Blare. Blare. Blare.

Shut up..

Oh, I wonder why I never thought of changing my alarm? I have to go commando every time I wake up— I’m just worried one day I might just snap and smash my phone..

Wouldn’t want that to happen.

Anyways, the sun was still down, the sky was glowing in a dark purple.

I texted my father good morning and scrolled through the group chat, the numerous photos my mom and the little devil— my little sister— took of me and Liliath.

Cute. Honestly.

It’d be nice if Liliath becomes my bride in the future— but I’m sure the path down such a road would be incredibly horny... thorny one.. I mean.

Some of you may be wondering, why in the world am I awake so goddamn early in the morning when it’s the summer holidays? Well, simple— my habits.

Though, since Liliath’s arrival, my schedule has gone slightly awry. My days were packed full of— Liliath, to say the least.

Figuratively speaking, I had no idea what I’m doing these past few days.

In any case, I fixed that, rearranged my goals and implemented a looser schedule— which is simply 3 intentions a day— much like the tasks that I have to do for the sake of attaining points from the quest that would roll out every day.

That said, Liliath remains my foremost priority.

My suspicions were right, the quests, though random, are based on recent events. Like that one quest that told me to hang Liliath’s panties.. don’t ask me how it went.. or how I managed to complete such a quest under Liliath’s supervision.. 

That aside, I was quite surprised that my mom got such a design. I think it suited her quite well..

Ahem.

I got up from my bed and headed downstairs.

I took the towel hanging on the rack and went to take a shower.

After which I put on my clothes and hung the towel back on the rack.

Hm...

I was greeted by a quiet living room.

Three intentions today would be to complete at least 2 quests from the quest board, post the landscape illustration I was working on the past few days and finish reading through the electrolysis chapter for chemistry.

Oh have I ever told you about how shitty hard chemistry is? It’s like trying to jump over a Grand Canyon. The previous years in junior school only taught you how to jump over a manhole. And don’t get me started on additional mathematics.. that’s.. even worse.

With my chemistry book in one hand and my notebook in the other, I sat at the kitchen table and started reading.. and taking notes.

It was a while before I heard footsteps coming down the stairs— Liliath. 

Beautiful velvet hair that curled around her shoulders, tangled, since she just woke up. Her black nightgown was loose, breasts overflowing from her cleavage for my eyes to see in all its glory. How old was she again? Something wasn’t right about the proportions of her body.

Her alluring crimson-purple eyes met mine.

“Good morning, Noel.”

“Good morning, Liliath.” 

We exchanged a simple greeting. A bright smile formed on her face.

“Could I have some water,” she asked meekly.

“I’ll go get it.”

I headed to the kitchen and returned with some water.

“Thank you,” sitting down, she yawned once before downing the glass.

Cute... overflowing cuteness. My mind is filled with many little Liliaths bouncing about in a white fluffy divine space.

Let’s be honest here, I’ve been noticing a subtle change in the way I think about Liliath.. I’ve been using all sorts of indecent phrases lately.

I have to be careful not to get too carried away..

Liliath is attractive. She’d literally sweep any male off their feet. I can imagine the long queue of people if there was a sigh that hung around her neck, saying that she was offering free hugs.

I want to hug her.

But I’m scared to do so.

I don’t know how Liliath really feels about me.

She placed the glass back on the table with a clink.

“I suppose I’ll take a bath,” she headed off to the bathroom, taking the towel from the rack before locking the door.

...

I used that towel just now..

Actually, why did Liliath decide to wake up so early? She sleeps together with the little devil, and the devil hates the early mornings. 

My sister, the devil, is the late bird that catches the worm. Don’t be fooled by her innocence, she’s in fact, a fairly intellectual creature– a genius. 

—You can’t trust me.

Those words of hers rang in my head. 

What did she mean? 

I mean.. It’s not like Liliath has a split personality or anything like that right? If she did.. or maybe it’s more like having different personas? Everyone has different personas.

She even reminded me to be careful of her during the days that followed. I’m sure she would say the same thing if I asked her about it today. Maybe.. she’s telling me to keep tabs on her, knowing that she can’t even trust herself?

===

11 am.

The time shown on my phone.

Whenever I think about my phone, I’m brought back to the time my manga reader app went poof. Replaced by this cutesy app with this weird-looking diva icon.

It’s.. unnerving, as if the diva in question was ogling me every time I opened the screen.

I tapped the app.

===

Current Points: 320

Quests: Gaining affection:

Tell Liliath she’s cute. 5P

...

Quests: Introductions:

Learn about her favourite food. 20P

...

Quests: Gaining trust:

Help Liliath deal with her period. 50P

...

Quests: Utilization:

Hold a tea party with her. 10P

...

