Biscuit

It was close to three in the morning—

Inside the spaceship bar, quite a few passengers were still seated, drinking.

Accompanied by the soft background music, they chatted in low voices.

The overall atmosphere of the bar was light and tasteful.

Moyou ordered a sweet cocktail and set it on the table—drinkable, and not out of place.

He didn't notice the gaze from the corner, because the other party's "Zetsu" and ability to conceal aura were far too refined.

"The Laxiang City biennial treasure exchange has gotten so boring over the years. I thought, since I had nothing better to do, I might as well drop by and see the fuss. But now it seems that decision was absolutely wonderful—otherwise, how could I have met here... ah, what a beautiful bead."

In the corner, a petite girl with delicate features like a princess doll, sporting blonde twin-tails, stared unblinkingly at the bead beneath Moyou's fingertips. Her wine-red eyes were filled with undisguised adoration.

"It's definitely 'sapphire'!"

"And it's so natural, exquisitely translucent, with no trace of carving—the quality is incredibly high!"

"It's the kind of top-tier piece you only see in dreams!"

"Ugh, this wonderful encounter is like the guidance of fate itself."

"See, a cute girl never has bad luck!"

The blonde twin-tailed girl was named Biscuit Krueger, a formidable two-star gem hunter. Even from a distance, she could easily identify the material of that azure bead at a glance.

With her discerning eye, one look was enough to confirm that the perfectly round, deep blue bead the boy was playing with was absolutely, definitely—

Not sapphire!

But that didn't matter.

As long as she pretended it was sapphire, then it was as good as real sapphire!

Ah...

Biscuit stared at the azure bead, which still shimmered brilliantly even under the dim lighting, and couldn't help but sink into fascination, unable to pull herself away.

No matter what, she had to get that sapphire!

At this moment, Biscuit, captivated by the bead, decisively marked it as her hunting target.

This was a Hunter—

Upon spotting a desirable prey, they would stop at nothing to hunt it until the goal was achieved.

"Should I steal it or buy it?"

Biscuit lowered her head, lost in thought.

Considering the other party was just a boy, she leaned toward buying.

If the boy was willing to sell, she could offer a price that would satisfy him, even if it meant spending her entire fortune without hesitation.

Mm.

Giving everything for something you love—that's perfectly reasonable.

"Enough overthinking, I'll go cozy up first."

Biscuit concealed the gleam in her eyes. The existence of that azure bead stirred her heart, awakening a long-lost hunting thrill.

She stepped down from her seat, lightly lifting her princess dress with its red and pink tones. First, she withdrew her aura-concealing technique, letting her "Nen" naturally dissipate, then slowly walked toward Moyou, who sat by the window.

At this moment, she was just an ordinary little girl.

Ah, no—an ordinary but very cute little girl.

A naive, innocent smile spread across Biscuit's delicately featured face as she walked step by step toward Moyou.

"Hm?"

Moyou sensed something. He curled his fingers, tucking the bead into his palm, and gripped his cup with the other hand. Then he turned his head with a cold glare, projecting an unmistakable "stay away" demeanor.

Right now, his mood wasn't terrible, but it wasn't good either. He had no desire to exchange even a single word with anyone on this ship.

But the moment he turned and saw Biscuit, his icy gaze faltered, and surprise flickered across his face.

To an outsider, it looked like a man putting on a cold front suddenly encountering a beautiful woman who stirred his heart, unable to suppress his astonishment.

In reality, though—

Moyou's change in expression had nothing to do with that.

"Ah!"

Biscuit, however, acted as if startled by Moyou's sudden cold glance. She stumbled back a step, then lost her balance and fell to the floor.

"Boo, big brother, your expression just now was so scary."

Sitting on the ground, her wine-red eyes instantly welled up with crystal-clear tears.

Even though she approached in the guise of an "ordinary person," his reaction was still quite alert.

And that first response—on the surface, it marked him as the hard-to-get-along-with type—but after seeing her cute face, he immediately dropped the "stay away" attitude.

Hmph, men.

That face—at least 95 points!

Too bad she's too young, not my type.

Biscuit, on the verge of tears, silently evaluated the information she'd gathered from the contact.

"..."

Watching Biscuit look like she might burst into tears any second, Moyu paused, then said with a full face of apology, "Sorry, I didn't mean to."

With that, Moyu carefully put away the Rat Treasure Bead, stepped down from the high stool, walked over, and extended his right hand to Biscuit.

"Are you okay? Did you get hurt from the fall?"

"Boo-hoo, yes, it hurts, it really hurts!"

Biscuit raised her hand and gently pushed Moyu's outstretched hand away, her cheeks puffed high, tears glistening in her eyes.

She looked exactly like a little girl throwing a tantrum.

"..."

Moyu paused again, naturally withdrawing his hand, and asked with concern, "Little sister, where exactly does it hurt? I remember there's a medical bay on the ship. How about I take you to check it out?"

"Hmph, my butt hurts."

Biscuit snorted, but her eyes were fixed on Moyu's withdrawn hand.

I deliberately only gently pushed his hand away, and he gives up on helping me up that easily?

Just going through the motions, huh!

"Butt hurts, huh..."

Moyu noticed Biscuit's gaze on the hand he'd just pulled back.

"Anyway, get up first."

With that, he extended his right hand to Biscuit again.

This time, Biscuit didn't push it away. She took Moyu's hand and used it to stand up.

After pulling Biscuit to her feet, Moyu immediately let go and asked, "Should I take you to the medical bay now?"

"No, I'm scared of shots."

Biscuit shook her head.

Moyu barely kept a straight face, glossing over the topic, and said, "Then rest here for a bit. Um, where's your family? Should I go find them?"

"No, I snuck out because I couldn't sleep. If Mom and Dad find out..."

Biscuit shook her head again, and the tears welling in her eyes finally spilled over.

Watching Biscuit cry on cue, Moyu, who knew the full story, felt a complicated mix of emotions. He sighed inwardly, then pulled a few tissues from the table and gently wiped Biscuit's tears.

What could he do? He was the big brother here, after all.

Biscuit let Moyu wipe her tears, feeling a meticulous tenderness from the light, gentle pressure of his movements.

Wow!

(0`)

Bonus points, bonus points!