NOVEL NEXT Chapter 584
Aurora, the girl from Guryong Village, received a call from Na-me and dashed to the playground in a flash.
She saw Na-me sitting at the top of the geodesic dome, the center of attention for all the children.
Perfectly balanced on the thin structure, she didn’t seem to be in any danger of falling.
Na-me manipulated a hologram with a nonchalant expression, occasionally scaring the little ones who were sliding down the slide by hanging upside down from the monkey bars.
“Boo.”
“Gyaaaahhh! Hweeeeeeeng!”
“Don’t cry, just have some candy.”
“Uhh?”
Shoving candy into the tear-streaked face of a child, she calmly went back up to the top of the dome.
Once tricked, the kids huddled in a corner, giggling at the next poor victim falling for the same prank.
Somehow, they seemed to have become much more playful than before.
“Na-me unniii!”
Having thought that, Aurora called out na-me’s name as loud as she could.
Maybe she just knew the owner of that voice without even having to look.
Na-me spun mid-air and landed softly on the ground.
“You got here fast.”
“Yep! I sprinted here in my slippers!”
“I called you because I missed you. Do you want to come up here too? This is a spot only the king of the playground can have.”
From below, it didn’t seem too high, so Laura nodded instantly.
The girls settled in, each occupying a spot happily.
“Ugh, this is a bit scary…!”
“Have you looked around the playground? Isn’t it pretty?”
“Yeah! It’s huge and beautiful!”
“How’s school going?”
“I won a gold medal at the UN English speaking contest the other day. I have the certificate with me, awww!”
“Be careful not to drop it.”
“Hehe, isn’t that cool?”
Aurora was only satisfied once she showed off her real certificate.
“Wow, that’s amazing. Well done.”
Na-me gently ruffled Laura’s hair.
Pushing her hair back, she carefully checked her forehead, arms, and legs, asking,
“It looks like your atopy is gone now. Any itchy spots?”
“Your hand is more ticklish! I’ve felt much better since moving!”
“Has your mom come home?”
“Dunno?”
Although she laughed it off, pretending not to know, clever Laura already knew all the truths.
After the divorce, her mother had gained custody.
Her mother used Laura and her grandmother as offerings in Guryong Village.
Following Na-me’s advice, Laura received a small government support fund and moved to a nearby villa.
Her furious mother crossed the point of no return, abandoning Laura to start a new family.
Gradually, the two began to erase each other from their memories.
To forget the pain in her heart,
“I want to be Na-me unni’s secretary when I grow up.”
Laura declared her ambitious dream.
Na-me had always been the object of her admiration.
From the moment she saved her at the playground, she had been someone of monumental presence.
“Then study hard.”
However, Na-me was not going to give up her side easily.
With her own abilities, she could only manage to snag a corner of the neighborhood playground.
She had no idea how many competitors she would have to surpass to rise up.
‘Should I become the President? But Na-me unni is more amazing than a President. Then what should I do…’
With only the knowledge of a third-grader, there were limits.
The world was far too vast for Laura to comprehend, and it was simply too small for Na-me.
“Okay, I’ll study hard!”
Relieved that she had at least surpassed Na-me in height and build, Laura answered cheerfully.
“But what were you doing here?”
“I’m remembering things.”
“Remembering? Were you memorizing? Studying?”
“It’s similar. But you don’t need to know.”
“Cheh, I want to know!”
Aurora pouted her cheeks like a hamster.
Even at Na-me’s level, it seemed there was no end to learning.
Feeling that, Laura resolved to ignite her passion for studying even more.
*
At Wearsoft, they ordered to adapt the Hibris episode and integrate it into the Wagal universe.
The staff visited the legendary Japanese scenario writer who led the revival of Wagal, presenting him with cash stacks to make a deal.
“He’s trying to buy me with money, huh?” he joked.
But in response, they defended, “It’s dollars, not yen,” and put together a fine syllogism stating, “it was indeed too much money to chastise him.”
[On second thought, I really like the unique worldview here. It’s not just that mana is extremely saturated; there’s also dark magic existing as sorcery… I should take a look at it, even if just to erase the traces of Tolkien.]
The grandpa author hated elves.
So much so that, even in Wagal, the long-eared folks were set to be tortured experimental subjects.
Anyway, I decided to leave the details entirely to him.
From now on, my role is to document the overall world and significant events to pass on.
I had memorized ‘Chronicles of Kaizen (1668p)’ and ‘History of the Kaizen Emperors – Airogen (1034p),’ yet that alone was not enough.
To understand what sort of lives the seven Erosions led, I needed their memories.
“Oh, and Schadenfreude is excluded.”
I am Schadenfreude, and Schadenfreude is me, after all.
Leaving out Hibris, there wasn’t anyone who looked weak…
For now, let’s gently coax the puppy Erichiton.
It wasn’t always like this, but the puppy likes kids as much as I do.
After chitchatting with Aurora, the mana stream passing through Erichiton’s Aura Heart stabilized significantly.
