Chapter 252: Jin and Feng
The Fourth Elder was suspicious. "Lily Hart? The owner of that lottery shop? She’s been causing quite a stir lately. That whole mess with Frank was because of her, right?"
"Yes," Ash O’Malley said.
The Fourth Elder pressed, "Why did you go looking for her? To get revenge for Frank? He should handle his own problems. Once his confinement is over, he can do as he pleases."
Ash O’Malley hesitated, but then said, "But the O’Malley Family’s reputation..."
The Fourth Elder was much more open-minded, not nearly as concerned with the family’s reputation and honor as the Great Elder. After all, people will think what they will; how could you possibly make everyone view the O’Malley Family in a positive light?
"It’s not that important. You need to be more open-minded..." The Fourth Elder started to say, reaching out to pat Ash O’Malley’s shoulder reassuringly, but then he reconsidered.
’He’s going to be the Family Head someday. He can’t afford to be so nonchalant.’
’If the Great Elder found out he’d said such outrageous things to Ash, there’s no telling how he’d punish him.’
The Fourth Elder hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Just be yourself."
With that, he turned and left, leaving Ash O’Malley to ponder his words. ’Be myself? Be myself?’
’Those two words kept echoing in his mind. What does ’be myself’ even mean? Who is the real me? From the moment I was born, it was drilled into me that I would grow up to be the Family Head.’
’All my thoughts, words, and actions have been shaped to fit the mold of a Family Head.’
’If I weren’t to be the Family Head, then who would I be?’
For once, the sharp-minded Ash O’Malley was stumped. He turned and headed for Frank O’Malley’s room. Frank was in confinement and forbidden from leaving for half a month.
Ash O’Malley knocked on the door. It swung open quickly, revealing Frank O’Malley’s vibrant eyes. ’No matter what, this kid is always so... spirited.’
He slipped inside, and the door was shut instantly behind him. The room was dim, illuminated only by the light from the window.
"Bro, what are you doing here?" Frank O’Malley asked, his voice filled with excitement. He was genuinely thrilled, not having seen another living person for days.
"Came to see how you’re doing," Ash O’Malley said gently, patting his shoulder. The two sat on the edge of the bed, and for a moment, neither spoke.
Ash O’Malley asked, "Why did you go after Lily Hart the other day?"
He had been thrown into confinement the moment he returned, and Ash hadn’t found the time to ask about it.
Frank O’Malley started digging through his brother’s pockets, finally pulling out a small snack. "She hurt Cheryl Rivers," he said, munching on it. "I went to get revenge for her!"
"..." Ash O’Malley was stunned. He hadn’t expected that at all. "What’s Cheryl Rivers to you? Why do you care so much?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he remembered. ’The two of them are the same age, and when they were little, the elders used to joke about setting them up. A childhood betrothal. It was all in jest, though; the elders have probably forgotten all about it.’
’Only this foolish kid would still remember...’
’He was speechless once more. It was a twisted sort of logic, he supposed. Frank was avenging his supposed fiancée, and he, in turn, was avenging his own brother.’
’How absurd.’
’What a family... always looking to settle scores.’
Then another thought occurred to him, and he asked seriously, "Do you like Cheryl Rivers?"
Frank O’Malley denied it vehemently. "Who likes her? She’s just a spoiled little brat. I can’t stand her."
Ash O’Malley knew it was the truth; Frank never lied to him. "Then why go and get revenge for her? Did you have nothing better to do?"
Frank O’Malley actually gave it some serious thought. "Yeah, I was bored. And it seemed like it would be fun. Besides, I wanted to see for myself what was so special about this Lily Hart everyone’s been hyping up."
He perked up at the topic. "And she really is amazing! Even I couldn’t get close to her. I couldn’t even lay a single finger on her! Tell me, isn’t that incredible?"
"You think I don’t know?" Ash O’Malley said irritably. "I went to see her today, too..."
