Overprotective Guardians
Beep— Beep— Beep— Beep—
As Seoya pondered the differences between herself and the Earthlings, a familiar sound came from the front door opening. She turned her head that way and shouted joyfully upon spotting Lee Gayeon's face.
"Unnie!"
"Seoya, have you been well?"
Wood scent and earth smell.
She must have gone to a dungeon with trees inside today. As the guild master of a guild, Lee Gayeon really was the busiest person Seoya had observed over the past week.
"Have you been taking good care of the kid while I was gone?"
"Ha, Captain. We've got a problem."
At Lee Gayeon's question, Baek Yena suddenly put on a serious face.
There definitely wasn't any problem...
Seoya figured it must be about the hunters and was about to brush it off, but her face soured at their ensuing conversation.
"I just wish my baby would eat a bit more. Look how skinny she is. She's all skin and bones—we need to fatten her up."
"That's because you keep stuffing her with snacks. You're ruining her appetite."
"But how can I hold back when she stares at me with those eyes? How do you even resist?!"
"That's why I'm saying feed her in moderation—moderation!"
"No, I eat plenty of meals already? What do you mean 'a little'?"
Unable to stand being treated like a child any longer, Seoya jumped in with a protest.
All she'd hoped for from the first humans she met in this world was basic food, clothing, and shelter. She hadn't expected them to baby her like this.
"Eat more. You can handle extra during your growth spurt. At your age, it all goes straight to height."
"I think I've already passed my growth spurt."
Seoya shot Ji Sein a pleading look for backup, but as always, Ji Sein was sprawled on the floor, hammering away at her laptop.
"Hold on, princess. I found this site that designs meal plans considering all the nutrients growing kids need..."
Ha, she'd half-hoped, but no help there either. Half-resigned to the babying, Seoya nodded vaguely, figuring they'd do what they wanted.
"Here, stuff from the vice guild master for you, Seoya."
Finally wrapping up her talk with Baek Yena, Lee Gayeon rubbed one shoulder and dumped a pile of things from the bag slung over it.
"From Haejun oppa?"
"The vice guild master's been slacking on his duties lately, just browsing child safety products at work."
The floor was littered with all sorts of mysterious gadgets. As Seoya eyed them suspiciously, Lee Gayeon picked up a necklace with a red gem and fastened it around Seoya's neck.
The red gem embedded in the necklace shimmered mysteriously whenever it caught the light.
"There, a location-tracking necklace. Wear it, and you can see each other's positions if the other wearer has the pair on. You might get lost if you go out."
Is this surveillance or not?
No, if it's for kids, it shouldn't be for me in the first place...
Not a single person treated her like an adult—it was astonishing. Seoya yanked the choker-like necklace off roughly, and Lee Gayeon placed the matching pair on the living room table.
"Oh, I know this one!"
Ji Sein, who'd been spectating from the side, snatched up a bracelet and exclaimed.
"Emergency signal bracelet! It's the hot item blowing up mom forums lately!"
"Right, it's famous as a must-have for parents with young kids."
"Why the hell would I need that...?"
Seoya muttered with a weary face.
"What if this house suddenly gets sucked into a dungeon one day? You could be home alone."
"That oppa really goes overboard sometimes."
Half-given-up, Seoya glanced at the pink bracelet made of gems. The gaudy color and crude design made her question the maker's taste.
"Where'd you even get this?"
"Oh, items like this drop as dungeon rewards."
Not human-made, then. That explained the design no Earth designer would touch.
"Pull the big bead in the center to snap the bracelet—it summons a System window in the sky for hunters to see the rescue request."
"I don't think I'll ever be in danger."
"Of course not. We won't let you get into any."
No, I mean nothing in this world can threaten me...
Too accustomed to the overprotection now, Seoya didn't even bother explaining.
Lee Gayeon held up a bright white cloak last. Unlike the childish designs of the previous two, this white cloak exuded a solemn, mystical aura.
"What's this one...?"
Seoya asked in a deflated voice, resigned. Lee Gayeon silently draped it over herself without a word.
"Huh?"
As Seoya's eyes widened, Lee Gayeon took it off again. She looked oddly satisfied at having surprised Seoya.
Her face... vanished.
She knew a face had to be there, and something was, but no features registered at all. It was like a foggy pane of glass over the spot.
"What the hell? How'd he get this? I thought it was just a rumor—it's real?"
Baek Yena snatched the cloak in awe.
"Face-recognition blocking cloak. Isn't it one of only two in the world?"
"If you're caught in a monster wave again, something like last time could happen. With this, your identity stays hidden."
Wait. Realization dawning, Seoya stared at Lee Gayeon.
If wearing this cloak hid her identity...
"Then can I wear this and go into dungeons? Hunt monsters?"
"What? No, absolutely not."
"Baby, don't say silly things—stay home."
Baek Yena and Lee Gayeon shut it down firmly.
They'd seen her strength with their own eyes, yet they insisted on this overprotection. It made no sense.
Over the past week here, Seoya had diligently explained her power and stressed her willingness to help people. She had the strength to protect, so helping was only natural for her.
As mentioned before, Seoya could see System alerts warning of dungeons or monster waves in advance. Since they struck without warning, knowing their locations ahead let her evacuate people and prevent casualties.
And I could just go kill the monsters myself.
Was she so weak she needed this much coddling? Absolutely not.
In her world, Toda, humans with mana were called Pioneers. Most had superhuman physiques, intellects, and diverse mana powers, but Seoya was exceptional.
She possessed an overwhelming amount of mana talent. Senses sharp enough to see and hear things visible only through telescopes from afar, distinguish people by scent alone. Regeneration that restored mangled organs in an hour if her heart was intact. Strength to bend steel, speed rivaling cars, stamina for nonstop running all day. Lightning-fast learning to absorb any technique on sight, a brain memorizing anything seen once, innate magic mastering any language after one phrase.
And above all, mana so vast even all of Toda's other Pioneers combined couldn't match it. The next best was Ibin, but the gap between first and second was immense.
Thus, Seoya was Toda's absolute strongest—no matter how many humans ganged up, they couldn't defeat her.
She was also the youngest Pioneer, awakening at eight. Her innate power plus lifelong training made combat second nature.
So why don't they get it...?
Dungeons and monsters in this world were child's play for her. Why the overprotection?
She didn't want to seem ungrateful to those providing her basics, so Seoya grumbled plaintively.
"If I help, no one gets hurt and it's over quick..."
"We can handle it without you. Don't worry about it."
They showed no give, but Seoya was just as stubborn.
"But people get hurt."
"That's why we're working hard enough."
"Why can't I?"
"Baby, we're still cleaning up from that invisible hunter interview mess. Showing more power is dangerous."
"And you're too strong—'world rank 0th invisible hunter' excuses only go so far..."
Lee Gayeon gazed at Seoya with an oddly nuanced expression and continued.
"Besides, you're not strong."
"No, you saw it that day? I'm super strong!"
Seoya protested in frustration, but Lee Gayeon just shook her head.
"Seoya, even if you really were strong, we wouldn't push guarding Earth onto a kid. And above all, you're not strong."
"No, I am strong!"
Seoya went quiet, lips pursed in protest, at Lee Gayeon's offhand remark as she pinched her forehead.
"Have you been sleeping well at night lately?"