Guru, caught up in her excitement, hadn’t noticed a thing.

That Mephisto, perched on the bed, was shooting a terrifying glare at Woojoo.

“...?”

The only one who did notice that hostile stare... was Woojoo.

“...Pit!”

As their eyes met, Woojoo slowly turned to look at the white bird fixed on him.

“...?”

His mouth parted slightly, and Mephisto, simmering inside, turned to his wings instead. His sharp eyes drooped into something sad.

Mephisto let out a heavy sigh.

Just then, Guru left the room, saying she’d go grab some snacks.

Woojoo organized more reference photos to show her, and Veilach—Bayi—was drooling on his shoulder.

From time to time, as if he just couldn’t help himself, Bayi would give Woojoo a little lick, like tasting a snack.

“...”

Mephisto clicked his tongue. Filthy little creature.

No doubt Bayi was acting like that because of the high-purity mana radiating from Woojoo.

That kind of prey amplified power tremendously.

That’s why monsters, by instinct, devoured humans—

Because they were drawn to the power humans held.

But Mephisto couldn’t understand it. What was so important about that kind of power?

According to Bayi, Mephisto’s very existence had been “reconstructed.” Maybe this was part of that process... but even so, Mephisto instinctively disliked the idea of eating humans.

'I just don’t want to.'

'But...'

'If I got stronger... could I turn human too?'

Mephisto looked over at Woojoo again.

A kid barely the size of a snack, holding mana so pure even Bayi drooled for it.

He was just thinking that when—

“Myut! Myumyuuu! (Mephisto! What the hell do you think you're doing?!)”

“Pit?!”

Without realizing, Mephisto had hopped onto Woojoo’s other shoulder and was licking his cheek.

Now Woojoo sat there with monster drool all over his face, looking thoroughly confused.

“Myumyu myuuu, myumyu? (You damn unfilial rodent! You trying to steal my prey now?!)”

“Pit! Pit pit pit?! (Ha! Just ‘cause I licked him a little, now he’s your prey?)”

“Myumyuuu...! (Why you little...!)”

Seething with rage, Bayi lunged.

“Myuut!”

“Piiit!”

Mephisto didn’t back down.

The two of them rolled, bit, pecked, clawed—feathers and fur flying everywhere. Woojoo stumbled out of the room in a panic.

“G-Guru!!”

“Yesh?”

By the time Guru returned at Woojoo’s call, it took her a bit to peel the two apart.

Now sitting kneeling in front of Guru, the baby bird and the doodle hamster hung their heads in shame.

Mephisto’s feathers were half missing, and his head had gone all frizzy. Bayi had a bald patch on his back and a scratch near his mouth.

Both were visibly torn up, even bleeding in spots.

Guru hugged and petted the trembling Luksypher, who was hiding in a corner.

The poor baby bunny must’ve been terrified, seeing both his older brothers go at it so viciously.

They fought every day, sure—but plucking out each other’s feathers and fur? That was concerning.

“Mephi, Bayi. Yoo two gotsta get awong. Yoo can’t be fightin’ aww da time wike dis. Da baby ish watchin’.”

Guru lifted the bunny’s tiny front paws in demonstration.

“Kyu...”

Luksypher whimpered timidly.

Bayi immediately pointed at Mephisto, looking wronged.

“Myumyu! Myumyu!”

“Pipipii.”

“Myuu! Myu!”

“Pipipit!”

The excuses flew for a while—loud, accusatory, and constant.

“...”

But Guru just stared at them blankly, letting it all wash past one ear.

They’d fought this badly, so clearly something deeper was going on...

'But I can’t understand a thing they’re sayin’!'

And she couldn’t exactly humanize Bayi just to get his side of the story either.

'Dat’d be too mean to Mephi.'

Mephisto couldn’t speak human. So if Bayi said anything, that would become the only version of the truth.

No—she had to hear both sides. Like a proper Chick Class teacher. Fair and impartial.

And so—what she needed to do now was...

Guru grabbed one feathery wing and one bean-sized hamster hand and made them apologize to each other.

It was a reconciliation method her teacher used all the time in preschool.

Even if it was forced, once they did it, kids usually forgot and went back to being friends quickly.

“Say sowwy.”

“Pii—”

“Myumyu myu!”

Mephisto stuck out his beak and said something. Bayi snapped back angrily.

Guru smiled, her eyes twitching.

'Was dat... a ‘sowwy’?'

Still sounded like fighting?

All this pi-pi, myu-myu—didn’t seem /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ like they’d made up at all.

'Teachin’ Chick Cwass ish hawd!'

While Guru struggled through the trials of caretaking, Woojoo watched in awe.

Both Mephisto and Bayi weren’t just pets—they were monsters.

But Guru handled them without the slightest hesitation.

To Woojoo, it was amazing.

Guru sensed his gaze and glanced over.

'Can’t wose now...'

She couldn’t let her mature, composed image crumble.

'Noooope. Gwuu’s gotta wook coow to Woojoo!'

Which meant—

“Good job. Now yoo gotsta get awong fwom now on, ‘kay?”

Guru decided to sweep it all under the rug and call it resolved for now.

“Piii!”

Mephisto chirped and flew up to perch on her head.

Bayi dashed into the backpack and zipped it shut from inside.

Guru let out a groan as she stroked Luksypher.

The baby bunny was still trembling, clearly spooked.

“Fer, no mo’ be scawed, ‘kay?”

Jurim had said once—boys just fight a lot. It’s what they do.

Give it a few days. They’d make up and go back to normal again, surely.

Yeah... probably.

Eventually, everything would go back to normal.

***

'It did NOT go back to normal!'

It had been several days since the Mephisto vs. Bayi battle.

But unlike Guru’s hopeful prediction, time had not healed anything between them.

Just before arriving at the pop-up store photoshoot, Guru cracked her bag zipper open a bit.

Through the gap, Bayi peeked out and glared daggers at Mephisto.

Mephisto, perched on her head, glared right back.

Crackle—!!

Guru could practically see sparks flying between them.

“Yoo two stiww doin’ dis?”

“Pit!”

“Myut!”

Mephisto narrowed his eyes into triangles. Bayi bared his teeth with a growl.

Normally they’d scrap, then forget all about it and act friendly again.

But not this time.

Ever since that last fight, it had been nonstop hostility.

“Gwuuu maan, Gwuuu maaan.”

Guru waved her hand between them.

“Stahp. If yoo fight again, no goin’ to Woojoo’s shoot. Yoo know what he’sh fiwming today, wight?”

“......!”

Bayi flinched.

Woojoo was filming the sequel to the 10-million-viewer hit movie Zombie City: the long-awaited Zombie City 2.

As the name suggested, it was packed with zombies.

Bayi’s absolute favorite genre. He froze at the threat.

“Pipit-piip!”

Mephisto laughed mockingly, and Bayi clenched his tiny fists, trembling with rage.

“If Mephi keeps actin’ up, no snacks latew.”

“...!”

“Myut myut myut!”

Now Bayi was the one laughing like a brat, while Mephisto’s eyes bulged.

But Bayi ducked back into the bag and zipped it up.

Clearly, he didn’t want to miss the Zombie City 2 shoot over another petty fight.

And Mephisto—he wanted to see it too.

“Pit!”

With a snort, he turned his head sharply away.

“Gwuu’s gotta fiwm now, so Mephi go in hewe.”

Guru opened her chest pocket.

“Pit.”

Flapping his wings, Mephisto zipped into the pocket.

Guru tapped the bulging fabric over her heart and let out a long sigh.

“Eyyyyhyo....”

'Raisin’ monsters ish hawd.'