Quests will be refreshed daily. Quests that have been completed will be prioritized, else the user can select up to 1 quest per category to remove. (removed quests will be refreshed the next day)

Max quest for each category: 1 (Upgradable) (17/20)

===

The third one on ‘gaining trust’..

I have a bad feeling about this...

[37]

I’ve completed a good number of these quests over the past few days, and the accumulated points were closing in on 500. Which was great but annoying because it took so much tedious work..

It makes sense why it would be so difficult to acquire em’ points. They’re literally a one-way ticket to cheating life. 

Last time, Liliath ate a skill book that gave her the ability to understand quite literally, every single language on Earth.

That didn’t mean she could speak ‘bark’ or ‘chirp’, though, if she could.. 

It sounds stupid to say this but I should eat that book someday.

I glanced at Liliath who was reading a science reference book. Both her hands supported her head. The pages would turn by themselves without the need to lift a finger— that’s magic in a nutshell. But she’s reading at an abnormally fast pace. 

Liliath OP.

And—

It was only me and Liliath at home today.

Novelle, the little devil, was in school. While my school holiday started last Saturday, her’s would be next week— serves ya right.

My mom was out dealing with some real estate stuff. She said she needed to kick out a tenant or something.

Also, she’ll be picking up my father from the airport later in the evening. 

Speaking of real estate, I should probably learn about how real estate works sometime soon. I’m not sure if it’s necessary for my future... but what I know is that real estate is generating most of the money we use for our day to day expenses.

Hm..

I heard a stomach growl.

I’m pretty sure that wasn’t mine.

I left my gaze away from my phone and turned to Liliath.

Upon closer inspection, she was sleeping— while sitting.

The page of the book flipped again.

Oh, I see.. so she knows this trick too. Did she learn this back when she took classes as a princess? I’m sure it had its uses.

I poked her shoulder.

“Hngh?” Her elbow dragged on the table and started to slip, losing the foundation of the pillar that is her hands— her head fell to the table— almost.

I held her up with my palm on her forehead.

Adding strength to my arms, I pushed Liliath back to a sitting position— she fell back on the sofa.

But that was enough of a shock to wake her up.

She rubbed her forehead.

“I fell asleep,” she said in a languid voice.

“You don’t need to wake up so early in the morning if you’re tired, you know?” To be honest, Liliath should just rest. These episodes of dozing off during the day have become more frequent since she started waking up before dawn.

“I understand. However, that is not an excuse to not do so. I would only trouble you if I didn’t learn to wake up early,” she said with her eyes closed, her head swaying.

“I don’t think that would trouble me in any way?”

“No, you don’t understand.. nmm...” Liliath’s words trailed off to dreamland.

Ah, welp. I suppose that’s that.

I should properly lie her down, right? I don’t think she should sleep in this sort of posture.

And so I did.. carefully.

She was quite light, to say the least. I managed to shift her position to one where she was sprawled across the couch. I think I could carry her in a princess-carry if I really tried— which serves as a reminder that I should probably exercise and not sit around all day long.

With her body on the couch, all that’s left would be her legs that were left in an awkward dangling position.

She was wearing a pleated skirt and.. I was afraid to see what I shouldn’t.

Calm down. Deep breaths, deep breath.

I brought my arms to her calves, and then lifted her up.

Unfortunately, though I successfully brought her legs atop the couch, the skirt she wore had been folded up a little, revealing a little bit of her white..

I guess I'll have to do something about what I saw.

Reaching over to adjust her skirt—

It was at that same moment Liliath awoke and tried to sit up straight while bending one of her legs.

That only made the opening even more obvious and I was seeing it in full from here!!

“I slept again.. sorry.. Noel, were you touching me?” 

“...”

She yawned, sitting in a weird position with ‘that’ exposed. I had no idea if she realized what was going on.. where was the etiquette of a princess? I don’t think they teach students how to flash their panties, do they?

But that wasn’t the most concerning..

I turned around with my back facing her..

“Fix your clothing.”

I wasn’t too sure if I should say I was fortunate to have discovered ‘that’. Darn it, I knew that something was bound to happen— I had a bad premonition the moment I saw that quest.

It’s too late— I understood that.. all I can do now is accept my fate.. but first I need to ask for Liliath’s forgiveness and contact my mom to ask about it.

I wonder if she made preparations..

I made up my mind.

But before I could voice my apologies.

“I-I’m sorry to ask but do you perhaps have a small towel I can use, Noel?” she asked with a shaky voice, standing with her legs sandwiched together.

She had noticed too.

— Her period.

[38]

Fucking seriously quest board? You know what? I think I should be grateful, I’ve been forewarned. Yeah, I should hijack the system and make the quest board some kind of future-radar.

“I’m sorry Liliath.. about just now... um.. I’ll ask my mom first and see what solution I can come up with.”

