Chapter 49: Home… is gone!
“Wait…” Aphrosia narrowed her eyes, slender fingers rubbing her chin. “Why does this coin bag feel off?”
“W-What’s off?” Blazewing’s voice shot up an octave, her pink feather tuft springing upright like a startled rabbit. She instinctively covered her bulging feathers, but a few gold coins clinked to the floor.
Aphrosia’s sapphire eyes glinted dangerously, her lips curling into a half-smile. “Oh my, when did our little Blazewing learn to stash pocket money?”
“Pocket money? What pocket money!” Blazewing’s face flushed, hopping like an angry kitten. “Aphrosia, you’re questioning my birdly honor! And, and—you haven’t even kept your promises!”
She tried her big, teary-eyed “cute pass” tactic, unaware that the blonde girl was immune.
“Oh?” Aphrosia’s hand darted out, snatching Blazewing by the scruff. Amid the bird’s “Waaah!” screams, she shook her upside-down.
Clink, clank! Twenty gleaming coins rained onto the table, spinning merrily.
“Interesting.” Aphrosia propped her chin, fingers tapping rhythmically. “Where’d these coins come from? I’m so curious~”
Blazewing flailed her tiny legs, laughing nervously. “Ha, haha, so weird, right? How’d these coins fall off me? Must be a space magic glitch, yeah?”
Aphrosia leisurely raised her other hand, a dangerous magical glow gathering at her fingertips. “Looks like someone needs a proper interrogation~”
“No, wait! I confess! It’s from the Fox Princess—waaah, stop tickling! Hahaha… stop… I’m gonna die!”
Ten minutes later, a defeated red bird lay sprawled on the table like a salted fish, teary-eyed, feathers a mess like a typhoon hit. The culprit hummed a tune, counting her spoils.
“Twenty coins…” Aphrosia leaned in, nose nearly touching Blazewing’s warm face. “That’s all of them, right?”
Blazewing’s pupils shrank, the ten coins hidden in her tail feathers suddenly burning hot. She turned away, feigning calm. “O-Of course!”
A muffled snicker came from the corner. Mistfeather, hiding behind the curtain, shook with laughter.
“Sis hiding coins… pfft… like a hoarding hamster! So lame!”
Blazewing’s feathers exploded into a fluffy ball, two more coins dropping from her tail. Furious, she lunged at the curtain. “You brat! I’ll roast you into a crispy squab!”
“Waaah—help!” Mistfeather squealed, darting from the curtain as a blue-white blur, zipping around the room. The sisters chased each other, toppling a stack of magic books and spilling ink, finally crashing into Aphrosia’s newly set magic array.
Golden runes flared blindingly, a whirlwind erupting in the room. Aphrosia’s face paled. “Oh no! That’s the unfinished array from—”
Before she finished, gold coins rained from the ceiling, clinking endlessly, piling thick on the floor.
“We’re… rich?” Blazewing shakily caught a coin, but her excitement faded. The coins bore Aphrosia’s goofy face…
False hope!
Mistfeather held a coin to the light. “Illusion coins?”
“Not quite,” Aphrosia said casually. “Just fake coins I made. But there’s a flaw…”
“Flaw?” Mistfeather tilted her head.
“They explode if you bite them…”
Mistfeather stared blankly, then at her sister, gleefully gnawing coins…
Oh no!
Boom!
Blazewing’s coin exploded in a puff of pink smoke, dyeing her face strawberry-red. She blinked, feathers singed, smoke curling from her beak.
“…Pfft!”
Spitting black smoke, she turned stiffly, eyes blazing.
“A—phro—sia!!” Her roar nearly lifted the roof, launching her as a crimson streak at the blonde.
Aphrosia, prepared, sidestepped lightly. Blazewing crashed into a coin pile, sending them flying.
“Didn’t I say not to bite them~” Aphrosia spread her hands, all innocence.
“You did it on purpose!” Blazewing clambered out, fuming.
Mistfeather quietly poked a coin, confirming it was safe, and sighed in relief. “So, what are these fake coins for?”
Aphrosia grinned mysteriously, snapping her fingers. The coins floated, forming a complex magic array in midair.
“They’re a new trap I made from Mom’s notes—‘Greedy Fool’s Nightmare’!” She struck a proud pose. “If someone tries to steal them, boom! Though, I’m new to magic, so it’s not perfect…”
Blazewing: “…”
Mistfeather: “…”
“Wait!” Blazewing’s eyes widened in horror. “We’re sitting on a pile of bombs?!”
“Theoretically… yes.” Aphrosia tilted her head, flashing an angelic smile.
Mistfeather was speechless. “You keep something this dangerous at home?!”
“Run!” Blazewing grabbed Mistfeather, wings flapping frantically to escape.
But as they reached the door—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The room drowned in colorful explosion smoke. The sisters were blasted out, arcing gracefully before splat—sticking to a tree outside.
As the smoke cleared, Aphrosia strolled out of the rubble, dusting her skirt, pleased with her work.
“Hmm, nice power, but the delay’s too long…”
Blazewing slid down the tree, eyes lifeless.
“…She’s gonna get me killed someday.”
Mistfeather nodded solemnly, in full agreement.