Ch.72Ramune 3

“Um… Thanks for making this for me, but how long do I have to wear it?”

I point to the flower crown on my head.

Anna, walking with me through the crowd, keeps her hands in her pockets and answers firmly.

“Forever.”

Surely not until I die?

It’s not a funeral wreath, after all.

I’m already dying of embarrassment with everyone staring at my head.

Isn’t there a shopping bag or something I could use?

I suddenly look around and my gaze stops at one spot.

A bag.

The problem is it’s not for sale but a prize.

A black backpack sitting as a third-place prize in the middle of the shooting gallery.

It looks like something my little sister would have worn in high school.

But even so, it would be far less embarrassing than walking around with this flower crown on my head.

I quickly link arms with Anna.

“Anna, want to try shooting?”

“Shooting? Why would you do that for fun?”

“Huh? Regular people play with toy guns like that.”

I point to a young man holding a gun for his girlfriend.

Anna watches him with interest.

“I see. How curious. In my time, shooting was just a ‘means to an end.'”

“A means…?”

Various dolls and prizes displayed on the shelf.

I pull her toward the shooting gallery.

“Hello, mister. Twenty shots for us, please.”

The bag is a third-place prize requiring 15 hits out of 20 shots.

It’s quite difficult.

But don’t worry.

I was a perfect marksman in training camp.

Even with a pistol, I should be able to hit 15!

The owner hands us tethered pistols.

I clear my throat and look intently at Anna.

“Should I shoot first?”

“Sure.”

“Prepare to be impressed. Most Koreans have real shooting experience.”

I grip the pistol carefully with both hands.

Then I aim seriously at the small dolls.

“—!”

With a light firing sound, the toy bullet shoots out.

But…

My face quickly turns pale.

“How…?”

I only hit 5 out of 10 shots.

The shooting gallery owner smirks at my performance.

“Tough, isn’t it? Pistol shooting isn’t that easy.”

I only have 10 bullets left.

I need to hit all of them to get the bag…

I look up at Anna with a dejected face.

She picks up the pistol, looks around, and then assumes a real shooting stance.

But her form is a bit unusual…?

She’s not shooting with extended arms.

Her arms are bent with her body and face close together.

The owner smirks at the sight.

Weaver stance.

The shooting gallery owner chuckles, saying he’s seen it somewhere before.

He stands casually with one leg crossed, eager to see the silver-haired foreigner’s skills.

But…

Anna soon puts the pistol back down.

Then she turns to the owner and asks.

“I’d like to use those instead of the pistol.”

The owner and I follow Anna’s finger.

She’s pointing at darts, of all things.

She wants to hit targets with darts when even guns are difficult?

The owner frowns at her suggestion.

After thinking for a moment, he crosses his arms and agrees.

Even if the customer is a hunter, hitting targets directly with darts would be difficult.

She might hit four out of ten at best…

Anna, holding the darts, takes a pitcher’s stance.

Then she extends her elbow and throws with all her might.

“—!”

A dart hits the body of a small rabbit doll.

Another dart sticks into the forehead of a fox doll.

8 points.

10 points… 14 points…

Now for the final throw.

Anna has already hit 9 out of 10 targets in one go.

I can’t help but raise my head in amazement at her throwing skills.

The shooting gallery owner does the same.

We all stare blankly at her white eyes aiming at the target.

How could she hit such small things…

Anna lands the final dart perfectly on the neck of a red snake doll.

The doll wobbles and then falls to the floor.

“1… 15 points…”

The owner mutters.

Anna immediately grabs the bag labeled “3rd Prize.”

Then she hands it to me in its packaging.

But my eyes go to Anna first rather than the bag in my hands.

“Amazing… I only hit 5 shots…”

She shakes her head at my compliment.

Then she makes a gun shape with her fingers to comfort me.

“No. That gun had a bent barrel.”

“The barrel was bent?”

