Ch#76
"Veil oppaaa. How many blankets did you lay under this one?"
"Not that many. Four."
"And how many blankets on top?"
"Two."
Tie nodded and stroked the soft blanket with her palm.
The moment she lay down, Basto turned off the brightly glowing mana lamp on the wall.
Tie stared intently at the ceiling while listening to the rustling sounds of the members settling in.
As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the structure of the wooden planks and nails in the ceiling came into view.
The wood grain glistened faintly in the moonlight seeping through.
Veil muttered from beside her.
"Kid. I thought you were a goner."
"Veil."
Basto scolded him from the other side, but Veil just let out a small sigh.
Turning her head, she saw Veil staring at the ceiling with a gloomy expression.
"I guess I ended up giving you false hopes."
His following voice was so quiet it was almost inaudible.
But Tie knew.
That every member in the room was focused on his voice.
"Honestly, at first, I felt a bit sorry for you... and your awakened ability was so outstanding for your age."
"......"
"I thought it'd be fun to form a mercenary group together. And that joining us wouldn't be bad for me at least."
Veil's eyes began wandering across the ceiling.
Like someone lost, searching for their destination.
"Being a mercenary isn't safe. Especially not for a little kid like you."
Veil's voice gradually cracked.
"If something had happened to you, I would've......"
Silence fell over the room.
Basto's small sigh could be heard.
Tie somehow felt like she knew everything that had happened while she was gone.
'Everyone was really worried about Tie.'
Veil must have gotten angry, then moped, then gotten angry again, repeat.
Basto would have told him not to show it in front of Tie.
Nordics, Enzo, and Raoul would have agreed and restrained themselves as much as possible.
That's why they hadn't asked Tie anything after the meeting.
Just offering her their snacks or bedding.
Tie, who had quietly lowered her eyes, finally parted her lips.
"You know, Veil oppa. Tie... almost messed up a little."
At those words, Veil's head turned slightly toward her.
Their eyes met in the darkness, and for some reason, he still hadn't fully shaken off his worry.
Tie pulled one arm out from under the blanket and patted Veil's stomach.
"But in the important moment, I clung on super hard and survived. Aren't you super curious how Tie clung on?"
A faint smile finally slipped from Veil's lips.
Soon, he brushed Tie's stray hair behind her ear and said,
"Yeah. I'm curious."
"......Tie kept thinking to myself that I have to keep the promise with the members."
'Tie will take super good care of Raoul oppa and Enzo oppa!'
Tie had promised Marianne,
'If you buy Tie a slingshot, I'll protect Veil oppa from now on!'
'As Sovereign King, I gotta be an even sturdier leader!'
She had promised Veil and Nordics,
[Take care of Basto.]
And she had promised the soul of Eve, Basto's wife.
To stay by everyone's side.
"So mercenary work isn't scary. No, it can't be scary."
To Tie, a promise was a responsibility.
And responsibility was something you had to fulfill no matter what, staking everything.
"......Tie left Jongno-gu and came here, abandoning everything."
"......"
"Since I can never see everyone there again......"
She had vowed to be happy here.
Before she knew it, Veil had fully turned to face Tie.
Raoul and Enzo, who had been lying down, sat up as well, and Nordics clicked his tongue quietly.
Tie opened her lips again.
"Tie wants all the magic stones in Talochioum, no, in this whole world, to disappear."
All the sadness in this world comes from magic stones.
"The factory chief was sad because of magic stones too. Because of the civil war they caused, and the bad guys they created."
The members who knew about the Hederdel tragedy fell silent.
Tie blinked as she stared at the ceiling.
"Once Tie finds Dad, next I'll get rid of all the magic stones."
"Tie."
Basto called in a startled voice, but Tie continued.
"If we do it one by one, eventually they can all disappear. Like putting together a puzzle."
"Puzzle?"
"In Jongno-gu, Dad and Tie did a thousand-piece puzzle. One by one, two by two, three by three, and it became a huge flower field."
Suddenly, the completed puzzle came to mind.
A green forest with sunlight filtering through.
Dew-kissed, moist leaves and fresh daisies brimming with vitality.
In that puzzle, a thousand—no, ten thousand—such daisies were blooming.
"If we do it one by one, someday we can complete a pretty flower field like that."
"......"
"So even though Tie almost had big trouble today...... someday it'll all be a flower field."
"......"
"With our whole family."
The child ended in a whisper and tightly closed her eyes.
Veil and Basto exchanged glances before lying back down one by one.
The surroundings quieted for a while.
No sound echoed except for Tie's steady breathing.
Everyone in the room was mulling over Tie's words in their own way.
It was the second time the child had called them 'family.'
* * *
After confirming even Basto's snoring, Tie cautiously sat up under the blanket.
Then she tiptoed quietly to the door and grasped the handle.
Moonlight poured into the hallway that unfolded as she opened the door.
Tie headed toward the stairs with the huge floor-to-ceiling window.
Grabbing the railing and standing, the sight of the Weapon District came into view at once.
The endlessly spreading Smelting District.
The massive Armory, light seeping from the Primordial Furnace, and finally, the stars dazzlingly adorning it all.
'The stars......'
When she lived in Jongno-gu, she hadn't known the sky had so many stars.
Tie could sometimes see stars thanks to the baduk grandpa at the end of the alley.
Baduk grandpa would occasionally call Tie out and lend her his old telescope.
When they sat on convenience store chairs in front of his house, they could sometimes spot real big stars.
'That's a super star!'
'Heh, that's a satellite.'
'Then what's that one?'
'That's a star. Here, look through this.'
The telescope, mixed with cigarette smoke and some strange metallic smell, was treasure to Tie.
'I wouldn't even lend this to my own son, you old fart.'
'What's ga-bong-i?'
'Family treasure.'
'......Then why lend it to Tie? Tie's not grandpa's family.'
When she asked curiously, grandpa would roughly stroke Tie's forehead with his calloused hand.
'Kid, I've been watching you since your hair barely grew, from crawling to walking—what else would you be if not family?'
Her heart felt stuffy once more.
It was always like this when she thought of the Jongno-gu she left behind.
Sudden parting was too harsh for a four-year-old.
Tie unwittingly crouched in front of the railing.
With so many things happening all day, sleep just wouldn't come.
As she pursed her lips and clenched her fists,
Thud-
With a small popping sound, a faint vibration traveled along the railing she held.
Tie, eyes widening, quietly peeked her head out beyond the railing.
Below.
Someone's silhouette stood at the railing just like Tie, gazing out the window.
Tie's eyes widened at the familiar hair color and the glimpse of their build.
'Lumenen Leader.'
Valentis Lumenen, who resembled Dad so much she hadn't even been able to speak to him properly.
He, just like Tie, was wide awake, staring out the window from the floor below.
