Chapter 452

“Ah, this is… Hibirisu! Isn’t this your father’s item?”

Adella picked up a metallic fragment lying at her feet and showed it to her.

It was a rivet, a malleable metal pin used in the armor’s joints to permanently bind thin sheets together.

Hibirisu wiped her tears and checked it in the sunlight.

“That’s right. My father’s armor had gold buttons that looked just like this.”

“Then it means he hasn’t been gone for long. Let’s go out and look for him.”

“But where to…?”

“Hmm… Should we ask the villagers first? They wouldn’t have left you without a word.”

Adella and Hibirisu moved to the place where the harvest festival night market had been held.

However, the atmosphere felt strange right from the entrance of the market.

The merchants who had been rubbing their sleepy eyes and yawning suddenly turned fierce.

It became eerily quiet in the market, sending chills down their spines for a moment.

Out of an alley, a boy suddenly rushed out.

It was Billy, Hibirisu’s childhood friend whom they had met just yesterday.

Hibirisu’s face, which had been stiff, brightened up.

“Hello, traveler. Are you looking for something?”

“Ah, we were looking for Mr. Brooks. He seems to have disappeared this dawn. Do you know where he went?”

“Mr. Brooks? Hmm, ah, that guy! I know him, but… hmmm.”

Billy delayed his answer, rubbing his fingers together.

It was a sign that he wanted money from her.

Seeing this behavior, Hibirisu’s anger boiled over.

“Billy! You weren’t like this! How rude to our guest!”

“What? How do you know my name?”

“Well, because we’re friends…”

“Friends? I don’t know you.”

“Are you mad about yesterday when I asked you to save a spot for me? I sincerely apologize for that.”

“Huh? No, I’m seeing you for the first time today! There’s no green-haired girl like you in Wilhelm village.”

“What do you mean…?”

“So, are you going to give me money or not? Five coins, or even three, will be enough.”

Jingle—

Adella handed Billy a handful of coins.

Counting the money, Billy pointed toward the back of the village with a smirk.

“He went riding that way under the moonlight. He asked me about the city toll. I think that’s enough information, so I’ll be off now. Hehe, how much is all this?”

Hibirisu froze in place.

“That can’t be…”

She felt like she was being played with.

But the ordeal didn’t end there.

A young man patrolling the village stopped them.

“What are you doing here?”

Instead of Hibirisu, who could not respond, Adella spoke up.

“The atmosphere in the village seems a bit strange…”

She commented after glancing around at the merchants’ gazes.

The young man shrugged, as if it wasn’t a big deal.

“It’s because a witch is supposed to pass by here, so everyone is on edge about outsiders. I hope you buy what you need and leave the village quickly.”

“But this friend is from the village.”

“Hmm? I don’t know. Are you confusing her with someone from another village?”

“It’s Jeppy’s brother. He lives in the yellow three-story house.”

“Oh right. Can you tell me who you were introduced by?”

Hibirisu, whose eyes had turned red, couldn’t hold back and shouted.

“I’m not joking! The fruit shop owner is Mr. Tom! The bakery lady is Mrs. Dana! We saw each other yesterday, why is everyone pretending not to know, why?!”

“Haha, calm down, friend. What’s your name?”

“It’s Hibirisu. H I. B I. R I. S U!”

“And who is Brooks?”

“What? You don’t know my father? Tall, rugged-looking, and he sometimes goes hunting in the mountains with his brother.”

“Ah, I remember! The cabin in the north?”

“Yes!”

“The drunkard?”

“No, my father doesn’t drink.”

“Then I don’t know. The only Brooks I know is that one.”

“Why…?”

They met numerous merchants afterward, but no one knew Hibirisu.

Doubt began to grow in Adella’s heart.

It wasn’t that they had crossed to a different time or future, nor had they mistaken the place.

Hibirisu’s existence had been completely erased from this village.

But if people weren’t deceiving them, whom should they suspect?

On the way back home, Adella hesitantly asked.

“You’re not a ghost or something, are you?”

Adella doubted Hibirisu.

Tears streamed down Hibirisu’s face.

“Why are you doing this to me, even you… What did I do wrong, sob.”

“No, I’m sorry! I thought wrong! Don’t cry, stop.”

“Ugh…”

A whimper escaped between her labored breaths.

Adella embraced her and began to search for a way to get through this situation.

“Let’s go look for your father first.”

Could he really not recognize his own daughter?

* * *

Most people in the medieval era live their whole lives in the place they were born.

It’s not because there’s a man obsessed with nuclear weapons like North Korea, restricting them.

It’s because monstrosities born with magic lie scattered along the roads.

These beings, too, have a survival instinct and usually do not attack when humans are in groups.

Even so, humans are the top predators on Earth.

However, the moment they believe they have the numerical advantage, they would charge headlong at humans, wanting to tear them apart.

“Grurrrr—”

Sadly, evolution didn’t fix the anger management issues of the monsters.

A lizard monster that had been shot charged with its black fangs bared.

Adella jumped to avoid the monster and skillfully took aim.

Bang—!

A large hole opened in the monster’s head.

The hole bubbled briefly before new eyes and teeth sprouted out.

Adella screamed at the grotesque scene.

“Ahhh! Gross!”

Bang, bang, bang—

Now, she even closed her eyes and sprayed bullets wildly.

Once her ammunition ran out, Adella rushed toward us without a moment of hesitation.