“Yes. That’s why I threw darts instead. The gun wouldn’t hit where you aimed.”

“So, me only hitting 5 shots was…”

As I mutter, Anna nods.

“Right. Hitting 5 is a miracle.”

Her praise makes the corners of my mouth turn up.

That’s what I thought.

“See? I told you I was a perfect marksman! It wasn’t my fault after all!”

As I cross my arms and smile proudly, the corners of Anna’s mouth lift slightly too.

She quietly mutters to herself.

“They really are sisters…”

“Huh?”

When I react to her mumbling, Anna changes the subject.

The killer asks about the bag I’m holding.

“Why do you need the bag anyway?”

She actually knew I was aiming for the bag all along.

“To put this in.”

I answer as I remove the flower crown from my head.

But Anna immediately grabs the crown.

And forcibly puts it back on my head.

“No, it’s too embarrassing to wear outside.”

“Embarrassing?”

Anna tilts her head.

“You know, feeling ashamed and not wanting others to see.”

“China town?”

“Hey, seriously!”

I shout loudly.

Everyone in the shooting gallery, including other customers and the owner, turns to look at me.

With a reddened face, I breathe heavily.

The sudden public attention makes me lower my head.

“Yes, just like then…”

Anna purses her lips at my intense reaction.

I try to steady my breathing and look around.

Then I suddenly make eye contact with the owner who’s brought animal headbands as shooting gallery participation bonuses.

I quickly approach him and point at the headbands.

“Let’s trade for these instead.”

Anna glances at the headbands.

The corners of her mouth turn down slightly.

“Is my gift embarrassing…?”

That question leaves me speechless.

To hear such words from someone who usually gives only short answers.

She got me good.

“I don’t want your gift to get damaged. I’ll keep it safely in the bag!”

Anna presses her lips together, looking displeased.

For her sake, I point out various couples with my finger.

From couples wearing Mickey Mouse ears.

To girls with cat ears, all wearing animal headbands.

“Look, see? Normal people all wear animal headbands at amusement parks.”

“I don’t understand. Do people nowadays want to become animals?”

“Nooo.”

I drag out my voice and clench both hands.

Then I put a squirrel headband on my head.

“Ta-da, cute, right?”

“…”

Finally, Anna nods in agreement.

I put silver wolf ears on her head.

They match well with her hair color.

And… her usually eerie expressionless face looks a bit cute now.

Looking at her like this, she really does look like a pretty college student.

At last, I was able to put the flower crown in the bag.

Now I’ll be less likely to be treated like a crazy person…

Perhaps because the tension has eased, I plop down on a bench.

Anna sits down next to me.

“What shall we do now? Was shooting the only fun activity?”

“No… there are plenty of fun things left.”

I point to the gyro drop and the viking ride.

For Anna, who was probably confined in a facility her whole life, these would be plenty entertaining.

But I’d rather not ride them if possible.

I’ve never ridden such things in my life either… they must be scary, right?

“Then prepare the next plan. I’ll go take a phone call.”

Anna stands up, holding up her phone.

She walks away to answer the call.

What? Anna had a phone all along?

But why hasn’t she asked for my number yet?

That makes me feel left out.

Even that prickly Jeoksa gave me his number first.

My lips pout.

I spend time watching the park crowd until she returns.

A child eating cotton candy while holding their mother’s hand.

Young couples in matching outfits giggling together.

Even though monsters might appear outside, or malicious hunters might be hurting people, it’s so peaceful here.

I don’t dislike that.

It’s reassuring that our country has become a better place to live.

Reassuring…

“…?”

While lost in thought, I feel someone’s gaze.

When I turn my head, a boy I’ve never seen before is sitting next to me, staring.

“Oh, who are you…?”

A young face that looks about ten years old.

And… blue eyes, uncommon among Asians.

Mixed race, perhaps.

Why is he staring at me so intently?

Is there something on my face?

The child ignores my words and takes out his phone.

Then he types rapidly.

