Chapter 179
A baby beast with tiny horns wriggled its rump.
Its goal for the day was to catch the bird in front of it. Would it succeed this time?
Having failed every single attempt so far, the baby beast was utterly frustrated.
“……”
It cautiously extended its paw. In this moment, it felt like a grown-up. Firmly planting strength in its hind legs, the baby beast leaped—only to be sent tumbling the very next instant when another beast pounced on it.
Flap!
Startled, the bird took flight.
While the baby beast lay sprawled on the ground, trembling in shock, the one who had tackled it grinned so wide it nearly split its face.
“Ah, you again!”
“Surprised? You didn’t even notice I was after you.”
“You made me lose the bird, Shasei!”
It took mere seconds for the two rolling baby beasts to transform into human form.
The boy with leaves tangled in his hair was named Seimin.
The one pinning him down from above was Shasei.
Though they were born almost at the same time, Shasei had arrived first, making her the older sibling. By only two minutes, but still.
They had evenly split their heterochromatic eyes at birth, and aside from their gender, hair length, and the positioning of their eye colors, they were completely identical.
Same build, same height, even the same voice.
Perhaps puberty would change things in the future, but for now, at only six years old, they were practically indistinguishable.
After all, young girls were often bigger than boys their age.
“How are you going to survive if you can’t even catch a single bird? You really do need your big sister, don’t you?”
“You were the one who got in my way! I almost had it this time.”
“Yeah, right. The bird had already noticed you.”
Bickering, the two dashed across the garden.
“Stop right there, Shasei!”
“No way! Catch me if you can!”
Watching the energetic pair race around, the gardeners smiled warmly.
Yes, there was a garden here now. And gardeners to tend it.
The desert still remained, but thanks to Siren and Ananta’s tireless efforts and care, nearly half of this once-barren land had turned green.
The air was no longer suffocatingly hot, nor was the climate as dry. Rain now fell at a reasonable frequency.
To put it simply, the South had become a livable land.
“Princess! Prince!”
Pamilla, the desert mouse, had not changed at all over the years.
With her youthful appearance, she fit right in with Shasei and Seimin.
Aside from their parents—the king and queen—Pamilla was the only one who could track them down whenever they disappeared.
Because she knew every last one of their secret hideouts.
“I knew I’d find you here!”
“Pamilla, want to play house with us?”
“But His Majesty is calling for you…!”
“Mmm, but I just made some delicious flower petal tea.”
There was a lavishly decorated playroom within the royal palace, but at this age, playing outside in nature was much more enjoyable.
As Seimin held out a teacup brimming with pink petals, Pamilla sighed and accepted it, as if she had no other choice.
“Flower petal tea, my foot. You just crushed some petals.”
“Ugh, you’re always picking a fight!”
“But I’m right.”
Behind Seimin, a hammock swayed.
Nestled between several trees and hidden among the grass at the garden’s edge, this spot was the twins’ secret hideout. Shasei had diligently gathered all sorts of things here.
The hammock was just one of them.
“If you keep playing around like this, Eltan will scold you.”
“I’ll do my homework after I finish playing.”
“Suit yourself.”
Shasei flipped through the pages of a book, responding in an irritatingly nonchalant tone, making Seimin puff up his cheeks in frustration. Pamilla, in an attempt to soothe him, pretended to sip the tea.
Shasei was the spitting image of their father.
Her sharp words, her arrogant gaze, the way she looked down on others from above—it was all the same.
She neither relied on nor placed expectations on anyone, standing as a whole, self-sufficient being.
A child who had inherited the blood of the mythic beast in its purest form.
Seimin, on the other hand, was the complete opposite of his twin sister.
He was gentler, softer. More sensitive, with a weaker constitution.
He needed love, thrived on affection, and delighted in both receiving and giving it.
Naturally, this was something he had inherited from their mother.
“Here, take a look at this.”
“What is it?”
“I knew you wouldn’t be able to memorize it, so your big sister made a summary for you.”
At first glance, it might seem like Shasei was just bullying Seimin, but that wasn’t entirely the case.
She had her own way of looking out for him.
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