- Poison or Medicine? -

Estelle had pondered about it.

While Celeste was trying to bring Noah to somewhere else to ease his anger since he lost on a card game against Altaira, she wanted to talk with Altaira about something. Estrella was sleeping already so she wasn't there while Raisin, he was in the same room with her and Altaira.

"Are you serious that you are going to take that path?" He asked her. "You might die if you choose this path."

"I have made up my mind" Estelle answered. "After all, it will only be the matter of time until I die. You have said it right, Raisin, that if I ride this Hell Train, I will be doomed to die right?"

"You can't possibly be thinking that my prediction will always be right" said Raisin. "Don't forget about those irregulars who keep messing and altering everyone's fates."

"But I have made up my mind about it" Estelle said with a confident smile. "You and Charlotte can't do this task, since the others will definitely not allow you. But I am different. They won't stop me."

Altaira looked at Estelle before he let out a sigh.

"Just why are you so stubborn....? Then what will you do with Estrella? She won't be able to live without her twin" said Altaira again.

"It's fine. She will understand about it" Estelle responded. She paused for a moment before she added, "In this life, the one who I owe the most is you. So consider this as repaying what I owe to you."

".........We don't owe each other, you know. Are you saying those words to lessen the guilt?" Altaira asked her.

Estelle did not answer. Not because she was lost in words or speechless but instead, she just smiled confidently as if she was sure with what she was doing.

"If you think so, then let it be" said Estelle. She turned around and opened the door as she planned to leave. But before she left, she looked at the two of them again, "I just hope that you will take care of Estrella if I'm not around. That girl is a little bit temperamental, bear with it."

Then, she closed the door.

Altaira looked at Raisin and asked, "Do you think it's a good idea?"

"Well, she has made up her mind. If she's lucky, then she will return alive. If not, then we could only let go of her."

"......I really wish that none of them died though. But we are not strong enough to wish something like that."

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Early Morning

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"......Brother, we clearly used to love each other in the past so why are we like this now?"

Her question made Altaira chuckled.

"Even if we love each other in the past, this medicine should be finished if you want to go to the Name Hunt Station" said Altaira. "Khun told me that you insist to go on the Station Name Hunt no matter what when your condition isn't fine and Mr. Nathan who happened to hear that said that he was willing to make the medicine for you."

"Khun told you? Why should he tell you?!"

"Of course. After all, I'm your older brother" Altaira answered while crossing his arms. "Whatever problems you have or whatever you want to do, you have to tell me. Even if you are married and became a grandma, I still have the right for it."

Charlotte looked back at the bowl of the medicine that was colored dark purple. The purple color of the liquid was three times darker than Noah's beautiful dark purple eyes. No matter how she looked at it, it looked like a poison. She stared at it with confusion and also disgust.

'Just which part of this is a medicine?'

She looked back at Altaira and said, "If you want to kill me, you don't have to use this poison to torment me. You also don't have to lie that this is a medicine."

"It's a medicine."

"No matter how you look at it, it's a poison."

"Believe your good brother, it's a medicine."

"Heh, if you are a good brother, then I am a saint."

Nathan who was watching there sweated dropped. Raisin and Noah behaved as if this was very normal.

'Celeste said that the two of them treat each other like siblings even though they aren't blood related. I thought that she was exaggerating things....it turns out to be true.'

Even though she couldn't get rid of the thought that it might be poison, she still took a sip of it and tried not to spat it out. She was even more convinced that the liquid that she was drinking right now was a damn poison.

'As if you have ever taken one before.'

"How could you possibly doubt me?" Altaira asked, pretending to be hurt. "I was there to help Mr. Nathan to prepare this medicine. Noah could be my witness."

Noah looked away and made a humph. He was still pissed since he lost against Altaira.

"No wonder it's so bitter" said Charlotte who still looked at Altaira. "So you are the one who made it."

"I was just him."

"But you still lay your hands on this medicine right?"

Altaira was restraining himself from pulling out his spear right now. He silently reminded himself that the one who was getting on his nerves was his sister. His. Young. And. Adorable. Sister.

"But......gosh, could you be grateful for once and just thank me for doing something for you?" asked Altaira.

"I would have thanked and kneel before you if you don't lay your hands on this medicine" said Charlotte earnestly with a smile. The expression of her brother who was restraining himself from strangling her was quite funny for her.

"Well, no matter what, if you don't finish it, you will stay here and wait for us to come back from Floor of Death" said Altaira. "Drink it or stay here."

Charlotte's smile turned upside down.

"You are forcing me."

"I don't."

"What if I pretend to drop this bowl?" Charlotte asked with a smile filled with hope. She was ready to drop the poison on the ground.

Raisin and Noah, "........."

"Then I'll make you lick the floor until it's clean" Altaira threatened and pointed his index finger to the floor. He didn't even hesitate when he said it.

