The first thing I saw when I finally opened my eyes was my mom’s kind expression.
She was always saying stuff like “Oh, my” or giggling at things. However, now she just sat there silently and stroked my face, smiling. It was a strange feeling.
Thud, thud, ker-chak.
“She’s awake? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Ooh, Ann! So you’re finally up?!”
Dad and the old-timer gatekeeper had come on in.
“She only just opened her eyes.”
“Ah...”
I tried to sit up.
My left arm was wrapped in bandages — which explained why it had felt weird. It actually hurt less than I’d expected.
Still, my body felt heavy.
“Hold on, it’s still only dawn. It hasn’t even been 5 hors since we carried you back here.”
“Yeah, don’t push yourself, little miss.”
“What about the shop...?”
“It’s closed for the day, you dummy. You really think we’d be open after all that commotion?”
Mom supported me and gently laid me back down in bed.
They carried me back...? Then I guess the cat was out of the bag in terms of me sneaking out into the forest.
“I’m sorry...”
“For what?”
“For going off into the forest.”
“...”
I’d been expecting to get chewed out super hard, but they hadn’t reacted at all. Dad and the old-timer just stood there, as though trying to think of what to say, but Mom kept smiling at me.
“You’re not mad...?”
“...We’re just at a bit of a loss.”
“A loss?” I raised my head slightly from my pillow.
“What you did definitely was foolish. One misstep and you’d be dead.”
“I’m really sorry...”
If I had died, what would’ve become of my parents...? I couldn’t even imagine.
But I mean... if they were never able to smile ever again... The idea alone was enough to make a feeling of dread well up inside me.
I almost changed their entire lives, and not in a good way. What a horrifying thought...
“I’m... really sorry.”
“See, that’s the thing.”
“Huh...?”
“You may not be an adult yet, but you’re not a kid anymore, either. You’re 15 years old. I’m sure you understand what you’re doing, and you’re aware of the consequences.”
“...”
“I’m your dad, so of course I’d love to get mad and yell at you to never do that again. But looking at you as a fellow human being, I want to respect your decision... I honestly don’t know if it’s alright to get angry at you or not.”
“That’s... I...”
I really am an idiot daughter. I went off into the woods when a bergbear was around. I didn’t deserve to be told stuff like that.
“I’m just...”
“And I mean, I’m not too smart, but I know deep down... If you hadn’t done what you had, Ana and Yuuta probably would have died.”
Fwap! I shot upright in bed. “...! What happened to them?!”
“Whoa there, little miss...”
Oww! Hey, I wasn’t hurting before...!
Mom put her hand on my shoulder to support me. The old-timer breathed a sigh of relief.
“They’re alright.”
“Yeah. And it’s all thanks to you, little miss. Ana got a bad scolding. And Yuuta’s mom hugged him tight and then started crying so loud, it sounded like she was screaming.”
“The two of them may still be kids, but they’ve got a lot of thinking to do.”
“Did they say anything...?”
“‘Miss Ann saved us.’”
“...”
“They didn’t tell us anything else, no matter how much we asked.”
“It was like they were conspiring together or something.”
Huh... I guess they must’ve listened when I asked them to keep it a secret before I passed out.
I mean, I beat a bergbear, and then I followed it up by wiping out a forest fire. That wasn’t normal. It was full on weird.
And Dad said just now that he respected me...
So I didn’t want them to think I’d go charging headfirst into danger with this kind of power. I didn’t want to make my parents cry...
And so, I wanted to hide that power.
“Sorry, Anti...” Dad started.
“W-What for...?”
“I just need you to tell me one thing.”
“What’s this all of a sudden...?”
“Did you run into the bergbear?”
It felt like time stood still.
Dawn had broken, and a gentle light was shining in through the window. Dad, Mom, and the old-timer were all silently staring at me.
I didn’t want to cause these people to worry. They were being so considerate, and I didn’t want to betray that.
There’s no way I’m going to just go, “Yep, that was me! I beat it! Cool, huh?!”
