Kamian treated Leo with open contempt, pushing him aside. Leo staggered back and forth, barely managing to regain his balance, but he couldn’t save the egg he held in his hand. [Crack] The sound of the egg shattering resonated with a sense of futility.
“…How did I drop the egg?”
Leo knelt before him and picked up the broken eggshell. Meanwhile, Kamian fearlessly collected the eggs without flinching, even in the face of the threatening hens.
Nella, who had caught the flu, seemed to know why she always left others behind and only asked Kamian to collect the eggs.
For some reason, I felt sorry for Leo and kneeled in front of him, gathering my knees.
“Would you like to go in first? It’ll be enough for just you and Kamian here.”
To be precise, it would be enough with just Kamian. However, I deliberately included myself, fearing that Leo would ask to go back if I mentioned it.
Leo raised his head resolutely.
“We’ve just started spending time together again. It’s too soon to go back.”
I awkwardly tried to smile.
At that moment, I felt a sudden tension. When I turned around, Kamian was glaring at me with a contemptuous expression. Her gaze conveyed the meaning of “What are you doing instead of working?”
“I was about to do it just now.”
I refused to be treated like Leo was just now.
Yes. Since I have come this far, I should do my share of the work, shouldn’t I? I stared at the chickens with determination. Everything depends on one’s resolve. No matter how notorious those fierce creatures may be, they are just birds with a single-digit IQ. If I let myself be intimidated by such birds, I would become a burden like Leo. Look at Kamian over there. She shows such audacity, completely ignoring the chickens, who open their yellow eyes wide and remain vigilant. Thanks to her, Kamian’s basket was filled with eggs.
I gathered my determination and took a strong step towards the chicken coop.
However… As I got closer to the flock of chickens, my footsteps grew increasingly timid. Eventually, I tiptoed as if I were a stealthy thief sneaking over the wall of a wealthy house at midnight.
“Ah! Help me… Liv, Kamian…, Ugh!”
Leo, exposed by the chickens, collapsed helplessly under their indiscriminate pecking. The aggressive hens flapped their wings and fluttered their feathers as they attacked, and Leo found himself trapped beneath four of them, screaming in the dust and dirt. I clenched my fists as I witnessed that dreadful sight. I didn’t even think about going to his rescue. I only learned the lesson of “This should never happen.” It made my footsteps even more cautious.
I glided as if I were a ballerina, treading ever so quietly on the tips of my toes. Lowering my body as much as possible, I effortlessly blended into the crowd, feeling a kinship with you all. The chickens, with single-digit IQs, were oblivious to anything out of the ordinary, merely bobbing their heads back and forth and aimlessly wandering.
Seizing the opportunity, I reached into a pile of extinguished embers. As soon as my fingers touched the warm egg, a sense of triumph surged through me, and I delicately transferred it into the basket. There lay a single egg in the basket. Though it wasn’t one I had personally laid, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride and fulfilment. It was as if I had vanquished a fierce dragon and rescued a prince.
Once difficult, but now with a growing confidence, I even added a rhythm to my steps, following the chickens’ bobbing heads. Kamian pretends to be superior while doing something so simple. (I’ve never pretended to be superior.) I chuckled and daringly continued transferring the eggs.
“Swoosh?”
At that moment, a disconcerting sound reached my ears from not too far away. My body, just moments before flowing with the melody, abruptly stiffened like a robot. With great effort, I turned my still head to look beside me.
“……!”
I barely held back a scream that threatened to make me fall backward.
Covered in rough feathers, a crimson face, round and enigmatic orbs of intense yellow that seemed to lack focus. And a sharp beak that would surely cause immense pain if it were to pierce. All these features were directed at me. The chickens twisted their necks eerily and stared at me.
Then, the heads suddenly jerked downward. The terrifyingly gleaming eyes of the chicken precisely met the egg.
“…I’m doomed.”
Flapping, flapping! The infuriated creature, unable to fly, spread its wings. Its appearance sent shivers down my spine more than any horror movie.
“Swoosh! [Cluck, cluck, cluck!]”
Shrieking with all its might, it rushed towards me recklessly. No, it soared towards me. Who spread the rumour that chickens can’t fly? If that thing isn’t me, then what on earth am I? I pounded the ground with all my might, while clutching the basket tightly with both arms.
I sincerely apologize for considering Leo a nuisance when he was being chased by the chickens. Now, I truly understood the terror he must have felt as he ran. I fought back tears, rolled my eyes, and instinctively searched for Kamian. She was the only one who could save me from this hell.
“Ahh, Kamian!”
Gasping for breath, I called out with rough, laboured breaths. Kamian, who had been in the midst of placing the basket of eggs down, belatedly turned to look at me, furrowing her eyebrows.
With the basket firmly grasped in one hand, I opened my arms wide. Kamian approached with wide strides, lifted me up effortlessly, and cradled me in her familiar embrace.
“Swoosh! Cluck!”
Closing my eyes tightly against the chilling sound of the chicken, I clung tightly to Kamian’s neck. Worried that the chicken might peck at my legs, I wrapped my two legs around her waist. As soon as I nestled against Kamian’s body like a magnet, she turned herself to shield me from the chicken’s line of sight.
The chicken roamed around, clucking, but soon distanced itself from us, hopping away. Only then did its rigid body slacken.
“Is it gone?”
