My older sister is a villainous rich girl

"Driven by such thoughts, I touched those dead tree trunks, and who knew..." Tasia's tone was complicated, "that I suddenly awakened the magic of light."

Hmm... feelings of powerlessness and pain, huh?

If I could retain my memories from before I traveled through time, my experience of awakening magic would probably be similar.

After all, it was due to a strong stimulus that caused his magic to go out of control, which is why he became a magician.

“I think I’m like that too,” he said.

Tasia hesitated for a moment, then said, "Asking such a question might be a bit presumptuous, but... could Wayne tell me?"

"..."

Wayne was speechless.

Is this some kind of trap they're setting for me?

However, he ultimately said, "You ask first, and I'll answer as appropriate."

"What are the magical aptitudes of Wayne's biological parents?"

Upon hearing this, Wayne's expression underwent a very subtle change.

After a long silence, he whispered, "I don't know."

"I was too young then, so my memories of them are not very vivid."

According to the anime's plot, both of his parents died of illness.

If it weren't for the fact that he didn't have any real family to protect him, he wouldn't have been locked up in the basement for causing even the slightest trouble.

"However, I think they probably don't know magic. Or even if they do, it's only at a very rudimentary level, no different from ordinary people."

The place where this body was born is located in a very remote border region.

The vast majority of people living there will never know what "magic" is, not even in their entire lives.

He still remembers...

Those cousins ​​who were injured because of their uncontrolled magic called themselves—

monster.

Wayne suddenly smiled.

So many years have passed, those people must be living quite comfortably now.

If I don't remember them, that's fine, but once I do, I always want to find another opportunity to catch up with those "old friends".

Tasia frowned. "So, does that mean Wayne could also be considered..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but Wayne understood what she meant.

He did not shy away from the topic.

"Yes. If I hadn't been adopted by Duke Elliott, I might also be a 'commoner who has awakened magic'."

Wayne originally came from a remote branch of the Winchester family. The relationship between the two families had been distant for decades, and the new head of the branch family was no longer a direct relative of his original lineage.

Therefore, the title is absolutely out of the question for someone like me, a "poor little thing" locked in the basement.

Tasia's eyes widened, seemingly quite surprised.

"No one in the academy has ever mentioned it..."

“Perhaps it’s because I’ve been attending the academy since elementary school and awakened my magic early on,” Wayne explained.

“From the very beginning, the image I projected to everyone was fixed, and with Chris standing up for me, even if there were people in the know, no one would dare to talk about it in front of me.”

At Seiki Academy, Wayne is a popular character who is well-liked by many girls in the grade.

Thinking of this, his expression paused slightly.

Among those self-praising remarks, isn't Chris and her friends partly to blame?

It's worth noting that back when the difference in magical power wasn't so great, Chris's dominance among girls was like that of a super demon king.

Even compared to Ge Li, it pales in comparison.

It was only after her poor magical abilities were exposed that her authority was challenged.

In Wayne's mind, Chris's usual pretentious behavior suddenly reappeared.

Judging from her appearance alone, Chris does give the impression of being too glamorous and overbearing.

However, the real her was just a lazy bum who thought about how to have fun every day.

He couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth into a smile.

……

Along the way, Wayne and Tasia chatted casually.

The two were quite surprised to discover that they had a lot in common in their experiences and feelings.

Only after successfully returning Tasia to her mother did Wayne return to the Duke's mansion alone.

Sitting in the carriage, Wayne closed his eyes and pondered every word he had spoken with Tasia.

For some reason, I had a very strange feeling when talking to Tasia.

Should I say... there's a strange sense of closeness?

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind of those strange thoughts.

Back home, Chris was indeed sitting in the living room waiting.

Of course, he didn't just stand there waiting. Instead, he held a picture book in his hand, frowned, and pretended to be reading it very seriously.

Wayne deliberately made a lot of noise, and Chris's eyebrows twitched slightly.

But she just wouldn't look up at him.

Wayne moved closer.

"This beautiful lady...why are you frowning while reading?"

"Has something unpleasant happened?" he asked softly. "I wonder if I could have the honor of helping you with your troubles?"

Chapter 260 You're definitely not thinking anything good.

Chris finally reacted to his pretentious words.

