Ch#194
"Dad, no, Vice Leader!"
Tie kicked off the blanket and shook her dad.
But noticing something, she froze in place.
"Huh?"
Dad wasn't moving a muscle for some reason.
Soon, a clock hanging on the wall beyond him came into view.
The second hand on the clock wasn't moving at all.
"......No way!"
Tie hurriedly turned to the opposite side.
However, Grandma was frozen in the same way.
[Kid! Can you hear us?!]
[Tie! Are you okay?!]
[Come out here a bit! Miss! Miss!]
Tie swallowed hard.
She couldn't believe it even seeing it with her own eyes.
"Time!"
Time had stopped flowing.
The front door mat swaying in the draft hung motionless in mid-air.
The light from the rice cooker no longer flickered.
Tie blinked wide-eyed with her mouth agape.
'This is the Puppetmon Skill!'
The legendary skill that stops time.
She knew about this tremendous skill from diligently watching the anime theater version.
As expected.
Marbas's voice came from beyond the hole.
[As I thought! It seems a reverse flow phenomenon occurs on the opposite side when this door opens!]
[Reverse flow?]
[It's the principle where when two dimensions touch, one becomes a 'stagnant realm'! With the flow sealed, time naturally stops......]
[This isn't the time to explain that, Tie!]
An orange eyeball appeared through the hole again.
Tie replied, clenching her fists tightly.
"Uncle Basto!"
Basto peered down at Tie through the hole and asked in a trembling voice.
[Yeah......! Are you okay? Nothing happened, right?]
"Yes!"
After answering, Tie reached out her hand in case it might touch the hole.
But the hole was too high up to reach.
Basto's voice continued.
[Tie, listen carefully. We've experimented a few times, but it seems we can't maintain the connection for long!]
Sensing the gravity of the situation, Tie focused intently on Basto's eye.
[To put it simply, Ppuppue opened a Subspace! Using the mana you entrusted to us!]
Tie's eyes widened.
[Lucarion evolved that Subspace into a time passage. Theoretically, you and Tese tan can return through this passage! But there's a problem......]
Basto glanced around.
Then another face appeared beyond the black hole.
[......Astie.]
"Kkamangi!"
Tears welled up in Tie's eyes at the sight of Lucarion's face after so long.
"Kka, Kkamangi, where were you! Tie waited for you every single day!"
Lucarion's eyes grew sorrowful.
[......Sorry.]
But he quickly steadied his gaze and continued.
[The passage is too unstable. If we go ahead like this, it'll collapse while bringing you and your dad. So we need to reinforce it......]
"......"
[Paradoxically, we need your mana for that.]
Tie's eyes filled with confusion.
"My power?"
Lucarion nodded.
[Yes. I, Ppuppue, Marbas—we all draw power from your mana. If we drag this out too long, the stored mana will run out.]
Tie's expression turned serious.
"But Tie's here. How?"
Lucarion took a breath before replying.
[First off. One of us will cross the passage to receive your mana.]
"Eh?!"
[But right now, only one person can make it through the passage.]
[It's me!]
Before Tie could ask, Marbas thrust his lion head through the hole.
Marbas's wood grain exuded an unusually triumphant vibe today.
[Master. Are you aware of the passage paradox?]
Tie's face grew puzzled.
Marbas tilted his head at a jaunty angle, chin raised.
[The passage paradox refers to the fact that the weaker entity can traverse the passage more swiftly and precisely.]
"Swiftly......?"
[Seems difficult to grasp. But consider passing through a storm! Steel gets shredded, but a feather slips through unscathed, doesn't it?]
Tie's eyes sparkled with realization.
It suddenly made perfect sense.
The child asked brightly.
"Yeah! Tie gets it! Marrr's the lowest level, so you can come here!"
Marbas stiffened abruptly.
Then a thick gray hand smacked the back of Marbas's head.
[......Kyuu!]
[Ah, got it! I'll hurry!]
Marbas stammered in a deflated voice.
[That's the gist of it! Anyway, I'll cross over now!]
Tie nodded vigorously.
As Marbas shoved his body through the hole, voices from several people echoed from behind.
[Tie! Always be careful!]
[Kid! Watch out for monsters! If you're attacked, tell the Vice Leader guy to handle it!]
Tie's nose tingled unwittingly.
Sniffling, Tie shouted.
"Hng, don't worry, everyone! There are no monsters here!"
[Still, there must be a danger or two! Be careful!]
"Hueeng, okay! Tie will watch out for ghosts and cars!"
[......Yeah! And don't skip meals!]
"Yes! Everyone......!"
Suddenly, the voices grew distant.
The second hand began ticking again as Marbas plopped into Tie's palm.
In the silence.
Tie lowered her gaze to Marbas in her hand.
Grandma was still deep in sleep.
But.
"......How?"
Dad, with his sharp senses, slowly sat up as expected.
Marbas shook his head.
[Long time no see! I came to receive mana to reinforce the time passage......]
Tie covered Marbas's mouth.
The child hurriedly crawled under the blanket and whispered.
"Shh. Tomorrow, Marrr. Grandma's sleeping."
Marbas looked puzzled.
But he soon obediently clamped his mouth shut.
* * *
"Aga, don't go anywhere else—stick right here, got it?! Grandma told you clear as day. Understood?"
The next morning.
Tie waved energetically at Grandma heading out to work.
"Yes!"
Behind her, Tese tan—who had eaten two full bowls of breakfast—leaned against the wall.
Grandma clicked her tongue once at the unresponsive man.
"Illness sure is scary. That polite Mr. Kim turned so rude......"
Startled, Tie scurried over to Tese tan.
"What are you doing? Greet her quick."
"......Another greeting? I already did what you told me earlier."
"That was 'thank you for breakfast'! Now say 'have a safe trip'!"
Tese tan sighed.
But he eventually stood awkwardly and bowed his head slightly.
"......Have a safe trip."
The 107 Grandma replied.
"Sure thing."
The iron door creaked shut.
Only then did Tie release Tese tan and puff out her cheeks.
"Phew."
Since returning to South Korea, Dad had been a huge problem.
Not knowing basic etiquette that even her kindergarten friends understood!
How lost would they be if Dad couldn't even speak the language?
Tie recalled what Marbas had whispered under the blanket the night before.
[Time passages usually have something called dimensional correction. As you pass through, your body unconsciously adjusts to a 'communication-enabled state.']
'Kkamangi really is an incredibly powerful spirit.'
He could even create such an enormous passage himself.
[Now, may I explain?]
At that moment, Marbas—who had been lying still like a corpse in the corner—sat up straight.
Marbas bounced over to Tie and Tese tan.
A small orb then appeared in front of Tie.
[This is the 'Harmonium' device I prepared over there.]
Marbas shrugged his wood grain.
[Based on ancient magitech, it's essentially a mana resonance device for dimensional gates!]
"......Mana resonance device?"
[In a word, if we infuse it with your mana here, we can pass through the passage stably!]
