Piper was stunned for a moment after hearing Burnice's words, but what truly left her speechless was the host's voice coming from the TV.
|| Don't be discouraged if you missed out this time, lottery players! And to our lucky winners, congratulations! It has been reported that this issue's grand prize is worth a staggering 3 million Dennies! ||
|| Once again, let's give our flowers, applause, blessings, and envy to those fortunate winners! ||
Wise was surprised by the announcement, but Piper was already so excited that she could barely get her words out.
"W-W-What?"
"It actually won the lottery... and it's the three-million-Dennies grand prize..." Wise said, not expecting the lottery company to actually hand out such an enormous prize.
Although, after thinking about it, maybe that wasn't entirely true.
The old lady from before clearly didn't care about Dennies, and even the numbers had been personally chosen by the clerk.
Combined with how confident she had sounded, could it be that she'd already known the ticket would win?
Was that why she'd given it to them?
Regardless of Wise's doubts, Burnice, standing beside him, was overjoyed. She excitedly threw both hands into the air.
"Three million Dennies! Woo-hoo! That's so much! The three of us can each get one million!"
"No... wait a minute... You really plan to split the prize money with us?"
Piper looked at Burnice in surprise. Hearing the question, Burnice answered as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Of course! The old lady thanked all three of us, and since she gave us the lottery ticket, the prize money should naturally be split three ways!"
"Burnice..."
Piper's voice was filled with emotion. Seeing her reaction, Burnice immediately became flustered.
"Oh? Ah? What's wrong?"
"...Nothing. Our Burnice is such a good girl."
"Well, given your personality, I figured that's exactly what you'd do," Wise said with a smile as he gently patted Burnice on the head.
"Everyone suddenly started praising me... I just did what anyone would do! If either of you had the lottery ticket, wouldn't you do the same?" she responded with a cheerful giggle.
'Burnice really is an incredibly innocent and lovable girl.'
The same thought crossed both of their minds at that moment.
"Hmm... I don't know what Wise would do, but I can't say the same. My heart is probably as polluted as a truck's exhaust pipe. Yours, Burnice, still shines as brightly as a truck's headlights."
Piper laughed at herself, but Wise simply shook his head. Reaching out, he gently pinched her soft cheeks.
"I don't think that's true."
"That's right! Besides, the sexiest part of a truck isn't its headlights; it's the engine! I wonder when my heart will start rumbling like one~" Burnice said excitedly.
Good heavens... a heart that sounds like an engine?
"Burnice, that's not what I meant. Anyway, what I meant is that Piper also has a sense of responsibility that many adults don't."
"Hmm... Hearing you say that makes this old woman a little embarrassed. Youth really is wonderful... Anyway, let's not dwell on it. I was watching the program earlier, and it looks like the prize money won't be paid out until a later date."
Piper's cheeks flushed slightly as she quickly changed the subject.
Burnice nodded and spoke.
"Really? Then can Piper and I stay here tonight? Please? Pretty please?"
She looked at Wise with sparkling, expectant eyes.
Naturally, he couldn't bring himself to refuse.
The moment he agreed, Burnice happily wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Yay! A soft, comfy bed! Hehe... to celebrate, let's stay up all night!"
"All night? Ah, youth really is something..."
Piper couldn't help but sigh as she watched Burnice's boundless energy.
Burnice then carefully held up the lottery ticket.
"I'll make sure to keep this important lottery ticket safe and never lose it... Mmm..."
Before she could finish, Piper quickly rose onto her tiptoes and covered Burnice's mouth.
"Don't say things that invite bad luck! Just to be safe, I'll hold on to the lottery ticket."
Meanwhile, Belle, who had been watching everything unfold, couldn't help but feel emotional.
So this really wasn't a dream.
Her brother had earned one million Dennies just by taking on a commission.
But what would she have done if she had been in that situation?
'Forget it. Now isn't the time to think about something like that.'
"Brother! Since we just earned one million Dennies, shouldn't we have a little celebration tonight?" Belle asked as she walked over to Wise, her voice full of playful affection.
As always, Wise found it impossible to refuse his little sister.
"Alright. Then I'll go buy some ingredients later and cook us an amazing dinner."
"Yay!" ×3
Unlike Belle, Wise remained relatively calm about the unexpected windfall.
After all, the 39,000 Emotional Value stored in his system could be exchanged for Dennies at a ratio of 1:10,000.
On top of that, the income from his novels and manga was already more than he could realistically spend anytime soon.
He simply never told Belle exactly how much money he had. After all, money had a way of clouding people's judgment.
Still, no matter what Belle wanted, he would always buy it for her.
<<>>
A few days later, when it was finally time to claim the three million Dennies grand prize, Wise waited outside the agreed meeting place.
However, the only person who showed up was Burnice, who came running toward him completely out of breath.
She hurriedly explained that something had happened, but she was too flustered to explain it clearly.
Seeing that she could barely catch her breath, Wise immediately brought her into the staff room. Then he gently placed a hand against her chest.
Burnice blinked in confusion, briefly wondering why he was doing that at a time like this.
A moment later, however, she suddenly realized her breathing had steadied, and the tightness in her chest had completely disappeared.
Relieved, she quickly explained what had happened.
"I'm sorry. I got a little too emotional just now. It might not be as serious as I made it sound... It's just that Piper disappeared yesterday with our lottery ticket, and no one has been able to contact her."
From Burnice's tone, it was obvious she wasn't particularly concerned about the lottery ticket itself.
After hearing her explanation, Wise quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
"So that's all. I thought something much worse had happened."
He wasn't too worried about Piper either. Although she usually acted lazy, she was a genuinely responsible adult when it mattered.
Burnice nodded, though the concern on her face remained.
After all, Piper had gone into the Hollow yesterday to test some vehicles, and since no one had been able to contact her since then, she was likely still inside.
Hearing that, Wise made his decision at once.
He'd head into the Hollow with Burnice and bring Piper back.
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