Chapter One: Searching

I begin my search for Yua where I saw her last and start to ask people if they've seen her. But, no luck. It was an unhelpful answer after an unhelpful answer. Sometimes they’d point in a general direction, but she was never there.

Ronin: Where is she?!

Girl: I know where she is.

I turn to find a younger girl wearing a beautiful green dress standing behind me.

Girl: Hello, sister.

I widened my eyes in surprise and instinctively put my hand where my knife would be, but I remember Safe Haven wouldn’t let me bring any weapons.

If my family has her, it can’t be for anything good. What is their plan?

Ronin: What do you want her for?

Girl: We just want to talk to you, sister.

Ronin: Usotsuki! Whatever you want, it can’t be good.

Girl: Ochitsuku, sister. We promise not to hurt Ms. Tanaka. We want her to be our future sister in law, after all.

I feel my face grow hot as my little sister laughs.

Ronin: Quiet.

Girl: If you want to have Ms. Yua, follow me.

I consider just fighting the young girl and interrogating her after, but I don’t want to cause a scene here.

Ronin: I will follow you. No funny business.

Girl: None planned.

I narrow my eyes at her and follow as she leads me further back into the ballroom. Away from the party.

She led me to the place Error, Pitcher, and I entered the ballroom. She claps her hands in a weird rhythm and a tile in the ceiling dislodges itself. I see three small heads peak at us from the top and they drop down a ladder.

Girl: You go first.

I roll my eyes and groan before climbing up the ladder. At the top I saw about ten other children. They all created a semicircle with a dim lamp light above them all. They all faced me.

My sister, from earlier, joins the semicircle and I am thoroughly confused.

Ronin: Where is she?

The semicircle parted to reveal an unconscious Yua tied up to a chair with another one of my siblings standing next to her.

This one was…less recognizable as one of my mother’s. They turned towards me, and I knew who they were. They had an eyepatch over their left eye and I instinctively got into a fighting position.

Ronin: I see your eye is doing nice, Hina.

Hina: Hello, sister.