Chapter 3 The Fireplace: Childhood, Orphan's Bitter Tears...

The carefree days were over, and Kujavina began teaching the remaining children literacy and swordsmanship.

"Children, if you were to write an essay titled 'My Favorite Person,' who would you write about?"

"Of course, it's about writing about Mother!"

The blonde little girl was the first to respond, raising her hand high and answering, "My mother raises us, gives us delicious food, soft beds, and is so gentle and kind. I love my mother the most!"

Jiro: "Me too! Oriz, don't answer me first!"

“I love my mother too.” Clementine shyly clutched the soft bell pendant on her chest.

Even Peruvieri gave a small "hmm".

Amidst his mother's satisfied smile, the children's innocent echoes rose and fell like waves, with only Mainkuen's downy ears twitching in the din. He bit the pen with his sharp teeth, dipped the tip of his tail in ink, and scribbled wildly on the manuscript paper, leaving a string of messy ink spots.

How do you spell the word "brother" again?

"Wow, I'm so happy that everyone likes me so much."

Kujavina gently ruffled the orange hair accessory on Oriz's head.

"But today, I'm not allowed to write about my mother as my favorite person. If everyone writes about me, it won't be creative."

"Write about your brothers, write about your sisters, and if you don't have either, write about your favorite things, your favorite things to do..."

Come on, hand over all your weaknesses and vulnerabilities to me.

*

"Does that mean I have to choose one of my siblings to write?"

After class, Oriz pouted angrily.

"No, I still want to write about my mother. My favorite person is my mom!"

"Keep your voice down." Tommy, the little boy who arrived around the same time as her, immediately put his finger to his lips.

"You know that your mother doesn't like being called 'Mom,' right?"

“I know, but—I just want to call you that! Don’t you feel really safe just saying it out loud?”

MAMA, a magical word. As long as children utter it, hunger, loneliness, pain, and all sadness will vanish like mist.

Anyone can use this magic except for orphans.

It's no use for an orphan to scream until their throat is hoarse.

But things are different now! Oriz has a mother!

"I want to write about my mom!" The blonde girl, with her bubble orange hair accessory on her head and bright eyes, held a pencil and began to write, little by little.

"I want to write about my mother's red hair, beautiful eyes, and..."

"I just can't do anything with you."

How could Tommy, also an orphan, not understand Oriz's thoughts? He gave up trying to persuade her, glanced around at his brothers and sisters, and casually decided on the subject of his writing.

Let's pick the most eye-catching one; it'll be easier to write.

*

As Kujavina expected, the vast majority of the kids wrote about their best friends.

For example, his useless daughter and Peruvéli.

But there was one thing that still surprised the executive.

"So many people like Mainkuhn?"

He was clearly a dangerous child, like a wild beast, who felt no remorse for killing people, and whose appearance was also different from that of ordinary people.

Why?

"Because he's strong and good at fighting!" Jiro said.

That's true.

The mother wholeheartedly agreed.

"For no particular reason, he was the first person I thought of."

Tommy scratched his head:

"After all, he looks quite handsome, and I like the color of his hair."

His hair was gray on top and white on the bottom, with tiger stripes all over his head.

"She also has a straightforward personality."

Good personality? Perhaps you should listen to what you're saying.

The mother tried hard to control her eye-rolling.

"He shared his orange juice with me!" Such a small favor.

"Fluffy, hehe." Pervert.

"He's funny!" ? You're crazy.

"Because... he's different from us." Someone turned to look at the cat, who was shamelessly sharpening its nails on the table. Among all the children sitting upright, it was so out of place.

It's not just their appearance that's different.

"...Maine always seemed very free."

They cry immediately when they are sad, laugh loudly when they are happy, and protest and complain loudly when they are angry. They never tolerate or hide anything.

They were completely different from the orphans in the House of Hearths.

The mother couldn't understand what she was saying.

"Huh? There are people who like Mainkuhn? He looks so weird." Some children stuck out their tongues and secretly rolled their eyes.

Okay, there are some exceptions, but generally speaking, there's no need to worry about them.

“Mainkuhn.” Kujavina picked up a piece of paper with ink stains and silver-gray fuzz on it with disdain.

What are you writing?

"Reporting to Mother, I don't know how to write many words."

After sharpening its claws, the cat began cleaning the ink off its tail, leaving black stains all over its face. "So I drew my brother on it! Does it look like him?"

...He can't even write, yet he's quite ruthless in his dealings with his master.

Want to train a docile slave? Now they're more like ignorant wild beasts.

Kujavina felt a headache coming on and impatiently flipped through the next child's homework.

The title, "My Favorite Person—My Mother," is written in neat pencil.

I love everything about my mother. I love Mom's (crossed out) red hair, it's beautiful and warm, and I also love my mother's...

Many likes overlapped, compressing into the final sentence.

I love you, Mom.

The little hand tentatively reached out in front of the sugar jar, secretly dipping its index finger in a little honey.

"Oliz".

"Yes, Mother!"

The child jumped up eagerly; she had been waiting for this moment for far too long.

"You wrote this."

"Yes!"

“Come here, child.”

