The girl kept running until she was far enough away that she could no longer see the woods, then slowly came to a stop.
She bent over, panting heavily.
The siblings caught up with her.
"What's wrong?"
They exchanged a glance and asked her point-blank.
She'd been fine on the way there.
"Ah."
The older brother suddenly looked enlightened. "Were you scared by the rabbit's corpse?"
The girl's face was deathly pale.
She nodded.
"It's okay."
The older brother comforted her.
"Yeah, it's just a..."
The older brother glared at his sister, and she swallowed the words "dead rabbit," giving an awkward grin.
"You think everyone's like you."
He muttered the words to his sister.
They'd seen animal carcasses ever since they were little, so they didn't think much of them.
But the girl had come from the city. When would she ever have seen an animal carcass?
Of course she'd be unsettled the first time.
The girl lowered her head. Only after a long while did she murmur, "...Yeah."
She felt relieved.
The siblings hadn't blamed her...
The reason she'd been so frightened just now was partly that the rabbit's corpse had startled her, but another part of it was the guilt welling up inside her.
If she hadn't forgotten about the rabbit, would it still be alive?
It was her fault for being careless...
Her fingers twitched. The earlier sensation of cold, stiff fingertips still lingered, and she couldn't help rubbing her fingers together forcefully.
For a moment, she'd even regretted coming here.
And telling the siblings about it.
When Grandma had asked what happened earlier, she hadn't mentioned the rabbit or even the trap. Grandma had never approved of her doing anything dangerous.
Like hunting.
Even if it was only setting traps.
She'd just said