I Am Not a Vicious Stepsister! - Chapter 19

 Ni Songan didn’t know how to respond. She wanted to say she had come back specifically to celebrate her birthday, but would Modesty think she was just making excuses?

After all, Songan had effectively avoided her for nearly six months. Even though she had provided seemingly valid reasons every time she declined Modesty’s invitations, only Songan knew she was just making things up.

Modesty had clearly realized she was intentionally avoiding their time together. It was precisely because of this that Songan didn’t know how to explain herself.

Tell the truth? That would only hurt Modesty’s feelings.

Tell a lie? Facing Modesty’s hopeful yet anxious eyes, Songan’s conscience wouldn’t allow it.

All the wild thoughts had started with her, and she was the one who had distanced herself first. Her baseless conjectures and preconceived biases against an innocent person—all these factors had prevented Songan from truly opening up to Modesty.

Modesty knew nothing, yet she was the one forced to endure her stepsister’s cold shoulder.

It was simply unfair.

Songan took a deep breath and looked Modesty in the eye. “Perhaps I should start by apologizing. I’m sorry.”

“Lately, I’ve been seeing very little of you because of my own personal matters. When you reached out to hang out, I wrote a lot of excuses to turn you down, without considering your feelings at all. I’m very sorry.”

“I came back this time not just to celebrate your birthday, but also because I wanted to be honest with you. As for whether you still want to associate with me afterward, the choice and the decision are entirely in your hands.”

After mentally editing out the parts she couldn’t say, Songan shared this much with Modesty. Although she didn’t know if she could earn forgiveness, she still wanted to confess her mistakes.

However, Modesty’s response surprised her even more. “Sister, you’re so annoying. You’re not allowed to do that again. If you have something to say, just say it. Don’t keep it bottled up inside, otherwise…”

“You’re forgiving me just like that?” Songan asked, incredulous.

“What else should I do? You’re my sister. I like you a lot. Even though I knew you were avoiding me on purpose and it made me quite angry, I treasure the time we spend together even more. I don’t want to waste all of it being angry.” Modesty spread her hands with a helpless expression.

“But you’re right, I can’t let you off that easily!” She rested her chin in her hand, thinking hard. “I’ll punish you by…”

“—making you stay by my side for the entire day of my birthday banquet!”

One must pay for the trouble they cause.

During Modesty’s seventeenth birthday banquet, Songan truly remained inseparable from her side.

Besides members of the Rodney family, allied prestigious families and Modesty’s classmates had also been invited.

The Castle of Leonore was bathed in the setting sun, the edges of its creamy white stone pillars shimmering like gold. Thriving flowering vines wound around them, weaving a wall of blossoms. A portrait of Modesty stood nearby, but her expression wasn’t the usual smile Songan was accustomed to. Instead, her lips were set in a straight line and her eyes were cold, making her look much more like Althea when she was expressionless.

Songan stood by Modesty’s side as they conversed with the guests. The two were dressed in identical styles of formal gowns in different colors. Everyone who saw them offered a compliment, saying they looked like twin flowers blooming from a single stem.

Songan, who wasn’t good at these types of social gatherings, simply smiled, while Modesty took the lead, clinking glasses and chatting with the guests.

“Don’t you find this environment intimidating?” Songan whispered to Modesty during a rare break. She watched another guest walk away and closed her eyes for a moment of relief.

For her, meeting so many people and having to talk to them was the most terrifying thing in the world.

“Why should I be afraid?” Modesty raised an eyebrow slightly, a faint smile playing on her lips. “They don’t actually want to talk to me, they just want something from my mother.”

“That’s true.” Songan’s thoughts shifted. Most of those people were only flattering Modesty for their own benefit, no one would dare make things difficult for her.

“Sister, are you tired?” Modesty suddenly leaned in, her nose almost brushing Songan’s cheek.

She gave Songan a somewhat mischievous, gloating look. “No way, you have to stay with me!”

“I didn’t say I was leaving. It’s actually fine, I’m not that tired.” Songan was only mentally exhausted. Compared to her, Modesty, who had been dragged out of bed at six in the morning for styling and rehearsals, clearly had it much harder.

