Bluebird Lady and The White Lion Family

 

On the day of the product launch.

 

Sophina smiled broadly and thanked Ririela.

 “Sister Ririela, thank you for your help.” “It’s all right, you know…” 

‘It’s crazy! Sophina blushed at me!’

 

Ririela trailed off with an inward squeal of excitement.

 “Let’s go.” 

Just then, Ricardo sneakily tugged on Sophina’s hand, urging her on.

 “Yes!” 

Without a second thought, Sophina climbed into the jolly carriage.

 

The carriage, adorned with the old-fashioned Chadwick family seal, sped away from the mansion.

 

She clung to the window and took in the scenery.

 

‘Wow, so many people.’

 

The town square was packed with people who had heard the news.

 

She was nervous to show her work in front of so many people.

 

It was like my feathers were sticking out, and I felt like I would shrivel up.

 

Ricardo glanced at her, then politely extended his hand.

 “Would you like to leave?” “Yes.” 

The touch of his hand washed away all her thoughts.

 “You’ll do fine, all I have to do is drink the finished product.” 

Beside her, Ririela shouted words of encouragement.

 

She took a calming breath and, escorted by Ricardo, made her way to the crowd, step by step. The people gawked at her.

 “What is she doing now?” “You’ve been raving about this flower that supposedly cures the side effects of the powers.” “I thought they were made by that new bluebird lady who just moved into the Chadwick household?” 

The bluebird didn’t seem to have a bad reputation.

 

The thought of being dismissed as insignificant made her nervous.

 “When do you start demonstrating the product?” 

The journalists lined up in front of her, ready to take notes in their notebooks, stared at her in unison.

 

She walked up to the podium that had been set up in the square. It was time to demonstrate the product’s effectiveness.

 

She spoke to the crowd in a firm, if slightly shaky, voice.

 “So, let’s start the presentation.” 

As if her worries were unfounded, the product demonstration went smoothly.

 

In fact, Sophina didn’t have much of a role.

 

All she had to do was hand Ririela the pre-made Roneache flower juice.

 Thud— 

Just then, in front of everyone, Ririela used her powers to split the prepared wooden plank in two.

 

Sophina cautiously spoke to Ririela,

“Sister, does it hurt?” “Not at all,”

Ririela denied blandly.

 

Her smiling face showed no sign of pain. But Sophina hurriedly offered her some juice.

 

At the same time, Ririela’s red, swollen hand became plainly visible to the naked eye.

 

The people who witnessed the scene exclaimed in awe.

 “It really is as effective as rumored!” “This is a breaking news story!” 

Reporters were also excited, snapping photos with the wooden-looking cameras.

 

‘The atmosphere is great.’

 

It was time for the punchline. The purpose of the demonstration was to confirm the efficacy of the product, but not to sell it.

 “I’m going to take special pre-orders only for those who are here.” 

Sophina smirked smugly.

 “At 50% off.” 

‘Who wouldn’t buy something on sale?’

 

She was also thinking of introducing a few special purchasing schemes.

 “And if you’re happy with our product, feel free to recommend it to your friends.” 

‘Referral discounts.’

 

As they say, follow your friends to the lion’s den.

 

Word of mouth has always been scary.

 

After getting personal information and introducing a membership system, I planned to offer a referral discount.

 “We’ll give a 5% discount to both the referrer and the recipient.” 

She explained brightly, and then added in a voice that was enticing enough to make people want to try it.

 “Plus, if you fill out a few pieces of information, we’ll deliver it to you without you having to come pick it up, so you don’t have to worry about picking it up.” 

Whatever species we are.

 

‘A delivery service.’

 

Of course, even now, when buying clothes, for example, we could have them delivered to our mansion.

 

But that’s only because it’s close.

 

We wanted to create a delivery system where people could order from anywhere in the country, at any time of day or night, within 24 hours, and have it delivered to the comfort of their homes.

 

I thought,

‘If people get addicted to this convenience, they’ll never leave.’

 

The industrial revolution was underway, and the lion’s territory was well organized with street names and addresses.

 “This opportunity doesn’t come around every day, people.” 

