Chapter 116: Chapter 115: Twins Sisters
As Fang Zheng suddenly appeared, both parties were taken aback. The green-haired girl looked at Fang Zheng with surprise, then withdrew her hand from her bosom. However, at the same time, the ruffians in front of her clearly didn’t intend to let things go.
“Hey, who are you, buddy? Do you know that… Aaaaah it hurts hurts hurts hurts…”
“To pick up someone in broad daylight on the street, at least have some decency.”
Fang Zheng indifferently held the ruffian’s right hand, not letting go despite his howls of pain, merely smiling as he watched the scene unfold.
These people could be killed.
Unlike his previous encounter with Teppei Hojo, when Fang Zheng felt murderous intent towards the men before him now, he didn’t sense the sort of warning or danger from the entire world. It seemed that this world was indeed peculiar. Someone despicable like Teppei Hojo was protected by the Will of the World, yet these small-time thugs, guilty of lesser crimes, could simply be killed by anyone… How interesting.
“Leave now. I don’t want to repeat myself.”
With that thought, Fang Zheng snapped back to the present and coldly looked at the small-time thugs. By now, they had lost all their arrogance and bravado and were so frightened by the murderous aura emanating from Fang Zheng that they didn’t dare move. It felt as though they were surrounded by countless monsters, each one eyeing them eagerly, ready to pounce and tear them to pieces at a single command.
“Yes, yes, sorry! We’re leaving right now!!”
After Fang Zheng released his hand, the ruffians practically tumbled over each other in their haste to flee, even abandoning their motorcycle by the roadside. But perhaps that was for the best, after all, it’s easy to cause a traffic accident when driving with frayed nerves.
With that, Fang Zheng turned around and looked at the girl behind him.
“Mion, shouldn’t you be in class? What are you doing here?”
Indeed, the girl who had been approached by the thugs was Fang Zheng’s student, and one of the main characters—Sonozaki Mion.
Fang Zheng of course knew her true identity, which was the same as he had just said… Sonozaki Mion.
But this Sonozaki Mion wasn’t the one from Hinamizawa.
Strictly speaking, the one attending classes in Fang Zheng’s class in Hinamizawa was Sonozaki Shion. Meanwhile, the girl strolling through Okimiya at this moment was the real Sonozaki Mion.
This brings us to an absurd accident in the Cicada’s Song.
The two kids were twins who looked identical from birth. However, as per the Sonozaki Family’s tradition, if two daughters were born, the second daughter would have to be drowned. Naturally, Shion wasn’t drowned; instead she was sent to Okimiya, essentially being exiled. As for Mion, she was trained and cultivated in Hinamizawa as the future heir of the family.
The sisters would secretly meet occasionally. Shion was very envious of Mion, and in turn, Mion would allow them to switch identities, allowing Shion to enjoy her life for a change. And so, tragedy struck during one of these identity swaps.
It happened before a banquet, with the elder sister, Mion, not realizing the importance of this event. She thought it was just a regular banquet. At the time, Shion was also very envious and pleaded with her sister to switch places with her to enjoy the banquet. Mion agreed without realizing the consequences… And then the tragedy occurred.
The banquet was actually a ceremony to confirm the successor of the Sonozaki Family, and for the next family head, a tattoo of an ogre had to be inked on their back. Since the sisters looked exactly the same, no one realized that the Mion in front of them was actually Shion in disguise, so the tattoo of the ogre’s emblem was inked on her back, and hence, the tragedy transpired.
Shion, as the younger sister, was mistaken as “Mion” and remained in the family’s main house.
But Mion, the original elder sister, was cast away as “Shion.”
This was rather awkward.
After that, Mion cried and pleaded several times, but unfortunately, the Sonozaki Family recognized tattoos, not people, so she had to accept her fate as “Shion” and live as the “younger sister” in Okimiya.
This was one of the reasons that led to “Shion’s” darkening, because a childhood prank cost her everything she had once owned. Her sister took over the fortunate life meant for her, while she was left to live alone in Okimiya with no home to return to…
Who could bear such a thing? If this were a starting point for a novel’s protagonist, there wouldn’t be peace without a bloodbath.
