Chapter 4
Translator: sleepingjay

“You guys, since you already came, you might as well go study.”
“Eeeehー!”

“Don’t want! I want to play!”

At my words, booing was flung around.

A headache formed due to my irritation. When I kneaded my brows, a young boy with rabbit ears on his head said:

“I’m going to study. Study, and then become an amazing adult for the village.”

Those words spread out like ripples on water.

The sulking children turned remarkably quiet, and even obediently sat at the worn-out wooden desk. It was as if all that boisterousness had been a lie.

“You should be obedient from the start.”

“Jeez, Lily sure is fussy.”

The one who said that was a young boy with dog ears.

“I’m not that fussy.”

“A person like Lily is called a nag!”

“Yup, yup, a nag!”

The one who precociously called me a nag was the boy with fox ears who had jumped on my back just now.

The children here, all of them, had beast traits on their bodies. For generations, this country had been ruled by beastmen emperors so a lot of beastmen lived here.

In this place, there were also those that were purely human race like me, but it was rare.

Between beastmen and humans, there was no discrimination.

But nevertheless, in times past there were indeed history of disputes between us.

The homeland I grew up in was extremely prideful, though it was nothing but some ego or another. Therefore, they were prejudiced against the beastmen who possessed characteristics they didn’t have.

But why should I be concerned about that?

Whether it was towards beastmen, humans, or anything else, I knew what a ridiculous thing discrimination was.

“Hey, Lily. When I become an adult, can I become like Lily?”

“……Why would you want to become someone like me. There are plenty of better adults around, aren’t there.”

Softly, my sleeves were repeatedly tugged on by the rabbit beastchild from just now—Latho.

When the child heard my words, his completely round pupils became even rounder from shock.

Latho’s ears twitched and shifted restlessly, as if to eloquently narrate his bewilderment. The children made eye contact with one another and tilted their heads in confusion.

“Was Lily a bad child?”

“Yeah, I was a bad child.”

“……Even though you’re this kind?”

“This isn’t kindness. It’s because you guys are noisy and insufferable, so I’m shutting you up by making you study.”

“You give us sweets though?”

“You also give medicine!”

“My grandma said, Lily is kind like the honorable spirits!”

After that, as if somehow stimulated, things about me started pouring out from the children’s mouths.

Their words flew about too intensely, I couldn’t intervene to stop them. Just when it was about to become truly sizzling, Latho laughed.

“Lily is shy!”

“Wow, you’re right. Lily’s face is bright red!”

“He’s like a Rinku fruit, isn’t he?”

“You guys, cut it out, I’m not shy, it’s just hot here!”

Although I said that, I really was embarrassed.

I’d never been praised like this by anyone. I had always been surrounded by enemies, hence I had constantly lived while gauging the other party’s hidden face.

No matter how many years had passed, I couldn’t get used to receiving pure sentiments.

“Anyway, today we’ll stop here. Since we’re finished, I’ll give you candies, so go home.”

“You’re not going together with us?”

“Why would I?”

“But~, the road at night is dangerous.”

“…..Haa, I wish you’d cut it out already.”

Certainly, despite countermeasures being set in the village, the road at night was dangerous. With the children’s legs, it took as long as 40 minutes to go from the village to this house. With my transportation magic, the way home should be shorter.

“I got it. I’ll send you home, so stop making a nuisance of yourselves already, okay?”

Hearing their lively responses, I once more continued kneading the medicinal herbs.

Different from before, I chose herbs that gave off a nice fragrance. But, it was only because the children’s complaints of it being “stinky, too stinky” were too unbearably annoying.