Slum 2

Michaela, in her own opinion, prided herself on being kind to young children.

Children were beings that should be protected.

Perhaps she felt this way out of empathy, having grown up being abused when she was young.

“Has big sister been doing well too?”

“Big sister, you can’t even eat properly without us, can you?”

“We’ve all been worried about you all the time!”

The children were dirty.

Their clothing was truly tattered, but it was old rags that could at least cover what needed to be covered, maintaining the minimum function as clothes.

They smelled rotten.

A smell that people from the city would frown upon as soon as they smelled it.

It wasn’t a smell the children wanted, but one that had seeped into them from living in the slum.

Michaela didn’t mind.

Such smells were familiar to her, having smelled them enough in her past life and in her home country.

“Was, was that my image…?”

“You always ate bean sprouts for three meals a day.”

“That’s why we made sure to prepare at least one meal a day for you.”

Han Seoyeon enjoyed the heartwarming reunion with the children.

“But it seems fortunate that you don’t remember such things.”

“On the contrary, it means you’ve been eating well and living well at the Academy to the point of forgetting about bean sprouts!”

“…”

It was truly a heartwarming reunion to see.

“…What, why no answer?”

“Surely not… No way, right?”

“Why do you keep avoiding our eyes, big sister?”

“Well…”

The closeness of the relationship could be felt.

Even to the eyes of a complete outsider.

“It’s not, right? Surely not, right?”

“Bean sprouts, they were delicious…”

“Oh, come on! Big sister!”

Michaela simply appreciated their beautiful reunion.

“How can you eat only bean sprouts there too!”

“Please eat something nutritious and delicious other than bean sprouts! Please!”

It was like a family reunion, if one were to draw a comparison.

For reference, the parents were obviously the children.

“B-But…”

“If you keep eating only bean sprouts, you won’t be able to make friends properly!”

These were correct words.

Michaela nodded involuntarily.

“N-No, that’s not true! I made friends!”

“Really? You’re not lying?”

“It’s true! There was even someone who said they liked bean sprouts and wanted to swap menus with me!”

Shake, shake.

Michaela shook her head.

That was just because they liked Han Seoyeon, not because they liked bean sprouts.

“Oh, my goodness…!”

“Big sister made… friends?”

Suddenly, the children’s gazes turned to Michaela.

“Um, could it be, perhaps…”

“I am her friend.”

Michaela answered truthfully.

“Of course, I do dislike bean sprouts though.”

There wasn’t a single lie.

“No way…!”

“That big sister, our big sister made a friend…!”

The children marveled.

It wasn’t meant as sarcasm or mockery.

“Um…!”

The children gathered their courage and spoke with all their might.

“She might be lacking in many ways, but she’s still a good big sister! Please take care of her!”

“Likewise.”

Michaela thought they were truly mature and grown-up children.

“Ahem.”

“Big sister, stay quiet.”

“…”

“Ah, instead of standing here, please come inside!”

The children guided them.

Han Seoyeon walked with a bright smile, as if familiar with the place.

Soon, Michaela too moved her feet, recalling similar sights she had seen in her hometown.

Unlike the outside, the inside was cozy.

Traces of human touch could be felt.

It was organized and tidy in the children’s own way.

“Ah, this nostalgic feeling. It’s been a while.”

“That can’t be right? Big sister always made a mess.”

“We worked so hard to clean up after you.”

“Hasn’t the room become a bit cleaner now?”

“A-Ahem!”

The children gathered closely in the spacious room.

They sat side by side, catching up.

“How have you been at the Academy?”

“Of course, I’ve been doing great things!”

Han Seoyeon said, puffing out her chest proudly.

“I stopped the plot of vile terrorists, and I’m being treated like a complete hero! I’ve even been on TV so many times!”

The children’s eyes were cold.

“Big sister. That doesn’t seem quite right.”

“We want to just praise you if we can…”

“Let’s lie within reason, big sister.”

Han Seoyeon raised her voice.

