The spoon in her hand slipped unconsciously into the watermelon.
The girl stuffed a piece of watermelon into her mouth.
Mmm.
So sweet.
The vendor hadn't lied to her.
Of the three watermelons he'd picked out for her...
At least hers was sweet.
The other two...
The girl looked at the other two watermelons.
The next moment, her eyes flew wide open.
The watermelon...
The watermelon had been eaten!?
And...
A few seconds later, the girl realized...
This time, the whole watermelon hadn't disappeared.
Only the red flesh was gone.
Not a trace of red remained on the rind.
They'd eaten it clean.
The girl licked her slightly dry lips.
"You... you..."
The girl felt a strange mix of confusion and excitement.
She took a deep breath.
She tightened her grip on the spoon.
"You..."
"You heard what I said just now, didn't you?"
Before, they'd eaten the whole watermelon every time.
But just now, she'd told them...
You were supposed to eat the red flesh inside.
The rind was supposed to be thrown away.
And then she'd seen...
They'd really done what she said.
The girl couldn't help grinning.
Her teeth gleamed in neat rows.
She was so happy.
She'd...
Caught the "watermelon thief."
And...
The thief's unexpectedly obedient response surprised the girl.
It made her happy, too.
She was only curious about these mysterious "watermelon thieves" now—not scared at all.
"You..."
"You eat so fast!"
The girl was so excited that, for a moment, she didn't know what to say.
After a few seconds of struggling to find the words, she belatedly exclaimed.
She looked down at her watermelon.
Mmm.
She'd only managed one bite.
"You can have this one, too."
The girl pushed the remaining half of her watermelon