Ah, now that I think about it, it was dinner time with Dad.
“I sent you out to buy clothes, and you swept through a toy store.”
Ugh, so embarrassing.
I subtly stroked the wooden doll clutched in my left hand.
This doll, with the letter ‘B’ engraved at the end, was from the wooden toy series I bought at [Store Name] today.
Honestly, I haven't been interested in these kinds of toys since I was six (really), and lately, I've been thinking they're even more boring (I really do). But B's wooden doll series had a certain collectible value.
I also liked that they were made from recycled wood. But more than anything, it was cute how the arms and legs wiggled when you gently pulled the ring on the back!
“Right? My Ultiberiasistina...first princess of the Tomato Kingdom, soon to be caught in a vortex of fate..."
“You’re really enjoying yourself.”
At Dad’s teasing, I blushed again and put down the doll.
Then, I suddenly shifted my gaze to Theo, who was also playing with toys while eating, just like me.
Watching him brought me back to my senses with a start.
“Theo! You spat out your tomato again! What are you going to do if you keep being picky about tomatoes!”
Taking advantage of my absentmindedness, Theo Valt flinched as he was trying to put a tomato on top of his toy carriage.
Theo didn't really like tomatoes. He would eat the tomatoes I picked from the garden to some extent, but he wouldn't touch any others.
For the record, I eat everything well, but I was more of a tomato person than a potato person.
“Theo. Hmm, if you eat all of what’s left, Big sis will show you how to get the roof of your mini-carriage to move. How about that?”
“Woo?”
Unable to watch Theo's picky eating any longer, I pulled out my secret weapon. Theo's eyes widened.
I started messing with the toy carriage Theo had.
“Huh? Did that roof even move?”
Kate, who was moving the dinner plates from the side, tilted her head.
"Seriously? You didn't know?"
“Know what?”
“B’s wooden dolls are famous because they have many secret mechanisms! Dad's bought a few for me, so I know all about 'em..."
I trailed off, glancing at Dad.
It rained in the capital again last night, you know. I was trembling from the thunder, and I couldn't take it anymore, so I watched a video.
Dad was on it.
“Daughter! Why's your face all puffed up? Who is it? Who bullied you?”
“No, it’s just that Jamie from downstairs boasted that he collected seven B wooden dolls… I was kinda bummed... He made fun of me for only having two."
"That little punk."
“Huh? You’re not cursing, are you?”
“……! Coooourse not.”
Dad hugged me tightly, then sat me on his lap and gently coaxed me.
"I'm sorry, Ririn. I was too late to the game to realize there was a whole world out there pushing kids to compete like that. Next time, I'll head to a nearby town and make sure I'm first in line when the toy store opens."
“Really? But those are a bit expensive.”
"Aish! Don’t worry! Dad'll make soooo much money, he'll be able to buy out the whole toy store! Even if it's some crummy marketing ploy by the toy stores to bleed parents dry, I'm all in, so just hang tight. Sheesh, and if that doesn't work, I guess I'll just have to rob the Ruska vault."
“Dad? Your voice sounded a bit strange at the end there?”
“……! It’s just your imagination. You're so precious, mwah mwah. My cute little daughter.”
In the end, I wound up with five wooden dolls.
Dad kept getting those dolls for me, but he wouldn't stop griping about 'B' from the toy store.
"Nobody knew who 'B' really was, huh?"
Even though they were super famous, nobody knew anything about 'B', the person who made the toys.
Whoever they are, they've gotta be loaded. Their kids and grandkids are gonna be set for life, right?
Anyway.
“Ahem, ahem. Look.”
Done with my trip down memory lane, I felt everyone looking at me and pulled the handle under the roof of the mini-carriage.
“Usaaaan!” (Umbrella!)
Then, a hidden thingamajig popped out, and a little umbrella shot up from the roof of the carriage.
“Wow!”
The maids clapped, haha. I puffed out my chest, all proud.
Not many kids in Lepi Village had figured out all the secret gadgets in B's toys.
They were literally 'secret' gadgets, so you could only find them if you played with the wooden dolls like, all the time.
"So? Pretty cool, huh-.."
That’s when it happened.
A huge bang came from the dining room entrance.
I jumped out of my skin.
I was so startled!
I hurriedly turned around and saw a huge wall… no, a giant man staring at us with wide eyes.
A big sack was just lying there on the floor. I guess the noise was from him dropping it.
“……”
“……”
It was like, a bear of a man, with this super serious face, and his mouth was shut so tight that his jaw had these wrinkles like a walnut.
I stared right at the bear-man.
He had neatly combed, ash-gray hair and these intense, dark eyes, and I just got goosebumps all over.
"See, honey? I told you she'd like it."
I heard some fancy lady's voice that I kinda recognized, but it was already far away.
I tightly gripped the hem of Theo’s clothes next to me.
“Theo… Don’t cry. Crying means losing.”
It was like I'd run into some kind of wild animal.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The man approached me, his footsteps echoing. He was even bigger up close. It was super intimidating.
This huge shadow fell over me, like I was about to be eaten. My breath caught in my throat. I couldn’t even hiccup.
“You must be her.”
His voice was booming.
A heavy bass, as if the voices of about ten adult men were tightly compressed.
“Strawberry.”
Huh?
“My mistake. Daughter.”
He glanced at the wooden doll in my hand. His eyes gleamed even brighter.
"So you figured out the secret... Come here, kiddo..."
The bear mumbled something, but his voice was too low to hear clearly.
I got off the chair and started backing away slowly.
But that shadow was so big, it felt like I couldn't get away.
Starting to freak out a little, I looked over at Dad at the head of the table.
But he just looked back at me with this totally blank look, and my heart just sank.
I fumbled and grabbed Theo’s hand.
“Theo… Don’t show your back carelessly. If you run recklessly, you’ll get eaten… Slowly, carefully, sniff.”
Oh no.
It's like a monster came down from the mountains.
"Hey, kiddo?"
The guy, probably sensing that something was up, reached out his hand to me.
I sucked in a breath, held it, and then just burst.
"I-I'm all skin and bones! I don't have any money yet, either! All I've got is a lot of hair! Please, don't hurt me!"
And then, vroom vroom vroom.
“……Huh?”
I booked it outta there.
The dining room Ririn had just bolted from.
The huge old guy, Blaine Winterwald, slowly opened his mouth, looking totally dazed.
“I…”
If voices had, like, weight, his was this super deep, heavy one.
"I made the little one...cry..."
Of course, what he actually said was kinda cute.
He was this massive, solid old dude. His arm muscles, bulging under his tight clothes, were insane. Ririn's tiny face could probably fit in his hand like, five times.
"Oh, you big softie."
Elisa patted Blaine's shoulder. He was standing there stiffly, chewing on his lip.
He kinda slumped his huge body over and leaned on Elisa.
“Elisa, what have I done? I…”
“It’s okay, it’s okay.”
"I think...she hates me."
Blaine spent most of the year up in the freezing North, guarding the sacred mountain – all for Elisa.
Then, just to kill time, he started carving wood and making stuff, and after years of doing it, he accidentally became a pretty good craftsman.
He was super skilled, and he was also just a really persistent and hardworking guy.
Those wooden dolls with the 'B' on them were a hit all over the country.
But it had to be kept top-secret, even from the rest of the family, that the Winterwalds were running a toy business.
Calex had pretty much figured it out, and Elisa was his trusty sidekick.
“I’m ruined…”
Elisa patted the big guy, like she always did.