“N-No, it’s true! It’s real!”

Even if she says so, the children don’t know.

There’s no way electronic devices, let alone radio waves, would reach the slum.

“It’s true.”

Michaela defended her.

“I vouch for it.”

“Se-Senior…!”

However, the children’s reaction was cold.

“We’re sorry.”

“We’re really sorry for our chuunibyou big sister!”

The children couldn’t hide their shock.

They just bowed their heads politely to Michaela.

“She’s a really lacking big sister, but please take good care of her…!”

The children’s expressions were resolute.

Why was such a reaction coming back?

[I completely sympathize with the children’s feelings.]

It seems the will in the sword sympathized with the children.

“Big sister, you really have to treat that foreign big sister well!”

“A friend who can handle you, big sister, must be really rare in this world!”

“You absolutely can’t let her go! Understand?”

After the shock came desperation.

“Of course! I’ll make sure not to let even a drop of water touch her hands!”

This time, for some reason, Han Seoyeon shouted energetically.

“What about you all, how have you been lately?”

“We’re just ordinary, you know.”

Ordinary slum life stories followed.

“You haven’t been extorted for money or anything, right? Right?”

“We’re not like you, big sister. Nothing like that has happened.”

The old souls comforted Han Seoyeon.

“We’re fine. You send us money every day anyway.”

“That’s right. So, you don’t need to worry so much.”

The children were mature.

They possessed a maturity that didn’t match their age.

That’s why it’s even more regrettable.

“Oh right, we got a new member recently!”

“A new member?”

“Yeah. She’s a foreigner, but she speaks Korean well! I’ll introduce her right away!”

There must have been reasons why they had to mature.

Because they couldn’t have survived without maturing.

“Aria, come out for a moment!”

The children called out a foreign name.

There was no answer.

“Aria, Aria…?”

It’s a living space for about twenty children.

Given the relatively large size of the room, there was a possibility that the voice didn’t carry all at once.

“Answer me, Aria!”

The children kept calling out ‘Aria’.

There was no answer.

“G-Guys! Something terrible has happened!”

And then.

“What’s wrong, all of a sudden?”

“Aria…!”

A child who came running from afar in bare feet says.

The urgent tone pierced Han Seoyeon’s ears.

There are largely two types of humans in the slum.

Either the weak and elderly, or vagrants.

They’re called vagrants, but in reality, they were criminals driven out even from the city’s detention centers.

Those who have nothing to their name.

“Hey, kids and ladies over there.”

The kind that can only raise their heads proudly in the slum.

“Rumors have been going around, you know? They say the income has been pretty good lately.”

In some ways, it was even admirable.

The slum is an abandoned village.

This place was helpless.

Those who were abandoned don’t even have the strength to commit crimes.

Also, there were implicit rules here too.

Because there were those who wanted to use this abandoned village.

In today’s world where all magic stones are under strict government control.

The slum is about the only place convenient for illegal procurement of magic stones away from government eyes.

That’s why Han Seoyeon’s siblings were special.

At least to the brokers.

Even though Han Seoyeon had left the slum to live at the Academy in the city, she still sent living expenses while paying hefty fees to the brokers.

Picking on the children would directly harm the brokers’ income.

It would incur the wrath of the powerful people associated with the slum.

Even vagrants value their lives.

Few people messed with the children.

This was also Han Seoyeon’s intention.

“I won’t waste time with long talk, just hand over all the money you have.”

A voice full of confidence, as if they were some big shot.

Behavior that seemed unaware of the implicit rules of the slum.

“You two ladies over there, come with us.”

There was no doubt they were newcomers.

They were one-time extras described as such in the original work.

“If you don’t comply… You know what happens, right?”

The vagrants brandished weapons.

Beside them was a foreign child.

They pointed their weapons at the child’s neck.

“Wow, both of you have pretty good bodies, huh?”

The fact that they appeared now,

It was synonymous with saying that the original work set in the slum hadn’t been distorted.

