Chapter 3

“I’ll go get some water.”

Seo Eunhye went to the kitchen and brought back moderately warm water. She scooped baby formula into the bottle and poured in the water.

Soon after, the baby bottles were fed to the babies who were lying in a circle on a clean blanket.

But the babies shook their heads. Though they had the bottle in their mouths, they didn’t suck. They whimpered because they were hungry, but the babies didn’t want to eat.

“Oh, Jiyoon. If you’re hungry, eat something.”

Jiyoon’s mom sighed at the sight of her daughter, who whined but absolutely refused to eat. The other babies were the same.

Seojun was the only one sucking on his feeding bottle and drinking the baby formula.

Seeing the anxious mothers, Seo Eunhye picked up Seojun. It wasn’t her fault, but she felt awkward seeing her son eating so well by himself.

Slurp slurp-

From his mother’s arms, Seojun observed the situation.

His mom seemed worried as she held him, while the other moms were pushing bottles into their children’s mouths, coaxing and pleading with the babies who couldn’t possibly understand, begging them to take just one bite.

Slurp slurp-

While drinking the formula, Seojun, who had been thinking for a moment, raised his right hand. If he left them alone, the babies would continue to be noisy, and the moms looked like they were about to burst into tears.

I’m not sure if this will work…

Engraved on the baby’s right hand was a grass-green staff pattern, invisible to others’ eyes.

I’ve never used it like this before…

To be honest, this is the first time he was using an ability like [Fairy’s Sparkle].

In the survival-of-the-fittest monster ecosystem, there was no need to use such a flashy ability. Rather, it was actually dangerous.

For someone who is used to abilities more suited to fighting and survival, it was kind of refreshing to finally use such an ability.

Sparkle!

[Fairy’s Sparkle – Lowest Grade – sparkles. Captures the attention of young ones who can see everything.]

Originally, a fairy’s wings would have sparkled after using this ability, but because Seojun had no wings in this life, his hair and skin shimmered slightly instead.

The crying babies’ gazes turned to the mysteriously sparkling Seojun. Of course, the moms couldn’t see it.

Only the babies, free from worldly prejudices and untainted, could see the Fairy’s Sparkle.

As the babies stopped crying and stared in one direction, the mothers’ gazes also turned there.

They saw Seo Eunhye holding Seojun. She was sitting on the floor, holding Seojun with one hand and supporting the baby bottle with the other.

Slurp slurp-

Only the sound of Seojun sucking on the baby bottle could be heard.

Seojun, who was drinking the formula, leisurely waved his right hand. He was waving the sparkle.

[Fairy’s Sparkle is glittering. Someone may want to imitate you.]

When a fairy’s wings sparkled, it captured children’s attention, and when the fairy danced, the children followed along.

Fairies used to play tricks on those who imitated them. Sometimes they led the children into the forest and made them get lost.

Fairies danced, sang, or did strange things. Doing strange things were nine times out of ten.

It was all thanks to the power of the sparkle.

Slurp slurp-

Along with the sound of Seojun sucking on the bottle, sucking sounds from the other babies started to be heard in the room.

Slurp slurp-

The babies affected by the sparkle had started drinking the formula.

“Oh my, oh my!”

Nobody had any idea why, but they realized that the babies were imitating Seojun.

Where had the babies who cried, screamed, and refused formula gone? It was as if there was no formula more delicious than this, and they were eating very well.

“Seojun is amazing!”

“Right? Everyone’s eating because Seojun is eating!”

The mothers spoke excitedly.

“I’m so glad they’re finally eating like this!”

Jiyoon’s mother, who had been holding Jiyoon, who had been eating little for the past few days, said half crying

Jiyoon would cry and whine every mealtime but refused to eat. Jiyoon’s mother’s head ached and tears would well up every mealtime

The other moms also nodded. Mina’s mom stroked Mina’s golden hair as she sucked on the pacifier.

“Do you think it’s that thing?”

“That thing?”

The mothers turned to Mina’s mother. Mina’s mother grinned and said.

“Mukbang for babies!”

At Mina’s mom’s words, the moms burst out laughing.

Mukbang!

Baby mukbang!

“Ahahaha!”

Mina’s mom, who was working as a vlogger, recording and updating her daily life on NeoTube, said it half as a joke, and everyone laughed.

“That’s right!”

“At this rate, you can really do a mukbang!”

“He’s a total mukbang star. A star!”

Mukbang, where various foods are displayed in front of the camera and eaten deliciously, provides vicarious satisfaction to viewers, helping with dieting, but also makes viewers order the same menu and eat along.

Seojun’s eating, which made babies eat along, was similar to that.

The babies, who didn’t care about the moms who were laughing, watched Seojun sucking on the formula and ate along.

Soon, the formula in the baby bottles disappeared, and the moms picked up the babies.

Burp-!

Seojun, who drank first, burped first, and Seo Eunhye helped Jiwoo burp by holding him.

Soon enough, te babies’ burping sounds echoed through the living room. Fortunately, since everyone ate well, they burped well and didn’t seem likely to spit up formula.

Placing the babies on one side of the living room again, the mothers continued their conversation while occasionally glancing at them.

“Seojun’s mom.”

“Yes?”

