Sweet Fruit
"What are you two doing?"
My body creaked like a broken robot. The temperature around us seemed to plummet, and an inexplicable chill crawled over my skin.
What is this? Ice magic?
There had never been any setting in the novel about Lily using magic. It had to be my imagination.
"Hera unnie."
Those eyes, drained of all light, bored straight through me—
"Hiiiek—!"
—and I clung to Dania before I even realized what I was doing.
"……"
Lily's expression curdled even further as she watched me.
What? Did I do something wrong? Why is she looking at me like that?
"All done washing up, Lily? Come sit down and eat with us."
Could Dania not feel this freezing aura at all? She simply smiled as if nothing were amiss and called out to her sister. After standing there for a long moment, Lily quietly joined us at the table—yet her gaze never left me for a second.
Only when Dania went to fetch extra dishes and food did Lily finally tear her eyes away from me to watch her sister's retreating back.
Ah. I get it now.
I finally understood why Lily was staring at me that way. She had always leaned on Dania for everything. Her one and only family—of course she had. Lily's entire world was probably filled with Dania.
And that precious older sister had just kissed me. Wasn't it only natural for jealousy to flare up?
She must think I'm trying to steal her sister away.
Yes. That was it. Congratulating myself on finding the perfect answer, I looked at Lily with warm, friendly eyes.
"…?"
She seemed flustered by my confident expression, so I quickly took her hand in both of mine and held it tight.
"Hyahk?"
Lily let out an adorable little sound of surprise at my sudden action. Undeterred, I spoke in a soft whisper.
"Don't worry, Lily. The thing you're afraid of will never happen."
"Huh??"
Something like hope flickered across her face. Trust this unnie, Lily.
"You're scared I'll take your sister away from you, right?"
"…What?"
"Don't worry. I will never come between you and your sister. I promise."
I really hadn't been thinking. Back in Korea she would barely have been old enough to start middle school—of course she would cling desperately to her family's love. It was completely natural for her to be wary of me after what she had just seen.
"You really love your sister, don't you?"
Even in the novel, after losing her sister she had lived an emotionless life until she met the protagonist. Lily's love for Dania was beyond words.
I gently kneaded her small hand as I looked at her.
"…"
She was staring back at me with a look that had gone completely cold.
Eh…? Why…?
Had I still not convinced her?
Seeing her expression, I scrambled to add something—anything.
"I-is it because of the k-kiss? Th-that was just a light thank-you from your sister because she was grateful! If you asked, she'd give you one anytime too!"
"…What about you, Hera unnie?"
Huh?
"U-ung…? Me?"
"If I asked, would you give me one anytime too?"
Lily's piercing stare was getting hard to bear. What was I supposed to say?
"Umm… well…"
"…You won't? You said it was just a light greeting… so of course, with unnie it's different…"
Lily hung her head, looking utterly dejected.
"A-ah, no!! I can do it!! It's just a light thank-you greeting!"
I had the sinking feeling I had just said something I could never take back. But I couldn't stand watching Lily look so sad, so I decided then and there to give her whatever she wanted.
She would probably prefer Dania's kisses a hundred times more than mine. Still… if Lily wanted it.
Our Lily. You can have anything you want.
Only after hearing my answer did the light return to her eyes. Then a bright smile bloomed across her face.
"Then that's great!"
So cute. Lily really was prettiest when she smiled.
"What are you two chatting about so happily?"
Dania had returned without my noticing and set food and dishes down in front of Lily.
We were talking about how much Lily loves you, Dania.
But saying that out loud would probably embarrass Lily terribly, so I pressed a finger to my lips, looked at her, and winked.
"Hmm… well. It's a secret?"
Lily's eyes went wide for a second. Then, copying me, she put her own finger to her lips.
"Yeah! It's a secret!"
What an adorable girl.
After we finished eating, I laid the dozing Lily down on the sofa and traded idle chatter with Dania.
"If you're twenty-four, that makes you my unnie."
"My, is that so?"
With that voluptuous figure and the mature air she carried, I had already assumed she was older than me. Of course I was confident my own body could hold its own against almost anyone—but Dania was the exception. If my figure was the kind that enchanted people, Dania's was the kind that drove them mad. Especially her chest.
