As time passed second by second...
Minami Uruka gradually sensed something unusual and suddenly felt that the living room was frighteningly quiet.
Minami Uruka then spoke. "Um, how should I address you?"
"Eto."
Yoshimura Eto replied.
"Eto... Then I can call you Eto-chan, right?"
Although Eto had denied that she was Ihei Byakuya's younger sister, in Minami Uruka's heart she had already defaulted Eto's full name to Ihei Eto.
"Mm..."
Yoshimura Eto responded softly and did not appear resistant.
"Eto-chan, I am very sorry that I forgot to bring a gift. If you do not mind, please accept this instead."
At this moment, Minami Uruka took out a book.
This was the only thing on her that she could give to Eto-chan.
Moreover, to her this book was not ordinary, because she had previously chosen it together with Ihei-kun in the library, so it held extraordinary meaning.
Originally she had intended to bring it into the Cochlea prison so she could take it out and read it at any time. She just did not expect that she would regain her freedom after only a few days.
"Thank you, Onee-san."
Yoshimura Eto accepted the book.
Creak.
At this moment, the front door was suddenly opened from outside.
"That guy is back."
Yoshimura Eto did not need to think to know that it must be Byakuya who had returned.
"Ihei-kun...?"
Minami Uruka immediately stood up, seemingly wanting to go to the entrance to greet Byakuya.
Then the two of them happened to meet between the foyer and the living room.
"Minami-san? How did you..."
Seeing Minami Uruka inside his own home, Ihei Byakuya was immediately surprised.
This suddenly made him recall what Bureau Director Washuu Yoshitoki had meant by his final sentence before he left, "You will soon see your beloved little girlfriend."
"I am not too sure what is going on either. They did not say a word and just sent me here."
Minami Uruka explained.
"In any case, it is good that you are fine. Since you are here, sit for a while."
Ihei Byakuya said.
"Mm, I have already met Eto-chan. She is a very well-behaved and sensible little sister."
Minami Uruka said with a smile.
"Is that so?"
Ihei Byakuya smiled slightly.
In reality, what he was thinking was that it would already be very good if this 'little sister' Eto did not cause trouble.
Seeing Byakuya and Minami Uruka chatting and laughing there, Yoshimura Eto slightly frowned.
But she did not say anything.
After that, she also behaved obediently and quietly.
...
After Minami Uruka returned home,
Yoshimura Eto suddenly spoke faintly. "Byakuya... That woman just now, you were chatting quite happily with her?"
"She is [Pumpkin Head]."
Ihei Byakuya said.
"Oh, so it was her."
Yoshimura Eto still had to pretend she did not know before. "She is quite good-looking. No wonder you kept going easy on her before."
"You little rascal, what are you thinking about?"
Ihei Byakuya immediately flicked Yoshimura Eto lightly on the forehead with his finger.
"Ugh..."
Yoshimura Eto covered her forehead, looking slightly displeased. "I am not a little rascal!"
"All right, all right, you're not a little rascal."
Ihei Byakuya said with a smile. "What do you want to eat tonight? I am going to the supermarket later to buy some ingredients."
"I am going too."
Yoshimura Eto immediately said.
Because there were many things she had never eaten before, and during this period she had somewhat seen various dishes on television, so she wanted to taste those delicacies she had not tried.
...
Ward 1, Sunlit Garden.
This was an isolated paradise, located within dense forest.
Almost no one knew of this place's existence.
And today, Ihei Byakuya arrived at Sunlit Garden.
Although in his background he was from Sunlit Garden, this was the first time he had truly come to this place.
His impression of Sunlit Garden was limited to the few scenes that appeared in the original work.
After getting out of the car, the air here immediately gave Ihei Byakuya a refreshing feeling, and the environment also looked extremely beautiful.
The half-human children here might all have tragic fates, but aside from having to lose their humanity and become killing machines, the treatment given by the Washuu Clan was not poor.
Just like when Yoshimura Kuzen served the Washuu Clan in his youth, he did not worry about food or clothing, and his salary was also high, until he fell in love with Ukina.
If it were only falling in love with a human, it actually would not have been much.
The key was that Ukina initially approached Kuzen in order to investigate the Washuu Clan, and she already had grasped many of the Washuu Clan's secrets, so the Washuu Clan had to silence Ukina to maintain their rule.
As long as he did not think about those dirty deeds the Washuu Clan committed that were unrelated to himself, Ihei Byakuya could even get along quite amicably with the young master of the Washuu Clan, Washuu Yoshitoki.
But he was a transmigrator, so it was impossible for him to ignore the heavy sins of the Washuu Clan.
"Byakuya, you probably have not returned for a long time, right? How does it feel?"
Washuu Yoshitoki beside him asked.
It was precisely he who had brought Byakuya back to Sunlit Garden.
Aside from letting Byakuya come back to take a look, he also wanted Byakuya to set an example for the other children.
Ihei Byakuya nodded slightly. "It feels good."
After that, the two of them walked into Sunlit Garden together.
At the entrance stood two men in black clothing wearing black hats as guards. They were assassins of [V Organization], and they had also once been half-human children of Sunlit Garden.
Aside from listening to the Washuu Clan's orders to kill people, sometimes they also served part-time as teachers in Sunlit Garden.
For example, the leader of [V Organization], Kaiko, was Arima Kishou's master.
Even if these men in black did not recognize Ihei Byakuya, they could recognize the young master Washuu Yoshitoki. Therefore, Byakuya and the others proceeded smoothly through Sunlit Garden without obstruction.
Inside Sunlit Garden, as far as the eye could see it was almost entirely white, and there were large areas of beautiful courtyards and lawns. This was probably also the origin of the name Sunlit Garden.
Many young children were playing and frolicking on the lawn and in the courtyards. The children were all dressed in pure white clothing. On the surface, it looked just like a beautiful paradise.
The youngest children were only a few years old, and the older ones were probably around ten.
At this moment, a little girl with pink hair walked toward Ihei Byakuya.
"Ihei, Byakuya, do you still remember her?"
Washuu Yoshitoki also spoke.
"I remember..."
Looking at that not unfamiliar cute girl, Ihei Byakuya's gaze trembled slightly.
Ihei Hairu...