Zongman: Evolution Paradise

"Yes, Haibara, where should we go?"

Anya also looked at Ai Haibara, her serious expression suggesting that Ai Haibara was the one who initiated the event.

"I said, aren't we here to help you choose a pet? Why are you asking me where to go?"

Ai Haibara looked at Anya with a troubled expression, already sensing that this adventure was not going to go well.

Anya, who was being questioned, didn't feel embarrassed. She chose to read Ai Haibara's thoughts directly to get the answer.

Ai Haibara: This guy will probably try to read my mind, to test me. He'll eat the grapes and spit out the skins, or not eat the grapes and not spit out the skins...

Anya is in a major crisis!

Ultimately, Ai Haibara took over the leadership role and set the first step in the adventure.

"Then let's go to the pet store."

Of course, there was one more thing to do at the pet store. Ai Haibara looked at Kanna and said seriously, "Promise me, Kanna, you absolutely must not go around tasting what those pets taste like."

Through Anya, Ai Haibara naturally learned about the race of this Kobayashi Kanna.

The presence of a dangerous dragon nearby caused Ai Haibara to throw down her schoolbag and choose to refuse to go to school like an ordinary child, but unfortunately, her protests were in vain.

After spending more time together, Ai Haibara found that Kanna Ryu was actually quite nice, so she accepted him.

She recently also obtained some of Kanna's hair, intending to conduct some experiments.

Stared at by both Anya and Ai Haibara, Kanna blinked and replied, "I understand, Ai."

Since they were choosing a pet, they needed to find a larger store. Ai Haibara, dragging Anya and Kanna who were disoriented, decided to take a taxi directly.

Well... she does have pocket money, which is given out weekly by Saeko Busujima, who controls the finances, plus occasional payments from others.

Although I couldn't buy the latest biological laboratory of the Free Federation that Ai Haibara longed for, it was enough to take a random taxi ride in Chiba.

And so, the three little ones began their journey to the pet shop.

……

Following the recommendations on the app, Ai Haibara led them out of the car in front of a shop called "Pet House".

"By the way, what type of dog do you want?"

When Ai Haibara asked Anya about it, this time Anya didn't look blank and accurately stated the standard she had already thought of.

"Cute, handsome, kind, small enough to hold in your arms, big enough to ride on, I love them all!" Anya recalled the scene when she and her father were choosing a pet, and added, "Absolutely no scary-looking big dogs."

Anya had another reason for bringing her two friends along, which she didn't mention.

Although her father, Lloyd Fogg, promised to get a pet dog, all the photos he used to choose from were of the kind that looked fierce.

"Isn't that just liking things that look good?"

Kanna grasped the key point Anya was making and received a nod of agreement from Anya.

"Then let's go in and have a look."

Ai Haibara said, walking ahead and pushing open the shop door with cute cat and dog patterns.

The air in the shop was quite pleasant, without too many strange smells. Looking at the cats and dogs so close at hand, Ai Haibara's heart leaped with joy.

"Haibara, so you like small animals too."

Upon reading Ai Haibara's thoughts, Anya smiled, and a sinister voice rang in Ai Haibara's ear, exuding a sense of quiet solitude.

Pushing Anya away as she leaned in, Ai Haibara calmly retorted, "Isn't it normal to like small animals?"

This made Anya scratch her face, somewhat speechless. It's not surprising that children like cute animals.

Hmm... Anya had absolutely no idea that Ai Haibara was an adult.

As they talked, the shop assistant came over. Looking at the three adorable little girls, a smile appeared on her face, and she bent down slightly to ask, "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"To see the pets."

Kanna replied, her gaze already shifting to the area where West Highland White Terriers were located.

"Looking for pets?"

The shop assistant assumed the three little ones were children who wanted to play with small animals.

Although it was a pet store, the staff had no intention of kicking the cute little girl out. Instead, they smiled and offered, "Do you like West Highlanders? I'll take you with me."

"sorry to bother you."

Ai Haibara pulled Anya and Kanna along behind her.

Anya whispered, "She thought we didn't have the money to buy it."

"The problem is, you didn't bring any money with you in the first place, did you?"

Ai Haibara's lips twitched. Anya was just an elementary school student. Although her family was very rich, it was obvious that she wouldn't carry enough money with her at all.

"Anyway, I have a cell phone, so I can just contact my father to come and pay for me later."

Anya said cleverly.

Following the shop assistant, they arrived at the West Highland White Terrier exhibit.

"This is a West Highland White Terrier, an extremely cute small dog. Don't let its cuteness fool you, it has a very strong personality and is very easy to train..."

Reading the information plaque on the railing, the shop assistant brought out a West Highland White Terrier, placed it in front of the three little ones, and asked, "Would you like to try touching it?"

"want!"

Anya and Kanna quickly got the hang of it, while Ai Haibara remained a bit reserved, squatting to the side and watching.

West Highland calves are indeed a very cute breed, quite appealing to children. Feeling the warm touch, Anya and Kanna both squinted their eyes.

This adorable scene really stirred up the shop assistant's maternal instincts.

"how do you feel?"

She asked impatiently.

Anya and Kanna's responses immediately ruined the lovely atmosphere.

"His appearance is a bit sloppy."