I asked her to speak casually with me.
"Fufu… alright. You can call me unnie too, Hera."
"Yes… unnie."
The word felt terribly awkward, but somehow I managed to get it out.
"Come to think of it, Hera. There's something I've been curious about."
"Yes?"
"You're a mana user too, aren't you?"
"Ah."
Dania brought it up carefully as she looked at me. Well, a girl who hadn't even come of age had been smashing people like eggs—it was a reasonable assumption. She probably thought I could wield mana at a considerably high level.
If it had been someone I barely knew, I would have just gone along with it. But for Dania, I decided to tell the truth.
"No. I never mentioned it, but… I actually have an Unique Ability."
She blinked several times, then her eyes flew wide with shock.
"U-Unique Ability?!!"
"Hic—?"
Dania's shout made Lily, who had been sleeping beside us, jolt awake in fright. But she immediately closed her eyes again and drifted back to sleep on the sofa.
After watching carefully to make sure Lily was out once more, Dania continued in a quieter voice.
"Really? So it wasn't mana?"
"Yes. Unfortunately I still don't know how to use mana…"
"An Unique Ability… that's incredible."
It really was. Simply possessing one put you on equal footing with high-level mana users. Of course some abilities had nothing to do with combat, but even those were broken within their own fields. Everyone wanted one, yet the blessing was granted only to a tiny handful of people. That was an Unique Ability.
"Hehe… I still can't use it perfectly, though."
It only worked against opponents who harbored hostility toward me. Against anyone whose hostility I couldn't sense, I was just an ordinary powerless girl.
But when would that ever happen?
In a life-or-death fight, there was no way I wouldn't feel hostility. Even if I had no intention of fighting at first, once I took a hit, fighting spirit rose on its own. For all practical purposes it was almost always active.
"No wonder… you were far too strong for your age. But if you went to the Empire you'd be treated like royalty. Why stay here?"
Even someone from Drax would be welcomed with open arms by the Empire if they had an Unique Ability. They couldn't afford to let one of the world's rarest talents slip away.
I could hardly say, I have to stay in Drax so I don't get in the protagonist's way. I scratched my cheek and offered an excuse.
"Um… I've lived here a long time, so… I just don't feel like leaving."
"Even so…"
She looked at me with open worry. It's alright, Dania. This is probably the safest place of all.
The Karaz Empire. Regis Academy inside it. The elven nation of Elvenheim. The Demon Realm where the demons dwelled. And all the other places where the protagonist would face trials—every one of them would be struck by catastrophe. Ironically, the lawless zone of Drax, where nothing ever happened, was far safer.
"And now I've met you, Dania! I'm never leaving."
"…My."
A faint blush colored her cheeks as she looked at me.
"Then I won't let you leave either."
Absolutely not.
She added something under her breath afterward, but unfortunately I couldn't catch it.
As our conversation stretched on—
"Hwaaaam… aren't you sleepy, Hera?"
Dania laced her fingers together and stretched her arms high overhead. Food coma had already left my body feeling heavy and languid.
"I'm a little tired…"
"Let's rest for today and talk more tomorrow. Tomorrow's going to be busy."
Because of the western district business? Honestly, all I wanted was a comfortable life. I had zero desire to do the tedious work of running a city. Most of the people here were criminals—what was the point of working for them?
But there are definitely people like Dania too.
People who had lost everything to sudden disaster and become wanderers. I had no intention of managing the west, but I was willing to become a fence that protected them.
I would need to discuss the details with Dania tomorrow.
"Then I'll sleep on the sofa."
From what I could tell, the house had two rooms—one for Dania and one for Lily. With no spare bed, it was only proper that the guest take the sofa.
"Absolutely not. You'll ruin your body. Sleep properly in a bed."
Dania refused me flatly.
"But there are only two beds…"
"What does that matter? We'll just sleep together."
"T-together?! But it'll be cramped."
"Then we'll just cuddle."
"W-what?!"
Cuddle? With Dania?
I couldn't. I absolutely could not. Even if my body was a woman's now, the soul of a man still lived inside me. If I slept cuddled up with Dania I would probably stay awake all night.
