Sophia’s cheeks flushed with a rosy hue.  

She looked like a beautiful young girl who didn’t know what to do with herself.  

Who would have guessed that someone like Sophia, who always carried herself with such elegance, could show a side like this? Feeling amused, I unconsciously muttered the word “mom” again.  

“Mom… but why mom?”  

“Ahem.”  

Sophia’s face turned an even deeper shade of red as she took a step back.  

It felt like she was trying to run away from me.  

Had I done something wrong?  

I didn’t dare approach her and simply stared at her from a distance.  

After clearing her throat several times, Sophia turned her attention to Levinas.  

“Let’s end it here, child.”  

“What?! Already?!”  

Levinas looked disappointed, but Sophia gently stroked her head, comforting her like a true mother.  

“It’s not right to take away someone’s free will. Let’s stop before we make Gyeoul feel any worse.”  

“Okay…”  

Reluctantly, Levinas picked up the coin and approached me, shaking it as if summoning me back.  

It was time to tell the truth. A prank only remains a prank if you reveal the truth at the end. If you don’t, it’s just mean.  

“Levinas, I wasn’t actually hypnotized.”  

“What?! Really?!”  

“Yeah. I was just pretending to be hypnotized as a joke.”  

“No way! Levinas got tricked again!”  

Levinas laughed, seemingly entertained by the prank. Saebyeok, who was nearby, didn’t react at all. She must have already figured it out.  

Well, as long as the kids had fun, that was enough for me.  

But for some reason, Sophia’s reaction was odd.  

“So… it was a joke… just a joke?”  

“Yes…”  

Had I made another mistake?  

I fidgeted nervously with my fingers as Sophia covered her face with both hands.  

“Ah… how foolish of me. Gyeoul, you tricked me.”  

“I-I’m sorry…”  

“There’s nothing to apologize for. It’s the fault of an adult who foolishly joined in a children’s game.”  

Sophia sighed and walked over to the sofa, sitting down heavily.  

Quickly, I moved to sit beside her. I didn’t dare say anything, waiting to see how she felt.  

“You worry too much.”  

Sophia’s hand came to rest gently on my head, radiating a kindness that felt almost divine.  

She had told me to call her “mom” earlier. Could it be that Sophia actually had children?  

Curious, I lightly tapped her shoulder.  

“Sophia.”  

“Hm?”  

“Do you have children?”  

“…Yes, I have about three daughters.”  

Three daughters?!  

I looked her over in shock.  

Sophia’s body was petite, but beastfolk were known for their robust physiques. And in this world, with potions—miracle elixirs that healed almost anything—it wasn’t impossible for her to have children.  

“Where are your daughters?”  

“They’re right here beside me.”  

“What?”  

I looked around. All I could see was Levinas playing with a doll and Saebyeok lounging nearby.  

“Two cats and one rabbit. That makes three daughters.”  

“Oh…”  

So she was talking about us.  

The smile spreading across my face was impossible to hide.  

“Actually, Sophia does feel like a mom to me.”  

“R-really?”  

“Yeah. Out of everyone I know, you’re the most dependable adult.”  

“Ahem…”  

Sophia scratched her cheek, a soft smile playing on her lips. I could tell she was happy, and I felt the same.  

There’s something wonderful about the bond of family, no matter when you feel it.  

It was time for a fun drawing session!  

Seated at the table, Levinas grabbed a crayon. Today’s theme was family.  

She drew Sophia as the mom and Saebyeok as the eldest sister. Naturally, Levinas made herself the second sister.  

And of course, Gyeoul was the youngest.  

She was the smallest and the youngest, after all. While Gyeoul was reliable in many ways, she was still a bit fragile. In the drawing, Levinas depicted Gyeoul as a little sister who needed her older siblings’ help.  

“Hehe.”  

Midsummer could also feel like a mom.  

Maybe we could have two moms?  

Following her whims, Levinas assigned everyone roles in the family.  

In truth, Levinas didn’t really care who played which role. Everyone was a mom, a friend, or a sister in their own way. Midsummer could be either the big sister or the mom; it didn’t matter.  

Except for Gyeoul.  

To Levinas, Gyeoul was always her little sister. She was strong, cool, and dependable, but Levinas didn’t want to give her any role other than little sister.  

“Hmm…”  

As Levinas continued assigning roles, she hesitated when she noticed a missing one.  

There wasn’t a “dad.”  

Should the master be the dad?  

