In his last life, Aeron Kael was just another forgotten boy.
An orphan who lived alone in a cramped apartment, working part-time jobs and eating instant noodles under flickering lights. He had no big dreams, no one waiting at home, and nothing tying him down.
He died saving a child he didn't know — shoved her out of the way of a speeding car, took the impact himself, and everything went dark.
But he didn't stay dead.
He opened his eyes in a hospital bed, wrapped in warmth, next to a woman crying and holding his hand like it was the most precious thing in the world.
> "You're awake, my baby… thank God…"
That woman became his mother. His real mother. In a world very different from the one he came from.
---
This world was modern. Advanced. But here, men were rare — one male born for every four females. It wasn't a fantasy land of swords and magic, but gender roles had flipped completely.
Girls led the schools. Women ran the corporations. And boys like him?
They were seen as treasures, trophies, or worse — protected and pampered like glass dolls.
Aeron hated it.
He didn't want protection. He didn't want attention. He just wanted to be left alone.
For a while, he had peace. He lived happily with his mother in a modest neighborhood, laughing over homemade pancakes, walking hand-in-hand under cloudy skies.
But just before middle school, tragedy struck again.
His mother died in a car crash. Just like before, he stood over her body and felt… nothing.
---
He moved in with his grandparents — his grandfather who ran a small cake shop, and his sharp-tongued grandmother who ran a quiet old bar in the alleyway behind.
To cope with the grief, he began working. Not for money, but for stillness.
He worked at the cake shop in the mornings, learned how to bake, how to decorate.
He washed glasses in the bar at night, listening to women laugh, argue, cry.
He learned to cook. To move silently. To read people's moods.
And when the ache inside his chest refused to quiet, he worked out until his body gave out.
By the time he was fifteen, he had a lean, defined build most men would envy.
His grandfather quietly deposited his pay into an account. Aeron never touched it.
He didn't care about money. Or status. Or anything.
---
Then, one day, his father came to see him. With a request.
Aeron's father — a serious, kind man who never pressured him — had fallen in love again. With his boss, the president of a powerful company. A strong, elegant woman who loved him back.
He told Aeron, "I'll only marry her if you say it's okay."
And for the first time in years, Aeron blinked.
His father had never asked him for anything before.
So he said yes.
And on the day he met his new stepmother for the first time, she looked him in the eye and said:
> "I love your father. But I want to love you, too. So please… let me earn that right."
Aeron had laughed.
A small one. Dry and brief. But it was a laugh.
The first since his mother died.
And in the corner, his father had quietly wept.
---
So now here he was, eighteen years old, standing in front of Tenkaichi Elite Academy — one of the top schools in the country — with a clean uniform, quiet eyes, and the heavy quietness of someone who never expected to be alive this long.
Girls whispered. Boys stared.
Everyone knew a new male student was transferring in.
But Aeron just wanted to pass the year quietly and forget how loud the world was.
---
Inside the school, he met a boy with messy brown hair and a lopsided smile.
"Kael, right? Aeron Kael? I'm Ren. Your new shadow-slash-friend-slash-survival guide."
Aeron gave a small nod. "I don't need a guide."
"You will," Ren grinned. "Especially with all those girls already eyeing you like steak."
---
In the cafeteria, Aeron kept to himself. He ate quietly, eyes lowered.
That's when she walked in.
Silver hair. Red eyes. Calm footsteps that silenced the room.
She didn't look at anyone. Not the students bowing. Not the girls whispering her name.
But as she passed Aeron's table, she paused.
Just a second. Their eyes met. And then she walked away without a word.
> "That's Ayaka Asagiri," Ren whispered. "Top scorer. Full control of the school council. Some say she'll inherit the Asagiri Group when she turns twenty. Basically? Queen Bee."
Aeron looked down at his tray again. "…Ayaka?"
Ren blinked. "Yeah. You know her?"
"...No."
But something felt off.
---
That evening, Aeron returned home to his new family's large, quiet house.
He slipped off his shoes, tossed his bag aside, and walked toward the living room…
Just as the front door opened behind him.
A familiar click of heels. A bag hitting the floor.
He turned around.
She was there. In the same uniform. Silver hair pulled loosely behind one shoulder.
The same girl from school.
Her red eyes widened the slightest bit.
"You…"
Aeron stared. His voice came out calm, almost bored.
"You're my stepsister?"
She blinked, once. Then gave a small sigh. "I was hoping to hide that for at least a week."