The mother tapped on the lectern.

"good!"

Bright yellow quickly stood up from its seat, passed through its brothers and sisters, and skipped forward.

Will my mom be happy to see this article? Will she be excited? Will she hug me with a smile?

“Mother—” the orphan smiled.

"Smack!"

A resounding slap landed on his face.

"...Mother?"

The honey tasted bitter and smelly when I put it in my mouth.

The sound of paper tearing filled the air, and many mothers, many lead-gray fragments of mothers, scattered all over the ground.

"Disobedient."

The executive officer's gaze swept indifferently over the child in front of him.

“Peruvéli, stand up and read your model essay.”

"...Yes, Mother."

Her mother ignored her, and her siblings avoided her gaze. Little Ori stood awkwardly on the platform for a while before hesitantly taking a few steps toward her seat. Finally, she lowered her head and went back to pick up the scraps of paper at her mother's feet.

No matter when or why.

None of you should disobey me.

Human orphans seem to understand, yet not quite, the subtle hints in their mothers' actions.

Except for Mainkuhn.

Why did you hit her?!

The half-demon slammed his fist on the table and stood up.

"You also hate Oriz's bubble orange hair accessory? That's not all—wow!"

The classroom door opened, and the cat was thrown out of the classroom.

"Keep reading."

"...Yes, Mother."

*

"Why did Mother throw me out, Pepe? Clay?" Mainkuen asked his friends angrily, his tail puffed out and ears pressed down.

“It’s because… because…” Clementine didn’t know how to explain it to the cat.

"It's probably because you didn't raise your hand and call out 'Report!'"

Peruvéli remained unfazed.

"Ah! Raise your hand! I was so angry, I forgot."

Maine counted the precautions on her fingers: "Raise your hand when asking questions, going to the toilet, or giving a report; greet people before and after class; don't run away when you see someone, you have to say hello... There are so many human etiquette rules."

Although she complained about the trouble, Xiaomei was very serious:

"I won't forget next time! Thank you, Pepe!"

After he left, Clementine immediately grabbed her best friend's shoulders and shook her vigorously: "Why did you lie! We believed whatever that idiot said!"

“When I try to explain it to him, he has a hard time understanding.”

Peipei, feeling guilty, let her shake her:

"If he doesn't understand, he'll definitely go to his mother for confirmation, and if that happens, I have a feeling something terrible will happen... It's better to just brush him off for now. After all, he's always been very eager to 'be more human,' hasn't he..."

*

"Ugh..."

Unlike Mainkun's heart-wrenching, tearful crying, Oriz was more sensitive and her sobs were always soft and quiet, hidden under the moonlight.

Is daring to wail unrestrainedly... also a difference between being loved and not being loved?

Peruvée lay expressionless on her small bed, deep in thought; her strange pupils appeared even more lifeless in the darkness.

Although the crying around him wasn't loud, and only faint breathing could be heard, the future servant felt even more agitated than when he had tried to soothe the cat last time.

Oriz, it's okay to cry out loud, after all, many people are still awake.

For example, Clementine next to me is secretly holding my hand.

'Let's go? Let's comfort her?'

'No...don't pinch me, I don't want to go.'

Clementine started kicking Pepe's leg.

'If you keep crying like this, your eyes will definitely hurt a lot tomorrow!'

"Crying is her own choice; if it hurts, she should just bear it."

Pepe stiffened her body and pretended to be dead.

'How cold-hearted! Are you even an adult?'

Clementine began to massage Pepe's waist.

'Come with me—'

Pfft... Peipei held her breath and remained motionless.

persist in--

Oriz was both shy and proud—unlike Maine, who was easy to coax.

Just as Peipei was about to master her supernatural skills, she suddenly saw two bright yellow light bulbs flashing a few times in mid-air outside the dark bedroom.

It's so bright! Who plucked the stars into the house?

...It seems to be getting closer and closer to us.

......

etc.

What is that?!

How could there possibly be stars in a room?

The little girl with black and white hair rolled over and stood protectively in front of Clementine's bed, then picked up the bunny doll and threw it at the light!

"Get away!"

"Meow!!"

After a scream, the soft sobbing stopped abruptly.

Oh no!

Pepe then realized that there were no stars at all. They were clearly Mainkun's large eyes—the half-demon's round pupils reflecting an eerie yellow light in the darkness.

"Ouch—it hurts—"

"!...What's wrong?" Oriz peeked out from under the covers, her cheeks flushed as she looked at Pepe, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Did I wake you up?"

"...No! Did you say anything? I didn't hear you."

Peipei forced herself to remain calm and quickly raised her finger to take the initiative.

"Mainkuhn made too much noise coming in. What were you doing out in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

"Huh? Me?"

The cat blinked in confusion, and a yellow light flashed twice in the darkness.

"Am I making a lot of noise?"

"Yes, yes! Hehehe, look, you woke me up!"

Seeing Oriz's flushed face, Clementine hurriedly waved her hands frantically.

"You spoke? I didn't hear you!"

"I see."