After mulling it over, Levinas abandoned her drawing and took the elevator up to the master’s office.  

“Master! Master, sir!”  

Levinas darted down the hallway of the top floor, her energy as lively as ever. Along the way, she high-fived the guards, whose faces softened into smiles at her innocence. One of them opened the office door for her.  

“Master!”  

“Yes?”  

The master’s gaze silently asked her what was going on.  

“You should be the dad!”  

“Dad?”  

“Yes! Dad!”  

Levinas held out her drawing. The master, intrigued, looked at the somewhat clumsy but earnest illustration.  

“So Sophia is the mom?”  

Sophia was old enough to call him a child, given her actual age. Despite her youthful appearance, she was far older than she looked.  

For several reasons, the idea of being in a “marriage” with her, even in a child’s game, was dangerous.  

“I’m too old to be a dad, but I can be an uncle or a godfather.”  

“Uncle… That works!”  

“Uncle” sounded even grander than “dad” in Levinas’s eyes.  

Although she was happy, it wasn’t quite the same as having a real dad.  

Deciding to continue her search, Levinas waved goodbye to the master and took the elevator down to the underground training room.  

—

At that time, Choi Jin-hyuk was working out in the training room, lifting dumbbells that were nearly as big as Levinas herself.  

“Big guy!”  

Levinas ran up to him, wide-eyed at the sight of him lifting such massive weights with ease.  

Curious, she tried lifting a nearby dumbbell, but it didn’t budge an inch.  

“That’s dangerous. Don’t touch the equipment,” Jin-hyuk said firmly.  

“Okay!”  

Realizing the potential danger, Levinas obediently stepped away from the equipment and asked,  

“Big guy, do you want to be my dad?”  

“Dad?”  

“Yes!”  

Once again, Levinas held out her drawing. Jin-hyuk quickly realized that she was playing a family game.  

“I’m not old enough to be a dad. How about an uncle?”  

“Uncle… That’s good too!”  

The big guy became “Uncle.”  

The master was now “Great Uncle.”  

Her family was growing larger and larger.  

But the important role of “dad” was still missing!  

With no other adult men left to ask, Levinas decided to search for a dad at the park.  

—

In the park, two men were seated on a bench, talking.  

“When will I meet a woman and get married?”  

“What about your ex-girlfriend?”  

“She left me because I didn’t have enough money saved up.”  

“Wow…”  

The conversation was somber, filled with complaints about love and finances.  

Levinas, who had sharp ears, overheard it all.  

*Marriage!*  

When a man marries a woman, he becomes a dad.  

Determined to fill the missing role, Levinas sprinted over to the two men.  

“Do you want to be a dad?”  

“Huh?”  

“I’ll make you a dad!”  

The sudden appearance of a child startled the men, but the one lamenting about marriage responded first.  

“Are you introducing me to a woman?”  

Levinas nodded seriously, taking his joke as a genuine question.  

“Yes! She’s super pretty!”  

“Super…?”  

Beastfolk were naturally beautiful, and hearing this from one of them made the man pause, intrigued despite himself.  

“Is she an adult? Of age?”  

“Of course! She’s taller than me too!”  

Levinas was telling the truth—Sophia was a few centimeters taller than her. Though Sophia didn’t even reach 140 cm, the man didn’t need to know that.  

“Wow…”  

A “super pretty” beastfolk adult?  

Could it be Encia?  

Could this finally be his chance for love?  

Heart pounding with excitement, the man stood up. Even if the introduction was coming from a child, you never knew where fate might lead.  

“Introduce me! Please!”  

“Okay!”  

Levinas grabbed his hand and led him toward the guild building.  

—

The guild building, renowned for being full of beauties, made the man’s heart race even faster. To him, Levinas now seemed like Cupid in disguise.  

“Where is this beauty?”  

Levinas, having entered the trading post area, scanned the room until she spotted Sophia sitting with Gyeoul.  

“There she is! Sharky!”  

Levinas grabbed the man’s sleeve and dragged him over, announcing with her usual enthusiasm,  

“I found a dad!”  

“A dad?”  

“Yes! Sharky is the mom, so you can be the dad!”  

Most people in the trading post knew Levinas was just playing a family game, so they weren’t surprised.  

To them, it was just a kid being adorable.  

But the man in question had a very different reaction.  

A beastfolk child who looked, at most, like a middle schooler was the mom?  

And he was supposed to be the dad?  

*What kind of nonsense is this?!*  

His face turned as pale as a sheet.  

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep