I Thought It Was a Fairy Tale but the Genre Is Strange

Peter Pan (3)

At my words, Tinker Bell made a fierce expression, but Peter Pan, looking flustered, glanced at the children and said.

“Of course, if you don’t want to eat, you don’t have to. This is Neverland, a country for children.”

“Right~? I was scared you were going to force-feed me like some adult.”

“Hahaha! This isn’t that kind of place, so don’t worry! But still, it’s a dish your mom made, so shouldn’t you eat it out of respect?”

“I don’t want to~ Peter Pan, you’re talking weird.”

I stared at Peter Pan and continued.

“Talking about respect like some old geezer. Huh? Just kidding, right? Our Peter Pan wouldn’t say something so adult-like.”

“H-hahahaha! Of course! Just kidding! And anyway, you don’t have to eat here to be fine!”

Peter Pan let out an awkward laugh. This is just the beginning, you clumsy kid. I’ll show you how a real troublemaker from Korea behaves!

I stood up abruptly, confident that my plan would work.

“Ah~ This is boring. It doesn’t taste good. You call this a Peter Pan party? Isn’t there anything fun?”

“H-huh? Something fun?”

“Yeah. Something fun. Like flying in the sky earlier, isn’t there something exciting?”

I pointed to the leather pouch at Peter Pan’s waist.

“It looks like you do something with the powder in there. Can’t you share some with me?”

“Huh? Th-this?”

Peter Pan, completely caught in my pace, hurriedly covered his pouch.

“N-no! Only the king can use this!”

“Ugh~ Boring. Peter Pan, you said Neverland is a fantastic place full of dreams and hopes. What’s this? If you start like this, I’ll be disappointed.”

“N-no! Wait! I’ll show you something amazing!”

Peter Pan quickly got up, opened a nearby door, and went into the room. I whistled and waited leisurely.

“Hey, what kind of attitude is that? How dare you act like that in front of Peter Pan?”

Tinkerbell approached me and said with a fierce look in her eyes. “Are you trying to scare me now? Puh-hat! Compared to Alice’s crazy eyes, this looks like a cute child’s prank.”

“Yeah, is there a problem?”

“You seem to be new here today, but the king of this place is Peter Pan. You’re not someone to be treated carelessly.”

“Didn’t that Peter Pan say I could do whatever I wanted? Isn’t it you who is defying Peter Pan’s words now?”

“What, what! How dare you!”

“Dare? It seems like you’re acting as if you’re the king of this place?”

At my words, Tinkerbell’s face turned as red as a carrot. This little thing that isn’t even a handful is annoying. By the way, I need to ask about Wendy’s whereabouts, but I can’t because Tinkerbell is here.

“You, you, you!!!”

Tinkerbell clenched her fists and glared at me with burning eyes. I shrugged my shoulders and shouted loudly.

“Peter Pan!!! Tinkerbell is acting like a bossy old man here!”

Peter Pan hurriedly came running from the room with something in his hand.

“Huh? What’s going on!”

“No, Tinkerbell is acting like a bossy old man, telling me to grow my hair like an adult would. It’s the opposite of what you, the king, say about this being a land of free children. I’m too scared to do anything. Anyone would think Tinkerbell is the king~”

At my last words, Peter Pan’s eyebrows twitched greatly.

“……Tinkerbell, is it true?”

“N-no, I just thought the newbie was acting too arrogantly towards you……”

“I’m the king! If I’m okay with it, it’s okay! Got it!?”

When Peter Pan shouted, tears welled up in Tinkerbell’s eyes. Then she hung her head and flew out, sobbing.

“Peter Pan is a fool!”

“T-Tinkerbell, wait a minute!”

Peter Pan was flustered by Tinker Bell’s crying and tried to follow her, but I quickly stood up and smiled at Peter Pan.

“Wow! This is what a king should be! Your charisma is amazing! A true king knows how to firmly discipline anyone who challenges his position! That’s Peter Pan for you!”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, right!? Hahaha! Yeah, Tinker Bell was a bit too much this time.”

“Exactly. By the way, Peter Pan, what’s that you brought?”

It’s so easy to sow discord. At my question, Peter Pan proudly showed the item he had brought.

“This is my beloved Phoenix!”

A bicycle with a design that looked like a burning, flickering body. It was just a bike painted entirely in red. It was a design that elementary school kids would love. There was even a wing decoration made by cutting and coloring a box behind the saddle.

I pretended to be overly surprised.

“Wow, that’s amazing!”

“Haha, it’s nothing. You said you wanted to feel the thrill, right? Let’s all ride our bikes and have a cool drive! How about it?”

At Peter Pan’s words, the kids’ faces brightened up, the brightest I’d seen so far.

“Great! That sounds so fun!”