Sophina has a sale.

 

The vials, or rather, the Roneache Flower Cure, were selling like hotcakes.

 “Special appointment? Half price?” “We won’t miss it!” “I can’t resist a bargain.” 

The lions rushed in and filled out their reservation slips. The demo seemed to go off without a hitch.

 

However, as the crowd grew, there was a problem.

 

‘What a chaos.’

 

The lions, who had been keeping their social distance, ended up running into each other.

 

It was an unavoidable consequence of the heavy crowds.

 

‘It’s like a bargain sale in the grocery section.’

 

Sophina sighed as the Chadwick Street knights who were helping with the demonstration cleared the traffic.

 

Her eyes locked with Ricardo’s next to her. She smiled broadly and stepped protectively in front of him.

 “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you!” “Who’s protecting who?” 

Ricardo snorted in disbelief, and the words became reality.

 

In reverse,

“What? Huh?” 

Sophina tumbled off balance.

 

The crowd was so massive that even the knights lining up the lions had been pushed aside and swept away.

 

However, she did not fall.

 “Where’s the person who said she would protect me?” 

Ricardo, with his quick reflexes, snatched her by the waist and held her up.

 “Hey, there’s a lot of people around…” 

She was in public in the middle of nowhere, sharing a touch with Ricardo.

 

Sophina flinched and looked around wide-eyed.

 

Ricardo raised an eyebrow as if to question, ‘What the big deal?’

 

Then he tightened his grip around her waist. 

 

Carefully, he picked her up and set her down at the back, where she wouldn’t fall into the crowd.

 

Ririela, who was watching the scene, muttered to herself, with the glazed look of a jilted ex-boyfriend.

 “….I’m so envious.” 

‘If only I could hug a princess like that.’

 

The gazes of the other lions gathered in the square followed Ririela’s and settled on Sophina and Ricardo.

 “Oh my, since when do the cherry blossoms bloom in winter?” “Oh, I was laughing so hard my gums hurt.” 

The lions giggled with vicarious excitement, even though they themselves weren’t in a relationship.

 

Watching someone else’s love affair had always been a breeze.

 

Moreover, Sophina had become quite the favored among the lions.

 

She’d succeeded in winning the loyalty of the elder lions. It was inevitable that this would rub off on the other lions.

 

Also, the accident on the fall tour.

 

When she fell into a ravine, they all jumped to her rescue.

 

Rumor has it that this made her the beloved daughter-in-law of the Chadwick family.

 

The lions, who had gotten a good look at the little incident, suddenly stopped looking.

 “Hmph. I guess this is what happens when there are too many people.” “Let’s get in line, let’s get in line!” 

Such a boisterous lion, doesn’t it diminish his majesty as the king of the beasts?

 

It was too late for him.

 

The disorganized formation quickly returned to normal.

 

‘That was a surprise.’

 

Sophina glanced at Ricardo, then turned her attention back to the demonstration.

 

The demo resumed as if nothing had happened. But here was a lion whose pride was more than a little outweighed by his ingratiating spirit.

 “Do you think you could sell more of these if you made the title a little more provocative?” 

The reporter blinked and tapped a calculator in his head.

 「Love is in the Business, Mr. and Mrs. Chadwick, making out at a public business conference??」 

With a headline like that, it seemed like a surefire hit, so the reporter’s camera caught the scene just moments earlier.

 

Later, after the product demonstration was completed.

 

Articles about the event were published all over the lion territory.

 

Of course, the bestseller was the reporter’s article with a little extra seasoning.

 

And so it went in circles, reaching people even outside the lion’s territory.

  

Not in the lion’s territory, but in the middle of the fox man’s territory.

 

Inside the largest barracks, the most famous of which was painted with lions, sat a boy with snow-white hair and eyes as clear as a stream.

 

From back to front, he looked like a white lion.

 

Every morning, as he read the newspaper, he narrowed his eyes at a certain article.

 

His eyes were fixed on Ricardo, who was holding Sophina. It was a cheerful shot that captured the mood of the demonstration.

 

The boy, who had been busily reading the print, muttered in disbelief.

 “What the…”