I barely maintained her identity and extracted her memories to the best of my ability.
When her identity grew too strong, I hung upside down on a truss to increase blood flow to my brain.
The Erosions were far stranger than expected.
Finishing up the scheduled recording for the day, I left the dome.
Aurora was swinging on the swings with a friend she’d never met.
The one thing I overlooked was that outside the playground was a space filled with teenagers and adults.
“Waaahhhh, NoName!”
“Kyaaaahhhh, Na-me is so cute!”
“I love Na-me!”
Before the playground vicinity got crowded, it was best to get away as quickly as possible.
But today, I didn’t feel like it.
Was it my heart or Erichiton’s heart?
It didn’t matter to tell them apart.
“Ah… I love you too!”
“Kyaaaaahhhh!”
I was already drawing hearts with my hands, and I thought I would never regret this moment.
*
All safety protocols were in vain.
A scale like the ‘Algerian Flight 8318 bombing that killed all 190 on board’ would warrant a massive influx of safety regulations and a complete overhaul of the designs.
So, I rented a personal jet equipped with a mana shield from Netjet and set off for a business trip to Europe.
“Cheon Saetbyeol, fetch me some water.”
“Grrr, I can totally get it myself, you know!”
Saetbyeol made her disdain obvious with her entire body while trudging over to open the fridge.
Kids are inherently kind.
“I’ll leave it to you whether you want to or not!”
Zzing—
A 500mL water bottle whizzed through the air at an incredible spin rate.
Thud—
But isn’t the aura there for times like this?
With one hand, I accurately caught it and popped off the cap.
“Thanks. The water you bring is the best, Saetbyeol.”
“Without hands or feet, why are you so eager to make me do everything? I could reach that with just my foot!”
“Just because you’re cute.”
“Hmph! If you ask me again, I’ll tickle you really hard—”
“Cheon Saetbyeol, I want orange juice.”
“Kyaaaahhh!”
Saetbyeol pounced at me like a tiger, her claws extended.
Once her ten fingers brushed my side, it felt like electric currents coursed through me.
What’s this sensation…!
“Ahhh! I’m sorry! Sorry! Aaaaahhh, my armpit! H–H—Help, it tickles!”
“What’s wrong with you? Why are you so ticklish? You weren’t this way before. Hehe, this is great, tickle tickle!”
“Ughh, stop it! Don—! Stop! Cough!”
“Gak! Biting is unfair! Unfair!”
Has my body gotten too sensitive from controlling the erosions recently?
Even now, my spine and the back of my neck felt tingly.
Saetbyeol looked at the clear bite marks on her arm with a pout.
“What’s this! It’ll leave a mark on my precious skin!”
“Apply some saliva and it’ll be fine. Want me to put some on for you?”
“No! I’ll bite you back!”
“That’s a no from me. Ugh!”
I swiftly dodged Saetbyeol’s grasp.
A parkour game of tag unfolded around the central sofa where Professor Cheon was seated.
Dad paused, about to take a sip of his drink.
“Kids, let’s keep it reasonable. You can’t jump around on an airplane.”
“Saetbyeol keeps tickling me!”
“Then I’ll just bite you once! A little prick is all it takes!”
She said that with her sharp fangs fully revealed.
If I got pierced by those, I’d probably hurt right down to the veins.
“Cheon Saetbyeol! NoName!”
“Eeep!”
“What?”
“Both of you sit down. Listen to Dad.”
At Dad’s booming voice, we all shrank back with our tails tucked.
Saetbyeol blinked at me, casting a glance.
“That’s your fault, and now Dad’s mad. Figure it out quickly.”
Dad seemed to be holding back his anger without saying much.
I had been overlooking something.
Professor Cheon must have an incredibly serious trauma related to aviation.
It was all the more delicate to bring up since it pertained to his late fiancée.
I clenched my fists, which I had set on my thighs.
Trying to shake my head and think earnestly,
Suddenly, tears blurred my vision.
“What?”
“Huh? Na-me unni is crying…”
My heart raced, and my breath quickened.
Did I get scared? Me?
No, this is absolutely not me.
“Na-me…?”
Right now, Professor Cheon was wearing an apologetic expression at me.
“No, no! It’s not that! So, um… I wasn’t, it’s just a bit… Erichiton… No, what am I supposed to say…!”
“Na-me unni… don’t cry, boohoo… sniff!”
“I’m sorry for shouting, Na-me… Did you get scared? I’m sorry, kids! I was worried something might happen to you.”
“No, I’m fine! I wasn’t scared at all! I’m just so sorry that I couldn’t understand Dad’s feelings, and we acted thoughtlessly—”
Even amidst this, her tear ducts seemed to be broken, constantly spilling droplets.
I felt embarrassed enough to flush bright red.
Dad’s misunderstanding deepened.
“Hah… life.”
I gave up explaining and turned my head aside.
The vast freedom unfolded through the round window.
Ah, I want to jump out right now.
It was the sky.