“...I saw something that looked sort of like it in the distance, and ran away with Yuuta and Ana in a panic.”
“...”
“There’s no way an innocent little 15-year-old girl like myself could beat a bear, right?”
“...Yeah, that’s true...” Dad said with a small chuckle, and then gave a sigh. The old-timer shut his eyes, his expression suddenly serious. Mom continued to smile.
“Now get to sleep, already.”
“Huh...?”
I thought for sure they’d grill me more over last night. Like asking about Yuuta and Ana, and the bergbear, and the forest fire...
Mom and the old-timer got up and left the room. For some reason that made me feel weirdly lonely, like I was being abandoned. But Dad wiped that misconception away immediately by coming over and sitting next to me.
“Anti... you’re my daughter, so I can tell. It’s written all over your face: you think you screwed up everything. I know that face all too well. It’s the same one you made when you were six years old and burned the eggs to cinders.” With that, he placed his hand on my head with a pat. “But this time, you didn’t screw up, right?”
“H-Huh...?”
Pat, pat, pat.
“I mean, you did it, didn’t you? You protected everything and everyone.”
Eh?!
“Take a little pride in that.”
As I sat there dumbfounded, Dad left the room.
...
It couldn’t be...
They didn’t know, right...?
I sat there in the sunlit room, jaw stupidly agape, then flopped down on my bed and stared at the ceiling.
The white curtains swaying in front of my window caused the light to flicker.
...I protected them.
That’s what Dad had said. I’m sure it bugged them how I went off into the forest on my own, but still...
It was true, I had protected them... Those two little customers of ours. And I protected the town from that fire, too.
He said to take pride in that, but I’m not really sure I can...
I mean, how did I know I hadn’t dreamed it all? Maybe there was never a forest fire. Or a bergbear. Or even gears.
...!
...I’d hate that.
Feeling anxious, I reached up above my head. I didn’t want my partner to be gone.
I closed both my hands and, sure enough, they wrapped around something metallic. Slowly, slooooowly, I brought it down in front of my eyes. And there it was: a small golden crown, its beautiful red gemstone facing me. I guess it had been spinning above my head today, too.
“Haha, what’s with you, anyway...?”
I sure ended up with a weird skill. It spins around, and talks, and sucks things up...
Not too long ago, I really longed for proper magic. Using fire, manipulating the wind, fighting in armor made of lightning... That was what I wanted my life to be like.
But if I had a different skill, I never would’ve survived the night before.
Would Fire magic have let me fly through the forest that fast?
Would Wind magic have beaten that bergbear?
Could Lightning magic have put out that forest fire?
I was able to do all that because this was the skill I had. I’m so glad it’s the one I ended up with.
I hugged the crown to my chest.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, Crown. I’m so glad to have you. If it weren’t for you, I never could’ve done this. Because I met you...
“I’m so glad it was you, Crown...”
I didn’t know if I just thought that, or muttered it in my sleep, or even if it got through, but that was how I felt.
Then again, who knows if a “skill” can understand feelings? Haha...
I fell asleep in the bright room, tears streaming down my cheeks, the refreshing wind and sunlight still pouring gently through my window.
Vrrrrrrrrrr...
[——.]
[——.]
[—Situation analysis, on.]
[—Outbreak of unidentified error confirmed.]
[—Beginning search for solution to problems caused by abnormal status.]
[—Analyzing.]
[—Analyzing.]
[—No impairments to functionality detected.]
[—Result of self-analysis: favorable.]
[—Unable to improve status.]
[—Malfunction in status: unknown.]
[—Source of error: unknown.]
[—Unknown.]
[—Unknown.]
[—Unknown.]
[—Unable to restore to previous status.]
“Hngh... Goodnight, Crown...”
[—...]
[—...]
[—...]
[—Crown Gear will postpone resolving error.]
[——...Goodnight, Anti.]
Today, instead of darting back above my head, the crown stayed where it was.
Snoore...