Chick 300
by Cristae300
Tears welled up in her pale coral eyes.
The tears pooled beneath her eyelids, ready to spill at any moment.
[Due to (Unknown Title), Child Protection System activated.]
[Emergency Quest Triggered!]
[A child with a wounded heart needs the warmth of a loving embrace. Hug your soft, fuzzy friends close!]
Gru snuffled, drawing in her breath.
‘Emergency quest?’
The fuzzy familiar friends referenced by the quest had gathered in a little circle before Gru, anxiously milling around and seeming unsure of what to do.
Even Yurian had hopped up onto the desk, wondering what was wrong.
Before the tears could fall, Gru pulled her familiars tightly into her arms.
The familiars returned her hug with gentle warmth, and Yurian, after a startled squawk, licked Gru’s cheek.
A gentle heat suffused her. It felt as if clouds of cotton candy were forming within her chest.
That cotton-candy comfort settled her agitated heart.
[Under the effect of (Unknown Title), a skill is forcibly unlocked.]
[Skill: ‘Deep-rooted Attachment’ is now open for viewing.]
All the connections Gru had woven so far flickered before her eyes.
Her primary caregiver On Joorim; Shin Nayeon, Gidan, Sergey, Jin Siwon, Kazuki…
Candidates for caregiving—Chuen and Shea—also flashed by.
Seeing the faces of these precious people made Gru’s mouth fall open in surprise.
They were all her caregivers—not faceless blood relatives, but people who loved Gru simply for being herself.
Gru wiped her tears away on her sleeve and looked at each face again.
Just seeing them made the loneliness inside her begin to vanish.
Did the ‘Unknown Title’ show her this just to comfort her?
As Gru pondered—
[Caregiver Quest]
[For a growing child, affection is an essential nutrient. Affection allows a child to grow into a stable and strong sovereign. Treasure your bonds, make new connections, and gather enough Affection Level!]
[Reward: Closed ‘Title’ unlocked]
Below the quest window, a young sapling stood with two branches stretched wide.
‘A title…’
Sniffling with a walnut-sized lump under her chin, Gru opened her status window.
Name: Ongru
Title: ■■■ ■■■ ■■ ■■■ (Not Viewable)
Right below the name ‘Ongru’ sat a locked title.
There were many ways to acquire titles, but Gru had never heard of one that stayed locked like this.
Gru dabbed away the last of her tears with the back of her hand.
‘I want to know.’
What was this title Gru had been left with? Why was it locked? For what reason did it comfort and help her?
Gru hugged her familiars even tighter, rubbing her cheek into their soft fur.
She felt Mephisto’s whiskered cheek nuzzling hers, Lucifer’s paw playing with her chin, Bailach’s brow resting gently against her own.
Below the pile, Yurian endured in silence—trembling, but uttering not a peep, though clearly not enjoying her fate.
Gru realized this was what connection and affection meant.
They lessened sadness, made the heart expand. They swallowed cold loneliness and warmed you from inside out.
The vital nourishment that let a small sapling’s roots grow deep to become a great tree.
‘Deep-rooted Attachment.’
Whispering the skill’s name, Gru gently closed the ‘G’ folder.
When Gru once said she wouldn’t seek out her parents, Joorim told her he’d help whenever she wished.
He’d been searching in the background ever since.
Perhaps it was still too soon for Gru to learn all the answers.
After all, the only thing left in the ‘G’ folder was Chuen’s voice.
Nothing was certain yet. It was too early to leap to conclusions.
That’s likely why Joorim hadn’t told her anything more.
As for what new data might be added to the ‘G’ folder in the future—no one could know.
Gru shut down the laptop completely and rose from her seat.
It was time to raise her Affection Level, so she could one day become a proud sovereign tree.
In the blood-scented snowfield, Chuen clutched her sleeve tightly.
The 99th floor…
“…A tower?”
“Correct.”
“You built a tower?”
“So far, things have gone smoothly.”
“You’re insane!”
Chuen’s face twisted as she spoke, but the man merely watched her with a gentle smile.
His affable face only made her blood boil all the more.
Chuen spoke again, biting off each word.
“Insane.”
The man only shrugged.
Chuen bit her lip hard.
“…Why are you looking for me?”
Was he planning to use her to build his tower?
‘What should I do?’
She’d known from the moment they met that she couldn’t beat him.
‘Is escape even possible?’
Her goldfish of anxiety darted madly inside her.
Meanwhile, the man remained perfectly calm, tilting his head lazily.
“Reiji tells me you’re good at finding people. I’ve been troubled lately—so many going missing.”
Contrary to his seamless progress, his people had begun disappearing one by one.
He couldn’t understand it. Something was happening to them—a hidden hand, perhaps.
Even using the ‘Eye of Gnosis’, it remained unseen, as if something actively obscured matters from his view.
At this rate, the would-be owners of the tower would be wiped out before the tower was ever claimed. That’s what made him remember Chuen.
After this, the man moistened his lips and added softly,
“And as long as I’m at it, there’s a child I want to find.”
A stubborn thread of hope remained unwoven inside him.
It could be an empty wish. She’d never wanted the child.
And yet, he wanted to face the painful truth squarely, even if it hurt.
When the Gnosis triquetra glimmered in the man’s coral eyes, Chuen’s shoulders jolted faintly.
Her goldfish thrashed their tails, trying to rouse her to action, but her consciousness grew as sluggish as if an invisible power was controlling her.
“You can help, can’t you?”
At his words Chuen nodded slowly, against her will, as though some unseen force compelled her.
“Kh…”
She bit the sound off and furrowed her brow.
If only she could spit in that madman’s face, she’d feel better.
The man began to walk. Chuen followed him, eyes cast down as she stepped over the snow.
About the ‘Snowfield of the 99th Floor’, she knew quite a bit.
Since On Joorim descended from the 99th floor, even if people knew nothing of the other floors, everyone was fascinated by the 99th.
Stories of the endless tundra, of the unbeatable Master of the 99th Floor, had become the stuff of fairy tales.
Heroes who reached the top braved incalculable hardship to meet the master.
But the Master of the 99th Floor bore the power of every tower lord defeated before him, and the heroes fell like autumn leaves.
It was said that only On Ijo succeeded in putting an end to the master’s onslaught, immobilizing him with his power.
Afterward, On Ijo left his exhausted younger brother behind and ascended alone to the 100th floor.
Crrunch, crunch, Chuen walked on, then spoke,
“…So I suppose you haven’t managed to build a 100th floor.”
Her tone was flat, but her words were barbed with mockery.
If he’d completed it, he wouldn’t be stuck at 99. Nothing at all was known of the 100th.
Some whispered it was a hell, others—heaven.
If the other floors were about strength, perhaps the 100th was a place of illusion, where you could never find your way out.
A fool’s tale.
Crack—
At that, the man in front of her turned around.
Asking whether he’d failed to build the 100th floor had only been to probe at the pride of this man, who was recreating the tower.
It was a jibe at someone who’d never achieved what On Ijo had.
Chuen lifted her gaze to him where he stood, blocking her path.
He gazed back, dimples forming in his sweet smile.
“The 100th floor—”
He raised his index finger.
“—is here.”
Tap tap—On Ijo pointed to his own forehead.
[Chick Class Hunter’s Filial Acts! > Part II Complete]