The New Safe Zone
There is no parent who can beat their child, but there is truly no father who can beat his daughter. Zafir wore a troubled expression at Laila’s blunt attitude.
“Laila...”
“...”
Well, even though she had just been crying, hugging, and making a huge scene a moment ago, Zafir had clearly...
“You said you wanted to slit Laila’s throat, didn’t you?”
As I pointed my thumb at Zafir, Eunseo and all the guild members nodded.
“Hmm, you said your customs and traditions were more important.”
“To such a cute daughter.”
“Tsk, well, one can only see this as pathetic.”
“Ildo, brother!”
I looked at Ildo with a surprised expression.
“Wait, you two even became sworn brothers already?”
“Haha, fathers have their own kind of solidarity, you see.”
“Hmm.”
Laila hid behind me, tearing up.
“Yeah, yeah, our little one is alive because I saved her, you know?”
I narrowed my eyes and smiled.
“Your father was making a scene, trying to kill you. But when I said I’d save you, he was even ready to abandon his own kin.”
“Th... that’s not what I meant, is it?”
“Oh? If you grit your teeth like that, what are you going to do? Your daughter is now mine... mine...”
What should I call her? I was dead certain she’d be my second Apostle, but that wasn’t the case. And even if she were, she looked too frail for me to work her like a disciple the way I did with Eunseo. I knew she was proof of the Starry Body or whatever, and I knew she was treated like a summon, but you can’t exactly make soup out of that.
“Hmm. You’re surprisingly useless.”
At my words, tears welled up in her large eyes again. Then, a stinging gaze flew at me from behind. Oh? What did you do to deserve to glare at me?
“You’re such a daughter-fool, yet you can’t even recognize your own daughter?”
Zafir, who had been grinding his teeth at my words, squeezed his eyes shut.
“What are you doing? You looked like you were packing to leave. Are you not going?”
“...”
Oh, the silent one.
“Hey, I asked if you weren’t going.”
When I asked again, Zafir answered reluctantly.
“...Yes.”
I smiled with my eyes and teased him from the side.
“Who said I’d take you in? Don’t you know a man’s word is worth a thousand? Does a man go back on his word? Or did you, by any chance, become a w-o-m-a-n like me? When I first saw you, you said you’d strip me naked and drag me around on a camel~”
As I teased him, Zafir clenched his fists tightly.
“I apologize, Starry Body.”
“Oho, so it only takes one night to go from ‘damned woman’ to ‘Starry Body,’ huh, Zafir?”
“I am genuinely grateful that you saved my daughter. I was wrong to think that way.”
“...”
I scratched my cheek at his sudden confession. I have nothing to say when he comes at me with a direct approach. So this is how he’s going to wiggle out of it, huh? I looked at the tent being dismantled and said,
“I’m taking your tribe down to the 1st floor. Are you still going to follow?”
“I will go. I will go even if it is to the top floor.”
I chuckled at Zafir’s words.
“I thought you said you had to follow tradition and custom.”
“It is not more important than Laila.”
“Hmph. Then go pack your tent. We’re heading to the safe zone.”
I sent Zafir away and patted Laila.
“So, Laila, what can our little one do?”
At my question, the little one folded her small fingers one by one as she spoke.
“Salesmanship, mercenary tactics, rhetoric, etiquette, simple divination, and magic. If you wish, I can even handle basic accounting and tax affairs.”
“...”
Wow, there’s nothing she can’t do. Are you really nine years old? Not ninety?
“I was taking lessons.”
“Lessons?”
“Lessons on becoming a princess.”
“...”
So she was a princess candidate? Did I just pick up an S-class NPC?
Laila’s golden eyes sparkled. Those eyes, looking as if large jewels had been embedded in them, or like a giant sun burning. I twitched my eyebrows as I looked at them.
“You must hear a lot that your eyes are scary.”
Laila gave a mysterious smile at my words.
“Because things that cannot be understood often become sources of fear.”
“Ugh...”
This kid doesn’t take after her father; she takes after her grandfather.
“You say I take after my grandfather?”
“...”
“Are you a mind reader too?”
“...”
“I know you covet us, but wasn’t our tribe already Hyunseo’s?”
I placed my hand on Laila’s head and shouted.
“Apostle! Apostle! Apostle!”
“???”
“Be my Apostle! Come on! Ah! Why isn’t it working! Anyone can see she’s someone I need to take with me!”