So, it’s all because of Oyashiro-sama’s curse, right? The Hinamizawa Syndrome and such are just nonsense—if one could stay calm in such a situation, that would be abnormal. Everyone’s gone stoic, haven’t they?
“Huh? Ah… I’m sorry.”
Perhaps only now did Mion—or should we say, Shion—realize what was happening, as she showed an embarrassed smile, took a couple of steps back, and then waved her hand.
“I’m sorry, teacher, I just had a little… something to do.”
Fang Zheng narrowed his eyes with interest as he regarded her.
“You’re not Mion… you’re her…”
Upon hearing this, Shion’s expression turned complex. She hesitated for a moment, then revealed a sly smile.
“Right, I apologize. My name is Sonozaki Shion, Mion’s younger sister. You must be Mr. Fang Zheng. It’s nice to meet you; my elder sister has been in your care.”
“So, you’re her younger sister.”
In reality, she should be the elder sister.
“Yes, thank you for your help, Mr. Fang Zheng.”
Speaking of which, Shion looked at Fang Zheng and then extended an invitation.
“If you don’t mind, how about having a cup of tea together? I’m quite interested in my older sister’s life in Hinamizawa too.”
See, this is the advantage of having high charm.
“Of course, there’s no problem.”
Invited by Mion, Fang Zheng came with her to a nearby café. After they sat down, Shion immediately started sizing up Fang Zheng without any hesitation.
“I really didn’t expect Mr. Fang Zheng to be able to tell that my sister and I are not the same person. To be honest, I’m really curious, how did you discover that?”
“Because the aura is different.”
“Aura? You don’t mean the smell, do you?”
“It’s the aura, or you can also think of it as each person’s personality.”
As he spoke, Fang Zheng took a sip of black tea and then looked at the girl before him with interest.
“For example, you might feel constrained in front of some people, but at ease with others, that’s the aura. Some people’s aura can make others feel tense, while others do not. It’s inherent and unchangeable. You and Mion give off different vibes, Mion is more lively, and you seem more composed.”
“You can even tell by that…”
Hearing Fang Zheng’s answer, Shion looked at him with wide eyes, slightly surprised.
“My sister mentioned that Mr. Fang Zheng serves as a Psychological Consultant at the school. Now, it seems you do have some real skills… Has my sister ever discussed any worries with you?”
“As a Psychological Consultant, I have a duty of confidentiality.”
“What does it matter? I’m her sister after all. If my sister has worries, she could consult with me just the same.”
“But everyone perceives problems differently.”
At this point, Fang Zheng looked at the girl before him with a smile.
“Perhaps what seems like a small issue to you may be a tremendous concern for Mion… The reverse is also true, everyone has their own issues, and their perspective on them is different.”
As he said this, Fang Zheng stood up.
“Well, I have other matters to attend to, so I must be going. By the way, if you are interested, you can also come to the school to consult with me, free of charge.”
As he spoke, Fang Zheng nodded toward Shion, then turned and left.
Shion watched Fang Zheng depart, her expression inscrutable, and after a moment, she let out a long sigh.
“Kasai, you’re there, aren’t you.”
With that, a man dressed in a black suit, tall and imposing, wearing sunglasses, looking much like a member of the mafia, stepped forward. He bowed respectfully to Shion and then sat down where Fang Zheng had been.
“What do you think of Mr. Fang Zheng?”
“If I may speak frankly, he is a very dangerous man.”
At Kasai’s response, Shion’s eyes widened with curiosity.
“It’s the first time I’ve heard you describe someone as dangerous. Could it be that he’s a playboy?”
The man in the black suit shook his head and then spoke in a low voice.
“Just now, when those thugs were bothering the young lady, I felt a terrifying murderous intent emanating from him, a feeling even I could hardly bear…”
“Eh? But I didn’t feel anything of the sort?”
“I have heard that some masters can skillfully control their murderous aura, and it seems that gentleman has such ability.”
Hearing this, Shion’s eyes grew even more curious.
“Why would someone who even scares you, Kasai, come to a small place like Hinamizawa?”
“Am I not working for you, miss? Everyone has their past. However, I don’t think that gentleman will cause harm to Miss Mion.”
Upon hearing Kasai’s response, Shion’s eyes wandered, and then they lit up.
“Mm… I just thought of a good idea.”
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