Kanna stared at the West Highland terrier's furry face and made a rather hurtful assessment.

Anya nodded, looking at the West Highlands wagging its tail, and said with a troubled expression, "I don't think I'm smart enough. I probably can't play detective and thief games with you..."

Haibara Ai:"……"

Shop assistant: "..."

"Apologize to this West Highland White Terrier for its slovenly appearance!"

The shop assistant couldn't help but roar inwardly, then looked at Anya, who had spoken out of utter disbelief. "It's just a dog, how could it possibly play detective games?"

Such a violent psychological change made Anya quickly release the West Highlands from her hand and hide behind Kanna, looking at the shop assistant in terror.

Shop assistant: "..."

She was certain she was only raging inwardly, while maintaining a professional smile on her face. In her mind, the label she had attached to the three little ones had changed from cute to weird.

Side Story - The Three Little Ones' Great Adventure - 3

"Stop joking, Anya, how could a dog possibly play detective games?"

"Ai Haibara said helplessly."

Detective games are a possibility for her, given her dog with a human face. However, that dog is a pervert. Rather than playing detective games with Anya, she'd much rather play a game with her owner where they break into a house and get caught by the detective...

"Yeah, how could a dog possibly play detective games?" the shop assistant said stiffly.

“By the way, aren’t there a few pets here?” Ai Haibara looked around and found that many of the enclosures were empty, and some breeds only had a few left for display, making the whole shop seem very empty.

And these West Highlanders really do look very sloppy, just as Kanna said.

"That's because there's a pet expo today, and most of them have already been taken there..."

The shop assistant explained that this was indeed the case; the items left in the shop were mostly those that weren't in very good condition.

"Pet Show!"

Upon hearing the shop assistant's words, Anya's eyes immediately lit up as she looked at Ai Haibara.

Even though Anya didn't say anything, Ai Haibara understood what Anya meant by staring at her.

"Wow, this is awesome! It's a pet expo! Ai Haibara, let's go check it out!"

“…Really.”

Ai Haibara sighed softly, feeling inexplicably that her mindset had aged, and she no longer had the energy of a child who would do whatever came to mind.

Seeing that the children were interested in the pet exhibition, the shop assistant breathed a sigh of relief and enthusiastically found a promotional poster and handed it to Ai Haibara, who looked like the boss.

Anya and Kanna squeezed over, glanced at the event address on the poster, looked at each other, and immediately took action.

"Bye-bye, Anya's going on an adventure."

Pulling Ai Haibara and Kanna along, Anya ran outside, saying goodbye to the shop assistant as she went.

"Bye-bye, thank you for showing me the scruffy puppy."

Connor exclaimed that appearance was much easier to describe than the hard-to-remember name West Highland White Terrier.

"Thank you very much. I wish you a happy life..."

Ai Haibara, who was being dragged along, turned her head away, wanting to say thank you, but before she could finish speaking, she was already being pulled away by Anya, who couldn't wait to do so.

Worried that the children might be in danger, the shop assistant followed them up and stood at the shop entrance, watching the children's hopping and skipping figures.

"It's really...strange yet energetic."

Just as they finished expressing their feelings, the shop assistant noticed that they had hailed a taxi and were planning to go to the pet expo.

"...So he's from a wealthy family."

Taxis are expensive in Japan, especially since this place is quite a distance from the pet show.

After a moment of silence, the shop assistant rubbed his face, forcibly dispelling his fatigue.

The taxi stopped by the roadside and opened the door. The shop assistant casually observed them and noticed that the strange children were saying something. Then, the child who called himself Anya ran back.

"Have you forgotten something?"

With that thought in mind, the shop assistant put on a working-class smile and prepared to step forward to help.

Unexpectedly, Anya didn't move any closer. Instead, she ran to a closer spot, cupped her hands in the shape of a megaphone, and shouted with a smile, "Aoyama-neechan, I believe you will definitely become the best voice actress in the future!"

After saying that, Anya waved her hand and quickly ran back to get into the car.

Only after watching the taxi start up and gradually drive away did the shop assistant stare blankly at his employee name tag.

His name was written on it: Aoyama Nanami.

"But how did this child know my dream?"

Aoyama Nanami patted his face, feeling that he might be hallucinating because he hadn't rested well due to working too late.

After all, she really wanted to hear someone say something encouraging about her dreams.

-

Meanwhile, at the Chiba Pet Show, in a sparsely populated area, a Great Pyrenees dog of mixed lineage, yet to be named Bond, opened its eyes.

"Will someone adopt me?"

Recalling the scene he had just witnessed, the Great Pyrenees looked around.

In front of it were water and dog food, some of which it had already eaten. In the cage next to it was a fierce-looking wolfhound, which barked a few times when it noticed the Great Pyrenees looking over.

Ignoring its roommate, the Great Pyrenees stared at its black front paws in deep thought.

"Do you want to be adopted?"

It became a player not long ago. Compared to humans who have long been enveloped in various fantasies, the dog, which has only recently gained intelligence, is somewhat "bewildered".

Fortunately, the park won't let non-human players encounter any complicated situations in the early stages.

Of all the games played, the mission mode that Great Pyrenees remembers most vividly is a [factional conflict].