A glowing girl

"You can ask any questions you like, I'll be happy to help," Aunty Rina said with a grin, spreading her arms theatrically in the middle of the shop. "After all, I've been running this bookshop for quite the long year, if I do say so myself. Hahaha!"

Kyara blinked at her. "You're… really excited about this, huh?"

"Oh dear, of course not, silly!" Rina said, eyes twinkling as she twirled around a display of cookbooks. "I'm just happy to pass this place on to someone who'll love it like I did."

Kyara narrowed her eyes, suspicious. "I can't tell if I'm the one receiving the shop or if you're the one trying to escape something."

Rina gasped in mock offense, then clutched her chest dramatically. "I swear on my lifesto—"

"Don't swear on your lifestone!" Kyara practically lunged forward to stop her.

Rina froze, then burst out laughing. "You're no fun."

Kyara sighed, rubbing her temple. "Don't joke like that. That's serious."

A lifestone was a big deal. It wasn't something a lot of people even had—just those with awakened magic or rare class traits, like Rina. She was a monster collector, a hybrid hunter type who specialized in gathering magical ingredients without damaging them. A rare job with rarer risks.

Kyara, on the other hand, wasn't awakened at all. No magic, no class title. Just her.

But even without magic, she found something about this store that made her heart flutter.

"I still don't get why me," she muttered. "It's just a bookshop."

"Exactly!" Rina beamed. "It's not flashy, not enchanted. It's warm. It's honest. And you, my dear, are a warm and honest person. Plus, you love books more than anyone I know."

That part was true. Kyara had practically lived in this store during her school years. Even now, she still remembered the layout of the fiction aisle better than her own kitchen.

Despite herself, she smiled. "I guess it's kinda exciting…"

"You're glowing, Ky." Rina teased. "If your joy were visible, there'd be rainbows coming out of your ears."

Kyara rolled her eyes, but couldn't stop grinning.

---

That night, Rina was called to the guild for a quick check-in.

"Some collector in the field found a patch of Chimera fur," she said while tying up her boots. "Could be S-grade. They want me to verify the quality before someone tries to sell it as potion filler."

Kyara nodded, even though most of that still went over her head. She didn't need to know monster fur rankings to organize a local book club shelf.

Rina looked over her shoulder. "You okay staying here tonight?"

"Yeah. It's not like I haven't crashed here before."

Still, when the door closed behind Rina, the apartment felt big. Too big. Kyara wandered through the space, letting her fingers trail along the shelves and furniture. She ended up in the kitchen, splashing cold water on her face, then spotted a door slightly ajar.

Inside, a quiet room—less cluttered than the rest. Tidy. Comfortable. And on a shelf near the window: a picture frame.

She picked it up.

Her parents. Rina. And herself, years younger, riding on her dad's back, mouth open mid-laugh. Her mom sat beside Rina, both caught in a moment of carefree gossip.

Kyara blinked hard. The image sparked memories of that trip to the beach. The salty air, the warm sand, her dad chasing her as she squealed in glee. It all came back in a gentle, sudden wave.

"I miss you guys," she whispered, running her fingers along the edge of the wooden frame.

---

Rina returned the next morning, still smelling faintly like spices and ash.

"Turns out the Chimera fur was real. Almost pristine. Got a whole lecture about preserving it with cold runes. Blah blah blah." She dropped onto the couch dramatically. "Anyway, you ready to pack?"

Kyara paused. "Actually… I think I'm going to quit my job."

Rina's head tilted. "Then you can do just that."

"…Really?"

"Yup. Come on, I'll help you pack your stuff."

It wasn't the answer Kyara expected. But it was the one she needed.

---

They made the trip to her tiny apartment in a bit of a rush. Rina, full of guild talk and half-finished stories, buzzed with energy the whole way. Her apartment was cramped and cluttered, a far cry from Rina's high-rise near the guild sector.

"Still smells like lavender in here," Rina noted.

"Thanks. I work hard on that."

The two of them packed quickly—folding clothes, boxing books, sealing little bags of memories. Some items made them laugh. A few, pause. Rina told her stories from when Kyara was small, like the time she tried to alphabetize every book in the children's section by genre and cover color.

"I was five!" Kyara groaned.

"You were intense," Rina cackled.

Once everything was packed, Rina called in a favor. A small moving truck rolled up not long after, driven by a broad-shouldered man with silver piercings and a griffon tattoo spiraling down his arm.

"That's the last of it!" Rina called as the last box was loaded.

"Thanks, Uncle Den!" Kyara shouted, waving.

"No problem, kiddo! Good luck with the new place!" he called back, revving the engine.

As the truck pulled away, Kyara leaned against the wall of her now-empty apartment.

Despite the ache of leaving behind so many memories, her heart fluttered with anticipation.

Rina nudged her. "Excited?"

Kyara nodded. "Yeah. I really am."

"You should be. It's yours now."

---

Back at the shop, Kyara took her time unpacking. She made tea. Dusted shelves. Moved displays around until they felt right. The bookstore was quiet, but it didn't feel lonely.

Most of the books were ordinary—romance, mystery, history, local guides. A small section near the back held some hunter theory and monster research, more out of novelty than popularity. But that was enough. It was enough for her.

She found a small frame from her boxes and placed it gently on the counter.

Her family, smiling under the beach sun.

It belonged here.

Just like she did.

The front door creaked open.

"I told you not to get groceries!" Kyara called out, not turning.

"And I told you to stop underestimating my generosity," Rina said, lugging in bags full of bread, snacks, and an absurd number of apples.

Kyara groaned. "You're impossible."

"Impossibly kind," Rina corrected.

They laughed.

Kyara looked around the shop again—her shop—and felt it settle into her chest like a key sliding into the right lock.

This was hers now.

And that was enough.