Karen and the Little Outer God's Daily Life
………… Lately, Karen had been feeling a sense of unease. For the past few days, the little girl had been acting strange. To be precise, the girl had never not been strange, but this strangeness felt different from before.
That was just how she was. One day, she had barged into Karen's apartment out of nowhere, flipping her ashen life completely upside down like a tiny savior. Aside from begging for snacks, tugging at her skirt to play, or occasionally nuzzling her head for pets, Karen could never quite read the child's inner thoughts.
Otherwise—she'd silently take the plate Karen offered and munch on pancakes quietly. Or share a piece with her. Or flip through TV channels full of news for a while before shutting it off like it was boring. Karen didn't mind the girl's oddness or her characteristic silence. That distance meant they could share the same space without tiring each other out. The girl clearly seemed like a child, yet sometimes felt like an adult, and that balance gave Karen a strange sense of stability.
But the little girl bouncing around in front of Karen right now—
"——♬"
—no matter how she looked at it, she seemed like a completely different kid.
"Hey, you can walk a little slower, you know."
Karen's words flew away on the wind the moment they reached the girl's back. The girl bounced along under the afternoon sun. She scampered down the park path, then suddenly stopped, whipped her head around, and stared at Karen. Her eyes seemed to say, hurry up. Karen took a few steps to catch up, but the girl's gaze had already locked onto a flock of pigeons gathered on the grass by a bench.
"Ah—"
Before she could say anything, the girl's tiny body charged into the grass.
"——♬"
The pigeons erupted into the sky with a flurry of wings, and in the whirlwind of feathers, the girl burst into giggles. A smile crept onto Karen's lips unbidden. With her arms spread wide, spinning in place—she looked like any ordinary little girl, no matter the angle. Why did the word ordinary feel so strangely foreign?
A few minutes later, a middle-aged woman approached from the opposite direction on the path, walking a golden retriever. The girl's eyes sparkled instantly—and that meant it was already too late.
"Sweetie, wait—"
Karen grabbed for the girl, but her tiny hand was already clutching the retriever's tail fur.
"It's fine. Rex loves kids," the owner said. Sure enough, the retriever wagged its tail even harder, tongue lolling out amiably.
Next came the flower bed. The girl buried her nose in the blooms, sniffing eagerly—
Achoo!
She sneezed louder than expected, her own face the most surprised of all. Clutching her nose with both hands, eyes wide—that adorable expression finally made Karen burst out laughing.
Suddenly, the girl toddled toward the grass. Peering intently at each blade, searching for something—she really did look like a puppy. Karen followed, crouching beside her. Just then, a four-leaf clover caught her eye. She carefully plucked it and placed it in the girl's palm.
"This is a four-leaf clover."
The girl tilted her head slightly.
"Clovers usually have three leaves, but rarely, you get one with four. Some say finding it brings good luck."
"———!"
The girl's eyes widened a bit as she peered at the clover. Luck. Karen had no idea how that word translated in the little one's cute head, but the girl cradled the leaves delicately between her palms like a treasure.
And the next moment—pat pat pat.
Clutching the clover tight, the girl bolted across the grass.
"Hey, where are you going!?"
Karen sprang up reflexively and chased after her. Ignoring her heels, she sprinted full tilt, but she couldn't catch the strangely swift little girl. How is she so fast on those tiny legs? Before the thought finished, the girl had vanished down the path.
Catching her breath by the central fountain, Karen scanned left and right. Then, from the shade of trees on the opposite side, a head of purple hair popped out. In the girl's small hands—two rainbow-colored ice cream cones.
"Huh...?"
An incredulous breath escaped Karen. The girl grinned hehe and thrust one cone forward. The wrapper around it boldly read 'LUCKY'.
She must have latched onto just the "luck" part from the four-leaf clover story and swapped it for ice cream.
"...Thanks, sweetie. I'll enjoy it."
Karen took the cone in a daze, but a question born of professional instinct flashed through her mind. This kid doesn't carry money, right?
"Wait, how did you pay for this?"
The girl just tilted her head while licking her ice cream.
"...Aigoo."
Karen rubbed her forehead.
"Where'd you get this? I'll take you back."
Following the girl to the ice cream cart, Karen bowed to the vendor first.
"I'm sorry. She took it without permission..."
The jolly-looking cart owner waved it off heartily.
"No, no, it's fine. We're old pals, this little miss and me. And it's a new product—samples anyway."
