22. Snowball Fight

22. Snowball Fight

“Seol-ah, did you sleep….”

Another strong and good morning!

I casually brushed off Sister’s morning greeting and, at tremendous speed, opened my bedroom door and ran out, sticking close to the living room window to gaze outside.

Outside, the five snow wolves that Sister and I made yesterday stood proudly. The snow that fell overnight had piled up, making them a bit plump, but they were still perfect.

Mother wolf, Father wolf, Sister wolf, my wolf, and… wolf?

I only made four wolves?

“Huk!”

It’s the fox!

The fox was standing still next to the snow wolves in a similar pose!

No wonder it was small for a wolf. It wasn’t a wolf. It tricked me for a moment, just like a sly fox.

The fox, with a proud expression that made me want to smack it, was showing off among the snow wolves. It probably thinks it’s a wolf. Hmph, what a foolish fox.

It probably couldn’t come yesterday because I was with Sister all day, and instead, it came to me early this morning.

The fox maintained its silly grin for a long time, pretending to be a wolf. Then, it noticed me sticking to the window and ran straight towards me.

The fox stuck out its tongue and panted, looking at me.

I stuck out my tongue and stuck it out at the fox.

The fox, as if not to be outdone, panted its tongue even more vigorously.

I stick my tongue out even harder!

“Beeeee~”

A fierce battle of nerves unfolded across the glass. As the blood feud intensified without signs of ending, a mediator finally arrived.

“Seol-ah, the window isn’t for eating.”

“I wasn’t trying to eat it! The fox over there stuck its tongue out at me, so I… huh?”

When I turned my head from Sister’s embrace, the fox had already vanished without a trace. Only the small footprints left on the snow spoke of the fox’s presence. But even those soon disappeared without a trace, covered by the falling snow from the sky.

“Did you want to see if the snow wolves were okay that much?”

“Mmm….”

“Hoo hoo, Sister was so surprised when Seol-ah suddenly ran out.”

Sister said this while stroking my tail with her hand. The fluffy, spread-out tail fur gradually settled down. Although the effect was less than with a real comb, the sensation of my tail being groomed was still unbelievably good.

My body shivered.

“Sister, Sister.”

“Yes?”

“Are we going hunting today?”

On the way to breakfast, holding Sister’s hand, I called out to Sister repeatedly and asked.

Sister stroked my head with her other hand and replied.

“No. We’re not going today because the weather might turn bad.”

“I think we went out in this kind of weather last time….”

“… At that time, we were a bit short on food. We got a lot of food then, so we have some leeway for a while.”

Ughhh.

I need to show the villagers my magnificent hunting skills as soon as possible. My last hunt was incomplete because I fainted, so I am determined to succeed brilliantly in the next hunt.

“Huh?”

On the way, I suddenly saw Sister’s and Dad’s swords leaning against the wall. They always hide them in high places where I can’t reach them, saying they’re dangerous if I touch them, so it’s strange that they’re out in the open like this.

Also, the atmosphere in the house felt chaotic, like just before going out. Sister said she wasn’t going hunting today, but this scene clearly….

Huk!

“Sister, you were trying to trick me!”

“Wh-what?”

Sister’s expression showed guilt. Although she seemed to be trying hard not to show it through her expression, the moment her tail shot up, I had already figured it all out. I know all of Sister’s habits when she lies!

Sister lied to me, making it seem like our family wasn’t going out today. But if you leave such obvious evidence out in the open, even a fox would be caught, right? Let alone the intelligent wolf Rang Seol-ah.

As expected, Sister started making excuses, flustered.

“No, well, Seol-ah, actually….”

“If you wanted to make snow wolves that badly, you should have told me!”

“Huh?”

The four dignified snow wolves I made yesterday seemed to have made a huge impression on my family. Faced with magnificent works of art, they were apparently overcome with the urge to create something similar!

But if they admitted to being impressed by a child’s work, they would be embarrassed, so they must have planned to leave me playing inside the house and secretly go out to make snow wolves that copied my creations.

Hoo hoo, there’s no need to be so embarrassed!

It’s common to be moved by beautiful works of art. There’s no law that says a child’s artwork can’t be beautiful.

“Let’s eat quickly, Sister! Then I’ll teach you in detail how to make snow wolves!!”

