The Uncle Is Sensitive (2)
Three girls peered through the crack in the door. They were too far away to hear what the uncle was saying to Hare, but one thing was clear.
“This is obvious! Hare is getting scolded by Uncle!”
Runa blurted out the obvious. Beside her, Saten watched through the gap with an emotionless expression.
“She did something worth getting scolded for, so of course she’s being scolded. That girl called Hare will be abandoned soon.”
Estia nodded in agreement.
“M-maybe… That oppa is scarier than I thought… He might really abandon her…”
“No! Uncle would never abandon Hare!”
Would he really not? Saten was certain the uncle would cast Hare aside. After all, that was what her family had taught her.
“Hmph. Think whatever you want. I’ll simply watch how this turns out. If she made a mistake, being abandoned is only natural.”
The most entertaining spectator sport in the world. The three girls watched as Hare was scolded. The uncle’s face was twisted with anger as he spoke sharply, and Hare could only stand there frozen, head bowed low.
Then, after the uncle said something, Hare’s expression changed as if she had received devastating news. Saten nodded with certainty.
“Looks like Uncle finally said it. He told her to leave this place. That girl called Hare will probably start packing soon. She was a foolish child who never truly understood Uncle.”
“N-no! Hare is smart! Stop talking nonsense, Saten!”
“You’ll see the result for yourself. Look, Uncle is coming this way.”
While the two bickered, the conversation seemed to have ended. The uncle left Hare behind and walked toward them alone.
Is Uncle really going to abandon Hare?!
Creak— The door opened. The moment their eyes met the uncle’s, Runa shouted like the vanguard of a protest.
“O-opposition! Don’t kick Hare out!! I’m against it!!”
“…What are you talking about? I’m not kicking Hare out.”
“Huh?”
“I came in alone to give her some time to think. She’ll come inside soon.”
“Huuuh… I see… Did I get worked up over nothing…?”
After saying that, the uncle waved his hand and cast a spell.
Void Magic: Annihilation
The thick layer of dust floating throughout the house vanished without a trace. And then—
Void Magic: Reconstruction
The shabby house returned to a state no different from when they first arrived. Runa was in awe.
“Whoa… Uncle! What kind of magic is that?!”
“Void Magic. I returned the dust to nothingness and restored the damage the building had suffered back to nothing as well.”
“Y-you can do that?! Uncle! I want to learn magic too! It’s so cool!”
“…Instead of wasting time learning magic, practice your swordsmanship, Runa.”
Runa never had enough time to hone her sword skills as it was. Lee Junwoo said this while looking around the house.
“…After cleaning, the inside is cleaner than I expected.”
The building was similar to a two-story mansion. Thanks to the rumor that it was haunted, the price had dropped significantly, making it a cheap purchase. You could even call it a honeyed deal. There were a total of six rooms in the mansion, so Lee Junwoo started walking toward one to rest.
At that moment—
Tap— He felt a hand on his arm.
“…Saten?”
“Uncle. I have a question. I’m asking because I don’t understand.”
“…Go ahead. What are you so curious about?”
“Why didn’t you abandon that commoner girl called Hare? She did the one thing you hate most. And she doesn’t even listen well. I believe a child who doesn’t conform to rules and order should be discarded.”
I really don’t understand. Why didn’t you abandon her?
Saten asked with a blank face. Because abandoning her was the obvious choice. At her expression, Lee Junwoo answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Everyone makes mistakes. And since Hare is still young, she’ll change.”
“No. People don’t change. A person’s true nature can never change. That child will cause trouble again.”
“…Saten, children are supposed to make mistakes as they grow up.”
“…Huh?”
They cause trouble, get scolded, cry, and get angry. That’s simply how children grow.
“Hare made a big mistake, so she was scolded. She’ll receive a punishment that matches what she did. Therefore, I will never abandon her. Is that answer enough?”
“…No.”
“Then take your time and think it over. I’m going to my room now.”
His condition wasn’t good, so it was better to go in quickly. Before his emotions could explode, Lee Junwoo shut himself in his room.
Bang—
Saten stared at the spot where he disappeared, completely stunned. She couldn’t understand it at all.
“You don’t abandon them even if they cause trouble? I was never taught that. If you cause trouble, it’s natural to be abandoned. Children must be prepared to die rather than cause trouble…”
That’s what I learned from my family. But… children grow up by causing trouble…?
I didn’t grow up like that. I had to avoid causing trouble just to survive.
“But if that’s not the case… that’s strange…”
She thought she had been observing Uncle perfectly. This feeling was slightly different from what she had expected. Carrying a faint sense of displeasure, Saten entered an empty room.
Bang—
The two girls left in the living room shivered from the cold air that lingered.
“…W-what just happened?”
“R-right, Runa…? We didn’t fight, but it feels so chilly…?”
“It’s a little cold…”
“Haha… Haha.”
The two exchanged stiff smiles as they looked at each other. But an even colder wind soon swept over them.
“…”
“H-Hare…? Are you okay…?”
“She looks like a ghost… I think I need some Holy Water…”
Her eyes were lifeless. Her pink hair was a tangled mess. Drip, drip— Tears fell endlessly. With a completely wrecked face, Hare appeared without saying a word and walked straight into an empty room.
Bang—!!
“It’s not even winter yet, but it’s already freezing…”
“Y-yeah, Runa…”
For some reason, the two felt as if they were standing in the middle of the coldest winter.
He tried to lie on the bed and shake off his emotions, but emotions refused to obey.
“…I shouldn’t have said that.”
