Drawn Mochi Volume 4 Chapter 7.2: Operation Capture an Angel*6

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“Nice to meet you, Ange. Um, you’re going to spend about two months in the forest, is that okay?” (Tougo)

　It’s all done before their consent, but I’ll listen to it just in case. Then Ange nodded quietly.

“I’m just happy to spend time with brother…” (Ange)

　And then, Ange smiles, and laughs shyly. Maybe she’s a little shy, but I love how she slowly hides behind her brother while talking to me.

“Well then, nice to meet you again. Lian and Ange.” (Tougo)

　When I called the name again, the brothers and sisters who looked alike nodded in unison.

“Well then, let’s continue the errands before going home.” (Tougo)

　Then I set out on my next shopping trip, satisfied to see the Celeste siblings… Lian and Ange holding hands tightly.

　The person to walk in front is Fay, who is familiar with the Royal Capital, and Lian and Ange are following right behind him. Behind them, was me and Laocles.

“There are two angels.” (Tougo)

“…yes, his expression has softened considerably.” (Laocles)

　Yep. Lian has been happily talking to Ange since a while ago. His face was that of a boy who was trying to be a good brother even though he was young, and it was also the face of a child who was relieved to finally meet his family.

　In short, Lian’s face was much brighter now that his guard and hostility had been lifted.

“…that’s good.” (Laocles)

“Yeah. Really good.” (Tougo)

　When I talk to them, they both show some tension and caution, but when they’re alone, there’s no tension or caution, just a brother and sister who get along well. Somehow… they look like a pair of angels strangers to humans.

“I have more to draw.” (Tougo)

“Are you going to draw his sister too?” (Laocles)

　Yep. Of course. Naturally. Because there are now twice as many angels, twice as many. With twice as many angels, there was no choice but to draw more!

　Then we stopped at a pastry shop, a bakery, and bought some tea leaves. ……All of Croix’s errands were accomplished except for the last one.

　Now, the last thing that remains is a “beautiful thing”… but there’s no way I’m going to give Lian and Ange as a souvenir to Ms. Croix. Hmmm…

“…what is the matter?” (Lian)

“No, I’m looking for something beautiful… Do you know anything?” (Tougo)

　I wondered if I should ask someone who used to live in the Royal Capital, but since they’re angels, they wouldn’t understand what humans call “beautiful things”?

　…and then.

　Ange, who looked surprised realized something, secretly whispered something in Lian’s ear.

“Eh… No, but that’s not what these people have in mind. That’s not what these people are looking for…” (Lian)

　Ah, something must have come to mind.

“Um, can you tell me just in case? I might find something.” (Tougo)

“…sure, I doubt it though.” (Lian)

　…Um, what the is he thinking?

　Even so, we were guided to the back alley of the Royal Capital again. The Celeste siblings are better guides than Fay. Maybe this alley was their playground since they were younger.

“Um… this way.” (Lian)

　Lian hesitantly guided us, and eventually we arrived at the Celeste family home. Um, it’s a house with a lean and leaks, the best description is a lowest cost wabi-sabi… [T/N: An aesthetic sense that embraces imperfection.]

“…did you leave something in your home?” (Tougo)

“No, it’s not really a house, more like a…”  (Fay)

　Lian then went around the side of the house to the back of the house. There was a very small garden… that looked more like a garbage dump.

　Lian went to the corner of the place and started to do something with Ange.

　As we watched, wondering what it was… Ange showed us what she was holding in her hand, slowly, but with a small smile on her face.

“Here.” (Ange)

　On her small hand was a pebble and a piece of glass. A beautifully colored nut. They were those kinds of things.

“…huh? They’re no good right, right?” (Lian)

　Lian said uncomfortably and his shoulders sinking.

“Oh. I miss these. I used to collect rocks when I was a kid. I still have them in an empty box in a drawer in my room.” (Fay)

　Fay took the shard of glass from Ange’s hand and looked it through the sunlight. The shimmering light blue glass fragment was indeed very beautiful.

“Thank you for showing us. It’s your treasure, isn’t it?” (Fay)

　Fay took a piece of glass from Ange’s hand and looked at it in the sunlight. The shard of shimmering, pale blue glass was… indeed, very beautiful.

“If this is treasures you’ve collected, I’ll take it to the forest. I have a bag here.” (Tougo)

　When I gently handed over the bag, Ange took the bag with a quiet voice, “Thank you,” and hid behind Lian with a red face. However, the way she hides and diligently begins to stuff her “treasures” into the bag is so cute.

“…Should I bring back a piece of stone or glass to Croix? I think she might enjoy it more than you think.” (Laocles)

“Yep. I think she’ll be happy with it too.” (Tougo)

　I think this kind of “souvenir” for Ms. Croix is not a bad idea. The piece of glass that I look through the sunlight is very beautiful with its translucent color, clear luster, and the dazzle of its broken and sharpened edges. And what Ms. Croix expects as “beautiful thing” is neither an extravagant dress nor a large jewel.

“So, shall we look for beautiful stones and shards of glass, too?” (Fay)

　That might be fun. It’s like returning to our childhood.

　…Of course, I don’t have many memories of collecting stones when I was little. When I brought things like pebbles, acorns, pinecones, etc. home, they were thrown away the next morning, so I never brought them home or collected them.

　When I think about it, I kind of want to try it.

　Then, while waiting for Lian and Ange to remove their very few belongings from their house, I searched for pieces of glass and pebbles that had fallen in the back alley.

　For this, the Pipe Fox is very helpful. The Pipe Fox, with a single “kon”, immediately transformed itself into 16 palm-sized foxes and swooped into the backstreets.

　While I was surprised, the Pipe Foxes picked up beautiful things one after another and came back. While I found one, about thirty-two things were brought to me.

　Smooth white round stones. A piece of glass with a gradation from dark burgundy to deep green. A piece of pottery with a bright blue pattern on a pure white background. Acorns. These things gathered and piled up one after another…

“…how did you collect so much?” (Tougo)

　And by the time Lian and Ange came out of the house, there was a small pile of beautiful things. The Pipe Fox, which had returned into a single body by the side of the pile, was proudly squeaking.

　Yeah, that’s great. That’s amazing.

　I then put the treasures the Pipe Fox had collected and the ones I had gathered together into a small bag and decided to take them home. Well, I’ll think about what to bring back to Ms. Croix, but it would be too much of a pain to throw away these beautiful treasures.

“Amazing… Tougo, how did your fox split up?” (Fay)

“Umm, I just learned about it for the first time.”  (Tougo)

　I never thought it can split itself. With that thought in mind, I stroked the Pipe Fox, and it proudly cried out again, and returned to the bamboo tube. Yeah, thank you for your help.