Early morning, Raven's Bar.
Because the only waitress, Bronie, had gone on strike in a fit of pique, Cioara had no choice but to clean up the messy cups and glasses left behind by the departed patrons all by herself.
Wiping tables, sweeping the floor, washing plates, washing wine glasses, taking out the trash...
She was slightly tired but not sleepy. As the proprietress of the bar, her daily routine naturally aligned with the bar's business hours.
Both she and Bronie were absolute night owls—listless during the day, bursting with energy at night. Going to bed at three or four in the morning and waking up at noon was the norm.
After finishing the cleaning, Cioara glanced upstairs and let out an exhausted sigh.
Instead of returning to her bedroom, she simply lay down on the sofa on the second floor. Cioara groggily fell asleep just like that.
When she woke up, the bright sunlight flooded in like a tide, slightly dazzling.
"Is it already one o'clock?"
Cioara raised a hand to block the sunlight and tilted her head to check the time.
Every time she argued with Bronie, she would sleep an extra two hours.
After freshening up, she followed her usual routine of going downstairs, ducked into the kitchen to make breakfast, and ate it in silence all by herself.
Looking at the hot meal placed in front of the empty seat opposite her, Cioara hesitated for a few seconds before finally walking slowly up to the third floor.
"Brat, get up and eat."
Cioara knocked forcefully on the door, with the strength of any mother trying to wake up her lazy daughter who was lounging in bed.
With no response, Cioara directly reached for the door handle.
It wouldn't turn. It was locked from the inside, meaning the person was still in the room.
"Bronie, Bronie~!"
She called out twice more, but there was still no reaction.
"Still sulking?"
With a helpless, soft sigh, Cioara hesitated for a moment before turning and leaving.
Inside the bar counter on the first floor, the gray-haired beauty was familiar with every bottle of fine wine in the cabinet. The one she was most familiar with was the deep emerald-like liquid currently in her hand.
Absinthe, chilled.
"Sigh, the rebelliousness of young brats."
Pouring herself a glass of absinthe, she raised it and took a small sip. Cioara's expression remained normal; she wasn't angry, just a bit disappointed.
She knew what Bronie wanted to do, but that brat hadn't surpassed her in any way yet, so Cioara didn't dare feel at ease letting her go out to take risks.
The reason she hadn't intervened before was that Bronie at least had the capability to deal with the minor troubles she stirred up, but provoking the three major organizations was going too far.
She didn't even weigh how much she actually amounted to!
A single mother contemplating how to educate her child drowned her sorrows in alcohol. She couldn't help it; she had to work as a bartender and the proprietress at night, and she obviously couldn't drink while working, right?
She could only drink during the day.
The daytime hours were sluggish and boring, so Cioara just sat in the shop, watching the pedestrians come and go on the street.
It wasn't until the sun was setting and the bar's preparation time was approaching that the upstairs remained very quiet, without any signs of movement.
"Why hasn't that brat gotten up yet?"
Cioara went up to the third floor and knocked hard on the door.
"Are you in there?! Bronie!"
No response. The door was still locked from the inside.
"Bronie!"
Cioara raised an eyebrow, sensing that something was wrong. She then pulled a distinctly colored hairpin from her hair. With a flick, it became stiff, and she inserted it into the keyhole.
It took less than two seconds. Accompanied by the click of mechanical turning, the door lock sprang open.
"Bronie... Uh!"
Cioara pushed the door open anxiously, only to see the familiar girl standing in front of the mirror, combing her silver-gray-to-blue gradient hair. Hearing her shout, the girl finally turned her head to look.
"Honestly! If you were in the room, why didn't you answer?!"
Cioara crossed her arms over her chest, her tone somewhat complaining, trying to cover up the awkwardness of entering the girl's room through abnormal means.
But the girl's reaction was somewhat beyond Cioara's expectations. According to what she had anticipated, the sulking brat would angrily question her about how she opened the door without a key, or whether she frequently sneaked into her room like this normally.
Instead, the girl's misty gray eyes were as calm as a tranquil sea.
At this moment, Cioara finally noticed that Bronie had changed her hairstyle.
It wasn't her usual twin-tails, nor was it the single ponytail she wore during her shifts as a waitress. The Roman curls at the back of her head had been let down, and her soft silver hair cascaded loosely down her back. Paired with her delicate facial features in this quiet state, it unexpectedly gave off a gentle and elegant vibe.
Feeling a sense of elegance from this brat who was usually as mischievous and rebellious as a bunny darting around everywhere, stirring up storms in the mercenary world, gave Cioara the feeling of seeing a ghost in broad daylight.
The next second, Cioara was certain that she had truly seen a ghost.
"Mom."
Those two flat, light words, falling into Cioara's ears, sounded like a thunderclap.
A massive sense of shock pierced through her consciousness, painting Cioara's brain completely blank. Her body stiffened abruptly as she widened her eyes, staring in disbelief at the gray-haired girl who inexplicably exuded a sense of docility.
"Y-Y-Y-You!"
Thoughts finally resurfaced in her blank mind, but they were a complete mess. Cioara couldn't even stutter out a single complete sentence, stammering and speaking incoherently.
If those guys in Arc City who had been sanctioned by the Charon's List mercenary rankings saw the Mercenary King Raven revealing such a flustered expression and posture, their jaws would probably drop to the floor.
