Chapter 9 - shopping 3
A few moments later, the servers returned carrying a large steaming hot pot.
They carefully placed it in the center of the table before arranging plates of thinly sliced meat, fresh vegetables, mushrooms, tofu, noodles, seafood, and various dipping sauces around it.
The rich aroma immediately filled the air.
Amy and I unconsciously swallowed.
"...It smells amazing."
"It really does," Amy agreed, her ruby eyes sparkling with excitement.
Looking at the steaming broth before me, I couldn’t help but smile.
In my previous life...
Meals like this had always been lonely.
There was no family waiting for me.
No siblings to laugh with.
No one to share a table with.
But now...
Everything was different.
I finally had a family.
A mother who genuinely cared about me.
An older sister who worried about me, teased me, and spoiled me in her own way.
That alone was enough.
No matter what happened in the future...
I would protect this happiness.
That was all I needed.
"Gray."
Amy’s voice pulled me back to reality.
"Hm?"
She lightly flicked my forehead.
"Stop staring at the food."
"It won’t run away."
I rubbed my forehead.
"I was just thinking."
"Oh?"
She narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"What were you thinking about?"
Then a mischievous smile spread across her face.
"Don’t tell me..."
"Were you thinking about a girl already?"
I nearly choked.
"W-What?"
"I’m only seven!"
Amy burst into laughter.
"I’m joking."
I let out a helpless sigh before smiling.
"I was actually thinking..."
"If Mother were here, this meal would be even better."
Amy blinked.
Then her expression softened.
"...You’re right."
An idea suddenly crossed my mind.
"Next time..."
"Let’s bring Mother with us."
"We can all go shopping together."
Amy’s eyes immediately lit up.
"That’s a wonderful idea!"
She leaned closer with a mischievous grin.
"If both of us ask together..."
"Mother definitely won’t refuse."
I couldn’t help grinning.
"Hehe..."
"Hehe..."
The two of us exchanged identical mischievous smiles.
Across the table, Selena silently watched us.
A small chill ran down her spine.
Taking the Matriarch of the Starlight Family shopping...
Under normal circumstances, no one would even dare imagine such a thing.
But...
Looking at the two siblings before her...
She suddenly realized...
There was a frighteningly high chance they might actually succeed.
Silently, she lowered her head and continued preparing her food.
Neither Amy nor I noticed her reaction.
Soon, the three of us began eating.
The rich broth, tender meat, and fresh vegetables blended together perfectly.
Every bite was delicious.
As we continued eating, a mischievous idea suddenly entered my mind.
Without saying a word, I quietly reached across the table and stole a slice of meat from Amy’s bowl.
Then another.
And another.
Amy noticed immediately.
However...
Instead of stopping me...
A dangerous smile slowly appeared on her face.
She calmly picked up a large mushroom.
Then, when I wasn’t looking, she secretly stuffed an entire chili inside before placing it back into the pot.
Selena noticed everything.
Just as she was about to warn me...
Amy placed a finger over her lips.
Selena hesitated.
Then...
She silently looked away.
Meanwhile...
I remained blissfully unaware.
My attention was completely focused on stealing more food.
A few moments later, I spotted the mushroom.
It looked perfectly normal.
Without the slightest suspicion, I picked it up, dipped it into the spicy broth, and popped it into my mouth.
For a second...
Nothing happened.
Then—
"H-Hot!!"
My eyes widened.
It felt like my tongue had burst into flames.
I frantically grabbed my glass of cola and drank it in one gulp.
"W-Water!"
"My tongue!"
Amy couldn’t hold it in anymore.
She burst into uncontrollable laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"Oh, Gray!"
"You actually fell for it!"
"I can’t believe you ate the whole thing!"
She laughed so hard that tears formed in the corners of her eyes.
Even Selena struggled to maintain her usual expression.
A small smile escaped her lips.
Only then did I realize.
"...It was a trap."
Amy nodded proudly.
"You kept stealing my food."
"So I decided to teach you a lesson."
I looked at her resentfully.
"You..."
Seeing my expression only made her laugh harder.
"That face!"
"It’s too cute!"
Before I could escape...
She reached across the table and pinched both of my cheeks.
"Oww!"
"Sister!"
"That hurts!"
"Nope."
Pinch.
Pinch.
Pinch.
"You deserve it, little thief."
While our table was filled with laughter, several drunken men nearby frowned in annoyance.
One of them stood up.
However...
Before he could even take a single step—
Clang.
Selena’s sword moved half an inch from its sheath.
A terrifying pressure instantly spread through the restaurant.
The drunken men froze.
Their eyes immediately landed on the Starlight Family emblem embroidered on Selena’s uniform.
Their faces turned pale.
Without saying another word...
They quietly sat back down before hurriedly leaving the restaurant altogether.
Selena calmly sheathed her sword as if nothing had happened.
Amy and I barely noticed.
With Selena protecting us, neither of us had any reason to worry.
Instead...
Amy continued teasing me.
"So?"
"Have you learned your lesson?"
I pouted.
"I’ll get revenge someday."
"You just wait."
Amy laughed.
"I’ll be looking forward to it."
Throughout the rest of the meal, I made several attempts to sneak spicy food onto Amy’s plate.
Unfortunately...
Every single attempt failed.
Without even looking, she calmly moved each spicy piece back onto my plate.
Before long, a small mountain of spicy food had formed in front of me.
I stared at it in silence.
"..."
After a long moment, I slowly lowered my chopsticks.
Some battles...
Simply weren’t worth fighting.
Especially against a devil disguised as my beautiful older sister.
Amy looked at my defeated expression and burst into laughter once more.
"Hehe..."
"Smart choice, little brother."
I sighed dramatically.
"...One day."
"One day I’ll win."
She simply smiled with complete confidence.
"I’ll be waiting."
Looking at her bright smile...
I couldn’t help smiling as well.
Maybe...
Losing this battle wasn’t so bad after all.