To me, my biological parents were nothing more than a lesson in what not to become.

Human beings, adults, spouses, parents.

None of these held any redeeming qualities in them. Only flaws filled to the brim—a display of the worst in humanity.

They served as a cautionary signpost of sorts.

The type of people I must never become.

A boundary I should never even approach.

A line that made it clear—if I ever ended up like them, it’d be better to hang myself than live like that…

So, no matter how much I messed up, I strove not to resemble them.

I wanted to be a decent human being.

To grow into a respectable adult.

Though I’m far from confident now… if I ever got married and started a family, I wanted to be a good spouse.

And, even though I can barely imagine it… if I had children, I wanted them to be happy.

I swore this long ago, and that resolve remains with me to this day.

Getting married and having children should be decisions weighed with the utmost caution.

If I were to actually meet someone, build a family, and have a child, I would carefully, very carefully evaluate whether I could truly take responsibility—

“Appa!”

“……”

“Dada?”

The reflections on my past vows were abruptly interrupted.

An icy, unavoidable reality presented itself.

I felt a twitch at the corner of my eye. My mind was jumbled, feeling as if it were on the verge of exploding.

I ran my hand down my face, trembling like I was in an earthquake, and activated my Observation once more.

There, right in front of me, sat a mysterious baby on the sofa.

The baby’s laughter rang out in clear peals, brightening the room with infectious joy.

Each time it smiled, its snowy white eyes sparkled, and its silky hair glinted as it fell down to the baby’s shoulders.

It stretched its tiny hands toward me, reaching for my cheeks. The softness and warmth of its small palms were vividly palpable.

If I stopped here, it would seem like an incredibly endearing child...

— Flutter, flutter

But the pair of wings protruding from its back loudly asserted that this was no ordinary human baby.

The wings resembled those of a butterfly, scaled down to fit a baby.

The shimmering iridescent colors lent an enchanting quality that made it hard to look away.

‘Those wings…’

I had seen wings like that in the original storyline.

Calming my spinning head, I searched through my memory.

While roaming the Unexplored Territories, I’d occasionally encountered beings like this, and I’d seen quite a few of them when raiding the Taesan Family’s stronghold… This creature… a species.

‘A fairy?’

An upper-class species of spirit. A fantastical race inhabiting nature untouched by humanity.

The Origin Egg had hatched.

This was a big deal.

And what emerged wasn’t an object, potion, artifact, or magic tool, but a living creature.

This was an extremely big deal.

And it appeared that creature was a fairy.

A fairy, so rare that unless one raided the Taesan Family’s stronghold, it was nearly impossible to witness… was now giggling in front of me.

A truly significant development.

But…

“A…paaa!”

The voice calling out to me was far more pressing. In comparison, the entire situation felt insignificant.

‘I don’t want to hear this.’

I was in no way prepared to hear such words. In the first place, could this even be my child?

I had never been intimate with anyone, so how could I possibly have a child?

Thinking through this, I clenched my teeth. I didn’t know if the baby would understand, but I needed to say it to convince myself.

[I, I am not...]

— Creak… crack…

The necklace whined. The usually flat, unemotional voice was faltering and stuttering.

The unpleasant noise made the baby wrinkle its face. Even that was undeniably adorable.

[Your f-father is not…]

But adorable or not, facts are facts.

There’s no way a different species…

Every time that little voice called me “Dad,” my head felt like it was being twisted in a vice, and my chest felt like it was being crushed.

My breathing grew ragged. A groan slipped from my lips.

[No… it’s not...]

The voice struggled, stuttering and cracking, and the baby’s face crumpled as it clamped its hands over its ears.

“Nnn…”

Suddenly, the baby’s eyes filled with tears, as if it understood my words, and it began to sniffle.

“Appaa…”

— Fzzzzzt...

My mind went blank.

My consciousness, which had remained intact even after a direct hit from Aerus, was severed in an instant.

...

 

[No, no!] [I’m sorry…!] [I won’t say things like that...]

When I came to, I found myself holding the baby in my arms, hurriedly trying to comfort it.

It wasn’t as if I was acknowledging myself as its father.

But I couldn’t just ignore a crying baby that seemed to think of me as its dad. That would be the worst thing to do. So, I comforted it.

Holding the baby with my one free hand, I used the wings of the Sky’s Feather to support its back so it wouldn’t fall.

“Hehehe…”

The baby, which had been on the verge of tears, now smiled brightly and snuggled closer to me. Being so small, it fit snugly into my arms.

It was adorable, and my emotions felt complicated. I couldn’t help but…

— Hrk… gulp…

…cover my mouth to stifle a sigh.

I carefully looked at the baby, fearing it might start crying again if it heard anything.

Thankfully, it seemed not to notice.

Then it hit me—the baby didn’t seem to be wearing any clothes, probably since it had just… hatched?

‘…Is this okay?’

The living room was at a comfortable temperature, and the baby didn’t appear to be cold, but I was worried it might catch a chill.

After all, babies tend to have weak immune systems. It’s important to keep their surroundings clean and to be attentive to their needs.

It suddenly occurred to me that leaving a newborn—human? fairy?—baby in this state was rather dangerous.

Not that I was accepting being called “Dad,” but I couldn’t just abandon it.

— Vrrrm!

First, I cast a cleansing spell around the baby and myself just to be safe, even though I couldn’t detect any dust or foreign matter through Observation.

Then, using the wings of the Sky’s Feather, I gently wrapped the baby. Being an artifact, it provided adequate warmth.

It looked almost like a swaddled bundle.

“Woo?”

The baby looked up at me, blinking. It seemed pleased, touching the Sky’s Feather wrapped around its body with a look of satisfaction.

