CHAPTER 26: YOU GOT HER WHAT?!

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I’ve faced down angry elves, jealous girls, and a smoke-filled kitchen.

But nothing—nothing—prepared me for the woman standing in our doorway.

She wore authority like armor.

Hair tied back, sharp gaze, that tight black shirt with a police badge clipped just above her hip—Sora’s sister didn’t walk in. She stormed in.

"Ren Sakuragi?"

Not a "hello."

Not a smile.

Just my name, like it was a case file.

I stood a little straighter. "Uh... yeah?"

"Where’s Sora?"

I pointed toward the hallway, but she didn’t move.

She stepped past me like a detective entering a crime scene, eyes scanning the room, taking mental notes. I think she even checked for weapons.

"She’s resting," I said. "I was just—uh—making sure she eats properly."

"Uh-huh."

That’s all she said before turning to face me fully.

Then it began.

The interrogation.

"Why didn’t she come home like everyone else?"

"What do you know about the attack?"

"Who were you with that night?"

"Why was she crying when the dorm called?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but it felt like my throat had dried up. I hadn’t felt this nervous since I tried cooking eggs.

She didn’t wait for full answers.

"Have you been sleeping in the same room?"

"No!" I replied quickly.

A beat.

"...Not anymore."

(Why did I add that? Why??)

She narrowed her eyes. "Did you touch her?"

My brain hit a wall.

Touch her? Yes. Accidentally. Emotionally. Comfortingly. But also... that one night—the night none of us dared to bring up.

I glanced down. She caught that.

"What aren’t you telling me?"

"Nothing! I mean—look, I didn’t do anything bad. I take care of her. I feed her. The others trust me. Even Elira—she’s literally an elf from another dimension—she told me not to try anything, and I didn’t!"

I was rambling.

Then she glanced toward the kitchen table, where a small bottle of prenatal vitamins sat.

And something in her shifted.

She looked back at me.

Her voice changed.

"...How long?"

"...What?"

"How far along is she?"

And just like that—boom. The truth crashed into the room like a bomb.

I froze.

She froze.

Then she stepped closer—too close.

"You got my baby sister pregnant?"

"I—it wasn’t—I didn’t mean to—she was scared, and I—"

My mouth kept moving, but nothing sounded right.

She blinked slowly, the weight of it settling in.

Sora, who had quietly stepped out of her room during the chaos, peeked from behind the hallway.

"...Sis?"

The cop turned, her body visibly softening. She opened her arms and Sora walked into them.

"Why didn’t you tell me?" she whispered, voice trembling now.

Sora sniffled. "I was scared..."

Then her sister turned her head, still holding her close, and shot me the coldest side-eye I’ve ever seen.

"You and I are not done," she muttered.

I didn’t move.

Because I knew... she meant it.

---

I’ve been threatened before.

By magical girls, vengeful elves, a literal sword-wielding yandere who once said she’d "carve her initials into my soul." But none of that compared to riding in the back seat of a sleek black patrol car, with a pissed-off cop driving like she had a warrant for my entire existence.

Whamo.

Yes, that’s her actual name.

Yes, she could probably bench press me.

She didn’t say much during the ride.

Well—except for the occasional:

"If I find out you’re lying, you’ll wish the elf had finished you off."

And—

"You know what we do to guys who play house with girls like Sora?"

And my personal favorite:

"You better start praying to whatever goddess you seduced because if the results come back positive—"

I didn’t respond.

I just sat there clutching my seatbelt, sweating like a sinner in church.

Sora had insisted we go alone, but her sister shot me a look that said: "You’ve done enough."

So now it was the three of us—me sitting behind like a guilty intern.

At the hospital, I wasn’t even allowed in the room. Whamo marched Sora in like she was leading a suspect to booking, while I waited in the lobby pretending not to look suspicious.

At the hospital, I wasn’t even allowed in the room. Whamo marched Sora in like she was leading a suspect to booking, while I waited in the lobby pretending not to look suspicious.

Minutes dragged by like hours.

I paced.

I sat.

I stood again.

At some point, I considered texting Elira, Mira, anyone—but what would I even say?

"Hey, remember when you told me not to touch Sora? Haha, funny story..."

No.

This was mine to face.

Then—finally—the door opened.

Whamo stepped out first. Her face was unreadable.

Sora followed behind her, looking... embarrassed?

I stood up, heart in my throat. "So?"

Whamo walked straight up to me.

"I owe you an apology," she said.

Wait—what?

She looked to the side, jaw tight. "She’s not pregnant."

The words hit me like a soft slap of cold wind.

Not...?

[SYSTEM MESSAGE DETECTED...]

⚠️ SYSTEM UPDATE: EMOTIONAL STABILITY REBOOT REQUIRED ⚠️

Status: [Shame overload: 91%]

Pride Level: [Critically Low]

Confidence Index: [404 – Not Found]

⚙️ Initiating Emergency Protocol: "DIG A HOLE AND HIDE"

"She’s just really sick. Malnutrition, stress, low blood sugar. That’s why she’s been fainting and throwing up. Her body’s exhausted."

I blinked. "You mean all this time—"

"She’s been overworking herself trying to keep up with you lunatics," Whamo muttered, not quite blaming me but also... totally blaming me.

Sora looked up at me, biting her lip. "I didn’t want to worry anyone."

I let out a shaky breath, all the tension in my body collapsing at once.

Again...what?!

"So... no baby?"

"No baby."

A pause.

Then Whamo jabbed a finger at my chest. "But you’re still on thin ice."

"Right. Got it. Permanent frostbite. Iceberg levels. Message received."

She sighed, then glanced at her sister. "She needs rest. Food. No more weird late-night bonding rituals, got it?"

I nodded like my life depended on it.

Which, in that moment...

It probably did.

SYSTEM NOTIFICATION:

"Congratulations, Ren. You just got interrogated like a war criminal... over a stomach bug."

Suggestion: Refrain from speaking for the next 24 hours.

Side note: Burn evidence of prenatal vitamins.

SYSTEM WILL NOW EXIT.

Please enjoy your humiliation in silence.

—End Transmission.