Of course, by that, I mean: where my mom placed the sanitary pads.

Actually, would my mom’s size even fit.. I doubt so.

And DaFuaq why am I even thinking about these things? It's not like I have a choice do I? It’s a sensitive topic but I’m here actually dealing with it.. I’m sorry Liliath. Please endure a little longer.

I wished I had seen this coming beforehand. Taking this as a lesson, what else I should prepare for in the future? I also can’t have Liliath not know how to use a phone can I now?

“Gimme a second,” I tried to contact my mom via text.

“I-It’s alright Noel, you don’t need to go through all that trouble.. I-I just need a towel,” Liliath put on a brave smile.

“There’s something called a sanitary pad in this world and that’s typically what girls use during these.. sort of times.”

“I-I see..”

An awkward silence ensued.

My mom hasn’t replied..

“Um.. Noel..”

Fuck. I honestly have no idea how periods work and all that.. is there a time limit of sorts? All I know is that once you see blood you should change into a sanitary pad right away..

This is.. awkward..... please return the message mom..

“I’m sorry Liliath.. just a little longer..”

Pick up your phone mom.. there’s a serious issue going on.. like serious-serious.

Liliath lowered her head, “Sorry for troubling you..”

“No.. it’s my fault for forgetting to prepare for this scenario,” I tried to calm her down. MOM WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO PICK UP?!

Another minute passed. Liliath was still as a statue.

I didn’t want to imagine what was going on down there..

Wait.. I should’ve just called my mom.

WHY DIDN’T I THINK OF THAT EARLIER?!

I called her right away.

Doot. Doot.

...

Doot. Doot.

Please pick up..

Doot. Doot.

“Hello? Yes? What is it, Noel?”

“This is an emergency, mom.. what should I do in a situation where Liliath is.. is having her period.”

“Oh my.. really now? Well.. let’s see.. I forgot about that..”

“How about using Novelle’s? Since they are around the same size.”

Uh... it’s sickening just to have this conversation.

I wanna cry..

I can understand the sentiments girls go through now— somewhat.

“That could work as a temporary solution. I’ll get some for her on the way back home. Please have Liliath use that for now.”

“Got it.”

Action plan get.

“Good luck.”

...

The phone call ended. I had no energy to waste on retorting how excited my mom was with the situation.

“Liliath, I’m sorry but please wait here a while.”

“Y-you need to find the sanitary pad-thing r-right? I can still move, I can help.”

“No, you just wait there.”

I have conflicting feelings about this.. as a brother, I’ll have to intrude my sister’s room... worse, I’m searching for that item.

...

FUCK JUST DO IT DON’T BE A SISSY! 50 JUICY POINTS AWAITING SO GET A MOVE ON! 

I headed up the stairs towards her room.

It’s been a while since I’ve actually snuck a look at the place but it’s fairly nice. It’s got that female charm to it. Books here, books there— uh.. she’s reading business books? Since when?

Wherever. There are other important matters to prioritize.

Shuffling through the drawers of the low cupboard, cabinets and shelves— I couldn’t find it.. I COULDN’T FIND IT?!

Shit.. how much dedication does my sister have when it comes to hiding this— I’d really like to commend her on this but now I really wished she had placed it in a convenient, easy-to-find spot..

I found her stash of porn, but not the sanitary pads. Did she hide those in some maximum security location that outwits the likes of me? Like.. what the hell.

“N-Noel.. you were searching for this right?”

“...”

Ah. She’s sharp. Her senses are superb. She didn’t even need to take two steps into the room and already found what we were looking for..

The best place to hide the sanitary pads.. in fact, it wasn’t even hidden..

I didn’t know when Liliath came but she pointed her hands at the bag hanging on the hooks latched behind the door.

— I repeat, it was behind the door.

“Y-yes.. that’s the one..”.

I’m sorry little devil.. your brother will be borrowing this.. for Liliath.

“I remember Novelle taking one of these but I don’t know how it works..” 

Liliath, I understand you're trying your best to keep your cool, but you don’t need to try to smile like that all the time.. it breaks my heart.

Ah. Wait. What Liliath said has a point. How do sanitary pads work?

“Um..” holding the packet in hand.. I tried to think of a way to solve this enigmatic puzzle.

There’s no way I got to demonstrate it right?! I myself have no idea how it works?!

Shit. Calm down. Alright. Let’s think things through logically. For one, I could decide to actually experiment with how the adhesive fits and stuff but I’m not sure if Liliath would understand.. no, she’s smart so I think she would be able to figure it out.

Another option would be to help fit it on her.. that sounds super enticing but I doubt she would allow me to look at her.

The third would be to allow Liliath to put it on, having her go through trial and error, hopefully not messing up everything.

