At this moment, Eriri felt as though her already not-so-bright mind had turned into complete mush due to this shocking reality.
She never could have imagined her own origins would be this bizarre.
Wasn't it supposed to be just a simple union between an ordinary English diplomat and the only daughter of a local Japanese family?
Shouldn't things have been that straightforward?
Why did it turn out like this?
How did it turn out like this?
"Alright, Sawamura, stop standing there like an idiot."
Utaha Kasumigaoka couldn't stand Eriri's dumbfounded expression. This idiot's mental resilience was truly terrible—to be so shaken by something like this.
Meanwhile, Eriri, upon hearing Utaha's words, immediately retorted:
"What do you mean by 'like an idiot'...? Who could stay calm after hearing something like this?"
"My supposedly dead father turns out to be alive, and it was actually a woman pretending to be him..."
Utaha suddenly interjected, adding:
"Let me clarify—that woman is someone you should know. Apparently, she also disguised herself as a woman named Emma and appeared around you before."
"I know, it's Auntie Emma... Wait. Auntie Emma?"
Eriri's small brain instantly latched onto the key point, and her entire expression twisted into something strange:
"Wasn't she my dad's childhood friend? The woman who almost became my mother?! She was also my dad in disguise??"
Eriri was completely flabbergasted.
Her father was a woman. Her father's childhood friend and fiancée was her father in disguise. Her mother, on the battlefield of love, defeated her father and married him—no, her—into the family.
"This feels like some kind of tongue twister..."
Eriri clutched her temples, looking pained as she muttered:
"How did my dad and mom, just two people, manage to create a plot more convoluted than an eight o'clock soap opera?"
"You're asking me?" Utaha spread her hands innocently.
Frustrated beyond belief, Eriri flopped onto the bed with a thud, staring at the ceiling as she groaned:
"This is just too ridiculous...~"
Even now, Eriri wondered if she was living in a dream.
Otherwise, how could something so bizarre have happened?
"It is a bit ridiculous. At the very least, I wouldn't write something this dull and melodramatic."
Utaha calmly picked up a paintbrush from the table, twirling it between her fingers:
"However, there is one thing I do know."
"And that is—neither Luo Shu nor Mrs. Sawamura wanted to tell you about this."
"Those two..." Eriri's face twisted into a mix of anger and amusement. "I'm not a child anymore."
'No, you absolutely are a child...' Utaha glanced at Eriri and sighed:
"Don't say I was the one who leaked it, though Luo Shu has probably already guessed."
"Got it, I won't sell you out." Eriri waved her hand dismissively, clearly not taking the matter seriously.
After all, she knew exactly what her mother was capable of.
If a secret lasted half a day in front of her mother, it would be a miracle.
Thinking this, Eriri grabbed the teddy bear pillow beside her, rolled over onto her stomach, and propped herself up on the bed, staring at the headboard as she asked:
"So, are my mum and Luo Shu discussing how to deal with my dad?"
Utaha Kasumigaoka gave her a surprised look. "Finally decided to use your brain, Sawamura?"
"Don't act like I don't have one, you perverted woman who only has eyes for men."
Eriri grumbled in complaint before sighing dejectedly:
"Hey, Kasumigaoka, should I pretend I don't know, or should I not bother pretending?"
Utaha turned to look at her.
At that moment, Eriri spoke with a hint of melancholy:
"I don't really understand my dad—no, my mum... no, never mind, I'll just call him dad."
"Though calling a woman 'dad' feels a bit weird, but whatever."
"Anyway, my dad's always been really good to me. Now he's suddenly fallen out with mum and become a member of some dangerous criminal organisation... What should I do?"
Utaha glanced at Eriri before lowering her gaze.
"Do you want the truth or a lie?"
"I want honesty." Eriri glared at her indignantly. "The truth is selective, and lies are complete fabrications, right? You're just like Luo Shu, always trying to trick people."
"Well, what do you expect from a woman who climbed into the Director's bed?"
Utaha mocked herself with a chuckle before turning back to Eriri.
"Honestly, Sawamura, it'd be best if you just stayed out of it."
"No matter what that woman Enigma is planning, it shouldn't affect you. After all, Mrs. Sawamura and Luo Shu are still around."
Hearing this, Eriri frowned.
"So... does that mean I'm useless?"
"You're only realising that now?" Utaha feigned surprise. "I thought you were well aware of it, which is why you've been playing club house at school all this time."
Eriri's expression darkened at those words.
"It's not like I had a choice... The Art Club entered me into competitions without asking..."
"Fine, I admit it. I do feel like your business has nothing to do with me..."
As she spoke, Eriri curled up into a ball on the bed.
"After all, I'm not as strong as Senior Tokisaki, or as capable as you with your Mind Reading. Even my ability can't compare to Mira's Alchemy..."
"Even my power is just useless shape-shifting..."
"I know perfectly well that someone like me is completely worthless."
Utaha wasn't surprised by Eriri's self-pitying words and sighed.
"You really are still a child..."
"Shut up." Eriri lifted her head to complain. "You're only a year older than me."
"But mentally? It's more than just a year."
Utaha Kasumigaoka brushed her hair back and crossed her legs, saying:
"I'm not very good at comforting people."
"But there is one thing I'm rather curious about..."
"Curious about what?" Eriri looked at her in confusion.
At this, Utaha Kasumigaoka smiled and countered:
"Enigma spent nearly twenty years nurturing you. Surely she didn't invest all that time just to turn you into a completely useless good-for-nothing?"
Hearing this, Eriri froze.