Relieved for the moment, I felt the weight of unresolved issues pressing down on me again.

‘…What does a baby eat?’

I scrutinized the baby through Observation.

It could sit upright on the sofa… and it was able to mumble simple words like “Papa.” It even had a full head of hair down to its shoulders…

[Little one? Hold on a moment…]

“Wuu? Bwaa…?”

Supporting the baby’s bottom with the Sky’s Feather, I gently opened its mouth.

‘It has… a few teeth?’

From what I know, a baby with teeth needs solid food rather than formula…

‘How many months old does that make it? If it has teeth, is it over twelve months? Wouldn’t vaccinations already be overdue?’

But no.

I was still unfamiliar with the norms of this world.

In a place where magic and unique abilities exist, there might be differences from what I know.

Most importantly, isn’t this baby a fairy rather than a human? I couldn’t be certain human knowledge applied to a fairy baby.

I felt lost.

My knowledge was too shallow, too limited, and I couldn’t make a confident decision.

I wasn’t prepared at all. If I recklessly acted based on my paltry understanding and the baby ended up hurt…

A headache throbbed through my temples. It wasn’t from the side effects of my ability, but a different kind of pain… the kind brought on by mental strain and stress.

— Cooing!

But I couldn’t let myself show any discomfort in front of this cheerful baby.

This was truly a crisis.

‘…Alright.’

After some deliberation, I gently patted the baby’s back and stood up, making a firm decision.

One must recognize their own limitations. Only by acknowledging those empty spaces can they be filled.

And when one is unable to fill those gaps, they should know when to seek help.

This wasn’t just about me being caught off guard; it wasn’t the kind of situation where I could make excuses while the baby suffered.

With shaky fingers, I tapped on my smartwatch.

...

 

Due to the midterm exams, Liana had been incredibly busy lately.

A superhuman with an affinity for spirits was rare.

One with exceptional talent in this area was rarer still, and a seasoned Spirit Mage who had not only developed their abilities but reached the pinnacle was exceptionally rare.

Liana, a Spirit Mage of nearly the highest caliber, was invaluable to Shioram, and she’d been overloaded with creating and grading midterm exams.

She was exhausted.

Of course, it wasn’t as grueling as the front lines had been.

It was a far cry from maintaining a 24-hour alert status, always on edge for a monster attack.

Still…

Liana had spent her youth training intensively under constant expectations, and before even reaching adulthood, she was thrown into the front lines, where she’d fought tirelessly until last year.

Now, after retiring as a hero, she had been eagerly looking forward to a more relaxed life. She was filled with hope, imagining a more peaceful future.

But even this seemingly easy workload felt exhausting to her.

If she had her way, she’d ditch all of it, run away, or just hole up in her lab… but, of course, she couldn’t do that.

And so, on a Sunday, a day she should have off, Liana trudged back to her lab, where she planned to handle her basic duties and make a dent in the pile of midterm exams waiting to be graded.

— Ring! Ring! Ring!

“Hmm?”

[Contact: Student Lee Hayul]
▶ Student Lee Hayul: I apologize for reaching out on a Sunday morning, but I have an urgent matter and need your assistance.
▶ Student Lee Hayul: May I come to your lab? I would like to see you as soon as possible.

“Hmm?”

She was sipping her morning coffee and glancing over a few emails when she spotted the messages from Lee Hayul. Her eyes widened.

It was unusual for him to reach out, especially on his own initiative, and the content was even more unusual. Apologizing for the day, asking for her help, wanting to meet quickly…

Did something serious happen again?

Liana raised her brows, agreeing to see him, and he quickly responded that he’d be on his way.

Just from the wording, she sensed something unusual. Could something have happened to him again?

It hasn’t even been that long since the Sifnaha incident, so soon…? And wouldn’t he go to Atra for something like that?

Though a bit disappointed, Liana knew that if Lee Hayul were in any danger, he’d surely run to Atra first.

So, if he was specifically coming to her, it must be something else entirely.

— Knock, knock.

[Professor, it’s Lee Hayul]
[Lee Hayul here]

“Yes, come in.”

Hayul arrived in no time.

It seemed he was indeed in a hurry.

The door opened, and Lee Hayul entered, looking like a puppy caught in the rain, standing there hesitantly.

[Thank you for seeing me on such a day]

Liana shrugged, sipping her coffee as she glanced at him. Given her role as his advisor and the dean’s personal request to look out for him, this hardly seemed like a major inconvenience.

“Oh, it’s no trouble. I was already in. But what brings you he—”

“Da-da?”

“…what…?”

The sound broke through her thoughts as she paused mid-sentence, the coffee cup frozen halfway to her lips.

She felt herself blink, her mind momentarily blank, and then she turned her head.

Standing there awkwardly was Hayul. Only… without the usual winged robe draped across his back.

No, that was wrong. The robe was still there, but it was wrapped around him, fastened at the front.

Specifically, he was holding… a small, white-haired baby? No, not just any baby, but a… fairy?

A fairy that looked as if it were his own child, swaddled snugly in his winged robe, lovingly cradled in his arms.

“...?”

Liana’s mouth dropped open in shock.

She was just thankful the coffee was already down, or there would’ve been quite the mess.

 

[The Fairy Knight responds to the player’s presence.]
[The emotional state ‘? Emotion’ reacts.]

…

[Player Support System: Evaluation Level]
...
▶ Emotional State
...
‘? Emotion’: ?
...

[Player Support System: Affection Level]
Lee Hayul → Liana Belrus
●●●●●●○○○○ (65 ▶ 66 / 100)
“Affection” “Gratitude” “Kind-hearted Adult”

…

[Conditions to break the “Curse of Silence” have not been met.]
[Conditions to break the “Curse of Loneliness” have not been met.]