Yang Xiao-Long stared at me with a dumbfounded look. Probably unable to understand how things suddenly took this turn.
By her side, Ruby Rose, her little sister, was also staring at me while clinging to Yang. Her shy nature coming through rather clearly, it would seem.
For a split second, it felt like Sam's image overlapped with the little girl, making my heart twist in agony.
It is hard to believe that this innocent, curious little girl would end up being the protagonist of this world, along with her sister and two others.
'No. Stop. This is not some fictional world. I've seen that for myself in the past two years. I need to stop treating her and the others as fixed characters in a story.'
I took a deep breath as Taiyang finally came to the end of his rather long-winded speech.
"-So, for the next five years, it has been decided that he will be staying with us."
He scratched his head with a wry smile.
Evidently, this fool forgot to tell his daughters that I would be barging into their lives like this despite our deal being made nearly a week ago and dropped this bomb on them, specifically Yang, out of the blue.
As for Ruby, I don't think she understands any of what Taiyang spoke about till now. To her, I am probably some stranger who suddenly barged into her house. Someone who is going to be a part of her life from now on.
I would expect as much from a 10-year-old.
But Yang? She is on the verge of puberty and has her own thoughts at this point, given that she is 12-years-old, just like me. So, I expect her mind to be more of a mess than little Ruby's.
Tiayang clapped his hands loudly, dragging Yang out of her shock and startling Ruby, who dug even deeper into Yang's side.
"So, how about some introductions?"
At his encouraging gaze, Ruby finally spoke. Although it was more of a whisper.
Really, even a mosquito might have been louder than her.
"Ruby."
Seeing her shy nature, I could not help but smile as feelings long buried came to the forefront again.
"Hello, Ruby."
I turned to Yang, who finally spoke her first words.
I can see that she is still on guard. However, she still spoke up, probably because her father was the one who brought me here.
"I am Yang. Yang Xiao-Long."
"Hello, Yang. Let me introduce myself."
"I am Ignis Ruben. I am aiming to apply for Signal next year and am going to become a Huntsman."
That seems to have done the trick as the girls' eyes lit up.
Yang immediately grinned.
"So you will be joining as well? How strong are you? Want to spar for a bit!?"
Oh. I can already see the warrior I remember from the show in her. Looks like she was always this enthusiastic about fighting.
Speaking of resemblance....
In the blink of an eye, I saw a trail of petals where Ruby was.
Instead, she is now sitting by my side and staring at me with those wide, innocent silver eyes full of wonder.
"What weapon do you use? Can I see it?"
...Is she already a weapon nut? Is this some kind of genetic thing? Or is Taiyang actually a bad parent? Or some other reason?
Whatever the case may be, it cannot be denied that it is a rather cute sight to see this 10-year-old show so much interest and curiosity.
I could not help but pat her head with a laugh.
"I don't have a weapon yet. But I do have a plan for one. When I make one in Signal, I'll show it to you. How about it?"
"Deal!"
The girl happily bounced on the chair while Yang shook her head at her sister's actions, as if it were an everyday thing.
Then, she grinned at me.
"So, about that spar?"
"Sure. But later. In the academy. My fighting style is....unorthodox, and I need time to refine it into something feasible for our chosen career."
"Oh. Ok then."
She nodded at my words.
From the corner of my eye, I spotted how Taiyang had this silly grin on his face for some reason.
What the hell are you grinning about? It's fucking creepy.
He got up from his own seat and continued grinning down at us.
"Alright. How about some dinner before we get Ignis settled in?"
The girls happily followed their father to the kitchen, where Ruby sat down at the table as she was told, while Yang helped her father in the kitchen.
Seeing the dynamic, I decided to join in as well, helping set things up despite Taiyang's protests.
As I told him before, I will not be treated as a charity case. I have my own pride, and it demands that if I am to stay here, I must pull my own weight.
Sure, I am paying for my stay, but I also know that the amount that I managed to force Taiyang into taking is just a fraction of what it would cost me to stay by myself out there on Patch. So, I must do what I can to help him out here and there.
The dinner is not all that grand. Just some simple stew and bread with some cookies as dessert for Ruby and an ice cream cone for Yang.
Since I did not like sweet things all that much, I declined the offer.
All in all, it was not that bad of an introduction into this family as I was expecting.
Maybe things really will be fine from here on out?
I can only hope so. But given my track record, I doubt it.
So my initial plan still remains on track.