Chapter 103
As the time felt right to graduate from picking up empty bottles, Saebyeok came to visit.
Her sudden appearance was a surprise, but I knew we had to live together from now on.
I decided to teach her how to live since life was still unfamiliar to her.
"Saebyeok, come here."
"Okay."
Saebyeok stood in front of me, and Levinas rushed over to her side.
Levinas adopted a formal military stance, but it was somewhat clumsy.
"Dark King! Picking up empty bottles is a very, very important task!"
"Is it that important?"
"Yes! You have to be serious like Levinas!"
Serious, huh.
Usually, she wasn't that serious.
Something felt off, but I knew she wanted to set a good example as a senior in bottle picking.
I decided to play along with Levinas.
It wasn't bad to try and show a good example.
"Okay. Got it."
Saebyeok followed Levinas and took a formal stance.
But unlike Levinas, she wasn't tense.
"Alright... Today, we'll learn about picking up empty bottles in a simple way."
"Let's!"
"Okay."
Saebyeok nodded in agreement.
Since she suggested picking up bottles together, she seemed to know about it.
But her willingness to learn suggested she might not know that much.
"Do you know how to pick up bottles, Saebyeok?"
"Not really."
"Okay. Then..."
I'll explain in detail.
Just as I was about to continue, Levinas raised her hand high.
"Let Levinas teach! Levinas wants to be a teacher too!"
"Sure."
Teaching someone would be a good experience for Levinas.
I decided to just observe this time.
"Dark King! If you want to find bottles, you need to sniff around!"
"Sniff?"
"Yes!"
Levinas lifted her nose towards the air.
Sniff-
Her nose twitched slightly as if she was smelling something.
"If you smell, you can quickly find where the empty bottles are!"
"Sorry, my nose isn't that good."
"Really?"
Levinas and I expressed our doubts at the same time.
It was confusing because she looked just like me.
"Shouldn't Saebyeok have similar physical abilities?"
"I only changed my appearance and habits a bit. I didn't get a better nose or ears like real beast-kin."
"Just appearance? Why?"
"Because my original form is dangerous."
Ah.
I see.
Since Saebyeok had been buried underground by someone.
If the original form was alive, she could be put in danger.
"Did you mimic my form while you were at it?"
"Yes. The adults did it for me."
The adults, huh.
Who exactly are these "adults" Saebyeok talks about, and what force buried Saebyeok underground while being protected by such adults?
My head was spinning.
With the information I have, I can't figure it out.
"So, are your physical abilities ordinary?"
"Well... I did get stronger than before."
"Stronger?"
"Yes. Aside from being much stronger, I'm similar to an ordinary person."
"Ah..."
How strong has she become to be considered "much" stronger?
Just as I was wondering, Levinas's eyes widened.
"Dark King, what do you mean by 'original form'?"
"I have a different original form."
"Your true form of darkness...! Whaa...!"
Trembling, Levinas quickly turned her head and ran off somewhere.
She was really scared of Saebyeok's original form.
"It seems like Levinas is really scared of me."
"Yes. She's still a child and easily frightened."
"I see."
Saebyeok spoke in a tone similar to mine.
I felt oddly like I had gained a sibling.
<+>
We were walking around the park and decided to go further out to pick up more empty bottles.
And we agreed to speak comfortably with Saebyeok.
"King! King! There's a big problem!"
Levinas was running towards us from a distance.
When I heightened my senses in alarm, I could hear the pounding of her heart.
"What's wrong?"
"There's cannibalism over there!"
"Cannibalism...?"
Cannibalism in the middle of the city?
If it were true, it would be extremely dangerous, but it seemed like Levinas might have misunderstood again.
I glanced at Saebyeok quietly following me and headed towards the direction Levinas was pointing.
"King! Over here!"
Led by Levinas, we arrived at a high school.
People were playing by throwing flour and eggs at each other in a lavishly decorated high school.
"Wow..."
It's not even graduation ceremony season, so why are they doing this?
In the world I lived in, the culture of throwing eggs and flour during graduation ceremonies had disappeared long ago.
"King, look at this! They're covering people with eggs and flour!"
"Yes, I see."
"They must be preparing to cook people!"
"Umm..."
If you don't know the meaning behind throwing flour, it could be misunderstood that way.
