When Sera was still in Korea. That is, when Kyle lost his life under a 0.3-ton iron lump while exercising.
She couldn’t believe that Kyle had died. How could her childhood friend, who was perfectly fine that very morning, just die?
She acknowledged that her childhood friend had passed away, that they would never meet again, only when the family returned after the funeral and wake, forcing smiles as they treated her to a bowl of soup.
“Alive just this morning? Oh dear- lad. I’m worried if I’ve burdened you with something pointless.”
“A, no. If anything, I…”
“Sera, what did you do?”
“T, that… just… I couldn’t do anything…”
She told her childhood friend to go ahead and die after such meaningless exercise. Her childhood friend lost his life precisely that day.
Unless Sera had awakened to magical powers at this time, gaining the authority to kill everyone just by speaking—her words and Kyle’s death were not related at all—but human emotions don’t work so simply.
The childhood friend who actually died after she told him to die left a deep scar on her heart.
“…Ah.”
He really died.
Her childhood friend who had been with her since birth, since their umbilical cords were cut.
Perhaps he might have spent his whole life bickering and fighting yet remaining friends, or maybe even become something more.
He died.
“A, um, uh…”
No tears came out. On the contrary, her chest felt too heavy, drying up any tears that might have fallen.
She wanted comfort, and naturally, a weakened woman often becomes prey for many males.
Those who were friends with her and him started contacting her, suggesting they grab a drink. At those drinking sessions, she got completely drunk and poured out her feelings.
“It might be because of me, because of me that he died…”
“Hey, if your words killed him, he would’ve died long ago. Is it the first time you said something like that…?”
“But still, but still…”
“Don’t worry. Drink up and forget everything. Okay?”
As she felt the man’s hand patting her shoulder while consoling her, Sera realized why these people were there and what they were thinking as they consoled her.
Their ugly desires were obvious enough to be felt even through her drunken haze.
Her childhood friend wasn’t like that. His brain, inversely proportional to his muscles, treated her harshly as if he lacked any consideration.
Ironically, that harsh treatment was a great comfort to her. They fought sometimes, reconciled other times. That’s how they managed to stay together even into adulthood.
“I’m leaving.”
“Huh, huh? Hey! Sera! Together─.”
Shaking off everyone who came to take her down, Sera ran all the way to her house. The alcohol she hastily consumed combined with intense physical exertion hit her with a strong wave of nausea.
As passersby watched her vomiting into the drain, they began clicking their tongues. But it didn’t reach her.
No words of comfort or curses reached her heart. In that moment, she realized that the only person whose words touched her heart was her childhood friend.
Only he moved her heart. But now he was gone. Meaning, there was no one left in this world who could make her heart flutter.
‘If only, I could go with him…….’
“Young lady. Are you alright?”
And then, a middle-aged man wearing a fedora approached her. Normally, she would have snapped at him to leave her alone and walked away—but unfortunately, she didn’t have the strength to escape now.
The middle-aged man looked her up and down before nodding lightly, as if he understood.
“A close acquaintance of yours has died. And that’s why you want to die too.”
“…Who are you?”
“If you’re going to die so meaninglessly─ why not entrust me with your life? And your soul.”
Meeting that man changed her life.
***
“This is Star Tail. This is Star Tail. No significant changes in the target’s movement.”
“Mm-hmm. Good job.”
“Waaah! Mom! This is Arthur, gotta respond!”
“…This is Arthur. Good job, over.”
“Kyahaha-!”
Arthur, assigned to monitor Sera, wandered around her vicinity with Star Tail. Whether oblivious or due to Sera being the Master, she didn’t realize she was being watched.
It was fortunate for Arthur. He had never received training in surveillance or tracking.
The silver lining was that he knew Sera. Even if caught, he could casually say he was just passing by.
‘I wonder what Sera is hiding…….’
With that thought, Arthur kept an eye on Sera’s every move. Nothing special stood out. She roamed the Academy grounds, greeting people cheerfully, buying food from shops, and enjoying games.
That was it. Completely ordinary, perhaps even someone who enjoyed playing around.
“Mom, mom.”
“Yes? What is it?”
“Why doesn’t that sister have a mom?”
“Tsk- Star Tail. That’s not something to say….”
Arthur sensed something amiss after hearing Star Tail’s words. As Star Tail said, the only ones left in the Academy now were those without a place to return to, like Sera or the shopkeepers.
Orphans supported by the Empire for living expenses and tuition had returned to their hometowns. The collapsed Empire hadn’t provided funding to the closed Academy, nor supported the cadets’ living expenses.
Now that even the orphans had left, staying in the Academy grounds seemed irrational.
‘Does Sera not have parents……?’
Thinking about it, it made sense. Her parents should be on Earth, as Kyle described, not in this world.
But that didn’t make sense. Unless she fell from the sky—surely, she must have biological parents.
If he could find those biological parents—perhaps he could uncover some clue. Arthur was certain of it.
‘There must be a registry….’
Arthur’s gaze turned toward the Academy.
***
Inside the empty Academy. A thief stealthily stole documents from within without anyone noticing.
Without being detected, the thief calmed their pounding heart and examined the contents of the documents.
‘Kim Sera. From the East….’
The document contained Sera’s personal information. After confirming it, Arthur quickly burned the document and relayed the information to Kyle.
Kyle, contacted by Arthur in the middle of the night, realized Arthur’s guess was plausible.
Even in games, players have parents. Their faces and names may not appear, but they exist. Likewise, everything in this world has parents.
‘No matter how much it seems like Sera fell from the sky, she must have parents.’
Though Diaros Academy prided itself on non-discrimination between commoners and nobles, it wasn’t a place where parentless orphans could easily enroll.
Unless she possessed extraordinary talent, honing her sword skills alone as an orphan to become a Master—such prodigies didn’t exist before Kyle.
Thus, Kyle summoned Merlin.
“Do you think I’m some kind of horse-drawn carriage that comes whenever called?”
“─Something like that, yeah.”
“Damn it. One day, I’ll definitely kill you.”
“I’ll cheer you on.”
Merlin grumbled at Kyle treating him like a taxi service but obediently took Kyle to Sera’s hometown.
Arriving at Sera’s hometown, Kyle tilted his head at the sight of an empty ruin.
“Uncle Merlin. Are we sure we’re in the right place?”
“You gave me this address. What are you talking about?”
“Hmm… Isn’t there some magic that lets you look into the past?”
“There is. Want me to check?”
At Kyle’s request, Merlin read the land’s memories to determine when this area became a ruin.
After reading the memories, Merlin let out a puzzled hum.
“People lived here?”
“Yeah. This is Sera’s hometown.”
“─There’s no trace of anyone living here for at least a hundred years.”
“…I see.”
“Looks like someone got the wrong info again?”
“Probably. They couldn’t write the real address.”
“─No, this is the right place.”
Startled, Kyle and Merlin turned around. Standing there was a middle-aged man wearing a fedora, staring blankly.
He removed his hat and lightly greeted the two.
“Pleased to meet you. Kyle Meyer, Merlin.”
“…And you are?”
“Aren’t you the ones looking for me?”
The gentleman put his fedora back on and spoke.
“I am Kim Sera’s parent.”
***
“…What did you say?”
“I asked if you’d like to go to the place where he is.”
Sera asked again, as if she misheard.
It was practically telling her to go die.
But that wasn’t it.
“─If that’s the case, let’s make a deal.”