"We will make sure that you will make another one and it before us" answered Raisin whose answer was more acceptable.

Charlotte licked her lips and bit them. She was thinking of another way to escape from this kind of situation and Nathan seriously pitied her.

When he suggested the idea of giving her some kind of medicine, it was actually Khun's idea to make it even more bitter than the usual and Altaira gladly agreed with him. He agreed because he wanted to use this chance to punish his sister a little.

And even if Bam knew about it, he can't do anything about it. Bam's rule was that whoever hurts his younger sister could go to the hell but right now, they were helping her. This was also the reason why Charlotte can't call Bam since she knew that he would only encourage her to drink something as bitter as it.

Altaira suddenly recalled something and then pointed, "If you are thinking of using the excuse that you are going to drink it later, then you can forget it. We won't leave until you drink it."

She was going to cry at this moment.

"I've grown up this big and this is going to be my first time crying because of medicine" said Charlotte.

"Aside from when you are a child, yeah, this will be your first time" Altaira agreed. "But what could you do about it?"

"B-brother, please let me go" Charlotte begged at him. "Let me go and I won't deal with you about the matter of Dallar."

Altaira chuckled, "Little fool. Do you really think I cared about that?"

"Can you see that I'm sweating coldly right now?"

"Please?" She asked, using her abandoned puppy eyes skill to charm the four men there.

Being an older brother who had often fell for this trick, Altaira knew the way for him to not fall for her charm. He immediately closed Charlotte's eyes with his right palm.

"Do you really think that trick will work against me? I've been falling for the same trick again and again" said Altaira. "Do you really think I am that stupid to fall for it again?"

"Tch" Charlotte clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Why don't you just be stupid for once and fall for that trick and save us from all these troubles? I won't drink something that you made."

"Hohoho, let's see about that" said Altaira. "Which one is more important? Running away from this bitter medicine or following Bam until the end? The choices are in your hands, Charlotte. It's either you drink it and follow us or stay here and miss lots of wonderful things. Choose."

Charlotte clicked her tongue in irritation again.

If someone else ended up in this situation, maybe they would have chose to miss the Station Name Hunt rather than drinking something bitter like the said medicine. The bitterness that she felt can't be expressed or emphasized with words and she could only suffer from inside.

'Fortunately we aren't the one who drink it' both Raisin and Noah who turned their heads away silently thought. They were there to watch how excited Altaira was to prepare this surprise for Charlotte and right now, they silently pitied her.

But they also don't want to end up with the same situation with her. Altaira will definitely use all means to make them drink the medicine if Charlotte doesn't drink this one. Noah thought that this was also for Charlotte's good, since with that medicine she might recover faster.....even though it was very bitter.

Charlotte looked at the bowl of the purple in fear and disgust. But thinking that she should be following her brother until the end, she gulped.

The brown haired lass gathered all her courage and determination. She closed her eyes and then drank everything within one shot which surprised the four men there. They thought that she was going to take it slowly.

"Ugh!"

The bowl dropped on the ground and Charlotte held her throat. Instead of feeling better, she felt worse instead.

"I- I can't be poisoned, d-do I? I don't want to die because of food poisoning--ugh!"

Nathan picked up the bowl and said with a friendly smile, "Don't worry. You will be fine in a few hours."

"Really?" asked Charlotte, looking at Nathan hopefully.

"Yes, I could guarantee you."

Noah pulled out something from his pocket and then threw it to Charlotte who caught it with one hand.

Charlotte caught that thing and looked at it which turned out to be a candy. Confused, she looked at Noah.

"This is...."

"Candy" said Noah. "Someone told me that if you eat candy in a bitter situation, you will feel better."

Nathan was bewildered when he watched how Noah generously gave someone else a candy. As far as he knew about Noah, he wasn't the type of person who loved to share with someone else except for Celeste.

"You really gave me this?"

"What? Surprised?"

"I thought that you aren't the type of person to share something" said Charlotte bluntly as she ate the candy.

"Well....he is not the type of a person who will give someone else something without a fight...." Nathan agreed and awkwardly said. "You never give me something without an argument."

"It's because you are annoying."

"Could I have a candy as well?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because I don't carry much sweets with me" Noah answered. "And besides, you are annoying."

Nathan sweated dropped.

"Then can I ask for one? I'm not annoying right?" asked Charlotte. "And besides, this poison-- medicine brother gave to me is quite bitter, I need something to make my tongue feel better."

Noah didn't even hesitate and without thinking too much, he gave her what she wanted. Charlotte smiled wider and thanked him before eating the candy.

Nathan looked back at Noah, "You said that you don't carry much sweets with you. Why are you giving her then?"

Noah shrugged off, "She just asked for one and what's more, she isn't that annoying."

'There must be something between the two of them' Nathan was sure of it and he will definitely figure it out.