She closed the sketchbook in her hand and asked coldly, "Why are you so late?"

At that moment, Wayne felt like he was working overtime until late and then had to go home to be questioned by his wife.

"Reporting to Lady Chris!"

Wayne gave a perfunctory bow. “I was of the public interest and obtained the information you requested. I returned as quickly as possible after finishing my work.”

"Hmph!" Chris said, arms crossed.

"You had a great time chatting with Tasia, didn't you?"

Are you there? Can you remove the security camera?

Despite inwardly cursing, Wayne's expression remained unchanged.

“We only talked about the serious matter of the investigation target for a few minutes, and I didn’t sense any happy or unhappy emotions.”

Chris carefully examined his expression and clothing, and finding nothing amiss, she relaxed.

"So, what was the result?"

Wayne told her about what he and Tasia had gained.

In general, those commoners who awakened magic were all those who suddenly used the magic power within their bodies after receiving a strong stimulus.

Furthermore, based on the information summarized from the materials, those who awaken their magic in this way are all at a level of above-average aptitude.

"Ah, thinking about it that way, I'm really envious," Chris said, her tone dripping with jealousy.

"Before I awakened my magic, I had to spend several hours every day doing various forms of meditation."

Even though a long time has passed, she still finds the experience unbearable.

Wayne could only touch her hand to comfort her.

For these noble families, magical knowledge is also systematically passed down within their families.

How to meditate and how to stimulate the flow of inner energy are things that each family has accumulated through generations of experience that can be referenced.

The Winchester family was no exception.

However, those things had almost no effect on Chris; Elliott and Ashville tried everything but couldn't get Chris to understand.

I wonder if Chris's current lack of interest in magic is also influenced by those painful memories from the past.

As for the Winchester family's accumulated wealth—

In the end, it all went to Wayne.

I always felt that Chris's "protagonist" status had a major flaw.

A thought suddenly flashed through Wayne's mind:

If you compare her to Tasia, this is probably the difference between a "god-daughter" and a "biological daughter."

No, no, that's not right.

Chris's protagonist aura is far more outrageous than Tasia's; she is loved by everyone, even transcending gender limitations.

Therefore, if there really is such a thing as a "biological daughter," then she must be the epitome of Chris.

Having convinced himself of this, he unconsciously nodded, as if he completely agreed with it.

Chris gave him a strange look.

"...You're definitely not thinking anything good."

Wayne smiled. "I was thinking that if we set off on Friday night, we could have at least two days of camping along the way."

He raised an eyebrow at Chris, his words full of implications.

Chris shifted slightly, looking a little uncomfortable, and looked away.

"Anyway, I'm not going to sleep with you..." she muttered.

"Hmm?" Wayne's gaze sharpened, and he immediately pressed, "If you don't sleep with me, who will you sleep with?"

Chris looked at him like he was an idiot and said speechlessly, "If we're paired with Tasia, of course I'll sleep with Tasia tonight!"

Ah this...

Miscalculated.

Wayne's features contorted.

She could almost see Chris and Tasia having a joyful chat in the night, just a tent away, while she was left alone in her empty room.

“Tasia is so old, she can actually sleep alone,” Wayne said seriously.

Chris couldn't help but laugh, "Aren't you this old too? Do you need someone to accompany you?"

“What I meant was, for your safety, it’s only right that I accompany you so I can take better care of you.” Wayne tried to get her to accept his suggestion. “Wasn’t there a rumor that wild boars that were attacking people appeared in the Wangjiao area?”

“You see, it’s still a bit dangerous to camp in the wild, especially for Miss Chris who is delicate and sensitive.”

"Hey! What kind of adjective is that?" Chris scolded.

“That’s not important!” Wayne interrupted. “What’s important is, without me by your side to protect you, can you sleep peacefully?”

However, Chris killed the conversation with just one sentence.

She said, "Of course!"

Wayne's expression froze for a moment, then he looked at her with a resentful expression.

“Chris, you’ve changed,” he said in a low voice.

"You don't love me anymore."

Seeing the genuine sadness in his eyes, Chris couldn't tell if he was joking or not.

"Hey—you're not really planning to have me sleep with you and leave Tasia to sleep alone, are you?" she said irritably.