Chapter 15
“Isn’t this… something you boil and eat? You’re planning to fry this in oil?”
Luca asked, puzzled.
On top of that, the roughly chopped chunks didn’t look all that appealing. But the confident Bunny let out a proud humph and nodded.
“Yesh! And thish one, pwease shteam it.”
“Oh, sure. What’s this? It looks like water…….”
“It’s bibimbap.”
“Yeeeah…….”
Luca scratched his head and nodded.
No matter how small and young she was, Bunny was still a young lady of the house, while he was just a hired servant.
Bunny stuck right by Luca’s side until the finished product was ready, giving him instructions one by one.
* * *
“Huh? Where the heck are you saying we’re going at this hour?”
The moment upper-class lessons ended, Allen—who’d been more or less kidnapped by Bunny waiting at the entrance—scrunched up his face in complaint.
Of course, even as he grumbled, he didn’t pull away from the small hand clasped in his.
“Awwen.”
As they walked toward the market, Bunny looked at Allen with eyes full of pity.
Allen flinched and paused.
“You gotta impressh the Young Mashter.”
“Why should I……!”
“Grown-upsh love shmart kids. They eshpecially like cute and shpecial onesh. Bunny’sh not shpecial yet… sho I gotta give the Young Mashter allowance! Grown-upsh love kids who give money!”
“Why do you need adults so much in the first place? If you wanna be a grown-up, you don’t even need a guardian……!”
“No.”
Bunny gripped Allen’s hand tightly and toddled forward. Her strides were much shorter and slower than those of nine-year-old Allen.
“What do you mean, no…….”
“Kids alone get lonely.”
Allen looked at Bunny with a puzzled expression at her slightly subdued voice.
As if it had never happened, Bunny beamed brightly and, at the market entrance, began setting up her stall……
“…A stall?”
She spread out a cloth mat from who-knows-where and plunked down the items she’d brought wrapped like lunchboxes, one after another.
She even pulled out a stack of small paper bags and fashioned a sketchbook into a triangle to prop it up as a sign.
“H-Hey, wait! What are you doing?”
It was the moment flustered Allen belatedly reached out. Bunny smirked, lifting just one corner of her mouth.
Heh.
“Awwen’sh shtill a baby, huh? Firsht shtep to being a grown-up ish earning food money.”
“…What?”
“Watch Bunny and nexth time try it yourshef. The Young Mashter will love it.”
Praise!
Pat pat!
Swimming in a fountain of imaginary wings, Bunny tapped a stick wrapped in paper on the ground.
“All you regularsh who come every day, thish ish no everyday tastelessh shtuff even you don’t know! Ignorant fool’sh snack. Only today for jusht 500!”
Heh.
‘Bunny hash a hidden talent, actually.’
It was none other than!
‘Bunny, a genius who can imitate any action she’s seen once.’
And Bunny had been Luriel’s prized direct disciple, who’d witnessed her excellent sales techniques up close for a full three years.
Luri had said it before.
‘Even a punk after three years at school… uh…….’
She didn’t know what a punk or three years or school was……
Anyway, Bunny was totally school-smart now.
“Hey, cute big shisiter over there! Come get one here! Shuper delish!”
“Oh my, what are the kids doing here? Running an errand for Mommy?”
“Yesh!”
It wasn’t an errand and she didn’t have a mom, but Bunny answered energetically. Because if she said she had no parents, everyone turned away.
The passing woman crouched slightly in front of Bunny’s stall at her bright, cheerful reply.
It seemed wrapped in cloth; the bowl was piled high with roughly chopped, shiny somethings.
“What’s this? I’ve never seen food like it before.”
“Hmph. Bunny’sh special shauce on shweet potato frittersh!”
“Sweet potatoes……? Those tough, tasteless ones…? Uh…….”
Bunny instinctively reached out at the woman’s hesitant gaze and quickly skewered a sweet potato fritter on a wooden fork, holding it out.
“Shuper delish! Here, try jusht one!”
Sparkle sparkle.
Bunny’s eyes sparkled innocently.
“Urgh!”
Unable to resist those eyes, the woman squeezed hers shut and snatched the fork from Bunny, popping it straight into her mouth.