He had spoken too soon. Hare, who had lost her last remaining family and followed him here. He had inflicted a new wound on a child whose old scars hadn’t even healed yet. It was all his fault.
When that feeling came up, I lost control and got angry without realizing it.
That day. After my mentor Aina lost her life, I had thrown the emotion called love onto the ground. I had discarded it violently, as if I would never look at it again.
But…
Hare holds those feelings toward me… That cannot be allowed…
I had no intention of accepting them, nor did I want to give them. So I had planned to cut the bud of hope before it could grow. But because of the immature emotional control that came as a side effect of my trauma, I ended up hurting Hare instead.
I stared at the empty ceiling. Perhaps because I had confronted that feeling, a memory I had locked away suddenly surfaced in my mind.
…Back then, even if I lay like this, I could hear Aina’s voice.
Memories of the past that I didn’t want to remember came flooding back. Even though her personality was a complete mess, she was the one who saved me from loneliness after I fell into this other world. Aina.
The first time I met her, she was begging on the street. She said this to me:
“Hey beggar, how much did you earn today? Wait, only 1000 pery? Tsk, you should beg a little harder. I’ll be taking this, okay?”
“Crazy bitch…”
The moment we met, she robbed me. When I chased after her to get my money back, she tried to use me as a test subject. After somehow managing to talk while tied to a wall, she eventually took me as her disciple. But no matter how I thought about it, Aina’s personality was far from normal. She was closer to insane.
Still, even that abnormal Aina—
“Now that I can’t see her anymore… I miss her…”
Aina, whom I had locked deep inside a box in my heart. I didn’t know if it was because of the aftereffects, but tonight, of all nights, I missed her terribly.
“U-Uncle…”
Drip, drip— Hare kept shedding tears, collapsing from exhaustion, then falling asleep again and again. She had no idea how much time had passed. She wanted to keep sleeping like this forever. Because the reality she was living in was too painful.
“Is it wrong for me… to like Uncle…? Is that a burden to you…?”
Hare hugged her pillow tightly and burst into tears.
“My feelings… are sincere… Is it wrong for me to like you, Uncle…? That’s not something I can control… is it…?”
At first. Uncle was her first everything. From the very first moment they met, her heart raced, and she felt he was different from everyone else. In books, that feeling was called ‘love,’ and it said it wasn’t something you could control.
“You saved me from the Trash Can… For the first time since I was born… I felt happy… From the moment we first met… I fell in love… Is that my fault…? Uncle…?”
Hare poured out her heart alone, overwhelmed with sorrow. She knew her words would never reach him, but if she didn’t do this, the frustration would drive her insane.
“You saved me, Uncle… You gave me a reason to keep living… I’ll get along with my friends from now on… So please…”
Please just acknowledge my feelings.
I won’t ask you to accept them anymore. Just please don’t tell me to throw them away.
“That’s… not something I can control… Hic… Uncle… I… I can’t live without thinking about you… Hic…”
I can give up anything you want, Uncle. But I cannot give up my feelings for you.
Hare wept bitterly, pleading. She hated how foolish she had been, thinking she could hide it from him.
“I should have known exactly… Hic… what you like… and what you hate… Hic… I was too… stupid…”
Uncle had told her to organize her feelings. But that was an impossible request.
“Then… Hic… what should I do…? If I just get along with my friends… will that be the end…?”
No… That’s definitely not the end… I have so many problems… That’s why Uncle scolded me so harshly…
She didn’t want to admit it, but Hare decided to accept the truth. She had been stupid and knew almost nothing about Uncle. With her pride and self-esteem hitting rock bottom, Hare had no choice but to bend.
“So… I need someone who knows my shortcomings…”
Only after saying that did she realize her actions had been wrong. Because she had acted on it, Uncle had scolded her so severely. Therefore, she needed to learn what actions were problematic.
“And… that girl knows it best…”
Knock, knock— She knocked on the door of the girl who knew Uncle well and understood her own flaws perfectly. With an exhausted, pale face, Hare spoke to the black-haired girl.
“Saten, t-tell me… What do I have to do… so Uncle won’t hate me…? And what exactly is my problem…?”
“There are many problems. First, you’re stupid and slow-witted. Second, you failed to observe Uncle properly. Third, your emotions get ahead of you more than expected.”
“S-so… tell me… How can I fix them…?”
Hmm… Saten smiled faintly as she answered.
“In this world, if you give something, you receive something in return, commoner.”
“I-I’ll give you anything you want… So please tell me… P-please… I love Uncle… I don’t want to be abandoned… I want to stay by his side… I’m begging you…”
Love. She had originally planned to refuse… but Saten felt a spark of curiosity at that word. Therefore, with a small smile, she declared to Hare:
“Then I’ll give you my list of your problems. In exchange, you will teach me that feeling called ‘love.’ How about it?”
An exchange. She would tell her the problems in return for being taught about emotions. Saten believed she wasn’t losing anything in this deal. After all, the day she could learn magic from Uncle would come sooner. And the same was true for Hare.
If I just stop doing the things Uncle hates… then maybe I can keep my feelings and stay by his side.
If she could just hide them instead of throwing them away, it might be possible. Hare had no reason to refuse.
“O-okay… I-I’ll tell you… how I feel about Uncle…”
“For a commoner, you catch on quickly. Don’t reach out your hand. A handshake isn’t necessary.”
“…”
Although they had formed an alliance, the two did not shake hands. The two girls who had once thought of each other as bitter enemies began to form a strange relationship where they could compensate for each other’s weaknesses.