“I agree! Let’s all ride fast!”

“Yay, this is exciting!”

The kids went into the shabby room and each brought out their old bikes. The kids’ bikes, which looked doubtful if they would run properly, contrasted with Peter Pan’s well-maintained, shiny Phoenix.

“Alright, everyone, follow me outside!”

Peter Pan led the Phoenix outside. I was about to go outside too when someone grabbed my sleeve. I turned around to see Cassandra, who played the role of the mother, standing there.

“You might not remember, but I’m Cassandra. I took care of your bike. You can use this.”

“Oh, thank you.”

I received the worn-out bike from Cassandra. When I tried pedaling it as a test, it made a creaking noise. Cassandra hesitated for a moment, then quietly spoke.

“You might not know this, but you’re doing something very dangerous right now. If you provoke Peter Pan, you’ll be in big trouble. It might be hard to adjust since it’s your first time here, but you have to cater to Peter Pan’s mood.”

I have to cater to the whims of Peter Pan, who can’t even fly without magic dust. The reason I could come up with a plan on the spot after entering here was that I felt Peter Pan was just a prideful kid, not as strong as Alice.

Since he was just a kid who wanted to reign as the king of the kidnapped children, I didn’t take her words seriously and asked,

“Hmm, I understand what you’re saying. I’ll try. But do you know someone named Wendy?”

At the mention of Wendy’s name, Cassandra was startled and then her face turned pale with fear.

“How do you know Wendy…?”

“What are you doing there! Everyone, come out quickly!”

At Peter Pan’s voice from outside, Cassandra became urgent.

“Let’s talk later. I’ll come to your house at night when Peter Pan is asleep and tell you.”

Cassandra said that and hurriedly went outside. This confirmed it. Something happened to Wendy, and she is not here now. Maybe Wendy, like me, provoked Peter Pan and something happened to her?

I thought as I pushed my bicycle outside. For now, there’s nothing certain. I have no choice but to wait until night.

Outside, the children were riding bicycles, which was a miracle in itself, and Peter Pan was sitting on his beloved bike with a confident expression. I glanced at my bicycle and then threw it aside and approached Peter Pan.

“I want to ride that.”

“What?”

Cassandra was shocked by my actions and slapped her forehead, and the children were gaping as if their jaws would drop. Peter Pan blinked in confusion and asked again,

“What did you say?”

“I said I want to ride that. Why can’t I?”

“Uh? No, only the king can ride this…”

I deliberately cut him off and shouted loudly,

“Surely the great king of Neverland wouldn’t be so petty as to not lend a bicycle? And didn’t you say I could do whatever I wanted? Are you going to go back on your word like an adult, Peter Pan? Surely not, right? No way~ Right~?”

An earthquake shook Peter Pan’s pupils. Having lived as the king of children, this must be the first time he’s experienced something like this.

“Th-that, you see, this is my beloved steed…”

“Oh~ Where I come from, this is basic. If the kids wanted, it was basic to drive around in someone else’s car. Surely, you can’t be saying that’s not possible here? In Neverland, the land for children? No way, right, Peter Pan?”

“Uh? Uh, uh… Y-yeah. Th-that’s right! I-I’m not a petty adult, I’m the cool king of Neverland, so you can ride it as much as you want.”

“That’s the Peter Pan I know! That’s how the king of Neverland should be!”

Peter Pan got off with a face that looked like he was about to cry, and I climbed onto his beloved steed, Phoenix, with a wicked smile.

Peter Pan acted like someone worried about scratching an expensive car. He got on an old bicycle and watched me with an anxious face as I mounted his steed. Well, I should live up to his expectations.

“Ready, set, go!”

At Peter Pan’s signal, everyone struggled forward on their creaky bicycles. Meanwhile, I smoothly pedaled and shot forward like an arrow. Naturally, the distance between me and Peter Pan and the kids widened significantly.

“Sl-slow down! You can’t overwork Phoenix!”

I heard Peter Pan’s urgent shout from behind, but I ignored it and increased my speed. I had no intention of stopping my speeding. I put more strength into my pedaling and rolled my eyes to find a suitable target.

And finally, I found it.

A sturdy, heavy rock ahead. A rock that could easily destroy a bicycle if hit at full speed! I squeezed out all my strength and moved my legs, and the runaway bicycle, unable to control its speed, rushed straight towards the rock.

Just before hitting the rock, I jumped off the bicycle. Crash! With a loud noise, Peter Pan’s beloved steed, Phoenix, lost its wheels and its body tube shattered, splitting in half. It’s more fragile than I thought.

“No, no!!!!”

Peter Pan, who arrived late and out of breath, hurriedly ran to what was once Phoenix, knelt down, and cried out in despair.