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When he came to, the entity was already standing in the middle of a flower field. In front of him was a small and cozy house. The blue sky above seems to stretch infinitely. The mild wind made his body feel weightless. Suddenly, something broke the peace—a high-pitched squeal.
“Kyaah, help me, daddy!”
The entity turned to see the gray-haired girl tackled by an adult woman. They both tumbled through the grass, laughing uncontrollably.
“Mwa ha ha! That’s what you get for skipping your chores! Tickle tickle tickle!”
“Kya-ha-ha-ha! Stop it, Mommy! Ha ha ha ha!”
“I’m not Mommy! I’m the Evil Tickle Monster!”
The woman continued to assault the girl without mercy, and the girl’s laughter rang out until she was gasping for breath. Just then, a man with familiar gray hair entered the scene.
“Fear not, my princess! Daddy knight is here for you!”
With a theatrical leap, he grabbed the woman, freeing the girl from her grasp. Seizing the moment, the girl grinned and launched her counterattack, tickling her mother in revenge.
“Ahah-ahahaha-ahahahaha! S-, stop, I’m ticklish! Ahahaha!”
Despite her pleas, the girl didn’t let up until the woman surrendered, breathless. Finally released from the man’s grip, the woman shot him a teasing look.
“That’s what you get for messing with Daddy’s little princess,” the man spoke up smugly. The woman and the girl looked at each other, then nodded without saying a word. A mischievous smile shared between them.
“Daddy’s weakness is his bellybutton!”
“Okay!”
“W-, wait—” The man tried to resist, but the duo pounced on him with playful determination. The woman pinned him down as the girl tickled his belly mercilessly with glee.
As their laughter echoed in the air, the serene landscape dissolved like smoke, vanishing into nothingness. The vibrant field, the cozy house, and the warmth of their joy all faded, leaving behind only cold, stone walls that loomed over the girl, casting long shadows of despair.
Was it a dream, or a memory? Whatever it was, it didn’t belong to the entity. He had no recollection of such a life. All he could remember was that he had been a grown male, living in a world of concrete. Beyond that, his past was a blank. Had he truly died? He wasn’t even sure. The only thing he knew for certain was that he was now tethered to this girl, drifting in space like a ghost. From this, he could only guess that death had already claimed him.
If it wasn’t his memory, then it must have belonged to the girl. Somehow, their connection had conveyed her dream to him.
The entity turned his attention to the girl. She was small, no more than ten years old, though he couldn’t help but wonder if her size was due to malnourishment. Ever since they had become linked, he could feel the gnawing hunger that twisted in her stomach. It was likely what had stirred her from sleep.
The girl, however, stayed perfectly still, curled into a fetal position with her knees hugged tightly to her chest. Not a single word escaped her lips. Her eyes, once full of light in the dream, now seemed vacant, lifeless. It was as if something inside her had shattered beyond repair.
‘Hello? Can you see me?’ The entity tried calling out, but the girl remained still, unresponsive. Perhaps she couldn’t see him?
“She’s the closest we’ve come to success, Your Majesty. I’m ninety-eight percent certain she’s our best candidate for our country to possess a Deity of our own.”
“Hmph, I’ll be the judge of that myself.”
Suddenly, voices echoed from beyond the room. The entity saw guards escorting a man in a white lab coat and—was that a pig in royal attire? No, it was a human, lavishly draped in gold. They stopped before the girl’s cell.
“This one, Your Majesty.”
“This brat?” The piggish man leaned in closer, his face twisting with doubt. He had completely forgotten that he’d seen the gray-haired girl before. “Hah, she looks half-dead. A poisoned rat would show more life than this.”
“She killed two of our guards with pure mana bolts during her first Ascension ritual.”
“Pure mana bolts, you say?!”
The doctor nodded gravely. Manipulating pure mana alone was a feat only a select few, like Albaf the Sage, could achieve. But to amass enough to create an offensive spell? That bordered on the divine—a feat worthy of the Gods themselves.
A nasty grin cracked across the pig-man’s face.
“Excellent. She’ll do nicely to replace Adalhard. That cocky bas*ard has gotten too popular. He needs a reminder of whose pawn he is. Kukuku.” His laughter bubbled up, dark and gloating. “Well, what are you waiting for? Get her out of there already!”
“She’s not ready yet, Your Majesty.”
“What do you mean she’s not ready?” the pig-man barked, his temper flaring.
“The tether to the Deity is unstable. If we rush, the connection could sever, and the Deity might retreat to the astral plane. We need to gradually fortify her body, make it fit to house a God. Several more Ascension rituals are necessary.”
“Arggh… You and the general, always with your excuses. Fine, fine! But make her ready within the week!”
“A week is impossible, Your Majesty. If we push her too hard, manonite crystals will form in her body due to the strain of the Advent. We need at least six months—”
“Your job, Haumann,” the pig-man growled, jabbing a pudgy finger into the doctor’s chest, “is to figure it out. You’ve got a week, or this project is done for good.”
“…As you wish.”
“Good. Now show me my homunculus soldiers. They better be more promising than this.”
“Of course. This way, Your Majesty.”
Once the voices faded and the footsteps receded, the entity was left in silence. He didn’t fully understand what had been said, but it wasn’t hard to piece together that they intended to use the girl as nothing more than a tool. They didn’t see her as a person at all.
Who are these people? he thought. What have they done to her?
The thought gnawed at him. These people had likely torn her from her family and locked her away like a prisoner, treating her as a mere object for their experiments. That realization stirred something inside him—disgust, and a rising anger.
‘I will get you out of here, I promise,’ the entity vowed, though his words were without sound or form. It was unclear whether she heard him, but the girl’s head lifted slightly before she buried it back into her knees.
Before long, two guards arrived, carrying a meal. The sweet aroma filled the room, and the entity could feel the hunger gnawing at her even more. Still, the girl didn’t move, like a vehicle losing its engine, all willpower had drained out of her.
“Four-Eighty, wake up,” one of the guards barked, irritation clear in his voice. Yet, the girl remained still, lifeless as before.
‘Get up and eat,’ the entity urged silently, desperate now. He hated how they treated her, but he needed her to survive. ‘Please… you have to eat something, or I won’t be able to help you.’
Maybe she could sense him after all? The girl slowly reached for the meal and began eating, little by little. As their connection deepened, the entity could taste the food as well—frustratingly delicious. It was an odd contrast, the luxurious flavor against the bleakness of her situation. Yet, with each bite, the girl seemed to regain a faint glimmer of life, like a barren desert soaking in the first drops of rain after an endless drought.
Something stirred within the girl—an ember of longing, so faint that a mere breath could extinguish it. The entity felt it and immediately shielded it from the despair already rooted deep in her heart. He understood that this fragile spark needed to be nurtured, for her to find the strength to live for herself. He recognized that feeling—it was something he had long lost, something he could never fulfill for himself. It was… homesickness.
‘I will grant your wish,’ he whispered silently to her. ‘I swear I will do everything in my power to make it come true.’
Though the girl remained silent, it didn’t matter. The entity had made his vow. He would be her Guardian Angel, watching over her in quiet resolve.
{ ♥ }
