There's No Stopping Pecia
"……You've got everything covered."
That was the Director's verdict after surveying the amusement park.
He was the type who rarely showed emotion, so I couldn't be certain — but it still felt like we'd scraped a passing grade. Especially compared to how reluctant he'd looked when he first heard the idea.
He even let Pink Bear go without killing it. Isn't that max affinity points right there?
I wore a triumphant smile and turned to Yena.
"So how much should we charge for admission?"
"Hmm, hmm……"
Yena flexed her fingers open and closed, then answered.
"A millllion?"
"Isn't a million won a little steep?"
"Huh? Not even a little! You can drink and eat as much as you want, and there's tons of houses where you can sleep, too. Plus the clothing shops have princess dresses and prince outfits and everything…… Looking at how much service you get, a million is fair. We might even need to charge more."
Yena offered a perfectly reasonable defense of the million-won price, pointing out that even just her own clothes cost hundreds of thousands of won a piece. Apparently the park's merchandise held its own against real-world luxury brands.
She went on to compare the food quality and the rides against other facilities, then tapped her lip thoughtfully and continued.
"Mmm… so first we gotta set rules for how many days people can stay and how many rides they can go on. If they just squat here and waste everything, we take the loss!"
"……"
I stared at Yena for a long moment. At some point the Director had also started looking down at her, blinking.
"……I thought she just blurted out some big number at random."
My thoughts exactly. I'd tossed the question out as a light joke — I never expected her to take it this seriously. And the fact that her argument actually had a coherent thesis and supporting evidence made it even more surprising.
Granted, her analysis started from the premise that food, clothing, and shelter were free, since she'd always treated the amusement park as a given. That was just a gap in experience, though. Once she got a little older, she'd probably figure out how to offer Americanos and princess dresses as paid add-ons.
Whether a million won was actually reasonable or not, it was an awfully thorough economic model for a grade-schooler.
The Director and I both turned instinctively toward the "educator," and Kang Jiye tilted her head.
"What?"
"What kind of education are you giving this kid? That's not the kind of analysis a seven-year-old pulls off."
I'd always had the sense that her standards were unusually clear-cut. For instance, whenever I roughed up the little ones and then apologized to Yena, she would firmly reply, "Don't say sorry to me." It was subtly different from ordinary kids who just melted into spoiled brats the moment you cooed over them.
Even the Director looked curious, but Kang Jiye answered as if it were nothing.
"I just taught her that nothing in this world is free. Nothing builds a sense of reality quite like numbers."
The Director asked with genuine interest,
"When did the child awaken, by any chance? There might be a connection."
"How did you know she awakened?"
"I can just tell."
"……Honestly, I don't know the details myself. Pecia noticed first. It's only been a few days, that much I'm sure of."
"I see. In any case, your daughter's mana talent is considerable, and she's sharp on top of it. You've raised her remarkably well despite how busy hunter work must keep you. Well done."
Kang Jiye smiled, clearly pleased.
"I barely did anything. I'm just grateful she grew up so well under a mother like me. Right, Yena—?"
But Yena didn't seem to care about any of this. She muttered to herself for a moment, then clapped her hands.
"Unnie! We need to hire security guards first. Security guards are expensive, though — what do we do?"
I tilted my head.
"Security guards for what?"
"Someone might take our little ones without permission."
"Ahh…… That's fine."
"Why?"
Because anyone who tried something stupid would get a "fun play session." I'd told them not to harm humans, sure — but they had egos of their own, and they weren't about to sit still for a sucker punch. Get attacked, and they'd light up with pure delight, then either tear the thug apart alive or jam steel needles straight through their eyes. And then they'd dance to the rhythm of the agonized screaming.
Huh? Come to think of it, we already have the Party Bears.
Something else occurred to me, and I started turning it over in my mind. This place already had adorable teddy-bear golems wandering around at their leisure. And later on, theme-specific wooden dolls would show up too. Essentially, theme-park staff who never tired, three hundred sixty-five days a year, twenty-four hours a day.
On top of that, food, clothing, and shelter were provided without limit — a decisive advantage over any real-world amusement park. This wasn't just a simple theme park. It could be run as a full resort.
Which meant Yena's pricing logic wasn't entirely off-base either.
Of course, we couldn't actually charge a million won……
"Yena, what do you think about this, then?"
I launched excitedly into drafting an opening plan for the amusement park. But at that moment, the Director cleared his throat and cut in.
"That's still a long way off. For the time being, I can neither authorize nor endorse that kind of venture."
"Excuse me?"
He looked slowly around the amusement park as he continued.
"I'll grant that this is quite different from any gate I imagined. The rides don't have traps, the food isn't poisoned, and the monsters show no hostility or aggression."
I crossed my arms and nodded with satisfaction.
"As expected of the Clockwork of the Mind's Eye. Spot on."