“It’s my first time with a black-haired one, this could be fun in its own way…”

That was the end of their role.

Han Seoyeon had no intention of listening to the narrative of criminals who blatantly threatened a child’s life and harassed women.

“Kuhak…!”

Thud.

There was no need to draw her sword.

A straight punch.

With just a few punches that could hardly be called technique, the vagrants fell haphazardly on the street.

Han Seoyeon lightly ignored them.

Ignoring them, she approached the child.

“Hey, are you okay?”

The child’s eyes had a reddish tinge.

The snow-white hair was strikingly different, as if not of this world.

“Yes.”

Aria─.

[The Constellation ‘Daughter of the Star Queen’ is watching you.]

“Thank you, big sister.”

No.

The Constellation ‘Daughter of the Star Queen’ looked at her.

Constellation stories.

A genre that uses the cliché of transcendent beings choosing and sponsoring humans on earth.

[The Academy’s Falling Star Swordsman] is also a work that borrows the cliché of constellations.

There are constellations in this world.

There were transcendent beings who viewed the human world as a form of entertainment.

They were cruel to humans.

They could take lives without a second thought.

To them, humans were nothing more than a pastime accidentally discovered while rummaging through a garbage dump.

But there are exceptions to everything.

There are absolute beings who cherish humans themselves.

“What’s your name, big sister?”

Just like the girl in front of her.

“Han Seoyeon, I’m Han Seoyeon.”

“Aria is, well, Aria.”

Somewhat awkward third-person Korean.

It couldn’t be helped.

She wasn’t just a foreigner, but an outsider.

“Thank you for helping. Pretty big sister.”

The girl smiled.

[The Constellation ‘Daughter of the Star Queen’ expresses gratitude to you.]

A notification rang.

The voice of a constellation she had never heard before, despite having a status window.

“There’s no need to thank me. I just did what was natural.”

“Big sister is kind.”

─Ding.

A sound rang in her head.

Like in a game.

[Hidden Quest!]

Han Seoyeon is not a player.

The contract she made with the Falling Star Sword is separate from the constellations.

“Kind big sister, can I ask for one favor?”

Originally, she who didn’t have a supporting star couldn’t receive quests.

“Big sister, if, you know.”

But not anymore.

A star that knows the human heart approached her.

“If Aria’s friends, not Aria, get hurt, you know.”

Words float in the air.

Words that only Han Seoyeon can see.

“Could you help Aria’s friends too?”

Han Seoyeon took it all in without missing a word.

[Save the children.]

[Difficulty: S]

[A crisis is approaching the quiet slum soon. Innocent children might be sacrificed.]

It was a cry.

To save her friends.

A request from a kind girl.

Constellations cannot directly intervene in the human world.

Because they made such a contract with the ‘Star Queen’.

That’s why the girl couldn’t take action directly.

[Please save all the children from the unknown threat.]

It was okay now.

Because Han Seoyeon had come here.

[Monster Wave Defense: Incomplete (0/1)]

Monster Wave.

The tragedy that the original Han Suho couldn’t prevent will be twisted by Han Seoyeon’s hands.

“Yes. Of course.”

Because Han Seoyeon was a munchkin.

A munchkin protagonist doesn’t make children cry.

Doesn’t make them sad.

“Your friends are precious siblings to me too.”

[The Academy’s Falling Star Swordsman] was a ruined world novel.

The original protagonist couldn’t prevent the terrible tragedy.

Exhausted from terrorist attacks and conflicts with Lee Ha-yul.

The protagonist loses the capacity to pay attention to the slum.

While the protagonist is absent, the children are extorted for money by these ridiculous small fries.

In the end, they are miserably killed by monsters.

By the time the protagonist notices, it’s already when the tragedy of the slum has become news headlines.

“I promise. I won’t let any of my siblings get hurt.”

Such a future no longer existed.

“Thank you, pretty big sister!”

Aria smiled brightly.

A child’s smile never gets old, no matter how many times you see it.