"Peeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!"

Something shrieked and leaped out of the cracked egg like a flash of light. It was a frightening speed comparable to that of a bullet and caused everyone to draw away reflexively.

'Ah!'

Its target was at the head of the table.

Greatly startled, Seol Jihu twisted his body away, causing the thing to shoot past him by a hair’s breadth. Seol Jihu’s face went blank as he turned his head around.

'Fast…!'

He couldn’t even make out its silhouette. If he hadn’t avoided it intuitively, he would have been hit. However, the surprise wasn’t over yet.

The thing that shot past Seol Jihu bounced upwards as soon as it hit the wall behind him. It then made several somersaults in the air before lightly landing back on the table.

Seol Jihu stared down at the table in a daze.

Something short and chubby was staring up at him.

'…Injeolmi?'[1]

That was the first thought that came to his mind the moment he saw it. That was because its entire body was covered in fluff that looked extremely soft. If he tossed it into his mouth and chewed, he was certain it would be chewy like rice cakes.

'No, no.’

Seol Jihu vigorously shook his head before carefully looking at it again.

First off, it was extremely tiny. Leaving out all exaggerations, it really was the size of a child’s fist.

It had two legs. The fluff that covered its entire body was yellow with a tinge of red except for the white patch around its belly.

On the sides of its torso were tiny wings, and on its round face was a pair of ruby-like eyes that sparkled beautifully.

And on its mouth was a small, light-pink beak. If one had to point out its defining feature, it would be the single, light-green feather growing on its forehead.

Instead of an Injeolmi, it now looked closer to a chick and a freshly hatched one at that.

Suddenly, it parted its tiny little beak and…

"Pyak!"

It chirped.

"…What the… It was a chick?"

"Pyak pyak!"

The chick snapped its head...