Seeing that smirk, which almost looked like that of a wicked villain, Songan pinched her cheek. “We’ve been standing here long enough, and we’ve greeted most of the people. Why don’t you find a place to sit for a while?”

“No need to sit, but… we can go off and play on our own first.” Modesty shook her head and, changing the subject, took Songan’s hand and pulled her away from the crowd.

“Why are you taking me to the attic?” Songan followed behind her. The spiral staircase made her dizzy, so she stopped looking up and focused on the steps beneath her feet.

She noticed some dust on her trousers and patted it off just as they reached the top floor.

Through the skylight, Songan saw that it was already dark outside. The room was illuminated only by a single candelabra that Modesty had brought up. She instinctively checked the time on her wrist; fortunately, there was still some time before the banquet officially started.

Modesty ran to a corner, rummaged through some boxes, and found what she was looking for. She kept it hidden behind her back, blocking Songan’s inquisitive gaze. “Blow out the candle first.”

“Alright.” Although she didn’t understand why, Songan complied.

The surroundings instantly plunged into darkness, with only a faint light filtering in through the skylight.

No, there was one other place, behind Modesty, a faint fluorescence was glowing.

Modesty didn’t keep her in suspense any longer and presented what she had been hiding—a fine mesh bag filled with numerous fireflies.

She opened the bag, and the fireflies quickly found their way out, flying out one by one. Their starlight-like glow was reflected in Songan’s eyes.

“…” Songan’s mouth hung open as she watched in shock, wanting to speak but not knowing what to say. “How did you catch so many fireflies?”

“I didn’t catch them, I had Rosalind and the others help me,” Modesty corrected her. “During that school trip to the firefly caves, it was so beautiful. I was sad that you weren’t there, so I wanted to let you see it for yourself.”

“Though, this version is a bit crude. It’s certainly not as beautiful as the actual tourist spot…”

Songan smiled and patted her head. “But I think it’s perfect already. Thank you. Even though it’s your birthday, you still thought of preparing a surprise for me.”

“Stop! I didn’t make a special effort, I just happened to remember it yesterday.” Modesty protested, her eyes darting away.

“Alright, alright.” No matter what she said, Songan accepted it all.

The two sat quietly for a while, watching the fireflies, before Songan stood up to open the window and let them fly out on their own. “It’s time to go downstairs and celebrate your birth.”

She offered her hand to Modesty, who took it and stood up.

As they reached the corner of the ground floor, they heard voices whispering in low conversation.

Songan paused. The door leading to the attic was indeed quite hidden, so it was normal for people to slip away here for private chats. Bursting out suddenly and startling them wouldn’t be polite for either side.

Modesty, however, didn’t have such reservations. Before Songan could stop her, Modesty walked straight out and ran right into the two people talking.

Songan hurried after her, ready to apologize, but froze when she saw the two people. “Mom?”

The two people talking were Ni Tianjiao and Althea. The former looked absolutely livid. Even after hearing Songan, she only gave her a cold glance before turning and walking away.

Althea didn’t chase after her immediately but offered Songan a regretful smile. “I’m sorry, she’s been in a bad mood lately. Take care of each other tonight. I’m going after your mother.”

“Alright.” Songan was baffled but could only agree hastily.

“Strange. Why say that to you? Isn’t it my birthday?” Modesty frowned in confusion. Just now, both Ni Tianjiao and Althea had completely ignored her.

“Well, I am the older sister, after all!” Songan patted her shoulder. “Come on, let’s go to the banquet hall.”

The birthday banquet ended smoothly, and System 313, who had been gone for a long time, finally returned.

“I’m telling you, your original plot is just too cliché. Why don’t we come up with some more normal plot points together?”

Modesty fiddled with the flowers in her arms, which were still damp with morning dew, wetting her fingertips.

System 313 didn’t quite understand. “What are you trying to do?”