Alright. With this.. I think the first option is better. I might waste a sanitary pad or two trying to figure it out but it’s worth it.

“I guess we’ll have to go through trial and error...”

To start off our experiment with the sanitary pad acting as our lab rat, Liliath nodded with a serious face.

I ripped the packaging and opened the sanitary pad. It's somewhat of an 8-figure. Tabs here, tabs there.

Skipping the part where Liliath desperately tried her best to understand my crappy explanation on how to use it..

“I suppose I can do it?” Liliath looked at the finished ‘product’ that should be attached to her lower waist.

“Now go to the bathroom to do it..” I pushed her with my words.

“Thank you,”

“Just go already..”

And she left.

Now.. how should I deal with her panties.. ah fuck..

...

How is it that I never paid attention to how women deal with these things behind a man’s back? Like seriously? Am I a frog?

Wait.. why didn’t I use internet-sensei?

[39]

I suppose this is how it fits?

I twisted my body in front of the barely visible reflection off the transparent glass. The bathroom did not have a full-body mirror. There was one located above the sink but due to the factor of height, it would be impossible to view it without a chair.

This undergarment fitted me well— it was called sanitary pads?

Quite a convenient product... if only I knew such a thing existed.. I wouldn’t have needed to suffer so many anxious days.

Back in my world, it was commonly known that women would tie a towel around that part to soak up the blood. It was an inconvenience that women had to bear for weeks at a time. Not only was it uncomfortable, it hindered me from wearing my usual dresses.

This gave others a chance to understand that my ‘period’ was happening... what a suitable word— period. I didn’t have such a convenient vocabulary in my world’s language.

Now...

I turned my head to face what needed to be tended to..

How shall I deal with the blood on my undergarment.. there was not.. though, some of it got to my legs. I cleaned the stickiness of blood with water before wearing the sanitary pad— another interesting vocabulary.

...

Noel saw it didn’t he?

... 

What should I do? I’ve been exposed. Things like this shouldn’t be let known to others.. I clearly remember my maid reminding me that showing people blood that came was a taboo..

B-but.. did Noel actually see it? W-what if it was just my assumptions? That wouldn’t be correct... he knew that it came...

So he saw it..

W-when was that?!

Back to the issue at hand..

My undergarments need to be washed, I can’t have Noel see this.

I have some experience in washing my own clothes in a clear stream of water.. I believe it isn’t any different from my situation now. The exception would be that there was a convenient soap-pump-like machine and a fine bristle scrub used for cleaning.

I thought initially that it was to be used to clean my body with, but Diana-sama told me that it was to be used when brushing clothing.

I could still remember the weird look Diana-sama gave me. Was there anything wrong with that brush?

No. No. No. I cannot be distracted.

I brought my undergarment to the bathtub, the blood stain in the centre.

Spinning the tap, water came gushing out..

I was soaked.

N-NONONONONONONO.

I had forgotten that the faucet wasn’t the same as the one I know back at h-home..

No.. I need to do something about the stain. I should leave the rest till later...

I could use the sink?

...

But the sink was in a bowl shape, it would be different to clean the blood away like that.

With my clothes soaking wet, I added some soap to my undergarment and started brushing it under the rain of water.

The blood flowed away, leaving my undergarment spotless.

“Liliath are you alright?” 

I heard Noel’s voice through the drumming of water. He made three knocks on the door.

“I-I’m alright!”

I turned off the unusual faucet, and the temporary rain stopped pouring.

What should I do?

There’s a bucket to put my clothes in.. so I suppose I’ll just toss my now clean undergarment there.

“Why was there running water?” 

“I-I had to clean my own clothes!”

Not good. I was almost yelling... I didn’t think I would be so flustered.. maybe the taboo of not allowing men to see it doesn’t exist in this world?

B-but.. I remembered the taboo also mentioning that if it was broken, the person who saw it would then be fated to belong to me..

...

That can’t be right..

“Liliath, are you alright? Like seriously alright? You’ve put it on right?”

I opened the door and greeted Noel with a smile. 

His glossy black hair with that loose clump in front, beautiful onyx-coloured eyes that reflected my own—  

“I’ve put it on... d-did I do something wrong?”

I didn’t understand why Noel was looking at me like that.. his eyes were round, something was off.

Could he be looking at..

I pulled my skirt down in embarrassment.

It’s a rather unusual feeling.. h-he can’t look at the sanitary pad. In no way am I going to allow him to check.

Noel turned around and faced the other wall.

“You wait there, I’ll go get you another set of clothes..”

Another set of clothes?

I tilted my head as he set off upstairs.

Clothes..

I looked at myself.

My skin showing through the fabric of my white blouse.. the black ‘bra’ clearly visible to the naked eye.