“Uh, uh. Okay.”

I hurried and pushed Sister.

——

“Hoo hoo.”

I couldn’t help but smile as I ate, not expecting even Dad and Mom to be captivated by the magnificence of these snow wolves. I couldn’t contain my laughter.

Sister looked at me, laughing at the dining table, with a somewhat displeased expression. She seemed worried I might spill food.

But that won’t happen. I have to eat until my belly is full to grow as tall as Sister. Spilling food wastefully is unacceptable.

As I started picking up meat and stuffing it into my mouth, Sister subtly gestured towards Dad. Dad responded with a twitch of his eye, and Sister frowned, then turned her gaze back to Mom.

Mom wore a smile that made it hard to read her thoughts. Seeing that, Sister made a sulky face, then suddenly realized I was staring at her and quickly changed her expression back to her usual gentle one.

“Seol-ah, is it delicious?”

“Yes!”

Compared to the sweet Ice fruit, it’s a bit less flavorful, but that’s because Ice fruit has an overwhelmingly superior taste. Our home cooking is definitely delicious.

My bowl was soon empty. Lick, lick, I licked the plate clean, then patted my round, full belly and exhaled.

As the family’s meal was drawing to a close, Sister said.

“Seol-ah, shall we have a snowball fight today…?”

“Huh?”

I had planned to make snow wolves with the family today, but did she forget? And then she suggests a snowball fight. Sister is dependable, but sometimes she acts like a child.

But fortunately, Sister has a very cool, strong, and reliable younger sibling!

I thumped my chest and told Sister.

“Sister, today we have to make snow wolves with Mom and Dad!”

Sister’s tail twitched stiffly. A suin’s tail reflects their inner thoughts, and the movement of this tail showed that Sister was quite flustered.

She seemed embarrassed that she had forgotten and that I, her younger sibling, had pointed it out.

Sister rolled her eyes back and forth, then opened her mouth.

“Seol-ah.”

“Yes!”

“Seol-ah is a cool wolf, right?”

“Yes!!”

I am a cool wolf! As I proudly showed my confidence by raising my big tail high in the sky, Sister continued.

“Wolves are fast and strong, right?”

“Of course!”

This is even in my favorite picture book. Huk, come to think of it, I forgot to take the book out of my tail when I bathed last time. I should always carry it with me!

“Since Seol-ah is a fast, strong, and incredibly cool wolf, she can dodge everything coolly and swiftly during a snowball fight, right?”

“Yes!!!”

“Sister really, really wants to see Seol-ah dodging snow in an amazing way, so can’t we play together today?”

“Yes!!!!”

Hoo hoo hoo, if Sister asks so earnestly, I have no choice. Although it’s a shame, I’ll have to postpone the special lecture on making snow wolves for Mom and Dad.

Sister gestured towards Dad. Dad sighed in response and quietly headed to the living room. He seemed disappointed about not being able to make snow wolves.

I’m sorry, Mom and Dad!

“Well then, Seol-ah, let’s go have a snowball fight with Sister.”

“Yes, I’m looking forward to it!”

To show Sister the scene she wanted to see, I needed to prepare. Since it would involve vigorous movements, I had to warm up my body.

I stood with my arms spread, striking a T-pose. Then I leaned my body, left and right, and then leaned the other way, left and right. I extended my upper body forward and wagged my butt. I could feel my muscles loosening.

A child’s body is flexible. That’s why I could strike such strange poses. I lifted one leg as high as the sky, making my body form a straight line. If you only look at my leg, it looks like the letter I.

Feeling proud of my flexible body, Sister tapped my shoulder and said.

“Seol-ah, you shouldn’t do poses like that when other people are around, okay?”

“Huh? Okay!”

I don’t know why Sister is saying this. Hmm, maybe she wants to keep my perfect form all to herself.

Anyway, after diligently stretching in front of Sister, I, fully warmed up, excitedly ran out of the house. For some reason, the swords leaning against the wall were gone, but it wasn’t as important as the snowball fight.

“Sister!”

With my cute hands, I patted and rolled snow, making a ball about the size of my fist. The moment Sister followed me out the door, I threw snow at her.

It was the beginning of a snowball fight.