As an older sister

Mahiru: The day I got a younger sister

"—A younger sister?"

"Y-Yes, Mahiru-sama's younger sister has been born recently."

An indifferent childish voice of a girl who had yet reached her teens and the trembling voice of a grown woman.

Mahiru kept looking at the scenery through the window in front of her, her elbows on the edge of it and her hands on her face.

The maid who usually came to silently clean her room suddenly started to talk to her and announced the news.

'I was wondering what she wanted, talking to me all of the sudden but to think it was just that.' Mahiru wasn't even interested enough to turn around and look at her and only focused half of her mind on the conversation.

Well this woman wasn't physically nor mentally trained, she was just an ordinary woman who happened to gain her life by cleaning the estate of such an horrifying family of all things (Mahiru herself didn't even get why she ended up here of all place) so she paused no threat and couldn't defend herself.

No matter who, the members of the Hiiragi family were respected, worshipped and feared by all so the fact that this maid, who was terrified of a little girl that turned 8 only a few months ago despite being more than twice her age was the proof of it.

'...No... not everyone is scared of the Hiiragis.'

The memory of a boy of her age with black hair and purple eyes came to her mind and Mahiru's expression softened, her heart being filled by a comfortable warmth.

"—I-Is Mahiru-sama curious about her younger sister?"

"—"

'...Ah, that's right. I completely forgot about her.' Mahiru forgot that she was in the middle of a conversation, albeit one-sided, still a conversation.

Besides, the maid seems to have misunderstood her reaction and continued to speak, "F-From what I have heard, it is a little girl that looks really like Mahiru-sama! S-So... Erm..."

"It's fine. You can go back."

"Y-Yes ma'am!" Upon hearing Mahiru's permission, the maid bowed hurriedly before exiting the room through the door, the relieved sigh that she gave just before she closed the door didn't go unnoticed by Mahiru.

Mahiru wasn't upset by this reaction nor did she considered her own attitude towards her as impolite; after all it was something normal in the Hiiragi Clan, she was already used to it since a long time ago.

It was more of a wonder about how this ordinary woman managed to find her way to work for this family, her meek and submissive attitude would only serve her to get bullied by the members of the upper hierarchy. She may even get killed on a whim, after all the Hiiragi Clan was quite unfair, wherever it is in terms of raw power or their methods.

And Mahiru herself being a member of that same family, as much as she hated it, has no concern what kind of fate may eventually befall or not befall on her.

If all she wanted was money, there were many options instead of being a maid at an estate of the Hiiragi Clan. Yes, there were many options of job and employers, employers who will treat her more kindly, for example...

"Ichinose..."

The clan that has been oppressed by the Hiiragi since many generations ago in history because of a some stupid tragic love story. No matter how strong they become, no matter how many talented children they spawn, they cannot rebel and overthrow the dictators they are facing.

'But because they are weak... Guren is so kind...' Now that she was all alone in her room, Mahiru finally allowed the loving smile she always wore when she thought about the boy she met when she was 5 years old, to spread on her face.