Chapter 61

A sharp gust of wind swept across the sky.

A massive messenger bird spread its wings and soared overhead.

Instead of following the dirt road winding through the evergreen forest, it flew straight to its destination, reaching the study window of Crossk Castle in record time.

"A dispatch has arrived."

"Let's see it."

Calypse had been waiting for this report.

Kyle had suddenly appeared in the central square of Thorn City.

Covered in blood, no less.

That means there was a spy.

The knight unfolded the message with visible tension.

As he read, his eyes widened.

"Your Grace... it's..."

"What?"

"The boy disappeared... and in his place, Lady Aisha appeared."

"...What?"

The daughter who had insisted she would spend the entire day sleeping?

What was she doing there?

"And she requested that one of the knights escort her to the Ice Wall. They're currently heading toward the edge of the world..."

"We're leaving too."

"Yes, Your Grace!"

Despite his bewilderment, Calypse wasted no time.

He threw on his cloak, mounted his horse, and set off.

Lately, one thought had been growing stronger in his mind.

Raising a daughter...

...was far more difficult than raising a son.

***

At that same moment—

Outside the massive iron gate built into the Ice Wall leading to the edge of the world.

"Please open the gate!"

"Lady Aisha... we'll organize a search for the white-haired boy ourselves. So please..."

"That won't work! He'll definitely refuse anyone else's help!"

Tap! Tap!

I stomped my little boots against the ground, but the knights only exchanged troubled looks before shaking their heads.

"Lady Aisha, ever since we were assigned to guard this gate, it has never opened even once. Perhaps the boy you're searching for hasn't reached the Ice Wall yet."

"He definitely made it!"

"If it's Kyle, he could probably just jump over it!"

"...Excuse me?"

"He's not just a person—he's a cat! Cats can jump over anything!"

I clenched my fists as I explained, then started hopping up and down like a cat leaping over the Ice Wall.

"Like this!"

"Lady Aisha..."

Hop.

Hop.

No matter how enthusiastically I demonstrated, the knights only looked even more helpless.

I knew.

To them, everything I was saying sounded completely ridiculous.

But I have to find Kyle.

I had to clear up the misunderstanding.

If I didn't heal the wound I'd left in his heart now...

...I felt like I'd never get another chance.

Just then—

"Aisha."

A dangerously low voice echoed from behind me.

My hopping stopped instantly.

"Why are you always causing trouble?"

A large hand seized my shoulder as the owner of that tightly restrained anger turned me around.

The world spun.

When I faced forward again—

There stood my father, wearing a terrifying expression.

"You know perfectly well how dangerous it is beyond the Ice Wall. You said you'd be sleeping all day, then suddenly disappeared. Do you have any idea how worried I..."

His words came to an abrupt stop.

"Aisha."

His eyes searched my face.

"...Why are you crying?"

His voice carried a note of surprise.

"...Dad."

I'd been trying so hard to hold it in.

But the moment he asked...

The emotions I'd been desperately suppressing crashed over me like a tidal wave.

Even so, I refused to let myself cry.

I bit my lip as hard as I could.

"You're bleeding. Don't bite down so hard."

As if that mattered.

His warm thumb gently brushed across my lips.

Tap.

Tap.

The moment that warmth touched me, my chin—already marked with deep bite marks—began trembling uncontrollably.

I don't want to cry over something like this.

That would make me look like a real five-year-old.

But all it took...

...was the warmth of my father's hand.

Someone completely unaccustomed to kindness had no defense against something so gentle.

My tears finally burst free.

How pathetic.

I hurriedly wiped them away with the back of my hand as I spoke.

"I... I think... I accidentally hurt Kyle... and that's why he ran beyond the Ice Wall."

But it had been my first time, too.

"Kyle doesn't have anywhere else to go except me. If he goes beyond the Ice Wall, he'll never speak to humans again..."

It was the first time in either of my lives...

...that I'd ever worried this much about someone.

The first time I'd ever wanted so desperately to keep someone from leaving.

"Kyle only trusted me too... and I ended up hurting him."

"...Haaah..."

Drawing in one deep breath, I finally confessed the truth.

"Kyle is actually a baby kitten."

I cautiously glanced at my father, worried the revelation might shock him.

Surprisingly...

Calypse didn't react at all.

His silence only made me more anxious.

Fidgeting with my fingers, I hurriedly continued.

"He's still little. He can't survive out there alone."

"He might die."

"And he doesn't trust anyone except me."

"So please... please open the gate..."

Then—

"Even grown-ups have a hard time surviving alone."

Without warning...

My body lifted into the air.

Calypse effortlessly scooped me up with one arm and stood.

Cradled against his chest, I watched as his free hand roughly wiped away the tears swelling around my eyes.

"But this Kyle kid is even younger than you, isn't he?"

"Then it'll be even harder for him."

Murmuring to himself, Calypse turned toward the knights.

"Open the gate."

Once he'd made up his mind...

He didn't hesitate.

Creeeak—

The enormous iron gate, which had seemed as though it would never open in anyone's lifetime, slowly began moving at the command of the duke.

Beyond the thick iron doors...

A world of endless white and black revealed itself.

Snow whipped violently through the air.

Far in the distance, dark figures wandered across the frozen wasteland.

They were probably the monsters that always roamed near the Ice Wall.

Holding me in one arm while drawing his sword with the other...

Calypse stepped beyond the wall.

"We'll reopen the gate the moment you signal us. Please be careful."

The worried voices of the knights were the last thing we heard before—

Boom.

The iron gate slowly closed behind us.

Everything around us was white.

This place was even larger than the Frozen Kingdom.

How could we possibly find Kyle in a place like this?

"Dad, let's just start walking."

I wriggled, trying to climb out of his arms.

"Wait."

His quiet warning brushed past my ear.

Then Calypse silently looked up at the cloudless sky.

As he continued walking at an unhurried pace with me in his arms...

He smiled.

"It's a day without snowfall."

"We're lucky."

"...Why?"

"Sweetheart."

"Look over there."

As though he'd spotted something, he slowly crouched and set me down.

"Looks like someone dropped a trail of cookie crumbs."

His amused voice made me follow the direction he pointed.

And then—

"...!"

Small footprints...

Deeply pressed into the untouched snow.

They had to be Kyle's.

"Shall we follow them?"

"...!"

At Calypse's suggestion, my tear-blurred blue eyes widened with hope.

***

At the same time—

"This is my home now."

Kyle stopped in front of a massive black boulder, larger than he was.

It looked perfect.

Huge.

Flat on top like a bed.

He lightly jumped onto it and sat down.

Silently, he stared across the endless white wilderness.

There was nothing there...

Except for the distant silhouettes of a few wandering monsters.

This was where he would spend the rest of his life.

"I won't starve."

"It might even be better than living in Ahili's circus."

Looking into the distance, he realized...

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

He could endure the cold.

He could hunt wild beasts whenever he was hungry.

Because he was a monster.

'Your name is Kyle.'

At that moment—

Just as he accepted that he was a monster...

Aisha's voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

It was almost as though someone inside his head was shouting—

You're not a monster.

Thinking back...

Monsters didn't have names.

A monster was simply...

A monster.

But I have a name.

Then... what am I?

Confused once again, Kyle blinked up at the sky.

"...O... our king..."

The unfamiliar language instantly erased the uncertainty from his face.

His gaze sharpened as he turned toward the source of the voice.

Something...

Was speaking to him.

"...Our king... our leader... You... You are..."

...

"Our little god."