"Wishy!"
Soft, delicate arms wrapped around her from behind, pulling her into a crushing embrace. The voice that came with it was thick with emotion, trembling against her shoulder.
"I am so, so sorry for all that happened today!"
Wish wiggled in the grip, turning to face her. The white-haired girl from the hall stood before her—elegant fox features, bright blue eyes just like her father's, white hair cascading down her back.
She managed a weak smile. "No, it's fine."
Her sister's head started shaking—violently, desperately. Her white hair whipped around her face like a storm.
"No! Don't pretend!" She lunged forward, grabbing Wish's shoulders with a grip that bordered on painful.
"I am your twin sister and I can feel it. It's never fine! These situations always make you depressed and moody. You start eating while crying on your bed, staring at your vision crystal for hours!"
Wish scoffed, pulling back slightly. "It's not like I'm the only one in this world suffering from this problem."
Her sister stared at her.
Really stared.
Like Wish had suddenly grown a second head or started speaking in tongues.
Wish stared back, her expression saying clearly: Yeah, right. I'm not the only one.
But her sister's look didn't waver. It only intensified—confusion mixed with something close to pity.
Wish's eyebrow climbed slowly. "What?!" Her voice rose. "Do you mean I am the only one? Are you trying to say I'm the only ugly person in this world?"
Her sister bit her lip hard, looking away like the words physically hurt to say.
Her hands dropped from Wish's shoulders, fingers twisting together. "So far no one has been found with the same problem as you. Since we were born twins, I have always wished I also had the same condition as you. Then you wouldn't suffer alone."
Her voice cracked. "But we've tried everything—eating only vegetables, starvation diets, running until we couldn't breathe, every exercise we could think of—but your body doesn't seem to change. I know it's hard, but you have to hold on. Some magic might happen someday."
Wish frowned, her chest tightening with a feeling she couldn't name. "Do I look that bad?"
Her sister's head snapped up. "Why do you seem to have lost your memories?"
Without answering, Wish spun on her heel and rushed across the room. Her feet carried her to the full-length crystal mirror tucked in the corner.
The enchanted surface rippled at her approach like disturbed water, then settled into perfect clarity.
She looked at herself.
Really looked.
The girl in the reflection had a round face with soft, delicate features that gave her an almost doll-like appearance.
Large silver eyes—still rimmed red from crying—stared back at her.
Her hair was stunning: white at the bottom, gradually shifting through shades of pale blue until it became deep ultramarine at the roots, the gradient cascading in waves around her shoulders.
And her body—
Wish blinked.
She was curvy. Very curvy. Full breasts that strained slightly against the thin sacrificial gown's fabric.
A stomach that curved inward before flowing out to an hourglass waist. Then generous hips that flared dramatically. Thick thighs that any modern man back in her world would fall over themselves for.
So what the hell is wrong with this world?
"You're staring at yourself weird," her sister said, appearing beside her in the mirror's reflection. Her own slender frame was a stark contrast—willowy and graceful like a dancer.
Wish touched her waist experimentally, then her hip. Disbelief was written all over her face. "I'm... not fat."
Her sister's brows furrowed deeply. "You are fat. Just accept yourself—it's better than denying it." Concern crept into her voice, making it softer. "What is wrong with you today?"
Wish sighed, the sound heavy and defeated.
She turned away from the mirror and slumped onto her bed, the mattress dipping under her weight. "This isn't good then. It means I'm like a person suffering from a unique body disorder that can't be cured."
She stared at the ceiling. "If no one in this world should be fat, then why didn't you take me to see a doctor?"
Her sister sat down beside her, the bed creaking slightly. "We have. We've tried everything anyone could think of. Healers, herbalists, magic practitioners, dietary experts—everyone."
Her hand found Wish's, squeezing gently. "It's incurable. You have to learn to live with it. But we're all here to support you."
"How?" Wish's voice broke. "How do you learn to live with this? Being the only one in the whole world?" She sat up abruptly, pulling her hand away. "I'm among the ugliest people in this world."
"Ugly?!"
Her sister's voice shot up three octaves, piercing the air. She jumped to her feet and spun Wish around forcefully, hands gripping her arms hard enough to bruise.
"Who told you that?" Her eyes blazed with fury, practically glowing. "Was it that witch princess?"
"But she said—"
"She's jealous!" Her sister threw her hands up dramatically, releasing Wish to pace across the room like a caged tiger. Her steps were sharp, aggressive.
"Look at you!" She whirled around, gesturing wildly at Wish's body. "You have curves in all the right places! Your waist, your hips, your—" She gestured vaguely but emphatically at Wish's chest.
"Everything! You're the epitome of a shapeful woman! I don't know what's wrong with men in this world!"
Wish raised an eyebrow. "I don't think you understand—"
"They just don't know it yet!" Her sister rushed back, grabbing both of Wish's hands and squeezing them so tight it almost hurt. Her eyes were bright—almost manic with conviction and desperation.
"But one day—one day, Wishy—some big guy is going to see you." She leaned in closer, her voice rising with excitement. "Like a prince or a deity or a minister or some stupidly rich merchant lord."
She pulled Wish closer until their faces were inches apart, her voice dropping to an intense, fervent whisper.
"And he's going to fall to his knees and beg for your hand in marriage."
Wish stared at her, unblinking.
Her sister's grip tightened impossibly more. Her smile grew wider, almost frightening in its intensity.
"And the rest of the world—all those people who laughed, who called you names, who said you weren't good enough—they'll be standing there with their mouths hanging open in complete awe."
Silence stretched between them like pulled taffy.
Wish blinked slowly. Once. Twice.
"Seriously? You're weird."
Her sister burst into laughter—loud, unrestrained, throwing her head back so far Wish worried she might fall over. She released Wish's hands to clutch her stomach, doubling over and gasping for air.
"I know!" she wheezed between peals of laughter. "But it's going to happen! I can feel it in my bones!"
She straightened up slowly, wiping tears from her eyes, her laughter finally subsiding into soft giggles.
Wish's mind caught on something. She tilted her head, studying her sister with new eyes.
"Wait." She held up a hand. "Did you just say you're my twin sister?"
Her sister nodded, still grinning.
"That means we're the same age." Wish's eyes narrowed. "The princess laughed at me, saying I'm past my age for marriage. So that means you're also past your age." She stood up, pointing accusingly. "And yet you're not married either! But you're slim!"
Her sister's smile faltered. Just slightly. Just enough to notice.
"That's..." She looked away, her fingers twisting together nervously. "That's different."
"How is it different?" Wish stepped closer, her voice rising. "If being fat is my problem, and you're not fat, then why aren't you married? Where are all your suitors?"
Her sister's face flushed pink. She opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.