“NaeMe, Hibirisu! Run away quickly!”

“Ugh.”

“Why is a medium monster here… !”

A three-meter tall, fifteen-meter wide lizard charged towards us.

To show off a new system that only existed in this game, I took out my rifle.

“Adella, do you see the notification above?”

“Huh? Uh oh! Something has appeared.”

[✅Long-Range Magic: You can cast magic from a farther distance using Mahripja bullets. Use your creativity to overcome challenges.]

I pushed my bothersome hair back and pressed the cold metal to my cheek.

Drawing the dense mana into my body, I traced a magic circle.

[Cast: Gravity Adjustment]

A magic circle stuck to the muzzle, and a mass of mana was shot.

Bwoom—!

With a dull sound, the magic circle surrounding the bullet began to spin rapidly.

The cylinder formed along a straight trajectory plunged into the lizard monster’s flesh.

“@&#$@$!!!”

The bizarre-screaming lizard monster began to contract.

Its neck sank, its limbs twisted awkwardly, and the eyes receded into its head.

The more it bulged, the faster it changed, gradually resembling a round rubber ball as it rolled on the ground.

Wrapping my aura around my hand, I punched the black ball.

Boom—!

Black dust scattered in all directions, and the monster vanished without a trace.

Experience points and gold shimmered, absorbed into our bodies from the Resonance system.

“Wow, that was so cool.”

Adella gave me a thumbs up.

“Hehe. I won’t deny it.”

Yes, I should be praised.

I had invested so much time in devising this system.

Suddenly—

The ground shook as if an earthquake had occurred.

The gravel in the wilderness trembled.

I got farther away from Hibirisu.

Puoohh—!

“Ah! What is this!”

Adella, covered in mud, rubbed her eyes.

The ground surged from under Hibirisu’s feet.

A giant monster’s hand shot out and grabbed her ankle.

A mole-like monster, known as ‘Roiьhatche’ in a past life, was left with its upper body.

Caught by the medium monster, Hibirisu remained calm.

She did not falter and stared directly into the monster’s eyes.

“Hibirisu, it’s dangerous!”

Understanding the situation, Adella rushed towards her.

But the mole did not attack her with its sharp teeth.

Instead, it obediently bowed its head in front of her.

Monsters do not submit to anyone.

Not even to humans or the Mazak.

Hibirisu trembled as she looked our way.

“If the Inquisition sees this, I’d be executed on the spot, you know?”

At my casually uttered words, Hibirisu’s eyes welled with tears.

“Please don’t report me. I… I can explain everything…”

* * *

“Isn’t it a cheat character to be enjoying Pokémon alone in a fantasy apocalypse world?”

“There’s no way that’s true.”

Adella’s interruption made me agree.

Thump, thump, thump—

The mole monster diligently dug the earth and swam beneath it.

We mounted on Roiьhatche’s soft back as our means of transportation.

The mole raced at a speed of 60 kilometers per hour.

It had drilling capabilities that rivaled modern civilization.

“Actually, I met a witch a long time ago.”

Hibirisu confessed, resting her head against my back, her voice fading.

“When my father went off to war, I grew up under the warm care of the village elders. Then one day, a large monster attacked our village. Even when all the villagers gathered, we couldn’t scare away a single monster, haha…”

“A large monster was scared?”

“At least, it doesn’t mess around in front of the military.”

The magic accumulated in the earth mimics life consciousness and spews out monsters.

Since the enemies’ life forms are random, a creature from the Cretaceous era could pop out.

“If you’re unlucky, a Tyranno monster could show up.”

“Our Tyranno wouldn’t do that!”

“But you know. Because there are so few people in Wilhelm village… At that time, when I thought the roof would completely fly off and I’d die for sure, the witch saved me. Don’t misunderstand; I’m not defending her, it’s just what happened.”

“Then isn’t the witch actually a good person?”

“That’s not true. The witch cruelly killed the people in my village for no reason…”

“Whoa.”

“Mrs. Dana from the bakery also fell victim back then. It seems everyone is still cautious of witches because of that incident.”

“But what does that have to do with your abilities?”

Hibirisu pondered deeply before she stammered out her reply.

“I… made a deal with the witch. She said she would give me the power to not die at the hands of anyone until my father returned from the war.”

It must have been a promise she couldn’t bear under the pressure of living.

“Instead, she would take my life five years later.”

“What a wicked woman!”

“… Yeah, tell me about it.”

By the time my back was damp with the girl’s tears.

[▶ You can clearly feel a powerful energy above you.]

A foreboding warning message appeared in front of Adella and me.

“What’s that?”

The mole monster slowed its digging and raised its head.

Adella looked up, following the monster’s gaze.

This meant they could see their figures.

Surely, it was an exceptionally dark underground with not a single ray of light.

Kwahhhh—!

A tremendous roar shook the ground.

The cramped earth cracked open, revealing an infinite sky.

“Whoa!”

“Ahhh!”

A formless force hurled us out toward the surface, squeezing our organs within.

Mounds of dirt splashed, solid rock crumbled, and rising in the flying space, a hand reached out.

“Grrr!”

In an instant, Hibirisu was caught by the nape of her neck.

The owner of the hand revealed herself, her red lips flapping as she said.

“Found you, Arrogant.”

Hibirisu trembled in fear at the sight of her face, and Adella let out a gasp of disbelief.

“There are two of you?”