These Dangerous Girls Placed Me Into Jeopardy

...Huh?

What?

What just happened?

Did time stop?

Why isn’t anything happening?

A flood of questions surged through my mind, making it almost impossible not to open my eyes. But I was terrified of what I might see — Cora’s body and that nearly broken expression. I couldn’t bring myself to open my eyes.

So, I had no idea what had happened.

I had already given up, stopped resisting, ready to quietly endure the consequences of failing to handle my relationship with my sisters properly. But after I said that one sentence, everything just... stopped.

Hmm... Was it that sentence that caused this?

In the end, I couldn’t help myself. I secretly opened my left eye, squinting to sneak a glance at Cora’s expression.

Cora... she was completely frozen.

Her eyes were like rusted locks, unable to turn anymore. They stared blankly, unfocused, as if her thoughts were still drifting aimlessly. Even though I’d opened my eyes, she didn’t respond.

Then, her expression gradually darkened, as if her soul had been hollowed out. Her lips trembled slightly but made no sound.

She looked as hopeless as someone sinking into a bottomless abyss, utterly drowning in despair.

When did that sweet, innocent Cora ever show such a look of devastation?

What happened?

Was it because of what I said?

Just then, a cold hand touched my cheek, sending a shiver down my spine. I immediately looked up at Serena, confusion plastered across my face.

She lowered her head to look at me, then raised her brows slightly, gesturing toward the dazed Cora.

Then, she released her thighs from around my neck and freed my arms, allowing me to move my upper body.

She was telling me to go comfort Cora, wasn’t she? Serena... she didn’t seem particularly surprised by Cora’s current state.

Of course. She must have known about Cora’s true nature all along.

Maybe I was the only one who didn’t know... Ah, the more I thought about it, the more I felt like a failure of a brother.

And now was my chance to salvage what little remained of my older brother image.

So, I slowly straightened my upper body... Lately, I’d been doing this move a lot. My waist ached a little. Come to think of it, didn’t that mean I’d been pinned down for no reason quite often recently? That couldn’t be good...

Ahem. Now wasn’t the time for that. I had to get Cora to come back to her senses.

“Cora.”

I reached out and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, softly calling her name.

At the sound of my voice, Cora’s entire body jolted. Her eyes refocused, and she looked up at me with a mixture of unease and fear.

It hurt.

That look on her face... like she was about to cry.

“Brother... do you think I’ve changed?”

“...”

Ah... So that was it.

Cora still didn’t know that I’d already seen through her hidden side because of her title.

The Cora I remembered was sweet, innocent, and cheerful, always presenting her best side to me while concealing her darker self.

So, when I said, “You weren’t like this before,” she must have thought her hidden nature had been exposed. That was why she now looked so lost and helpless, like a child whose secret had just been torn open.

She always tried to leave a good impression, showing only her bright side.

And I really did think that Cora was just a sweet and obedient sister, completely oblivious to her other side.

I kept talking about protecting my sisters, not letting them suffer... It sounded nice, but in truth, I hadn’t even taken the time to understand Cora’s true feelings.

Now, the one making Cora suffer was none other than me — her own brother.

But this time, driven by jealousy, Cora had lost control and acted in ways completely opposite to her usual demeanor.

And then, I’d exposed her with just a few careless words.

Mistaking my silence for confirmation, Cora covered her face with her hands.

“Brother... you must think Cora has become a bad girl... Ugh... Cora just...”

Her voice was trembling. She covered her cheeks as if she didn’t want me to see her crying face.

Yeah... Cora had never once cried in front of me before. She was always smiling, always bright... all for my sake.

“I just... I «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» just don’t want to lose you, Brother...”

Warm droplets fell onto my cheeks.

One slipped into my mouth — salty.

They were Cora’s tears.

“I don’t want Brother to be taken away by someone else!”

The anxiety triggered by jealousy completely shattered Cora’s composure.

The tears that fell onto my cheeks... I didn’t wipe them away. I had no right to wipe them away — because Cora was crying because of me.

“Cora has always... always tried so hard... showing her best side in front of Brother... Ugh...”

Cora let go of her face and grabbed my collar, sobbing uncontrollably. With a raspy, broken voice, she squeezed out her apologies.

“I’m sorry... I’m sorry... Brother, please don’t hate me... Cora will be good... Just don’t hate Cora...!”

Did she think that because her hidden self was exposed, I would come to hate her?

That was why she was crying so bitterly, hoping I would forgive her.

Really... If only she had told me sooner...

“You’re such a fool, Cora.”

I let out a bitter laugh as I reached out to ruffle Cora’s hair, then gently guided her head to rest on my shoulder.

Cora sniffled hard, then quickly lifted her head.

“Brother, dirty!”

But I still firmly pressed her cheek against my chest.

