"Uwu~ Is this your little sister, Manie?" - A curious voice rang out; it was a scholarly-looking girl from the group.
Mana, hearing that, gently pulled the timid little girl hiding behind her forward, positioning her right in front of herself.
"Hmm hmm~ That's right! This is my super-duper adorable little sister, Kyouno~. So? Isn't she just too cute~?" - She declared, her voice brimming with uncontainable pride.
The moment the little girl's face was revealed, all the children around them froze in place. Every single pair of eyes, boys and girls alike, was glued to the tiny figure, unable to look away.
As for Kyouno, being suddenly pulled forward already made her jump in surprise. And now she was even being stared at by countless curious eyes from a bunch of unfamiliar kids!!!
And so, all the courage she had mustered earlier vanished in an instant! Her entire body trembled slightly, her tiny legs turning weak. She lowered her head, eyes darting away, not daring to look up.
But really, you couldn't blame those kids.
Because… this little girl—was unbelievably beautiful!
Indeed, though she was barely three years into her life, with that smooth, fair complexion and that exquisitely delicate face—as if sculpted by the hands of a master artisan, she was truly beautiful beyond imagination!
Along with her aloof, detached aura, as if setting herself apart from mere mortals, the thing that shouldn't have come from such a young girl, made the kids freeze even more.
Those kids were just farmer children, used to dirt and sweat from dawn to dusk. Their appearance, though, could be called pleasant-looking; some could even be called cute.
But compared to this girl? It was like comparing a puddle to the ocean, or a duckling to a swan!!
Right now, she was like a dazzling gem, sparkling amidst a pile of... muddy earth!
The boys, at that moment, were . . . secretly cursing their moms for not marrying better-looking dads; maybe then they could've been handsome enough to win her heart!!! (T_T)
As for the girls, they also couldn't take their eyes off Kyouno either, especially that shy, trembling, pitifully adorable look on her face at the moment.
It made their hearts scream:
"She's too cute~ ٩(♡ε♡)۶."
Earlier, when the little girl hadn't shown her face, they had simply noticed a tiny figure hiding behind Ms.Irina. Aside from a bit of curiosity, no one really paid much attention.
But now? This adorable little girl, who could possibly not notice her?!
"Uhm... little sister, would you like to come play with us?" - A girl stepped forward, noticing how scared the tiny girl looked, tried to strike up a conversation with a friendly-sounding voice.
Kyouno, sensing someone approaching, only trembled more. In panic, she quickly dashed behind Mana's back, peeking out with just a sliver of her eyes.
"U-uhm..."- She let out a soft whimper, seems too overwhelmed to say anything.
Seeing that shy posture, paired with those sparkling eyes, the hearts of all the kids practically melted like sugar.
"S-Super adorable!"- All of them screamed internally.
"Hey, are you sure you two are real sisters? How can a demon like you have such an adorable little sister??"- A boy from the group called out teasingly.
"Yeah, exactly! How can a wild thing like you be the sister of this elegant little girl?"- A few other boys chimed in, laughing and joking around.
"W-What did you just say?! What's that supposed to mean?!" - Mana, hearing the teasing, which was clearly aimed at her, couldn't hold it in anymore and yelled. She raised her fists at the boys, her voice full of threat.
"Say that again, are you all trying to say I'm some kind of savage or what?!"
The boys, seeing the girl's threatening stance, immediately tucked their tails and braced themselves to bolt.
"Nyah nyah~ You savage Panthera female! Catch me if you can, nyah~"- They pulled faces at her and, without another second of delay, took off running for their lives, as if staying a moment longer would mean getting smacked silly.
(Panthera: the name of a lion-like creature from real lifeッ)
"Get back here, you little punks!"- Mana shouted and dashed after them. As she took off, she didn't forget to glance back and gently say to Kyouno:
"Stay and play with the girls, okay? Don't worry, they're really nice and won't do anything to you."
With that, she sped away like a hunting beast, disappearing from sight in mere moments.
At this moment, Kyouno was the only one left standing there, frozen stiff, her face blank like a statue.
She glanced over at the other girls around her who, at that very moment, were all looking at her with eyes sparkling bright.
"U-Um?"- She let out a confused little sound.
"Hey there, cutie~ Uh... your name is Kyouno, right? Your big sister's off settling things with the boys now, so why don't you stay and play with us?"- One of the girls suddenly spoke up. Then, unable to resist, she hurried closer to get a better look at the little girl's face. And just like that, the other girls clustered around too, forming a circle around the tiny girl.
Kyouno, seeing so many people suddenly closing in on her with bright, cheerful expressions, couldn't help but tremble slightly, her voice stammering:
"I-I... I..."
"Alright then, it's settled! Kyouno's going to play with us!"- Another girl declared, not letting the little one could even get a word out. She stared intently at Kyouno's exquisite appearance, her eyes sparkling.
"Kyouno, you're seriously too cute, how about... you come live with me, be my little sister~?"- She said, her face clearly showing the desire to take this little girl home with her.
Having such an adorable little girl to admire every day, who wouldn't love that???
"U-Uh...?"- Little Kyouno, hearing that unexpected offer, was completely stunned.
Before she could recover, yet another girl chimed in, her voice sweet and coaxing:
"Forget her, Kyouno; come to my house instead. I've got tons of delicious food, and there's even honey stored in the cupboard all year round~"
"Hey, no way! Kyouno, eating too much will make you chubby! Come live with me instead, my mom's a tailor! She'll make you beautiful, graceful clothes and you'll be a real princess, okay?" - Another joined in.
"Hey, what are you all talking about? How could Kyouno possibly go live in your shabby little corners? She should come to my house, it's big and beautiful! That's the kind of place worthy of a little princess like her!"- Then another chimed in.
"What?! Are you saying my house is small?!"
"Obviously! Your place looks like a livestock shed, how could I let my precious Kyouno into something like that?!"
"Your precious Kyouno'?! She's mine, thank you very much!"
"Hah?! You wanna fight?!"
"Bring it on! Whoever wins gets to keep Kyouno!"
"Let's go!"
"Guys, maybe we should actually ask Kyouno what she wants."- One girl, seeing her friends on the verge of throwing hands, stepped in to calm things down.
Hearing that, the others nodded in agreement.
"Alright, let's ask Kyouno. My sweet little Kyouno~ You want to stay with me, right?"
"You love honey, don't you~?"
"You lo . . . KYOUNO?!"
Before they could finish, the girls froze in place, speechless.
Because, where the little girl had just been standing was now... completely empty!
"KYOUNO!!!"
....