Huh?
There was a question she hadn't answered?
The gray-haired girl tilted her head slightly.
What?
"Gurgle~"
Nervous, the boy couldn't help swallowing.
"Mm."
"Last time, I asked you..."
The boy's gaze began to wander.
"Can we be friends?"
Back then, the monster girl had given him an unexpected answer.
She was a monster.
But...
He wanted an answer to his question.
The boy forced himself to look at the monster girl.
He wanted her to see... just how badly he wanted an answer.
He was serious.
A breeze passed, sending the girl's gray hair fluttering wildly.
Only then did the boy notice a red maple leaf in her hair.
Was it a hairpin?
The boy wondered.
He felt a little embarrassed that he had only noticed the ornament in the monster girl's hair on their third meeting.
It wasn't really his fault, though.
The boy defended himself in his heart.
The monster girl was always sitting in the Maple Tree.
Red maple leaves surrounded her.
How could he tell... whether that red maple leaf was tucked into the monster girl's hair or was just a leaf on a branch beside her?
"Sure."
The boy abruptly pulled his gaze away from the red maple leaf in the monster girl's hair.
He looked at the monster girl.
What?
What... had she just said?
Was it... yes?
The boy couldn't control his suddenly racing heartbeat.
"What did you say?"
"You agree?"
The delight in the boy's voice was about to spill over.
R-really?
This was the answer he had hoped for.
But now that he had actually heard it, he found himself feeling a little uncertain.
"Mm."
The gray-haired girl nodded.
"I can be friends with you."
"But I don't know how to be friends with a