"How did it go? How did it go?" Frank O’Malley asked, buzzing with excitement.
"..." Ash O’Malley hesitated, then said with frustration, "She’s... definitely amazing, but..."
"See? I told you! She’s incredible, right? It’s like her RV is surrounded by a giant shield. No one can get in, and if you get close, you just get pulled away!" Frank O’Malley exclaimed, waving his arms excitedly.
Ash O’Malley clamped a hand over his mouth. "Alright, that’s enough. You’re talking as if it’s your RV. Since you’re clearly fine, I’m going."
’Listening to him praise Lily Hart so much was surprisingly irritating.’
Ash O’Malley got up to leave, but Frank O’Malley wrapped his arms around him in a desperate hug. "Don’t go! Talk with me a little longer! Your little bro is dying of boredom!"
"If the Great Elder finds us, we’ll both be in deep trouble!" Ash O’Malley said, trying to pry his brother’s hands from his waist, but he didn’t dare use too much force for fear of breaking them.
Frank dragged him back down onto the bed, his enthusiasm still running high. "Come on, tell me! What exactly did you go to Lily Hart’s for today?"
"What do you think? I went there for the sake of the O’Malley Family’s spotless reputation. I was going to have Lily Hart record a video clarifying that the person who caused trouble that day wasn’t you."
Frank O’Malley was completely baffled. "Why?"
"You idiot!" Ash O’Malley pushed his brother’s dumbstruck face away and lectured, "Have you any idea what people are saying about the O’Malley Family right now?!"
"They’re saying that we, The Mysterious Clan, do jack squat all day except go looking for trouble with people who are actually serving the survivors. They’re saying the O’Malley Family has no discipline, that its younger generation is reckless and arrogant! You’d better walk on eggshells from now on, because everyone knows your face!"
Ash O’Malley was fuming, shooting daggers at Frank O’Malley with his eyes. His words made Frank’s head hang lower and lower. "Okay, okay, I get it! I’ll apologize to Lily Hart the second I get out of here, alright!"
"To be honest, I didn’t even want to go looking for Lily Hart that day. I’d gone to see Cheryl Rivers first, and she said she despised Lily Hart and begged me to get revenge for her! I thought, well, I’m bored anyway, so..."
His voice trailed off, his confidence clearly waning. Even he could hear how ridiculous it sounded.
Ash O’Malley’s voice was sharp. "Is *this* what the elders taught you? Whatever happened between Lily Hart and Cheryl Rivers is none of our business! Why the hell would we get involved for no reason? Stop meddling in other people’s affairs!"
"Besides, Lily Hart did nothing to you! You just showed up out of nowhere to attack her. Of course she was going to fight back!"
Ash O’Malley proceeded to lecture Frank O’Malley for half an hour.
Frank O’Malley was thoroughly ashamed. "I get it, I get it," he repeated. "I’ll never do it again. I was wrong, bro~"
Ash O’Malley’s mouth was dry, and his anger had finally cooled. "Okay, okay, enough. I’m done scolding you. When your confinement is up, I’m personally taking you to apologize to her!"
"Okay!" Frank O’Malley promised.
After leaving the room, Ash O’Malley went to find the Great Elder. It took a great deal of pleading and persuasion, but he finally managed to get Frank O’Malley’s confinement period reduced.
He left the Great Elder’s study and let out a deep sigh. ’I’m not even the Family Head yet and I’m already drowning in responsibilities. What’s it going to be like when I actually take over? The stress will probably kill me.’
’Then again,’ he suddenly recalled, ’the previous Family Head... had passed away a long time ago. The family is currently being managed by the five elders.’
Ash O’Malley couldn’t help but wonder, ’Was that what happened to him? Did the job work him to death?’
’Can’t think about that.’ Ash O’Malley shook his head and returned to his own room.
...
「Inside the lottery shop.」
Lily Hart had happily finished her lunch and was now sinking into her usual food coma.
"Ahhh—"