses too?" It was Inori who asked. Her wine-red eyes looked at Li Mingxue, now dressed in casual homewear, as if overlapping her image with Chu Lian's present self.
"Of course. White is simple. It needs no embellishment. If the person is beautiful, then it's beautiful. All those flashy, colorful outfits are mostly worn out of insecurity. Being able to make the simplest clothes bring out your most beautiful self—that's true beauty." Li Mingxue smiled gently. Amid the cluster of flowers, her youthful face truly carried a trace of the bearing of the most beautiful woman in the world.
Who knew just how much this woman loved her family? She had set aside her legends, set aside the stories of her youth, concealed her name and identity, and found an ordinary job here to pass her days.
Perhaps, for her, the beautiful stories of her youth were already enough to savor for a lifetime. Now, only her family and these children were what she cherished most.
"Just like Lian'er. She may seem to wear anything, but don't you think she looks most breathtaking in the simplest outfits? Especially in a long white dress. I dare say if she wore my old clothes and went out, those acquaintances from back then would think it was me, not my daughter." After finishing arranging the flowers, Li Mingxue walked over and sat beside Chu Lian, slowly recounting her past.
"Does that mean we're carved from the same mold?" Chu Lian was a little surprised. She knew her own origins and understood that the woman before her was not her biological mother. But for Li Mingxue to say that her current self so closely resembled her younger self—wasn't that too strange?
At her words, Li Mingxue seemed a bit displeased. She reached out and pinched her cheek. "You're overthinking it. We're mother and daughter. Of course we look alike. If you question that, I'll be upset."
Shaking her head to escape her mother's teasing fingers, Chu Lian realized her earlier remark had indeed been inappropriate. After clearing her throat, she said, "What I meant is, if we look so alike, doesn't that prove our family's genes are excellent? After all, even passed down to me, I still retain Mom's elegance."
There was something she did not say—that in her mother's time, she had captivated countless young men. As for herself, she captivated both men and women alike. However, unlike her mother, who had chosen to marry and have children, she would never make such a decision. Yuri was the best. She absolutely refused to let a man touch her.
I'm going to build a secret garden that spans the entire dimensional universe. That will be my harem~
"Little Lian'er, are you finding your life too comfortable? Should I use that Nightmare-level quest scroll on you? I don't think that young girl Yukari would kill you. At most, she'd drag you back and train you into a human-shaped body pillow or something. That would be quite interesting, wouldn't it?" No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than Ayase's calm voice drifted in.
Her words made Chu Lian's scalp go numb. That was terrifying. She absolutely did not want to become the body pillow of that girl who would never admit she was old! And Ayase, you definitely went dark just now, didn't you? I was wrong. I shouldn't have had such thoughts.
"What's wrong, Lian'er?" As she shuddered inwardly, Li Mingxue seemed to notice something again and asked.
"It's nothing. I was just thinking too much. Really, it's nothing." How could she possibly let her mother know what she had just been thinking? Judging from her mother's attitude, she did not seem opposed to her getting close with girls.
She did not know the reason behind that. In any case, it was better not to make her intentions too obvious, lest she appear strange.
"Thinking too much? Could it be... you're lovesick?" Her words made Li Mingxue's imagination run wild. Her eyes lit up, then her face turned serious. "Did you meet some young master while you were out and end up tempted? Tell Mom. I'll help you evaluate him. Though my opinion is that you still shouldn't be with a man. But if you truly like him, Mom won't oppose it."
Li Mingxue's words made even Chu Lian's earlobes turn red. She pouted and protested, "Mom, what nonsense are you saying? There's no way I'd ever like men. I like girls... girls like Inori, like Anna... definitely not any man."
"Really? Then what was with that lovestruck expression just now?" Staring into her eyes, Li Mingxue was clearly unconvinced.
Only then did Chu Lian understand why she had asked. It was probably because when she thought of that matter, the change in her expression had been too obvious, making Li Mingxue mistake it for her having fallen for some boy. As someone experienced in such matters, her mother had misread it with confidence.
"Um, Mom, I need to tell you something. Don't get angry..." Before saying it, Chu Lian first set Anna down on the sofa to her right, with Li Mingxue on the other side of her. Then she stretched out her left hand and tightly held Inori's hand before continuing, "When I went out this time... I may have found you at least five more daughters..."
"Pfft..." Li Mingxue, who had been drinking tea while waiting for Chu Lian to speak, instantly sprayed the tea from her mouth. Inori's body trembled, and she tried to leave, but Chu Lian had already been holding onto her to stop her from going.
Li Mingxue naturally understood what she meant by "at least five more daughters." Just like the Inori whose hand she was holding now, they were all members of her harem.
Just how much charm did this daughter of hers possess? She had only gone out for a few days and had already attracted at least five, with the upper limit still unknown. Averaging one a day... impressive indeed.
"It's complicated. One was because I needed to ensure my own safety. One happened because I joked around and accidentally provoked her. As for the other three, they practically forced themselves into it. I really had no choice." Even Chu Lian found it both funny and helpless as she said it. How had things become this? The reality was nothing like that, yet now she had to shoulder all the responsibility.
Because the truth was something that could not be spoken of yet. At least not now. When the right time came, everything would naturally become clear.
"Lian... I don't feel very well. Can I go back?" Inori's gentle voice sounded beside her ear. Turning her head, Chu Lian saw the faint gloom within those beautiful eyes and knew her words had hurt her.
The reason she had insisted on holding Inori's hand before speaking was because she had feared she would turn and leave. Better to explain things clearly now than let them fester in the future.
"I won't allow it." Gazing into her eyes, Chu Lian leaned closer until their foreheads touched and said softly, "I know I've done wrong, and I know I've wronged you. But that is not a reason for me to let go."
"Lian, I really..." Inori averted her eyes, wanting to say something, yet unable to voice it.
Because at that moment, Chu Lian did something startling. Right in front of Li Mingxue and Anna, she pulled Inori into her arms and kissed her fiercely on the lips.
Her watery eyes looked at her. Inori's heart softened. She parted her lips slightly, allowing Chu Lian's tongue to slip inside.
If I can stop caring about everything... then let me stop caring. Let me sink into this moment, Lian...
"You two..." How could Li Mingxue not understand what had just happened? Faced with Chu Lian's near-open declaration of possessiveness and preference, she froze for a moment, then accepted it.
It was hardly unexpected, was it?
Anna, however, watched Chu Lian and Inori. The dark-gold inverted cross in her pupils appeared for the second time, faintly showing signs of taking shape.
"Anna..." Li Mingxue placed a hand on her shoulder, immediately restoring her emotions to their usual stable state. Anna lowered her head without speaking, looking thoroughly aggrieved.