Instead of explaining, I pulled at a nearby female student's sleeve.
"Excuse me..."
"Ah?!"
Startled by the sudden contact, the female student looked down at us.
After looking at me, Levinas, and Saebyeok, she muttered to herself.
"Were they a twin...?"
"Twin?"
"Oh, no, it's nothing."
The female student showed her palms forward.
I decided not to ask further about what she said.
"Excuse me, I'm curious about something..."
"Yes. What are you curious about?"
The female student leaned forward, matching our gaze with her hands on her knees.
Despite being strangers, she was quite kind.
"Why are you throwing flour and eggs?"
"Oh... Today is the last day of the festival. It's just a way to end it with a bang."
"A festival?"
"Yes. It's dangerous here with eggs flying around, so could you stand back a bit?"
The girl lightly patted my head and then let out a small scream.
I wasn't sure why she reacted that way, but she didn't seem like a bad person, so I decided to leave her be.
"Gyeoul."
Poke, poke-
Saebyeok poked my lower back with her finger.
Her tail whimsically wrapped around her wrist.
"Why?"
"Eggs and flour."
"Right."
I had already seen that, but did Saebyeok have something more to say?
Just as I was wondering, Saebyeok made an intriguing suggestion.
"Couldn't we use the broken eggs and flour as food?"
"Ohh...!"
Levinas and I were both impressed at the same time. Her genius idea made our ears and tails perk up.
"Saebyeok is smart. How did you think of that?"
"..."
Saebyeok's face turned red with embarrassment at my compliment.
Though her expression was fierce and unsmiling, her tail wagged vigorously.
<+>
At the gathering, young men and women were grouped together, throwing eggs at each other.
They threw them hard, like baseballs, but a light protective magic prevented any injuries.
Thud-!
In the middle of the playground, where eggs were breaking and flour was flying, three children stepped in.
It was Gyeoul, Levinas, and Saebyeok.
"Throw eggs! Throw them at Levinas too! And cover her in flour!"
Levinas jumped up proudly on the spot. She waved her hands up and down, asking to be hit with eggs.
"Please throw eggs at me too... I'm good at catching eggs..."
Gyeoul waved her hands with her eyes slightly closed, and Saebyeok, with a stoic face, silently spread her arms wide.
However, no one threw eggs at the children.
"Are they from Yeomyeong...?"
"One of them is new. Twins...?"
"..."
Students enjoying the festival stopped in their tracks.
Though they were full of youthful energy, they didn't throw eggs at the children.
"King, they're not throwing eggs."
"Yeah... It seems outsiders aren't included."
"Aw... I thought we could eat some eggs..."
Gyeoul and Levinas's shoulders slumped.
Saebyeok dropped her shoulders a beat after the two children.
She looked indifferent, but her ears and tail drooped.
"Ah..."
Nearby students trembled, visibly shaken by the children's conversation that evoked guilt.
Wanting to be hit by eggs just so they could eat them.
A male student, swallowing hard, approached the children.
"Hey, do you want these eggs...?"
"No! King said begging isn't allowed!"
"Begging?"
"Yes! In exchange for being hit, Levinas will take what we're hit with!"
So, they meant to take what they're hit with as a form of payment.
They understood the meaning, but no one would actually throw eggs or flour at the children.
"Won't you throw eggs...? Levinas wants to eat eggs..."
"Please relieve your stress by throwing them at us... we'll catch everything..."
The male student averted his gaze from the children's pleading eyes.
Sweat rolling down his cheek moistened the flour.
"It's just... you're too young to throw at..."
"Levinas is good at being hit! Even adults couldn't beat her easily!"
"Uh, okay...?"
"Didn't King get hit a lot by adults too?!"
What are these children talking about?
The hearts of the students enjoying the festival sank.
They knew the beast-kin children had a difficult past from rumors, but hearing it firsthand made them uneasy.
"Le, Levinas, let's stop. We have to give up on the eggs."
"Eh..."
"Sorry, I'll buy you an egg on the way."
"No, we need to save money. Sorry for this..."
The children walked away, looking disheartened.
Watching their powerless backs, the male student holding the eggs closed his eyes tightly.
He realized he had to throw them after all, but in a reasonable, non-aggressive, way.
<+>
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