The blush on the blonde girl's face faded considerably in an instant. After quietly wiping away her tears with the blanket, she immediately adopted a strong demeanor:

"You rascal! You're causing trouble again in the middle of the night? What did you scratch this time? The curtains? The sofa? Or the tablecloth?"

"Ah, not this time."

As her sisters grew increasingly bewildered, Maine pulled a pigeon from her sleeve.

"I'm going hunting, I'm hungry."

"Coo coo".

!! ? ? ? ?

"This is so strange!"

The childish complaints could no longer be contained, and several more little ones jumped out of bed.

"There's bread in the kitchen if you're hungry!"

"And cookies!" "Fruit!" "Chocolate!"

"Let her go! She just likes to coo, what's wrong with that!"

"I don't like any of these... Huh? Did I wake you all up?"

Under Oriz's astonished gaze, the children exchanged glances and, without hesitation, shifted the blame onto their innocent brother.

"Yes! It's because you're too noisy!"

*

The cat was led into the kitchen with its ears drooping.

"If you only eat pure meat, you'll definitely get hungry in the middle of the night! After all, the supply is limited!" Clementine would still stubbornly lecture the cat, while Pepe had already started rummaging through the refrigerator.

"He won't listen."

"I'm so noisy...so hungry...I'm so noisy...so hungry...I'm so noisy...so hungry..."

Between hunger and frustration, instinct prevailed.

"Meat~" The pigeon turned its head, revealing two rows of tiny, sharp teeth in its red eyes, "Ah~"

"Coo coo coo coo!!"

"Stop right now!"

Tommy and Oriz grabbed the clever fur on the tip of the cat's ear and plucked it. "Even though you look like this, you're still human! Don't do such strange things!"

"!"

What did you just say?

Tommy: "? Don't do such strange things?"

"No, you just praised me for being human!"

Oriz: "? Praise? Isn't that the truth?"

“You didn’t call me a monster, but a human like my brother!”

Maine got excited on her own and leaned over to rub against the two children.

"My good friends, I like you all."

Upon hearing Maine's words, the children's eyes instantly filled with sympathy and pity.

"...They must have been ostracized. How pitiful."

Clay wiped away her tears with heartache.

Peruvéli, holding the raw bird eggs she had just unearthed: "..."

I can understand those people quite well.

After boiling a dozen or so bird eggs, they were soaked in cold water, and the children quietly shared them amidst the cooing of pigeons.

"I'm sorry, Little Maine."

Pepe peeled one and put it in Maine's bowl.

"?What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry, Mei-yin!"

Clementine peeled one too.

"??"

"Oh...I'm sorry, Myne."

Tommy peeled one too.

"Huh? Huh??"

Pepe, Clementine, and Tommy exchanged a glance, tacitly refraining from offering any explanation to the cat.

I'm sorry, Mei.

It wasn't noisy at all when you came in.

We deliberately framed you... We're sorry...

The cat looked at the three eggs in the bowl, along with the one it had peeled itself.

I can't finish this either.

He glanced at the blonde girl across from him, who was also looking confused. She was holding an egg and was unsure whether to give it to Maine.

"Oliz, eat more."

The cat strikes first, stuffing the egg into the other's bowl.

"Huh? Shouldn't I be the one giving it to you? Isn't this backwards—"

"You won't feel sad once you're full."

"Huh!? You idiot Maine! I'm not sad!"

The little girl's ears turned bright red instantly, and she picked up the pigeon coop to shield her face.

"Keep a close eye on your pigeons! Feed them well... they might be able to deliver messages to your brother!"

"Really?!" The cat's tail instantly stood up excitedly: "Good pigeons! I won't eat you anymore!"

"Coo coo".

The pigeons remained silent, only pecking at the corn kernels.

There were no more peaceful times like that; only misfortune was creeping closer and closer to the innocent children.

*

After a routine swordsmanship competition.

"Little Mayin, you're amazing! You won again."

The wooden sword fell to the ground, and the boy Rongnuoke, who had lost the fight, slumped to the ground with a smile on his face.

"So as punishment, let me brush your fur!"

"...oh!"

Why is this guy so agitated even though he lost?

The cat, looking bewildered, placed its silver-gray tail, with black tabby stripes, into its brother's arms.

"Yay, it's so fluffy!"

"Is this really a good thing? It's a spark of hope."

As the children cheered, Kujavina suddenly appeared and reached out to brush the tail from Rongnok's hand.

"There's no need to be gentle with unburnt ash."

"?" The kitten was confused.

Under the watchful eyes of all the children, the mother reached out and touched the head of Peruvian—the victor.

"You are a spark, a hope chosen from among millions."

Next, the mother patted Jiro—the challenger—on the shoulder.

"You are the fuel, an indispensable presence."

Finally, the mother showed a look of disgust towards Rongnock, the mediocre one who lost to Mainkun.

"You are scum, worthless trash."

The executive officer's initial observation has concluded, and the children have been clearly categorized into three levels: superior, middle, and inferior, with distinct strengths and weaknesses.

"Go kneel down before the flame, you piece of trash."

A note from the author:

----------------------

Write like crazy!

I might be revising the copywriting soon... It's so hard to write copy, sob sob!

So many familiar names—I'm so happy—