Bang!!
“Eek!”
“The water…!”
“Over here!”
“Pardon? Who’s─”
Grab! I seize the people’s clothing.
Time is of the essence.
“Eek!!”
“Just come!”
Young Lily quickly soared into the sky, taking care of the trembling villagers, Aunties, and Uncles.
Wings soaring without resistance against the heavy pressure enveloping the entire space.
Honestly…
Gulp.
I’m not used to flying in the sky!
“Whoa!!!”
“Ahhhhhhh!!”
“Stop screaming!!”
─Aren’t you yelling more than me?
In the two white hands piercing the air were two people and a little girl with wings.
The three arrived, screaming, on top of the village, at the hill they used to play on, with many people already there.
“Haah… Haah…”
“Arrived! Let’s land!”
“Where are we…?”
“Over there! Now!”
“Wait! You, Lily…”
Boom!!!
Ugh! The man grabbed by my hand is pushed away, covering his face with his arms.
Having created a whirlwind, Lily vanished in an instant, just like when she brought us here.
The couple, staring blankly at the spot that seemed like a storm had passed, eventually looked up at the sky.
“…What is this?”
“That thing just now…”
“Hey! Everyone come here! We need to go as high as possible!”
Splash. Splash.
The village flooded.
And there’s the village girl flying around in some weird armor?
The rescue is not over yet.
■
Day 3
01:00
“Whoa!!!”
“It’s okay! Stop! Don’t cry!”
It’s been an hour since the nightmare hit the village.
The water has risen pretty well, now reaching up to an adult’s waist.
I broke into the last few remaining houses, crumbling walls, and cradled a crying baby in my arms from a high bed.
“Alright! Let’s go!”
“Lily…”
“Auntie?”
Crash! I smash the wall of the next room.
Inside, Auntie was trying to break the door with her hands, turning red.
It’s the fruit shop auntie I see often.
“…Something’s changed. The Lily I knew wasn’t like this.”
“Ah. It’s a bit different, right? Don’t worry! I’ve gotten really strong.”
This absurd armor imbued with powers given by the Dreamland Fairy.
At first, I didn’t know what to do with it, but with this, I can save everyone and more.
I stretched out my hand.
“Let’s hurry! Everyone’s waiting!”
“I’m fine. Get the child out first…”
“What are you saying?”
Grab!
I move my white hand and seize Auntie.
Of course, it’s not a real hand—it’s the giant hand attached to my side.
“Lily?!”
“Don’t worry! No one is getting left behind. Just follow me.”
“Because of that, follow me.”
I’m going!
KWAHAANG!! I flew over the destroyed wall in an instant and looked down on the hill at the lady and the newborn baby.
“What’s happening…?”
“Here you go.”
“Oh, oh.”
The lady receives the newborn baby, looking perplexed.
“Well then, take care. I still have more to rescue.”
“Wait a second!”
“Yes?”
I stop just before taking off again.
Time is of the essence.
I’ve almost saved everyone, but there are still about three houses left to check.
The water has risen to waist height, so while adults might manage, young children won’t hold on easily.
“I’m in a hurry. If you want to ask what’s going on, I can explain later.”
“People! You’re going to rescue people!”
“That’s right.”
“There are people in places you don’t know about. They’re not just at home.”
“…? Where is that?”
The lady opens her mouth with a heavy expression.
I can’t tell if the weight is from the situation or from where she’s about to mention.
“The abandoned ship.”
It’s a small boat located at the edge of the port, half-destroyed and docked.
There are people there too.
■
01:15
After confirming the last remaining house, I soared into the sky.
Fortunately, all the villagers I knew were saved.
Since I’ve rescued everyone, I should gradually regroup to share the situation or figure out my own response, but since there are more people left to save, I head back toward the village.
“Is it really true?”
—Hmm… Well, I don’t really sense any life signs.
The place mentioned by the fruit shop lady caring for the newborn.
“The abandoned ship.”
“I remember that abandoned ship. My dad said it was no longer usable, and the villagers just left it there after taking parts off.”
He said if left alone, it would eventually decay or break apart, but to have people there while I’ve never been is hard to believe.
—It might be a bit of a tricky situation.
“It’s strange. The villagers are all kind and help each other, so there are no poor people. Everyone is similar, and to be homeless on an abandoned ship…”
—What if they’re not villagers?
I freeze as my body, heading toward the port, stops.
“…Huh?”
—If they’re not villagers, it could be a possible story. She might have hesitated to mention it because she just referred to outsiders.
“I… don’t exclude outsiders, though.”
—Are you sure?
“Yes.”
I’m certain.
Since it’s such a small village, outsiders don’t come by often, but occasionally people do visit, bringing items back and forth.