"Still, two of them. Let me pay properly."
Karen pulled out her wallet and pressed a few high-denomination bills into his hand. A preemptive payment, in case the girl came alone begging later.
"Hahaha! Don't worry, madam. This little one gets freebies for life from our cart anyway!"
Over the cheerful vendor's banter as he pocketed the cash, Karen caught an absurd sight. The girl, standing right by the cart, was flashing a perfect thumbs-up at him. Like she was praising his sales savvy.
Karen sighed quietly. Free for life, huh. What favor did she do for this ice cream guy?
——She must have been up to something again, somewhere Karen didn't know about.
Back on the bench, Karen glanced at the girl beside her. These past few days, her little one really seemed like a different person. Where had the quietly munching French toast kid gone? Charging pigeons, grabbing retriever tails, sniffing flowers till she sneezed, swiping ice cream from carts—had this girl replaced her? Was it really the same child?
It felt like her mental age had suddenly dropped to five. Though, in a way, she was finally acting her age.
A chuckle slipped from Karen's lips as she thought it over. She took another bite of ice cream and glanced at the girl again.
——Her seat was empty once more.
"Ha... "
Karen stood and scanned the park again. Somewhere in the afternoon sun, searching for the purple-haired girl giggling and scampering about.
…………
"Sweetie—? Where are you?"
Karen hurried along the park paths. Fountain, tree shade, ice cream cart. She checked every spot the girl might be, but no sign.
Karen knew it rationally. No need to search this hard. Her girl hid terrifying, wondrous power behind that cute face. A threat entity long vanished from Microgenics lands—at least Tera rank, probably. Nothing in Washington could threaten her.
Assuming Microgenics authorities didn't deploy massive forces.
Yet—her feet wouldn't stop. Her head knew there was no worry. But her heart refused to accept it.
How long had she wandered? Walking a wooded path on the park's edge lined with massive old trees, something fluttered down onto her head. She caught it reflexively—a green leaf. A four-leaf clover.
"Huh...?"
Looking up in disbelief at the branches. Way up high, at the tip of a twig no thicker than a finger.
Her little girl sat there. Legs dangling casually, one hand clutching a green clump. The height from below was dizzying. A normal human would die falling from there for sure. The branch looked thinner than Karen's finger. Sitting like that defied physics entirely.
"Come down—!!"
Karen cupped her hands to her mouth and yelled at full volume.
"Sweetie—! It's dangerous—! Get down now—!"
Her voice climbed the branches. Through sunlight filtering the leaves, the treetop girl looked down. A bright smile bloomed on her face.
Unable to hide her joy, she waved her tiny hands wildly.
"Uwaa..."
Finally, Karen resolved herself. She kicked off her shoes at the trunk base, wrapped her arms around the rough bark. Trailer park days made her body move familiarly. A few thousand-dollar outfit getting roughed up? Who cared.
Up higher, just a bit more. Three meters from the girl.
The moment Karen stepped on the next branch—crack.
A chilling snap from below. Before she could scream, the branch broke.
Falling. Her body spun in midair, stone path rushing up. Eyes squeezed shut for impact—
Squelch.
Something caught her. Not hard stone, but soft, springy warmth enveloping her back. Like a luxury latex mattress—or more like kids' toy liquid monster. The girl, turned slime, had become a giant cushion to catch her. Just like with Nikola's raiders before.
"No need to ask if you're hurt, huh."
The girl looked up at Karen, now landed on two feet, hands on hips. Shrugging shoulders, chin tilted—like boasting, I caught you.
That brazen confidence melted Karen's tension away.
"Good you're okay... but be careful from now on. Bad for my heart."
As Karen started to scold—
The girl beamed and held something out.
"...?"
A flower crown. Wildflowers plucked from park corners, woven with countless four-leaf clovers.
Suddenly, all the pieces clicked. She'd been hunting four-leaf clovers. To give Karen luck.
Not just one, but enough to cover a lifetime, woven together.
"—Ha, haha."
It was absurd. So ridiculous, a hollow laugh escaped. At the same time, something warm and fuzzy welled in her chest.
"Sweetie."
Karen couldn't hold back. She knelt and pulled the girl into a hug.
Whether this was the same girl from days ago or a slightly different one. Talkative or silent. What did it matter?
This little girl was Karen's savior.
"Let's live together. For a long, long time."
Karen hugged her tighter. The crown on her head glowed softly in the afternoon sun.