My Idle System

Annabelle, finally concluding this subject, continued to stare at her brother, who had fallen silent again, but this time, his expression shifted, from one of initial relaxation to a more serious demeanor.

She observed his expression shifting, and while an indescribable sense of joy bloomed within her, knowing that all these changes were the result of him carefully considering her opinion and reaction, she couldn't help but wonder. What kind of impression did her brother have of her to doubt her thoughts about him earlier?

She also wondered why he couldn't approach her with more confidence in his own opinion and point of view about what he had done.

Because in her mind, even if it was something wrong, if it was done by her brother, she knew she wouldn't have truly minded. Maybe she would have pretended to be a little angry for the sake of teaching him right from wrong, but that would have been the extent of it.

As if, even after knowing it was wrong, he still chose to stick with it, she knew she would eventually agree as well. She would simply respect his decision and opinion.

"So, Sis, you've been constantly asking what's going on currently with me, right?"

"It actually all started with hacking."

'So, he did get caught?'

Annabelle, observing the resolute expression on her brother's face as he finally began addressing the important subject she had been most eager to hear about, couldn't help but think this to herself.

"Of course, it's not that I got caught, but after my hacking skills had finally become considerably good, I decided to make my move, and looked into the case of our parents in the police database."

But then as he spoke more, intending to clarify the situation better to her, he suddenly noticed her face lose its color, becoming pale, as if she was afraid of something, and this unexpected reaction made him pause.

Thoughts began racing through his mind. Could it be that his sister already had some knowledge about what had happened? Did she know something he didn't?

He thought his sister had nothing effecting her through the incident back then, but could there be something he had overlooked?

Christian felt his emotions, which had been calm moments ago, beginning to stir violently, as just seeing his sister lose her composure and wear such an expression of fear made his blood boil.

He made a promise to himself that whoever was responsible for causing this reaction in her would pay for it.

So, before telling her more about what he had found, Christian changed his mind and decided that he needed to hear her side of story first. With a solemn tone, he asked.
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"Sis, how about this: before I share my side of the story, you tell me yours? Anyway, I've long since wanted to hear the exact details of the incident from you, especially since I was just a child back then and don't remember much."

'Well, not everything happened right in front of me back then anyway.'

Annabelle, who had completely lost her composure upon hearing her brother's initial words, didn't even register what he said next. Instead, she stood up, rushed toward him, and began shaking him by the shoulders as she asked hurriedly in a panic.

"Are you sure you didn't get caught?"

"What's happening with you right now has nothing to do with that incident, right?"

Looking into his sister's now very close green eyes and hearing her question, Christian's expression grew increasingly gloomy. Even so, he replied.

"No, I wasn't caught."

'Well, I'm involved with him, but it's because of Eva, not our parents' incident. So, I'm not lying.'

Hearing his answer, Annabelle stopped shaking him, but she was still distressed, seemingly not reassured enough, so, she couldn't help but continue her questioning.

"In the first place, why did you look into things without asking me first?"

"Do you know what could have happened to you if something went wrong with what you did?"

In the end, seeing her like this, Christian couldn't bring himself to stay on edge or remain angry about the situation any longer. He took her hand, pulled her to his side, and hugged her, before finally saying.

"Sis, first, please calm down."

Even with the situation as it was, with her remaining silent, Christian's eyes couldn't help but wander. In the end, they landed on her bare thighs, which were now very close, and pressed against him. With him even hugging her, and inhaling her scent, he found himself distracted, even if only momentarily.

After a moment, Annabelle finally calmed down, but she still couldn't bring herself to raise her head and look at her brother. The embarrassment from losing her composure when she saw his injured palm was still fresh, and before she could forget it, she had lost her cool once more.

Then, again, remembering how there were more important things than her embarrassment, and the current situation, where her brother also seemed to be growing stubborn, she knew the conversation would go nowhere before she shared her side of the story.

So, after breathing out her turbulent emotions and inhaling his scent instead, which she felt it could strangely calm her, she finally pulled away from his embrace.

She scratched her cheek in awkwardness at first, then finally started talking.

"Before I start explaining the exact situation back then, I still want to ask again."

"You really didn't involve yourself with the one responsible for the incident, right?"

"How many times do I have to answer that, sis?"

In response to his sister's serious question, Christian replied in an annoyed tone, neither agreeing nor denying.

Annabelle wasn't convinced enough as she still hadn't received a clear answer, but she knew she couldn't persist with the questioning any longer. So, she finally sighed and said.

"Okay, I won't say anything more for now, but regarding the exact situation back then, I still don't know what your thoughts are exactly, or why you never asked me about it. Yet now, you've suddenly gone to even more drastic measures to find out the truth."

Shaking her head and taking a moment to gather her thoughts, Annabelle continued.

"Anyway, let me start from the beginning. When I was first informed about the accident, the news that both of our parents had died, I was like anyone else in my position, devastated, and I couldn't think straight, let alone ask for any exact details."

"There was also you, and how I should inform you. Then there was the funeral, and the other legal procedures, later."

"It was a busy and difficult time, and my mind was overwhelmed, trying to make sense of everything."

"I wasn't experienced enough to know how to handle it all properly."

"But then, the police suddenly visited us and informed me that they still hadn't found any leads about the culprit and needed to ask me some questions, hoping it could help with the investigation."

"I was so angry at their incompetence that I lashed out at them, venting some of my suppressed anger and frustration."

Annabelle closed her eyes for a moment, as these memories were far from beautiful. She needed to remember that painful, difficult period in her life, when she felt at her weakest. Still, she continued.

"It was after this meeting with them that I felt like I finally stood on my own feet again and started keeping up with their investigation, staying in touch with their latest findings."

"Then a few days passed, and on the morning of that day, I suddenly got the news that they had finally found a lead that could help them identify the culprit."

"I still don't know exactly what this lead was, but the evening of that same day, I was informed that they had been wrong, and the current investigation team would be solved, with another one to take over the case."

"From the way things were going, even with my still-young perspective, I knew something was wrong. So, I called another member of the investigation team, someone I felt had the most passion for finding the culprit and seemed like they wouldn't lie to me."

"And the answer I received from him was completely different. He told me that something was wrong with the higher-ups, but he would continue the investigation on his own nevertheless, and if he found anything, he would inform me immediately."

"I was very grateful to him at that time, as I knew that on my own, I wouldn't be able to do anything."

"My hands were already full with other things, after all."

"Time passed again, and a week later, I was informed of his death."

"More than grieving for him, who could have possibly died while seeking the truth for our sake, I was struck by fear that this could also be our outcome."

"Still, maybe because I was young, I gathered my courage in the end and went to the police station in person."

"At that time, I was given some nonsensical excuse about his death, which was clearly a cover-up for the truth. Even then, I still asked if he had found anything related to the culprit or about the situation with the other team that was supposedly taking over the case."

"But all I got in response was a cold denial."