And yet a corner of my heart whispered that it would be fine—that I should just sleep with her anyway.
No… Dania is treating me with pure kindness. I can't harbor filthy thoughts like that…!
If this were a comic, an angel and a devil would be fighting on either side of my head right now.
"My bed is bigger than Lily's, so you can sleep with m—"
"N-no!! I can't sleep with unnie!"
Dania's words were cut off mid-sentence. When had she woken up? Lily, who had been asleep until moments ago, shot upright and shouted.
"…Lily?"
Dania looked slightly stunned by her little sister's sudden outburst.
"Sleep with me instead! I'm way smaller than unnie… so it won't be cramped!"
She looked at me with frantic eyes as she cried out.
"You… you promised me…"
Ah… of course. Lily really does…
She truly loved her sister. Rather than watch Dania and me sleep together, she would rather have me sleep with her. The desperation in her voice made it clear how badly she hated the idea of someone taking her sister away.
Right. I had made a promise to Lily too. I had zero intention of stealing anyone, but if only to put Lily's mind at ease, I should avoid sleeping alone with Dania.
"Fufu… if Lily's alright with it, shall we do that?"
At my words, Lily's expression melted with relief. Was she really that happy? I ruffled the hair of the girl who was grinning from ear to ear.
"I'll sleep with Lily, unnie. Thank you for worrying about me."
"……"
Dania stared blankly at Lily for a long moment, then murmured something I couldn't quite understand.
"Don't tell me… Lily too…?"
"Let's go to sleep, Lily."
"Hehehe."
Lily and I under the same blanket. It was tight for two people, but with us cuddled together it would be fine enough to sleep.
Lily burrowed into my arms like a kitten nestling against its mother.
She must get terribly lonely…
A maternal instinct I didn't even know I had stirred inside me. I would have to spend more time with Lily from now on. Maybe the three of us—Dania included—could go on a picnic sometime.
Though… was there even anywhere in Drax worth picnicking?
"Unnie… can you give me a kiss?"
"Ung?"
"You said you'd do it anytime… do it now."
Right. I had said I would whenever she wanted…
A kiss shouldn't be a big deal. It was the kind of light skinship people exchanged as a greeting anyway.
I gently closed my eyes and pressed my lips to Lily's soft cheek.
Chup—
"Fufu… better now?"
"Hehe… yes, unnie! Let's go to sleep now!"
Looking thoroughly satisfied, Lily closed her eyes. I followed suit, and sleep came easily.
.
.
.
"Unnie… are you asleep?"
As if in answer, soft, even breathing filled the quiet. Lily gazed at Hera, who had fallen into a deep sleep.
No matter how many times she looked, that face was beautiful. Lily couldn't tear her eyes away.
She's so pretty…
The feeling had been there from the very first moment she met Hera. Every time she looked at her, her heart pounded, and a sticky, unnameable sensation rose from deep inside her chest.
Earlier, when she had accidentally seen Hera bathing, it had felt as though her body no longer belonged to her. A strange sensation wrapping around her—burning hot and somehow ticklish all at once.
"Not yet… I can't…"
Lily knew perfectly well how Hera looked at her. It was the exact same gaze her own sister used—the gaze of someone cherishing a precious little sister.
Lily looked down at her own body. Still not fully grown, it fell far short of Dania's. She loved and was endlessly grateful to her real older sister… yet sometimes she hated those devastatingly powerful breasts of Dania's.
Someday I'll definitely…
Making a silent vow, Lily gently touched her own cheek. The moist sensation that had pressed against it lingered. Her eyes locked onto Hera's softly closed lips.
This much… should be fine, right?
Chup—
The soft sound of lips meeting lips. It was only the lightest touch, yet Lily felt a wave of pure bliss. Sweetness flowed into her mouth as if she had just bitten into the ripest fruit.
But it still wasn't enough.
Just once more…
Chup—
Again Lily's lips sought that fruit. And still her greed was not satisfied.
Still not enough…
Chup—
Just a little more…
.
.
.
Really just one last time…
.
.
.
And so Lily's lips refused to leave Hera's face for a very long time.