A Small Commotion

There were stories of people born with silver spoons in their mouths, who raced down a wide-open road and made a success of their lives without ever really being stopped.

And then there were the stories of people who, despite miserable beginnings, refused to give up, clawed their way up a sheer cliff, and at last stood high above everyone else.

Which of the two did more to stir a person’s heart?

Most people would probably choose the latter.

A story about someone who’d been born with everything and merely followed a smooth road to success felt only natural. A story about someone who had overcome every hardship ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and still made it in the end—that was something else entirely.

Some people saw themselves in that kind of story and drew hope from it. Others might take it as a spur to work harder and live better.

And now, here, another story had been added to move people’s hearts.

The past of the NPC called “Canaria Grasis,” which Journey had brought to light, was enough to make people feel sympathy, if not outright burst into tears.

There was a saying that nothing was more frightening than indifference, but sometimes interest itself could be more poisonous than indifference ever was.

Kana’s parents were exactly that kind of people.

According to Aaron’s explanation, they had thought of their daughter not as the fruit of love, but as a useful tool.

If they hadn’t died in that freak accident, Kana would probably have ended up as some rich pervert’s plaything—or perhaps not even been of this world anymore.

After losing her parents, Kana was left alone. At an age when she still needed care, she received none, wandering the slums with children in similar circumstances.

No one could know exactly what sort of life she’d lived, but anyone could guess it had been a long way from normal.

She’d somehow managed to survive that, and then, just when things seemed to be settling, a horde of monsters had swept over the city.

She’d been lucky enough to survive only because Garid had arrived in time to help, but even so, none of it was something a little girl of six should ever have had to endure.

There were plenty of people in the world with miserable pasts, and more than a few would be forgotten without ever being ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠known, but if you actually met someone like that in person, there weren’t many who could simply turn away as if nothing had happened.

That was why Aaron had told Journey about Kana’s past.

It was his own tacit permission, his own request—please take good care of Kana.

Only, there was something he couldn’t have known, being a native of the world of Silia...

Behind Journey’s back stood an invisible hand... no, an invisible eye.

More than a single eye, in fact—hundreds of thousands of them.

As a result, though it hadn’t been Aaron’s intention, he had somehow become a serial tear terrorist who’d left hundreds of thousands of people with wet eyes.

At first, the players had thought of Kana as an utterly vicious raid boss.

A badly made boss, full of system flaws, with balance thrown out the window.

That was Kana’s first image.

But as time passed and information about Kana was revealed, that image kept changing.

From an atrocious raid boss to a cute little girl, from a cute little girl to a girl with a tragic story who guarded her father’s grave.

And now, to a poor girl with a painful past.

Of course, not everyone felt sympathetic.

But no matter how sturdy a man might be, he could not stand against a surging current.

Unlike in the real world, the current of the internet had no physical form, but its force was anything but weak.

And so, as those swept away by the current disappeared, only the relentlessly rushing tide remained in their place, showing no sign of slowing down anytime soon.

* * *

“‘I’m enjoying the broadcast. Please use this money to buy something delicious for Kana’...”

Rustle.

Journey’s face clouded with confusion as she read the note in her hand.

“What is this?”

Last night, after logging out from the lodging Aaron had arranged for her, Journey had finally climbed into a bed for the first time in a while and tried to get some sleep.

She’d spent several days sleeping in a capsule for the escort request, so sinking into a soft bed and sleeping a honey-sweet sleep had made her feel like she was floating.

That didn’t mean she regretted taking the escort job, though.

After waking in a good mood and logging back into the game, she opened the door to her room—and immediately froze.

There were countless things piled up in front of it.

Did I order this many deliveries?

For a moment, Journey even forgot she was in the world of Silia.

Some of the items had short or long notes attached, like the one she’d just read, while others had nothing but the objects themselves left there alone.

What baffled her most of all were the few Imperial coins placed neatly off to one side of the floor.

The messages varied wildly in wording, but the intent behind them was nearly the same.

They’d enjoyed the broadcast, and they hoped this money—or these goods—might help even a little.

Help whom?

“Who else? Obviously Kana.”

After reading a few more notes, Journey realized all of this was the aftershock of yesterday’s broadcast.

In other words, these were all gifts for Kana.

But then why didn’t anything like this happen last time?

After thinking it over, Journey reached her own conclusion.

Back then, what had been revealed was the identity of the owner of the grave Kana had been guarding—not Kana’s past itself.

Besides, the place Kana had lived was remote, and there had even been a barrier around it, so getting there must have been difficult.

But where Journey was now was inside Liberi, the Free Mercenary City.

Even by simply counting the number of players staying there, there had to be well over several hundred.

Journey rummaged through the pile of gifts stacked in front of the door.

“This is money. This is money too... What’s this?”

“Hmm... are they really that good?”

Journey opened the small paper bag and took out a cookie.

As she stared at it, she slowly opened her mouth wide.

“Hey, I was joking!”

The chat window, which had been writhing like boiling water, only settled down once she hurriedly put the cookie back into the bag.

“Still, isn’t this too much? How am I supposed to sort through all of this...”

While Journey was worrying over what to do with the gifts, the heavy sound of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠footsteps approached.

“Sleep well? ...What are all these?”

“Ah, well...”

Aaron started to greet her good morning, then stopped short and looked flustered.

It was the exact same expression Journey had worn when she saw the pile of things in front of the door.

Fortunately, unlike yesterday, it didn’t take long for her to explain the situation to Aaron.

“I told my colleagues that I’d ended up taking care of a child and needed some help, and they sent all these gifts.”

There was a little embellishment in it, since she couldn’t tell the truth.

“...You didn’t tell them about Kana, did you?”

“I-I didn’t.”

She hadn’t said it, so it wasn’t a lie.

Journey muttered that to herself, but she still couldn’t quite meet Aaron’s eyes.