“It’s not dirty. What’s so dirty about my sister’s tears and snot? Besides, they were shed for me... Wiping them on me is my responsibility, and it’s also my happiness.”

“Mm...”

She let out a soft, kitten-like whimper.

The sobbing stopped, and her mood seemed to have improved. I let out a silent sigh of relief — I’d finally managed to bring Cora back to her senses.

Serena came over to my side, her expression tinged with envy.

Heh... You two really are impossible to handle.

I rubbed my nose with my left hand and, after a moment of thought, gestured for Serena to come closer. Her face lit up as she happily leaned in, resting her head on my shoulder.

But this time, don’t even think about doing anything weird with my hand!

With one sister in each arm, I let myself fall backward onto the bed. Staring at the ceiling light, I spoke in a calm, even tone.

“You know, your brother here is a straightforward guy. If you don’t tell me exactly what’s on your mind, how am I supposed to know what you really want?”

Trying to guess someone’s thoughts is exhausting. Even though I can sense other people’s emotions now, I still can’t read their exact thoughts.

So, don’t keep things bottled up. Just say whatever’s on your mind.

“So, Cora, you don’t need to go out of your way to please me anymore. Just be yourself — your true self. No matter what you become, there’s no way I could ever hate you...”

Because you’re my sister.

How could I ever hate my own family?

“Like Serena — she used to not even bother talking to me. It was like I didn’t exist as her brother.”

Ow!

Serena, don’t pinch my waist!

“Brother... don’t blame Serena. It was because she and I made a deal, so she acted cold toward you all this time...” 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

“Eh? Oh, so you two secretly plotted to divide me up, huh?”

So that’s why Serena kept sneaking into my room every night! It all makes sense now!

“Hehe~ Brother, you’re the best...”

“Mm... Brother, always the best...”

Ah, jeez. If you two keep saying stuff like that, I’m going to get embarrassed here!

To cover up my awkwardness, I kicked up the blanket that hadn’t been spread out yet, pulling it over the three of us.

“Alright, alright. Time to sleep! Go to sleep! I nearly died today from taking the subway back from Jinhua Mall and transferring twice!”

Of course, the main reason I was so exhausted was because of running into Lan Hua... Yeah, at this hour, Gao Yingna should have already found Lan Hua by now, right?

With her best friend comforting her, Lan Hua should feel at least a little better...

Come to think of it, I made two girls cry tonight... My conscience feels like it’s been riddled with holes.

“Jinhua Mall? Brother, did you go shopping? But didn’t we agree to go shopping together tomorrow...? Are we not going anymore?”

Cora pouted, her expression filled with disappointment.

“No, the plan for tomorrow remains the same. First, we go to Dad to check my wounds, then we go shopping...”

I didn’t mention Kan Tsukiyo. That matter... isn’t something I can just casually talk about.

“Alright, now go to sleep. No more talking.”

“Brother, aren’t you going to turn off the light?”

“No. I won’t. Anyway, the light in my room isn’t that bright. Let’s just keep it on.”

If I turn it off, things could get messy...

I closed my eyes, lying motionless on the bed. Since I had dozed off a bit on the subway, I wasn’t too sleepy yet.

After a while, Cora suddenly spoke.

“Brother... we’ve never slept in a river shape like this before, have we?”

“Ah, yeah. I guess we haven’t.”

Now that she mentioned it, we really had never slept like this together.

“That time... It was all because I was so stubborn. Thinking back now, I feel so silly...”

It took me a moment to realize what she was referring to — it must have been when she first moved in with us.

“Well, back then, you didn’t even know me or Serena. We were practically strangers to you.”

I remember when Cora first moved in, she was so shy and distant, avoiding both me and Serena.

Back then, Mom wanted all three of us to share a room to get to know each other better. But Cora threw a fit and refused, crying and saying she didn’t want to.

In the end, I offered to give up my room to her.

That’s why I ended up sharing a room with Serena.

Before that, Serena and I used to sleep in the same room, but it was just bunk beds — we never actually slept together. At least, as far as I can remember, I never slept with her.

And later, when I moved to the attic, the chance to sleep together became even less likely.

As for sleeping with Cora... there were only a few times, and those were to comfort her after she had nightmares.

Three of us sleeping together — this was the first time. And who knows, maybe it would be the last.

“If only... we could stay like this forever...”

Serena’s whispered words reached my ears. That was probably her truest, most heartfelt wish.

“Hehe, that would be so nice~”

“...”

I didn’t respond. I pretended to be asleep.

The two sisters stopped talking too, just nestling closer against me.

Staying like this forever... was impossible. Impossible...

That night, I didn’t sleep a wink.

The light stayed on, illuminating the room as my eyes remained open, staring blankly at the ceiling until dawn...