"Even so, there's still a long road ahead. No matter how peaceful this park may be, it doesn't change the fact that this place is a gate. Ultimately, the question remains whether society will accept you — a monster."
"……"
Couldn't he do something about that part? He was the Director — if he hustled hard enough, it seemed like the kind of thing that could get done.
I had a rough idea of how things would play out, too. Public opinion would flood with concern over the gate, branding me a wicked monster. Massive crowds would wave picket signs, screaming that the world was collapsing and society was crumbling.
But ignoring protests like that was easy enough. I genuinely had no hidden agenda — so why should I have to explain myself just because they decided to be suspicious?
Just imagining it ticks me off. Why can't they be cool about it like Auntie?
A top-tier hunter had taken me in without prejudice. If someone who fought monsters on the front lines could do that, shouldn't ordinary people be welcoming me with open arms? Honestly, the world had way too many crybabies — that was the real problem.
Suddenly feeling wronged, I conjured up a plausible imaginary enemy and launched into a debate.
"After all the S-class gates I've cleared for you people, how dare you say something so vulgar——"
"Hey! Are you having imaginary arguments now?"
Kang Jiye gave me a light smack on the back of the head. I'd merely been pre-emptively crushing the kinds of things I was bound to hear later. Completely uncalled for.
"Auntie…… I'm already exhausted. Can't we just open it?"
Kang Jiye let out a hollow laugh.
"Are you even listening to yourself?"
"Honestly, the problem isn't me — it's people's prejudice."
"The problem is your alien way of thinking."
"Wow……"
"Why do you suddenly want to open an amusement park in the first place? You've never said anything like that before."
"I just thought it wasn't a bad idea after seeing the Director's reaction…… Right?"
The Director nodded.
"The facilities are fine."
"Hehe. So we can open it, right?"
"No."
"……"
Kang Jiye asked me again.
"I'm asking why you even got that idea. You hate dealing with people."
"More precisely, I hate dealing with them directly. I like watching people laugh and chat in peace. I just find it annoying and unpleasant to be the one who has to make them smile myself."
That was why I'd run marathons in my previous life, too. You could soak up the lively energy of a crowd without exchanging a single word. So go ahead and laugh and chatter and be happy right in front of me on your own. I'd comfortably watch the show, take a nap, watch some more, take another nap.
The Director, who had been listening, muttered flatly,
"What a thoroughly un-monster-like dream, dreamed in a thoroughly monster-like way."
"……?"
I looked at the Director for a moment, but I couldn't figure out what he meant, so I turned back to Kang Jiye.
"And more than anything, Yena wanted it."
Kang Jiye's eyes wavered for a second.
"Yena did?"
"Yes. She said she wanted it bustling with people. And she wants to play there with you, Auntie. But if people won't accept me, I can't grant that wish."
"……"
For some reason, Kang Jiye looked a little apologetic. She quietly stepped closer, pulled me into a hug, then held my shoulders and met my eyes.
"Little one."
"Yes?"
"How about this? You go to the people first. Make it so they can accept you."
"Not in a million years——"
"Don't want to? What's more important to our little one — her one and only little sister's wish, or her personal free time?"
Both are important, though.
I was briefly speechless, then thought it over and answered.
"Personal free time."
"……?"
"Personal free time. Not even Yena herself — if it's between Yena's wish and my free time, free time wins, obviously!"
Kang Jiye's expression went flat, and she lightly pinched both my cheeks.
"What did you just say?"
"Person… freh-tihme."
My cheeks stretched out and snapped back. Still pinching them between her index fingers, Kang Jiye asked again.
"What's important?"
"Person… freh——"
"Again. What?"
"Freh-tihme."
"What?"
"Freh-tihme."
"Again."
"Freh-tihme."
As I kept stubbornly holding out, a mischievous smile slowly spread across Kang Jiye's lips. At this point the answer barely mattered — tormenting me had become the fun part.
But an even more pleasant smile was sitting on my own face. Because I had a secret she didn't know about.
"Again."
"Pershonal freh-tihme."
"……? Again."
Kang Jiye's eyes narrowed to slits. But I was still grinning away, completely missing her reaction, and mumbled the same thing as always.
Since she wasn't stretching my cheeks this time, the pronunciation came out crystal clear.
"Personal free time."
Oh no.
"I knew it. You think this is my first day dealing with you?"
"Th— Director! Director, hug me! Hurry!"
I scrambled toward the Director, who had been laughing off to the side — but a swarm of Party Bears had already crowded around him.
"Strong human. Let's play!"
"Are we protecting this one too?"
"Forget that — look, glasses."
"What about the glasses?"
"Lock him down first."
"Move! Get out of the way, you maniacs!!"
In the end, Kang Jiye grabbed me by the scruff of the neck, and I had no choice but to promise I'd work on my social skills.