Kids these days…

Being ignored even by a child doesn’t feel great.

I click my tongue and wait for Anna to return.

But soon the child taps my shoulder.

He shows me his phone screen.

“Are you lost too?”

What’s this?

Why communicate through text instead of speaking… oh.

I immediately regretted feeling upset with the child.

And carefully answer his question.

“No, I’m waiting for a friend. Why are you alone? Where are your parents…?”

“They were annoying so they left me behind.”

Huh…?

His parents left him behind because they were annoying?

Blue eyes and unable to speak, I understand that.

But this child’s words are also unusual.

“Still, your parents must be waiting. You should go quickly…”

“No. They won’t let me ride the attractions.”

The child does look smaller than others his age.

They’re probably prohibiting him for safety reasons.

“Your parents are just worried you might get hurt.”

“I can ride everything. If I can’t ride attractions at an amusement park, why even come?”

He has a point…?

His direct words leave me speechless.

Still, I need to send him back.

What should I do, take him to the lost children center?

I thought I’d move with Anna when she returns.

But the child soon makes an unexpected proposal.

“Will you help me?”

“How?”

“Ride some attractions with me. They say I can’t ride without a guardian.”

This is troublesome…

Things are starting to get complicated.

I scratch my headband, lost in thought.

Is this child really just lost?

What if his parents actually abandoned him?

I’ve heard there are many children abandoned by their parents in this world where monsters run rampant.

If this child is such a case…

It would be best to send him to a shelter before his parents leave, to try to change their minds.

“How about this?”

“What?”

“Let’s ride just 2 attractions together. Then we go straight to the lost children center. How about that?”

I need to ride attractions with Anna anyway.

It shouldn’t be a problem to ride with one more person.

“Hmm… okay.”

“What’s your name? I’m Siho. Han Siho.”

The child quickly types on his screen.

The white screen reads:

“Lee Jihu. I’m 10 years old.”

Just then, Anna is returning.

I wave to her.

“Who’s that?”

Anna immediately asks about the unfamiliar child.

Could you speak a bit more kindly… you’ll scare the kid!

“This is Jihu. He got separated from his guardian, but he’ll go to the center willingly after riding two attractions with us.”

Anna looks dumbfounded.

Her expression is the same as always, but I could tell by her momentary silence.

“I know… let’s just be his friend for today.”

“You make friends easily.”

“Jihu, say hello. This is my friend, Anna.”

The boy looks up at Anna, who is much taller than me.

But surprisingly, he shows no change in expression when seeing her.

What…?

I was terrified when I first saw her, but this child remains calm.

It feels like seeing a boy version of Anna.

“So, what should we ride first? Carousel? Bumper cars?”

I ask the child with a gentle smile.

He responds through his phone.

“Gyro drop.”

“Uh…?”

No, what ten-year-old wants to ride the gyro drop?

Is he really not scared?

“Um, Jihu… you probably can’t ride the gyro drop because you’re too short.”

He shakes his head at my reasoning.

The child confidently states through text:

“There’s no height restriction. And if there was, wouldn’t you be too short too?”

This little brat…

I grind my molars.

Then, ignoring the child with a snort, I warn him.

“Fine, let’s go see. But if they say no, we’re going straight to the carousel. Got it?”

I confidently lead the way to the gyro drop.

The two expressionless females and the child silently stare at my back before slowly following.

“Our gyro drop has no height restriction-“

In front of the massive ride, the staff member answers me with a bright smile.

I shake my head frantically.

“How can such a dangerous-looking ride have no height restriction?!”

“All rides at Royal Hunter Park have perfect safety mechanisms.”

No way.

I can’t ride something like this!

“Can’t we just ride the carousel instead?”

I turn my trembling neck to look at my companions.

The two expressionless siblings stare at me.

“W-wait a minute…”

Anna drags me by the nape of my neck toward the massive ride.

Jihu also grabs one of my wrists to help her.

“Save me-!”