She seems to be treated like a summon just like Eunseo, so why doesn’t it work for her?!
The moment I whined, I felt a gaze filled with sadness from inside the tent.
“Oh. Wait, this isn’t like that...”
“...Hyunseo, I am not enough for you.”
Eunseo stood up silently and went to dismantle the tent. Ah, Eunseo is pouting.
When I was looking at Eunseo’s drooping back, Laila whispered in my ear.
“Tell her you wanted to gain a younger sister. Tell her Eunseo is an Apostle you rely on like an older sister.”
“Ah.”
While nodding at those words, I patted Laila’s head once more.
“I really want to take you on a raid.”
Should I kill her and resurrect her? Then maybe she’d be strong enough to take on the tower climb.
“...‘Should I kill her and resurrect her’ seems like a strange thought.”
“Tsk. She really must be a mind reader.”
Following Laila’s advice, I ran out of the tent to soothe Eunseo. Eunseo, who had been dismantling the small tent, seemed to have her heart softened after hearing my story and hugged me tightly.
“Hehe, you said I was like an older sister? Well, I am someone you can rely on, right?”
Eunseo smiled as if she were truly happy, her chest puffed out. Seeing her like that, I smiled and approached the tent she was dismantling to lend a hand.
“Well then, I’ll help you dismantle it too.”
“Yes? You should leave things like this to me and rest...”
“It’s okay, it’s okay. I know how to dismantle it too. You just pull out the nails first, right?”
“Oh! If you pull those out!”
As I yanked the nail out, the standing tent collapsed with a crash.
“...”
“Go sit over there.”
“Okay...”
Chased away by Eunseo’s cold words, I sat blankly on a rock. As if it were a familiar routine for everyone, the tent was quickly dismantled and moved onto the camels’ backs.
“Then, shall we depart for the 1st floor?”
“Okay!”
The nomadic group began to move with us. It took a full week to cross the fields of the 2nd floor to the gate leading down to the 1st floor, and then from the 1st floor gate to the safe zone.
“Ah, finally.”
“Please, I want to wash up.”
“I’m going to forget my wife’s face at this rate.”
“Geez, it’s only been about a month and a half, stop the whining.”
We arrived at the safe zone with the nomads. The moment we reached the vicinity of that massive rock, a quest completion window popped up with a bright light.
[Safe Zone Management Page List]
1st Floor [Forest of the Outer World] – Heart of the Star [LV: 1]
Function: Monster Defense
Next Level Function – Safe Zone Management
Goal: Secure NPC (Completed)
The terrain began to move along with the notification windows. The hunters in the safe zone were flustered by the massive tremors caused by the change.
“Huh?”
“Wh-what is it?”
“Don’t tell me, another boss?”
“No, that can’t be!”
“Wasn’t this supposed to be a completely safe zone now?!”
In the center of the forest, the massive rock formation in the safe zone began to slowly sink beneath the ground.
“Oh, this system.”
As the rock disappeared, buildings were erected on the newly created wide plain.
[Heart of the Star upgrade complete.]
The management page had changed slightly in the meantime.
[Safe Zone Management Page List]
1st Floor [Forest of the Outer World] – Heart of the Star [LV: 2]
Next Level Function – Expel Special Personnel
Goal: Establish Guard Unit
“Oh...”
When I pressed all the [+] signs that appeared, numbers and text filled my vision. The nine setting windows were truly packed with tiny numbers and explanations that were enough to make one’s head spin.
“What is personnel placement, and what is tax rate?”
...I really don’t know.
“...”
As I stared blankly at the status window, Eunseo approached me.
“Hyunseo?”
“Hyunseo, this is a big deal. I don’t understand a single thing.”
“Yes?”
I took a deep breath and said,
“Status window, close all.”
Then, the windows that had been spread across my vision all disappeared.
“Ah, I’m dizzy.”
I read too much text. I’ve used up my brain power for the day. I sat on a bench that had risen along with the buildings and tapped my forehead.
“Starry Body, what are we supposed to do now?”
At Hakim’s words, I felt my vision going dark.
“Uh, that is... um. Uh...” Wait, no! Why am I managing this?
“Umm... wait a second? Laila, Eunseo, come here for a moment.”
I gathered the two and shared the countless windows that had popped up. This was possible because I could share the status window with the two who were treated as summons.
“What should we do?”
“...Wow, what is all this? It’s so confusing. Let’s see, resident management, tax rate, and we can manage the shop too?”
