~Chapter 36~
At those words, Mari Egbert didn’t bother hiding her baffled expression.
If you keep bumping into someone and meeting their eyes, even dislike turns into some form of attachment.
Whether that attachment is good or bad didn’t matter—once the lock was removed, any emotion would be fine.
“Don’t you want to see your mother?”
“Huh? Nope.”
Esther answered casually with a cookie in one hand. She saw the two boys’ eyes go round at her answer.
‘Why?’
She stuck her tongue out at them, then quickly pulled it back in when Mari Egbert looked her way, giving a sweet smile.
“Then you must dislike your father too.”
“No?”
Why did everyone keep asking if she disliked him?
“You don’t dislike him?”
“Mm, I don’t dislike or like him.”
“Then what is that Kaelos fellow to you?”
“…What… should he be?”
Did they have a specific answer they wanted to hear?
As Esther frowned, Mari Egbert stopped walking toward the sofa.
“What should he be? Sounds like you’re saying Kaelos means nothing to you.”
“Yes, he’s nothing to me.”
After all, the reason she was stuck in this child’s body was because he’d neglected her. She had no reason to feel anything positive.
Not that she was angry, either—thanks to him, she’d been able to reincarnate.
So she had no real emotions toward him, just a sense of duty to take revenge.
“A father who abandoned his child—what could he possibly be to that child, Grandma?”
Esther answered with eyes far too sharp for a child.
“…”
“So, you don’t need a mother or a father?”
Esther didn’t answer. She really didn’t know what response Mari Egbert was looking for anymore.
‘I’ll just smile.’
As she smiled brightly, Mari Egbert suddenly laughed heartily.
“Good, I like that much about you. You can’t become a great person if you rely on your parents.”
“Yes! I’m a genius! Then I’ll come again tomorrow, Grandma!”
“You think anyone’s going to welcome you? Come every day for a hundred days—see if I bat an eye.”
“Yes!”
Esther beamed and left the office. She had a meeting with Banshee that afternoon.
‘I hope Shiphon passed on the message.’
She’d told her to come to the annex this afternoon.
“Hey!”
She also had to tell Denver to bring pudding for snacks. The caramel pudding he gave her before had been delicious.
“Hey! You skeleton!”
“What?”
The voice came from behind, and then her clothes were grabbed.
Esther stopped with an irritated face.
“What.”
“What, what’s with you! Acting all stupid and grinning in front of Grandma!”
“That’s because it’s Grandma. She’s got power, money, she runs the house. It’s nice to be liked by her.”
And she also had an attractive quest, of course.
“You, you! I’ll tell Grandma everything! You fake, pretentious liar!”
“…I didn’t lie.”
“You did! You think just being cute is enough?!”
“I didn’t lie.”
She was about to turn away in annoyance, but at their last words she stopped and smiled.
‘The one on the left must be a year or two older.’
The taller one was probably the older brother, the shorter one the younger.
The younger seemed more hot-tempered.
Younger siblings tended to have worse tempers anyway.
“You did! Saying you don’t need a father is a lie!”
“Yeah, why lie about not needing your father? And ignoring us—do you know what happens to people who ignore us?”
“I don’t know. Do you know what happens to people who block my way?”
Esther wondered if she should just rain down a day’s worth of invisible magic rats on them.
“We don’t, but we know you should bow your head to us.”
Just as she was gathering magic to summon the invisible rat-cloud, something caught her eye—
Bright red exclamation marks appeared over both their heads. Two of them.
She blinked.
‘Oh, prey.’
Quickly, she dispersed the magic she’d been gathering.
[Dylan Egbert dislikes you.]
[Aaron Egbert finds you repulsive.]
Esther pressed her lips together.
Looking closer, both exclamation marks had locks on them.
‘…Seriously?’
She felt a little dazed.
‘Me… I have to wag my tail at these snot-nosed kids now?’
The genius of the century!
The most powerful Demon King!
The hero with great achievements!
…And now she had to suck up to these brats?
“…Then.”
“What?”
“How should I bow my head?”
She really might go insane.
“…You want to bow your head?”
“Mm!”
“Why?”
“Yeah, why all of a sudden! What’s your scheme?!”
“…”
There was one thing she could say for sure—
“Oh…”
“What?”
“Oh… because I want to be close with my big brothers…”
If there had been a mouse hole, she’d have crawled into it like a dog. If her body had been sturdier, she’d have banged her head against the wall.
“…”
“…”
“…”
As expected, heavy silence fell.
Esther tried hard to hide her flushed face.
“B-big brothers? Who’s your big brother?!”
The first to snap out of it was Dylan—the shorter one on the left.
So he was the younger one, just like she thought.
“Then… what should I call you?”
She muttered with a red face.
Her flushed cheeks and the faint teariness from humiliation were enough to make someone want to hug her right away.
Dylan’s eyes widened, and he took a step back.
When he glanced at Aaron, his brother’s stiff, expressionless face also showed obvious fluster.
“Th-that…!”
“Calm down, Dylan.”
So Aaron was the older brother?
‘…Wait, he’s the older one?’
She’d assumed the taller, calmer one was the older brother—it was a shock.
Humans were supposed to be easy to guess ages for, unlike demons who changed appearances whenever they wanted.
‘…Humans are tricky.’
She never expected the shorter one to be older.
“Hey! You just thought something rude, didn’t you?!”
“N…no…?”
Maybe because her thoughts were exposed, her tongue stumbled. She smiled awkwardly.
“You were thinking I’m short, that I must be the younger one, weren’t you?!”
Wow, he was sharp.
Esther sighed and pretended to take off her bracelet.
“…You be the saint.”
“…What? What are you suddenly talking about? I’m a man—how can I be a saint? I could be a priest, maybe.”
“He means you’re right,” Aaron whispered beside him.
Dylan clenched his fist and flared up.
“Hey! You tiny skeleton!”
“Whoa, don’t be mad, big brother!”
Esther dodged the incoming fist by plopping onto the floor, waving her hands.
She could have easily blocked it with magic, but for now she had to look good to her prey.
“I said I’m not your big brother!”
But even as he shouted, his reddening face made it obvious—
‘He likes it, doesn’t he?’
Did everyone in this family like playing hard to get?
“Still, it’s strange. You were so defiant just now—why the change?”
“Hehe, I thought maybe I’ve always dreamed of having big brothers… because I’ve been alone…”
It was only hypothetical, but she knew it would work—she could see the signs of someone who pushed people away yet craved affection.
Sure enough, the boys’ eyes widened.
“…Nonsense!”
…Or maybe not.
Dylan bared his teeth, growled, and turned sharply away.
“Don’t you think it’s greedy, wanting brothers when you already have everything?”
Aaron, about to follow Dylan, stopped for a moment and muttered—
[Aaron Egbert thinks you are shameless and without conscience.]
The result of swallowing her pride was miserable.
Esther sighed at the parchment floating before her eyes.
‘…Damn it.’
Another complete failure today.
She sighed deeply.
‘I should just go meet Banshee.’
Pouting, Esther turned away without hesitation.