“Since the Management Center is willing to relax the conditions, we don’t have to act out such boring scenes, right? I was thinking, why don’t we just completely overhaul this story?” Modesty narrowed her eyes at the sky, which was as deep a blue as her own eyes.

“Are you crazy?! No one has ever done that before. The Will of the World cannot be defied…” 313 was startled, but couldn’t help following her line of thought.

Modesty gave a low laugh. “As you said, the mission is to follow the plot to maintain this world, and then give me points in exchange for good things. If I don’t do it, I’ll no longer be the Child of Fortune, and this world will fall apart very quickly.”

“To me, whether it’s points or rewards, I don’t care. As for this world, you were the ones who came and told me I was just a character in a book, and forced me to follow your arrangements.”

“Now that I’ve decided I’m done playing your game, you actually come and beg me…”

She suddenly crushed the flowers with force, the petals and stamens turning into a messy pulp, their juices staining her fingers.

“How could things be that simple? Are you out of your mind?”

“I think it’s not that the world and I need your help, but that you need to get something from me, don’t you?”

313 was speechless. “T—this is against the rules!”

“It’s simple. I’ll only tell you my detailed demands. You go back and discuss it with your superiors. If you agree, come back to me. If not, we don’t need to meet again.”

Modesty wiped the stains from her hands and smiled eerily at the empty air. “What do you think?”

“Modesty? What’s wrong with you? I saw you smiling at the air.”

Another voice appeared in the courtyard. Modesty didn’t even have to look back to know who it was.

Songan had been daydreaming in front of the living room’s floor-to-ceiling windows in the afternoon when she saw Modesty destroying the flowers in her hand. If that were all, it wouldn’t have been so bad, but then she had started talking to herself in the air, looking very strange indeed.

At the very least, Songan felt a chill down her spine, so she went out to ask Modesty what was wrong.

Could it be a common symptom of being a teenager, imagining oneself as a savior?

A look of maternal concern flickered in her eyes as she looked at Modesty. The latter noticed it and froze.

“It’s nothing, Sister. I was just practicing for a play. School is starting soon, and there will be a welcome party for the new students.” Modesty’s smile only faltered for a second before she smoothly answered Songan’s question.

“Oh, I see…” As long as she wasn’t losing it. Songan breathed a sigh of relief. “Good luck! I’m sure you’ll do a great job.”

“Mm-hm. I can save a front-row seat for you. Would you like to come and watch, Sister?” Modesty asked immediately, her eyes darting around. She did indeed have a performance at the welcome party. Although she had planned to ask her stepsister later, now seemed like a good time.

Songan offered a gentle smile. “If you’re inviting me, of course I’ll come.”

“That’s great!” Seeing that she had achieved her goal, Modesty decisively wrapped her arms around Songan’s neck, hugging her and nuzzling her face against Songan’s. The joy in her blue eyes was impossible to hide.

After school started, Songan kept her promise and spent a lot of time with Modesty. Once Modesty was satisfied, Songan threw herself back into her studies.

Time flew by, and Songan’s short sleeves and shorts were gradually replaced by coats and down jackets.

Snowflakes fell softly, melting in Songan’s palm. She had just stepped out of the study lounge. Her junior year was almost halfway through, and this was the final chance to determine her eligibility for a graduate school recommendation. She had to grasp it firmly.

Zhou Yeja had also been quite reasonable lately, assigning her fewer tasks. Perhaps she wanted to leave a good impression on her potential future student.

Songan stood by the steps, hesitating whether to brave the wind and snow or wait for it to die down.

The cold wind stung her face, and a sudden ringtone pierced through the whistling wind, sounding particularly jarring.

Songan took out her phone and saw the name on the screen, it was a call from Modesty. After she picked up, she heard a sobbing voice on the other end. The smile on her lips froze, and she nearly dropped her phone.

“What did you say?”

Songan felt as if her own voice were coming from a great distance. She forced the question from her throat, confirming with Modesty what she had just said.

A year and a half after transmigrating into the book, Ni Tianjiao and Althea Rodney both died in a plane crash, exactly at the point of their deaths in the original story.

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