"Nolen~? Anna wants to play with mama~!" a male voice rang in the surrounding room filled with papers and things that looked important just from a glance.
The male with black hair and shining red eyes picked up from the door and smiled at the woman buried in the pile of papers.
In this large room, sitting on a large table with papers of different colors, sizes, and shapes, she looked through them at a speed that seemed unreal.
This was a lady that shined in the gentle sunlight coming from the window behind her.
Her angelic look, her shining hair, and those eyes that were exhausted but, at the mention of that name, rejuvenated instantly.
Putting down the peculiar-looking fountain pen with a strange bird drawn on it, she stood up with a cool expression.
Looking at the man, she winked, and he smiled, understanding what was going through his beloved wife's mind.
Though he said nothing, the man wasn't alone.
There was someone with this father in a pink kitchen gown painted with chocolate.
She could see the fresh stains and… the bright smile on his face gave him away.
As if this situation was normal, she stood up and walked up to the man with silent footsteps.
Even though she tiptoed to this door, her dignity and diligence in every action were unparalleled and that special smile on her face was unique, too.
What she was smiling mischievously at was the man and... the little one hiding behind him.
Reaching the door, she bend down and peered out of the cracked open door and said, "Booo!"
"Aaaaaa!" a young cry echoed after her little prank and the man pushed the door open.
He came in and she looked at the tiny figure that had fallen to the ground from the shock.
This sight made her smile the happiest smile she could ever make.
A smile filled with love and the genuine feeling in the smile didn't need words to express her love.
Her motherly love which had lived on through her after the incident that happened almost three years ago.
But, she was happy at this moment as she was looking at her lovely daughter that had fallen to the ground from the surprise.
"Awww~, mama finds me every time~!! Daddy is definitely cheating on me!" she grumbled as she accepted her mom's hand to stand back up.
This was a little girl, a little fairy would be better to call this amazing child.
Her dark hair danced in the light breeze of the fine morning, her red eyes that were darker and cleaner than her dad, and the eyes... that seemed as if jewels.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtReal jewels in the place of eyes and gems that seem priceless from just a look.
Her long eyelashes and her angelic appearance, which was the same as her mother's, were splendid.
She wore a sky blue dress.
A small dress with white ribbons around it that looked so cute that everyone would want to love this child.
She had a smile far more magical than her mother and her grumpy look after being found out... was priceless.
"Dad cheated on my darling Anna? Oh my, look like we will have to punish him for this, right?" she said in a genuine voice as she picked up her little angle.
Looking at the father with her mischievous smile, she kissed the fluffy cheeks of her daughter.
Her tired appearance was gone, and she had recovered her fatigue just from this small interaction.
Her daughter was thoughtful and smart for her age.
Not as her big brother but, better than a most normal child of her age.
She was the most normal kid in this house and at the same time, the most precious one.
She was normal in most ways, but unlike her big brothers and sister, she didn't have any outstanding talent.
But the thing she possessed was something that was more valuable than their talents.
But there was no need to worry about that.
No harm could reach her in this place, and she was happily growing up with her family.
The little girl looked at her mother with a sad look that was unforeseen to her mom.
Looking into her mom's eyes, she kissed her with her delicate lips, which… worked wonders.
Fresh energy ran throughout her mom's perfect body, and her eyes widened in surprise.
"Oh, baby~? Anna was that worried about mama? Is this kiss a gift to mama or punishment to daddy, little one?" she smiled happily after the special gift from her little one.
She couldn't help her smile at the sudden gift from her beloved daughter.
This was her daughter's gift… that she could give to others.
A gift that seemed so normal at the same time was more complex than one could think.
But, at this moment, her gift that only a mother had received… was enough to tease the crybaby daddy of hers.
"A-Anna? Only mama? What about d-daddy? I want a k-kiss too, darling. We even ate your favorite cake." the father pleaded with a pained heart and tear-filled eyes.
It was painful for him to see her beloved daughter only loving her mother, even though he knew it was going to happen.
As her dad, he was closer to her than her mother, and seeing her only love for her mother like this was poking a needle into his poor heart.
"No! Papa cheated on Anna! No kiss to you!" she shouted and turned her head away from her dear father.
Even though she was just playing with him, the poor father of hers had broken into tears from this sudden rejection.
"N-Nolen... sniff, sniff... you stole my Anna. I didn't even cheat. Tell her you knew... sniff." he cried with a crestfallen expression.
It was ironic to see the one feared as (Red-eyed hunter) in tears after not receiving a kiss from his little daughter.
Her daughter that had been his sole light in the darkness.
She took him out of his self-created abyss and made him even better in this short time that was like an eternity to him.
He had genuine tears in his eyes and seeing this… the little angel sighed.
"Oh, dada. My poor dada. What would you do without me?"
The way she said this sent a chuckle to her mother and this little lady's sigh was a marvelous sight in itself.
A little three-year-old sighing at her crying father...
This was adorable.
And the more adorable thing was her patting his big head with her little hand.
"There, there. My big dada cries more than me. What do you think others would say?" she spoke in her baby speech.
They tied her hair in two small ponytails with a pink ribbon, and she nodded while patting her tear-filled father.
Leaning closer, she kissed him on his clean cheeks.
Unlike her grandfather, her daddy didn't have any hair that tickled her, so she liked this puppy more.
Though it created situations like this among her family many times, how many things did this little girl do?
If she gave it to one, all others too wanted her kiss.
But she didn't mind that.
And, just like her father, that was now full of energy even after playing with her from early morning, she knew her small kiss helped them.
So, she was happy to see others smile.
"I will eat daddy's ice cream today. Dada's punishment," she said as the now calmed father took her from her smirking mother.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm Loss of one day's ice cream. That was heavier than he had expected but, he had to accept this punishment with no questions.
"Yes, my princess." he accepted with a heavy heart and kissed her little angel's fluffy cheeks.
"Hehehe..." she giggled, and they smiled at seeing this angelic smile on her face.
This was late in the day, and the warm spring breeze passed through the open window.
This was the normal day of their slow life.
The little angel was smiling, they were happy, and the air was fresh.
They were going to play with their daughter for more, but... something strange started before their eyes.
A round, mirror-like glass suddenly popped up before their eyes like the status window.
Their hair stood up, and they jumped a few steps back in surprise.
The father was holding his daughter tightened his grip and a purple magic wand appeared in his hand.
His eyes were sharp on this sudden appearance of this thing, and so was his wife's.
She was in an attention position, ready to protect her family.
The sudden change in their behavior surprised their little girl, and she clenched her dad's clothes, confused about what was happening.
There were protection barriers so unauthorized magic can't be used here so, this situation greatly confused them.
This was something different as if highly advanced magic had activated in the air before them.
A ripple appeared in these mirrors, and… after a moment, an image appeared in it.
An image of a young boy with long, gold-like hair and eyes similar to the little girl's father.
Their eyes widened, and tears wetted their eyes.
They didn't know what was going on but, they could never forget the face that had just appeared inside the mirror.
The sudden change of emotions caught the little girl's eyes and confused her even more.
She didn't know what their parents were doing right now but, something happened that she couldn't see.
The parents were looking at the mirror with open mouths and a voice they hadn't heard for a long time broke the sudden silence.
A voice that had grown up but still contained the same emotions that they couldn't mistake.
The mother was having a harder time than the shocked dad and was looking at the smiling boy, who also had tears in his familiar eyes.
The voice echoed in their ears, and the tears lingering on the edges of their eyes... slid down delicately.
[ "Mom, dad... have you been ok?" ]