Jiyoon’s mother called Seo Eunhye. Mina’s mom said it as a joke, but to a mother of a baby who doesn’t eat well, it was her ray of hope.

Jiyoon’s mom was a little embarrassed, but she will do everything for her daughter.

“I’m really sorry, but can you take a video of Seojun eating and send it to me?”

Everyone was surprised at Jiyoon’s mom’s words. Especially Mina’s mother.

“Wait, no, that was a joke-“

“I know.”

Tears welled up in Jiyoon’s mom’s eyes. The twins’ mother quickly pulled out a tissue and handed it to her.

“Our Jiyoon doesn’t eat well, so she’s smaller than her peers. So I’m trying hard to feed her, but she just won’t eat…”

Jiyoon’s mother shed tears.

The mothers’ gazes turned to the babies. Jiyoon, who was blissfully clapping her hands, was definitely different in size compared to Seojun, who was also seven months old. Among the five babies, Jiyoon was indeed the smallest.

Though there was a size difference between Seojun and Jiyoon, Seo Eunhye, who thought it was because Seojun was exceptionally healthy and tall for his age, quickly waved her hand.

“No, I mean—Seojun looks that way because he’s much bigger than other babies.”

“…The hospital said it. That I need to feed her more… Sob…”

Jiyoon’s mother finally burst into tears. As if sensing her mother’s crying, Jiyoon’s face twitched.

Seeing that, Seojun sighed inwardly and raised his right hand, calling the sparkle.

If we’re not hungry, we shouldn’t cry for no reason!

[Fairy’s Sparkle sparkles. Captures the attention of young ones who can see everything.]

Once again, Seojun’s hair and skin sparkled. The babies’ gazes were drawn to that sight.

Yikes! I forgot.

The babies swarmed toward Seojun. Unlike earlier when he was safely in his mother’s arms, now he is on the floor defenseless, and the babies are crawling towards him.

They were babies who grabbed anything and put it in their mouths. So if there is something eye-catching and fascinating that is sparkling right before their eyes? There was no way they would miss it.

Seojun’s sparkling hair and fingers went into the babies’ mouths.

Nom nom-

They were all chomping on Seojun.

Mom!

Seojun looked at Seo Eunhye, but Seo Eunhye was comforting Jiyoon’s mother. His whole body was being smeared with the babies’ drool.

He could have cried “Waaah,” but judging by their expressions, the moms seemed to be having a serious conversation.

Seojun sighed deeply and resigned to having his body chewed on by his baby friends. He decided to sacrifice himself to avoid disturbing the moms’ conversation.

“Just this once, please… Sob.”

Jiyoon’s mother clasped her hands and begged. Seeing that, Seo Eunhye’s heart softened.

Her son ate anything well, slept well anywhere, and pooped well. He had never been sick and was healthy. Even she thought he was a very rare baby.

Even though she raised him without worries and comfortably, she was also a mother. She understood Jiyoon’s mom’s heart very well. Besides, it was just filming him eating.

‘It’s not like she’s asking to borrow money.’

It’s not as if she would come looking for Seojun every time Jiyoon refused to eat. After thinking for a moment, Seo Eunhye spoke.

“Okay. I’ll film it and send it to you.”

“Really?!”

Jiyoon’s mom asked in surprise. Then she tightly grasped Seo Eunhye’s hands.

“I promise, I’ll really only show it to our Jiyoon. Only our Jiyoon…”

To Jiyoon’s mother, who spoke while shedding tears, Seo Eunhye said.

“But, unnie… Even if she watches that video, I’m not sure if Jiyoon will eat well. She might have eaten just this time specially…”

“That’s true, but I really just need a little effect. Even if she eats just once out of ten times she watches…”

Jiyoon’s mom had thought about that too. No, to be honest, she thought it was a coincidence.

But she thought, if her daughter saw her friend eating in the video, wouldn’t she imitate her friend? If that would influence her to eat just a little more food, that’s already good.

She is a drowning mom and she saw a rope she can cling to. She intended to grab it with all her might even if the rope looks weak. It was for her daughter’s sake.

“Then I’ll take a video of Seojun eating later and send it to you on BananaTalk. He’s full now, so he won’t want to eat.”

Jiyoon’s mom, who was wiping away her tears, nodded.

“I’m really grateful. Really… grateful… I’ll definitely repay you…”

“Don’t worry about it. If Jiyoon eats well after watching the video, then that’s good enough.”

The twins’ mother and Mina’s mother, who were watching the two all this time, thought for a moment and then spoke.

“Um, Seojun’s mom. Could you send it to me too?”

“Me too!”

“It’s not that the twins don’t eat well, but still, there are times they don’t…”

“Mina doesn’t eat baby food well… Could I request a baby food version?”

Seo Eunhye nodded.

“Sure! It’s just taking a video of him eating anyway. I’ll take videos of both formula and baby food.”

Only then did smiles return to the moms’ faces. Seeing the mothers’ relieved faces, Seo Eunhye also smiled. And she turned her head toward her son, who ate well and slept well.

“Oh my, Seojun!”

“Mina!”

“Jiho, Jiwoo!”

“Jiyoon!”

That’s when they finally noticed that Seo Eunhye’s son was being crushed by the babies, looking half-resigned.