Kamian treated Leo with open contempt, pushing him aside. Leo staggered back and forth, barely managing to regain his balance, but he couldn’t save the egg he held in his hand. [Crack] The sound of the egg shattering resonated with a sense of futility.
“…How did I drop the egg?”
Leo knelt before him and picked up the broken eggshell. Meanwhile, Kamian fearlessly collected the eggs without flinching, even in the face of the threatening hens.
Nella, who had caught the flu, seemed to know why she always left others behind and only asked Kamian to collect the eggs.
For some reason, I felt sorry for Leo and kneeled in front of him, gathering my knees.
“Would you like to go in first? It’ll be enough for just you and Kamian here.”
To be precise, it would be enough with just Kamian. However, I deliberately included myself, fearing that Leo would ask to go back if I mentioned it.
Leo raised his head resolutely.
“We’ve just started spending time together again. It’s too soon to go back.”
I awkwardly tried to smile.
At that moment, I felt a sudden tension. When I turned around, Kamian was glaring at me with a contemptuous expression. Her gaze conveyed the meaning of “What are you doing instead of working?”
“I was about to do it just now.”
I refused to be treated like Leo was just now.
Yes. Since I have come this far, I should do my share of the work, shouldn’t I? I stared at the chickens with determination. Everything depends on one’s resolve. No matter how notorious those fierce creatures may be, they are just birds with a single-digit IQ. If I let myself be intimidated by such birds, I would become a burden like Leo. Look at Kamian over there. She shows such audacity, completely ignoring the chickens, who open their yellow eyes wide and remain vigilant. Thanks to her, Kamian’s basket was filled with eggs.
I gathered my determination and took a strong step towards the chicken coop.
However… As I got closer to the flock of chickens, my footsteps grew increasingly timid. Eventually, I tiptoed as if I were a stealthy thief sneaking over the wall of a wealthy house at midnight.
“Ah! Help me… Liv, Kamian…, Ugh!”
Leo, exposed by the chickens, collapsed helplessly under their indiscriminate pecking. The aggressive hens flapped their wings and fluttered their feathers as they attacked, and Leo found himself trapped beneath four of them, screaming in the dust and dirt. I clenched my fists as I witnessed that dreadful sight. I didn’t even think about going to his rescue. I only learned the lesson of “This should never happen.” It made my footsteps even more cautious.
I glided as if I were a ballerina, treading ever so quietly on the tips of my toes. Lowering my body as much as possible, I effortlessly blended into the crowd, feeling a kinship with you all. The chickens, with single-digit IQs, were oblivious to anything out of the ordinary, merely bobbing their heads back and forth and aimlessly wandering.
Seizing the opportunity, I reached into a pile of extinguished embers. As soon as my fingers touched the warm egg, a sense of triumph surged through me, and I delicately transferred it into the basket. There lay a single egg in the basket. Though it wasn’t one I had personally laid, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride and fulfilment. It was as if I had vanquished a fierce dragon and rescued a prince.
Once difficult, but now with a growing confidence, I even added a rhythm to my steps, following the chickens’ bobbing heads. Kamian pretends to be superior while doing something so simple. (I’ve never pretended to be superior.) I chuckled and daringly continued transferring the eggs.
“Swoosh?”
At that moment, a disconcerting sound reached my ears from not too far away. My body, just moments before flowing with the melody, abruptly stiffened like a robot. With great effort, I turned my still head to look beside me.
“……!”
I barely held back a scream that threatened to make me fall backward.
Covered in rough feathers, a crimson face, round and enigmatic orbs of intense yellow that seemed to lack focus. And a sharp beak that would surely cause immense pain if it were to pierce. All these features were directed at me. The chickens twisted their necks eerily and stared at me.
Then, the heads suddenly jerked downward. The terrifyingly gleaming eyes of the chicken precisely met the egg.
“…I’m doomed.”
Flapping, flapping! The infuriated creature, unable to fly, spread its wings. Its appearance sent shivers down my spine more than any horror movie.
“Swoosh! [Cluck, cluck, cluck!]”
Shrieking with all its might, it rushed towards me recklessly. No, it soared towards me. Who spread the rumour that chickens can’t fly? If that thing isn’t me, then what on earth am I? I pounded the ground with all my might, while clutching the basket tightly with both arms.
I sincerely apologize for considering Leo a nuisance when he was being chased by the chickens. Now, I truly understood the terror he must have felt as he ran. I fought back tears, rolled my eyes, and instinctively searched for Kamian. She was the only one who could save me from this hell.
“Ahh, Kamian!”
Gasping for breath, I called out with rough, laboured breaths. Kamian, who had been in the midst of placing the basket of eggs down, belatedly turned to look at me, furrowing her eyebrows.
With the basket firmly grasped in one hand, I opened my arms wide. Kamian approached with wide strides, lifted me up effortlessly, and cradled me in her familiar embrace.
“Swoosh! Cluck!”
Closing my eyes tightly against the chilling sound of the chicken, I clung tightly to Kamian’s neck. Worried that the chicken might peck at my legs, I wrapped my two legs around her waist. As soon as I nestled against Kamian’s body like a magnet, she turned herself to shield me from the chicken’s line of sight.
The chicken roamed around, clucking, but soon distanced itself from us, hopping away. Only then did its rigid body slacken.
“Is it gone?”