"W-W-What did you c-c-call me?"
Although ever since adopting this brat, Cioara had indeed been raising Bronie as a daughter, and the two were each other's absolute most important family members, barring none.
Cioara vividly remembered the scene of their first meeting. Back then, as 'Raven', she was already famous in Arc City and had received a high-level commission from the head of the Taixu Sect.
Just as she finished turning in the mission and was preparing to leave, a little one with two large hair buns, holding a small mace that matched her petite frame, jumped out aggressively and blocked her path.
Using a childish, milky voice, she initiated the transaction between them, having Raven take her away from the Taixu Sect. That was the beginning of everything...
The prosperous Raven's Bar was, in essence, just a shop Cioara had opened to give the girl a home.
But Cioara had never expected, nor could she even imagine, a scenario where Bronie would call her Mom.
"Mom."
A perfectly soft smile appeared on the corners of Bronie's mouth, while internally she was already blooming with joy.
Yaya~!
She really hadn't seen Raven this flustered before!
She had replenished a wave of amusement energy.
She didn't come over and use Haxxor Bunny's body for nothing; she was helping the little bunny resolve the estrangement with Mommy Raven and build a good communication relationship.
When Haxxor Bunny found out, she would definitely shed tears—whether they were tears of shame and anger, or tears of a shattered mindset.
In short, the gratitude owed to her parallel-world self could never be fully repaid!
"Mom, I'm sorry. Even though my desire to go out on adventures and see the outside world hasn't changed, I shouldn't always talk back to you. At the very least, I shouldn't always make you angry."
The voice, gentle as water and seeping into the bottom of her heart, continued to ring out, leaving Cioara's limbs as stiff as a puppet. She even selectively ignored the first half of the sentence.
She drew in a sharp breath, involuntarily taking a few steps back in panic. After steadying herself, she forcefully patted her smooth forehead.
I only drank two bottles of alcohol.
I shouldn't be drunk to this extent, right?
Plus, I don't feel the dizziness of being drunk at all.
Could it be that my way of opening the door was wrong?
As if she had been dragged into an illusion by an enemy, Cioara carefully backed out of the room, gently closed the door, and locked it from the inside.
Moving at the speed of light, she found the hidden spare key and used it to reopen the room's door.
Seeing the gray-haired girl who was still smiling, Cioara asked worriedly:
"Bronie, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"If you're fine, then why did you...?"
This attitude couldn't even be called a 180-degree turn anymore; the impact it caused Cioara was stronger than the Light Curtain shattering in the next second!
"It's just that I made a new friend yesterday. We chatted for a long time and talked about a lot of things, which helped me figure out a lot of things."
Bronie stated the truth, embellished with a bit of selective storytelling.
The problem between the little bunny and Mommy Raven was actually very simple—it was just about a rebellious teenage girl and a single mother.
Ultimately, it came down to each speaking their own mind without listening to the other. Back and forth, they lost the possibility of mutual communication, falling into an endless loop.
As long as both sides chose to calm down and think properly, establishing good communication definitely wouldn't be a problem. Of course, truly resolving and calming the issue still required a change in objective factors.
Just like right now—Haxxor Bunny didn't need to leave Arc City; she could use her body to adventure in the Star Rail world.
She got a free substitute player and learning assistant, as well as half a wife.
Everyone had a bright future!
"A new... friend?"
Cioara's 'seeing a ghost' expression gradually turned into a 'seeing a god' expression. Just what kind of person could make Bronie undergo such a massive change in a single night?!
If she wasn't certain that the gray-haired girl in front of her was the cub she had raised herself, Cioara would have thought Bronie was an imposter!
Although she still didn't know who this new friend was or what their name was, Cioara had already begun contemplating whether she should commission a statue of the person to place in the bar and light a few incense sticks for it.
This was a true god!
"You... I..."
Cioara suddenly didn't quite know what to say. Those few "Mom"s were still echoing in her mind at this moment.
But in the next second, Cioara saw the gray-haired girl walking over with a little angel-like smile:
"By the way, Old Xu... Bah, Mom, do you want a husband?"
"Pfft, cough, cough, cough~!"
Cioara choked on her own saliva, coughing repeatedly as her expression shifted rapidly.
Could it be that the reason Bronie had always wanted to go out and roam the world was because she lacked a father's love?
But how could it manifest in this way?
Furthermore, given Bronie's personality, no matter how one thought about it, it should be impossible, right?
"Are you joking?"
Cioara spoke hesitantly, her tone having lost its usual imposing manner.
"Yes, actually, it's me who found a boyfriend."
Bronie said with a smiling face.
Cioara: "??????"
Who dared to touch her precious daughter? Raven would terminate his soul, with runes configured in a single click.
No, no, no!
With Bronie's personality, how could she possibly find a boyfriend?!
Moreover, she had always been keeping an eye on her in secret, and there wasn't the slightest trace or clue.
So, that must be a joke too.
Seeing the brilliantly shifting colors on Cioara's face, the joyful curve at the corners of Bronie's mouth rose even higher:
"Fine, but what I asked earlier about whether you wanted a husband was true. I can recommend one."
Cioara fell silent. The wild joy in her heart from hearing the cub she had raised call her Mom gradually morphed into horror.
She really had seen a ghost!
What the meow is actually going on!?
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