Soon, her tightly shut eyes flew open wide, then rounded in surprise.
“…Wow, it’s delicious?”
Hmph.
Bunny’s nose promptly turned up.
Luri, genius!
“Right now, for jusht 500!”
“You mean 500 rosts? I’ll take one.”
“Yesh!!”
Bunny energetically opened a small paper bag and picked up child-sized tongs.
The woman carefully covered her mouth, watching Bunny whose lips poked out in concentration.
“Come again!”
“Mm, sure. Bye-bye.”
Bunny waved her arms vigorously with a beaming smile until the woman disappeared, then grinned ear to ear.
“Bunny, gonna be rich.”
It wouldn’t be long before Bunny conquered the market.
* * *
Clink clink.
Bunny’s mouth corners twitched at the shower of coins. It was her fifth day of business today.
Recording sell-outs every day, Bunny had become rich.
Hmph.
Even after filling an elephant’s belly full of coins, she had enough left to fill her adorable little hands three times over.
So today, Bunny clutched a handful of her remaining money and finally bought an alphabet book.
A fine child studies on her own.
Since Bunny knew the demon language, she decided to master the human language too, to become even more of a genius.
“But how do I do thish one?”
Bunny gazed wistfully at the quail egg neatly placed on her bed. After asking around everywhere, she’d learned it needed to be kept warm……
‘Bunny’sh too bushy…….’
Mornings were lessons, afternoons making food then heading to the market late afternoon to sell, returning in the evening for dinner.
“Living alone ish hard…….”
Recalling Luriel who sometimes left in the morning and came back at night, Bunny thumped her tiny fists on her shoulders.
“Hey, what’re you doing.”
“Awwen!”
“What’re you up to that you didn’t even hear the knock.”
Allen, who’d opened the door and come in, grumbled. Bunny shook her head side to side, clicking her short tongue as if to say, “How don’t you know?”
Allen’s lips twitched as if he was getting worked up.
“Today we go to the Young Mashter. It’sh allowance-giving day.”
“Allowance…? What allowance?”
“This! Awwen come earn too. Shince Bunny earned with Awwen, thish ish for Awwen too!”
Allen looked puzzled at Bunny’s words. She wasn’t going to receive allowance, and “allowance-giving day”? What was that?
As he stared in confusion, Bunny tugged at his hand with her small one.
Allen’s cheeks flushed despite himself at her beaming smile, and he poked Bunny’s chubby cheek with his finger.
Bunny paused, then grinned.
“Hmph. Bunny’sh cute, right.”
“W-Wh-Who said cute?! You ugly little……!”
Droop.
Before he could finish, Bunny’s eyes drooped sadly downward.
Flustered, Allen’s lips flapped wordlessly before he whipped his head away.
The boy, unable to voice it, bit his lower lip hard, then grabbed Bunny’s hand and yanked her along.
“Didn’t you say we’re going to the Young Master? Let’s go! I’ll take you there. Special service.”
Mumbling at his lips, Allen gripped Bunny’s hand and strode ahead.
Having lived in the ducal residence for a long time, Allen knew the way like the back of his hand. He arrived at the main mansion in no time holding Bunny’s hand, then froze.
Overwhelmed by the grand, pristine white building.
“…….”
Allen swallowed hard.
“That kid’s half-human half-beast, right? Isn’t that just a beast……?”
“On full moon nights, he turns completely into a beast.”
“Eww, gross. Won’t he spread germs? It’s a wild animal.”
“More like a violent monster. Rumor has it he even eats people.”
“Yudia’s disgrace. Why was he even born instead of dying…? No wonder it was so awful his parents abandoned him and ran.”
Feeling like all the passersby were staring at him, Allen shivered faintly.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
His heart raced.
It seemed like everyone around was staring and whispering about him. The moment pale-faced Allen slowly bowed his head—
Tug tug.
The small hand he was holding pulled at him. Allen jolted his shoulders and slowly turned his head, lowering his gaze.
Bunny’s serene eyes gazed steadily at him, then curved into a bright smile.
“It’sh okay. Bunny ish here.”