Beside Eunseo, who was learning things one by one, Laila let out a deep sigh. She had a confident expression, as if she had already grasped everything.
“This is a problem. You don’t know anything at all, do you? Hehehe. This isn’t even difficult.”
Along with the smug voice peculiar to a child, I could read her expression that she was happy to be able to help. I smiled with my eyes and looked at Laila. She’s a child who can’t hide her own expressions, even though she’s good at reading others’.
“Ugh, please don’t stare at me so intently.”
“Then, shall we leave it to Laila?”
As I said that, I hurriedly made excuses to Eunseo.
“Ah! Eunseo, you have to go to the top floor raid with me! You know that, right?”
When I hurriedly made excuses, Eunseo giggled.
“It’s okay, Hyunseo. Of course. I also think it’s good for Laila to learn steadily. Hakim can help you too.”
When Eunseo looked at Hakim, Hakim nodded with a benevolent smile.
“Then, I’ll change the safe zone manager to Laila. Please take good care of my safe zone.”
As I manipulated the status window and changed the manager, Laila’s clothes changed into something flamboyant, and a golden headband appeared.
Safe Zone Manager: Laila (Proof of the Starry Body)
Touching the golden headband that had appeared, Laila’s golden eyes sparkled.
“R-really? But I’m only nine years old.”
“It’s okay, I quit studying around that age and learned how to swing a sword.”
“Yes?”
“Well, it’s an age where you have to pull your own weight. Besides, you have a good teacher.”
Laila’s cheeks flushed, and she smiled brightly.
“R-really? Then I don’t have to be a princess anymore, right?”
“Yeah.”
Laila clenched her small fist.
“I’ll do it perfectly! Because I don’t want to marry some king I don’t even know.”
I shook my head at those words.
“You don’t have to be perfect.”
“Yes?”
“If you set your goal on a place you can’t reach, you’re bound to fall. Just do it in moderation, in moderation.”
“But still...”
I thought of the purple hair and patted Laila’s head.
“Ah, Hakim.”
“Yes, Starry Body.”
“We’ll be going outside for a while. In the meantime, please help Laila by her side.”
“Zafir would be better than an old man like me.”
I said to Zafir, who was looking at me with sparkling eyes,
“Zafir can’t do it because he has to be in charge of establishing the guard unit.”
“...”
I hinted at his disappointed expression.
“I need a sword to protect your daughter. I’ll be away from here often.”
At those words, Zafir, his eyes regaining their light, nodded.
“I hope there is a decent guard unit when I return, Zafir.”
“I swear by the sun and the sand, I will do my best.”
After locking eyes with Zafir, I looked at the Paradise Guild members.
“Then, shall we head back? Home.”
“We’re finally going home, Hyunseo.”
“Wife... son...”
“Haa, I need to go see my mom.”
The Paradise Guild members and I passed through the tower’s entry gate for the first time in a very long while.
*
[So, I’m telling you, it’s absolute chaos. Just once, just try it one more time.]
“Umm. No, why is that?”
I scratched my head. Park Jungsoo continued as if it were fascinating.
[I’m saying, they’re making such a fuss, asking you to do a broadcast just once. Hey, it even went up on the presidential national petition.]
What is a national petition? When I didn’t answer, Park Jungsoo began to explain.
[What a national petition is... no, never mind. Anyway, it just means everyone wants to see you so badly.]
“No, why? I didn’t do much on the broadcast.”
[How would I know? Anyway, so, are you going to do the broadcast or not?]
“I don’t want to. If I do that broadcast, the kids will just tease me.”
[Haha, that must mean you’re that pretty and cute.]
“I’m cute? Do you want to die?”
[Hahaha. So, you’re not doing the broadcast? That’s a shame.]
Tsk, what is this? Why is he being so kind? It’s unsettling.
“No. It’s annoying. I’m not doing it.”
[So the problem was that it’s annoying! I knew it! So I’ll help with the camera! Editing! Everything! You just have to show up.]
“..?”
Did this guy eat something wrong? There’s no way this is real.
When I didn’t say anything, Park Jungsoo pulled out his trump card.
[I’ll buy you ice cream every time you broadcast. Chocolate flavor.]
“Call.”
I shouldn’t have shouted ‘Call’ so easily back then. I squeezed my eyes shut and hung my head low. That ‘Call’ I shouted without thinking—that was the reason I was wearing a skirt right now.