I've Reincarnated as a Love Rival !

II

Then, a solid knock resounded from my bedroom door. I instinctively shove the paper I filled up inside my drawer and stood up from my desk instantly.

"W-who is it?" I called, still shaken up by the interruption.

"Elisa? It's me."

My eyes widen from the surprise. That voice, it could only be...

"Brother Erin?", I rush to open the door.

I was right! I could tell it was him from the soft tone in his voice. He's always been nice to me, whether I was playing as Liana or when I was living as Elisa.

"You didn't join us at the table for breakfast this morning, and I've heard from Rose that you requested breakfast in bed. Are you feeling alright, Elisa?" His already gentle-looking gaze turned sad once the question escaped his lips.

Elisa never missed a single meal at the table with her family and she rarely got sick. If I could slap myself in this instance for making people worry, I would.

But, even though we're quite a happy family, it's not a surprise that my parents didn't come to check up on me. They aren't exactly bad parents, they are always busy and probably left this task to Erin.

"I didn't mean to worry you, brother. I had a bad nightmare, but I'm fine now." I smiled, hoping he would buy the excuse like Rose did.

When his expression turned from worried to relieved, I knew he fell for it.

"Is that so? I guess it's a relief you feel better now. If you're worried about having bad dreams again, I can stay by your side until you fall asleep until you're not worried anymore."

If I didn't remember anything from Elisa's memories, I would be frozen like a statue right now. But since I do, I'm not surprised by his offer in the least. This level of kindness was normal from Erin.

That said, I couldn't help but giggle at his response,
"I'm fine brother, I'm not a child anymore."

Erin gave me a warm smile and gently patted my hair.

"I was told to keep this a secret, but Rose had also reported to me that you were acting not like your usual self earlier. It seems I got worried for nothing, you're still the little sister I know and love."

ROSE?! Geez, I told her I was fine. Well, I guess I can't blame her for worrying still, I really said some weird things earlier.

"O-of course, why would I suddenly change?" I blurted, trying my best to not act flustered.

"Ah, that's right, since you say you feel fine now, do you want to continue with our shopping plan?"

Shopping plan..? We had such a thing? Hmmm....now that I think about it, something like that was arranged a week ago.

"Elisa?"

"Oh, right. I'll gladly continue the plan, brother!"

"Alright then. While you're preparing, I will be waiting for you in the carriage", Erin then turned away and left the hall.

Wow, Erin is such a responsible older brother! I was an only child in my past life, so this is my first actual experience having a sibling. It feels pretty nice, are all brothers like this?

-

"Brother, I apologize for the wait." I greeted, lightly trotting to the opened carriage in front of the mansion.

"Elisa, as expected, your signature light blue color really suits you." He responded, already seated in the carriage.

With the helping hand of a servant, I also got onto the carriage and took a seat right across from Erin. It's not like I really had a choice either, there were already guards in the ride with us.

"Thank you big brother, your navy blue looks dashing as well."

"Navy blue..?" He questioned.

Oops, do we not use 'Navy Blue' to describe that color in this world? I hope I don't slip up too much.

"Um..It's a term I made up! Or maybe I read it somewhere? It's used to describe the dark blue brother always wears."

When have I gotten this good at making up excuses? Perhaps it's a skill from Elisa's lifetime.

"Hmm, I see. Elisa, you're really creative aren't you?"

I laugh a bit, "brother, you flatter me."

The ride wasn't long, but I still took the time to study and admire the scenery around us. We passed by a lot of trees and I saw a few creatures I've never seen on earth. Erin would strike up light conversation once in a while, but that was as far as it went with human interactions. The guards didn't bother speaking, and they were too intimidating to start a conversation with.

-

"We're here!", I exclaimed, clearly excited as I stepped off the vehicle.

It was a real, live bustling marketplace! I wasn't usually a fan of shopping, but this is something else. People were loud and chattering, and I can hear children laughing and playing. The energy is so lively, I haven't felt so energized in a while!

The guards and Erin got off after me, but Erin was the only one that said something else.

"It's been awhile since you last left the mansion, right? Now we finally have time to buy you a new mirror."

"New m- oh. Yes, I almost forgot about that.", I admitted.

The reason I need a new mirror was my own fault. Elisa got a new maid fired last week after she accused her of breaking her favorite mirror on purpose. The maid was innocent, and I was the one who broke it in secret. That happened because I overheard the maid bad-mouthing me. I don't know why Elisa didn't just report the maid for malicious gossip, maybe maids can't get fired without evidence?

"Over here, Elisa."

I feel a hand wrap around mine as I got dragged into the crowd. Without warning, I was being forced to run.

"B-brother??" I cry out, surprised by the sudden speed he picked up.

"Am I too fast?", Erin asked, his hand still holding tightly onto mine. We were still moving amongst the crowd, but now at a steadier pace. I look back, but all I could see were crowds of strangers; the guards that we were with are nowhere to be seen.

"What was that about?" I question, a look of concern evident on my face. Erin stopped walking all of a sudden, and turned around to look at me. The crowd began to move around to avoid us since we were in their way.

"I thought you had a fear of large crowds, so I wanted to speed past the crowded areas with you. Sorry, did I surprise you?", he knelt down on one knee to match my eye level. I didn't even think about our height difference, why is he so tall when we're just two years apart?

Anyways, is that what it was? Brother, you're so nice! However, that opinion is in the past. 'Past Elisa' didn't like crowds, but in the present, I'm okay with them. My college was a small one, but it had lots of attendees, that's why I'm used to large amounts of people.

With a determined expression, I said with confidence, "It's okay now brother, I grew out of that fear. I can stand being in crowds now!"

Erin stood back up and smiled, "I see! You're really growing fast these days. The mirror shop should be close since we went so fast, let's go."

I agreed in a heartbeat and continued to let him drag me around by the arm. We were once again blended in with the busy crowd.

"Hey! That kid's a thief, catch him!!" I hear a man's voice call from somewhere behind us.

A thief? Erin and I both turn around to see a teenage boy dodging people in the crowd. He's getting closer to us at an extremely fast speed, I didn't even have the time to react to this unexpected event, when-

WHAM!!

I felt a heavy force crash into me, making me lose the grip on Erin's hand and knocking me to the ground. The last thing I saw before I fell was a blur of blue-ish hair.

"Elisa!" Erin cried out.