There was never any special incident each time, and there wasn’t anyone particularly trying to cause trouble.
“I’m sure. That never happened.”
So let’s go first.
We should be able to figure something out.
But if it’s a broken ship and various parts have been taken off…
Swoooosh…
“Oh.”
─It’s already gone.
The spot where the ship used to be was long filled with rough waves.
A sea where not even a trace of the ship can be seen.
“……It’s too late.”
Since it was a broken ship, it seemed it had already been swept away by the sea.
…Should I have gone immediately as soon as I heard the news?
‘But the villagers are more important to me.’
But there might be people from the village on the ship.
‘No, it could be an outsider.’
So what if it’s an outsider? Outsiders are people too.
‘But villagers come first over outsiders.’
The lives of people are precious. It can’t be about who to save or not.
‘Then why didn’t you go to the ship first? You knew it was the most dangerous situation—’
Grrrroooow!
“Huh?!”
Zing…!
My head suddenly throbbed painfully.
As I opened my eyes with tears welling up from the first pain I felt while wearing armor, the Fairy Lady was looking at me with a dissatisfied expression.
The truly small fist she had raised, and she chuckled softly.
─You’re not everyone’s savior.
“…But.”
─Didn’t you say it yourself? I did my best even though I couldn’t stop the Nightmare.
Regardless of whether the Nightmare is bad or not, it was the Dreamland Fairy who failed to stop the Nightmare Demon King for whatever reason.
Still, Young Lily said it wasn’t the Dreamland Fairy’s fault.
─You only need to do your best within what you can do. Don’t worry about things outside your role.
“…Is that okay?”
─Yeah. And by the way, that’s just gross.
At merely 12 years old.
I really dislike it when she’s already blaming herself for not saving a few more people just because she got a bit of power.
─Kids should act like kids.
“U…”
─Enough. Head over to that spot.
Young Lily heads towards where the ship used to be.
Soon, the White Guardian, who had enveloped her entire body, began to seep around and investigate.
─…Nothing here?
“What?”
─There are no traces of the ship at all.
As if it had never existed, there were no signs whatsoever.
Young Lily shook her head.
“Th-That can’t be! The people might be unknown, but there was definitely a ship!”
─Well, it seems related to the clock… but right now, we can’t locate anything.
Perhaps due to the ongoing corridor transformation, it’s difficult to grasp this entire area.
In the current state, it’s a situation where nothing can be easily understood.
─But it’s certain that something is going on. In a place like this where there’s nothing at all. Something must have intervened.
“…So what do we do now?”
─……
‘I’ look across the sea through the fairy’s eyes.
It’s true that the Kraken’s area of influence is spreading, but the effects aren’t as massive as I thought.
Even though the village is nearly submerged, this level of flooding is really weak.
‘Maybe it’s just teetering on the edge of its active territory. It’s probably just passing by rather than directly attacking.’
So, it means that it isn’t entirely a situation where everyone is going to drown just yet.
But since the system states that it’s ‘focused’ here, it’s clear that this place has become a target.
Once a Kraken sets its sights on something, it never takes its eyes off it as long as its eyes remain intact.
[What are you going to do?]
[???]
[Poor Lily, crying ㅠㅠ]
[I want to smack the Kraken, LOL]
[Can’t Lily just hit it?]
“There are two ways.”
One is to just fail, load the third save, complete the ritual, and avoid the focus.
The sorcerer said that the ritual is useless now, but looking at it roughly, it’s not entirely pointless.
It’s already somewhat improved, so it can hold up for a day or two.
In about two days, I could gather a couple more hints, and the probability of clearing the dungeon would also increase.
“…Fairy Lady?”
Young Lily, unable to hear my voice, looks up at me.
People were saved as I said, but now they don’t know what to do.
If I go with the first method, Young Lily won’t remember and won’t be shocked, nor will she feel guilt for not saving someone.
As someone who doesn’t want to burden Young Lily with a mission, I have no reason not to choose otherwise.
But.
“I guess I have to go with the second one.”
Whether I’m dragged along to complete the ritual or I find the hidden power and somehow evade the Kraken’s gaze.
‘Is that really the end?’
No.
Young Lily’s ultimate goal in this fairy tale is the downfall of the Nightmare Demon King, ‘Kraken.’
It’s also the final destination of my intervention in this Gaeyeon’s story, and it’s what I desire as well.
‘To save a village that’s innocent from a monster.’
─Alright, Lily. It’s time to give the Nightmare Demon King a smackdown.
“What? A smackdown?”
─Yeah. Want to ball up your fists?
Young Lily tilts her head and clenches her fists.
And then.
“Hammer?”
A hammer is generated.
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