Just a floor above Serene’s room, in a corner room at the very end of the corridor, the muffled voice of a boy could be heard from the outside.

Inside the room...

"Sis... Can you let me go, please? At least let me go meet Sera!"

Zane was seated on a chair—or rather, he was barely sitting. He had been practically manhandled and forced into it. A glowing rope made of strong binding magic securely locked his body to the chair. He couldn’t even stand up, let alone make it outside the room.

"Please?..."

A girl in her early twenties with blonde hair sat calmly on the bed. Her gray eyes were focused intently on reading a book, completely ignoring all of his demands.

"Ughh!... Sis, please don’t do this. I want to go outside..."

He desperately tried to leave, but the magical rope wouldn’t allow him to move an inch.

Aira finally turned her eyes toward the desperate boy and spoke calmly.

"You are not allowed to leave. You ran away before I even came back."

"Did you forget the last time I warned you? I told you that if you ran away again, I would imprison you and never let you out."

"Now, why don’t you be a good boy and try to enjoy your stay? I’ll bring you some books, maybe even some of that horrid sweets you like so much. Just... don’t try to escape again. Because next time, the ropes won’t be made of magic."

Zane looked at her pleadingly. He had honestly expected that she was joking back then, but to his absolute dismay, she had been entirely serious.

"I’m sorry! I won’t do it again, I promise! Can you let me go?..."

She looked at him with dark amusement.

"Hmm? Hehe... Do you really think I am going to believe you now? You are stuck here until I feel like letting you go... Which will likely not be anytime soon. Hehe..."

"What?! No! Please don’t do this, sister... You’re being far too overprotective..."

Her smile vanished instantly. She stood up from the bed, walked over to him, and sat down on the edge of the desk directly in front of him.

"Overprotective? Huh... That’s a new word," she murmured.

She lifted her hand and flicked her little brother sharply on the forehead. When she spoke again, her voice was playful, but laced with a dark obsession.

"You know what, Zane? Maybe I am being protective. A protective big sister who wants her little brother to remain safely with her."

"It’s just because my little brother has such a knack for getting into trouble. I can’t help but feel worried."

She looked at him with cold eyes.

"Don’t you know that if something had happened to you behind my back, I would have blamed myself entirely? Or were you actively aiming to make my life worse?"

Zane panicked as he looked at his overthinking sister.

"Sister, it’s not like that! It’s just that I was feeling bored, and... I..."

She stared at him for a long moment before finally letting out a deep sigh. Her shoulders slumped as she relaxed.

"Zane... I wouldn’t have minded if you had just gone to meet Serene. But you shouldn’t have gone to the trials behind my back. You know how worried I get for you."

"Umm... You’re right," Zane muttered, looking down.

"I shouldn’t have done that. I was wrong... I should have listened."

Aira’s face softened as she looked at him. She gently patted her brother’s head, and with a mere thought, the binding magic was released. The glowing ropes around him vanished, leaving him completely free.

Seeing the opportunity, Zane quickly tried to run away. He had originally planned to act innocent, knowing perfectly well that Aira couldn’t stand seeing him look sad.

But just as he reached the door, his movements abruptly halted. He looked down and realized his feet were stuck to the floor. He couldn’t move a single muscle. His sister’s shadow had risen from the ground and wrapped tightly around his ankles, refusing to let him take another step.

She smiled evilly.

"You little devil. Did you really think you could escape my grasp that easily?"

Zane felt a terrified shiver run down his spine. His sister’s words sounded no less evil than those of a demon.

"Siste—"

Just as he was about to beg for forgiveness, his luck finally gave him a chance.

*Knock-knock.*

Hearing the sound at the door, Zane smiled brightly, relieved that someone was finally here to save him.

But his sister still hadn’t let him go.

"Sister, let me go. Someone is here..."

She gave him a highly dangerous smile.

"Oh, little brother... Do you really think I would let you go just because someone is outside? You stay right there, quietly."

She used her magic to bind him with the glowing rope once again, completely restricting him from using any tricks. The rope effectively suppressed the mana circuits of anyone bound by it, rendering him helpless.

She forced him back into the chair.

"My little brother, you’re going to stay right here, safe and sound, where i can keep my eye on you..."

"Hmm... you look much better now."

She gestured toward the floor. Her shadow stretched out across the room like a physical extension of herself and pulled the door open.

As the heavy door opened, Serene stepped inside cheerfully. She looked around the room and immediately saw Aira, Zane’s older sister, standing calmly near the desk.

She searched the room for her familiar friend. Suddenly, her eyes landed on a blonde boy bound tightly to a chair by glowing magical ropes, looking exactly like someone had kidnapped him.

"Oh... It seems I came into the wrong room. Bye-bye!"

As she turned around to leave, a desperate voice called out.

"Sera, wait! I am here!"

Serene paused in her tracks, her eyes widening as she recognized the voice. She turned back around.

"Oh, it’s really you, Zane?!"