RNFB 3

Chapter 3

I patted my cheeks to wake myself up.

‘Let’s get out of here.’

If I wanted to avoid running into Daddy, I had to go as far away from the capital as possible.

I remembered my conversation with God.

[ I will seal the bond between you and Dantalion Klein. He will completely forget your very existence. ]

God had said that.

Daddy’s memories of me, including the memory that I had ever ‘been born,’ had been sealed.

A complete erasure of my existence. But.

[ However, remember this, child. There is no such thing as perfect concealment in this world. You must avoid meeting him at all costs. ]

“…”

[ You know very well how obsessed he is with you by now. Even the slightest trigger could weaken my power and allow him to remember you. ]

“Yes. I absolutely, absolutely, absolutely won’t go looking for Daddy or meet him! I swear!”

It meant that I could never meet Daddy again, because I didn’t know what kind of stimulus my existence might be to him.

That was okay.

I’d already decided roughly where I would live!

“Heave-ho!”

I opened the door of the old shack.

It was the ramshackle hut where I’d lived for a while with the old woman who had taken me in.

“Where was that… Ah, here it is!”

I found the paper I’d been using to practice writing in a little chest.

When I unfolded the crumpled paper and turned it over, its original purpose was revealed.

– Seeking Residents for the Territory –

Location: Northern Grand Duke Vertus’s Territory

Basic Benefits: House provided, land provided, 100% tax exemption for one year after relocation

Eligibility: Anyone

– Responsibility for relocation lies with the individual. Please be sure to conduct a preliminary inspection.

– However, the lord bears no responsibility for deaths, bodily injuries, or mental harm resulting from reckless preliminary inspections.

This was it!

A northern relocation pamphlet that had once been circulated all over the empire!

‘If I go here, they’ll give me a house and land.’

It was perfect for a six-year-old like me to eat and live on my own.

I clenched both fists.

“Okay. This life, I’m going to the north!”

Without Daddy, all by myself!

I wouldn’t be a burden to anyone anymore, and I wouldn’t make anyone sad.

“I’ll become independent and live well all by myself!”

At that moment, the white lights fluttered!

* * *

I had exactly two goals.

1. Eat well and live well without Daddy knowing!
2. And if possible, secretly help purify Daddy’s divine power!

I squatted on the floor and tilted my head.

“Hmm…”

The first one was something I’d have to settle by going to the north and seeing how things went.

“Although I guess the first problem is meeting the grand duke of the north…”

Just thinking of the grand duke I’d glimpsed in my past life made my chest feel tight.

‘Grand Duke Vasily Vertus.’

He was the hero of the empire who reclaimed the land that had been ruled by the mad dragon for 500 years in one fell swoop.

Vasily was the strongest of the strong.

He was also the only person who could rival Daddy.

If Daddy, who wielded divine power, was the Guardian of Light, then Vasily, who swept away everything around him with his innate physical prowess, was like a destroyer risen from hell.

‘In short, aside from physical strength, he’s toootally the opposite of Daddy!’

Anyway, Vasily had countless nicknames to match his military achievements.

War Demon, God of the Sword, Butcher, King of Slaughter…

‘M-Maybe he’s a little scary…’

“No. I’m independent now!”

I shook my head vigorously.

What’s the basic rule of independence? Solve your own problems! So I had no choice but to face it head-on!

1. Eat well and live well without Daddy knowing! → Go to the north, settle down, and become a resident!

I scribbled on the dust on the floor and smiled in satisfaction.

The problem was the second one.

2. Help purify Daddy’s divine power! → …?

How was I supposed to do this?

“I don’t have any purification abilities…”

If I prevented Daddy from regressing, I could stop his divine power from becoming ‘more’ contaminated.

But…

What about the divine power that was already contaminated?

Didn’t I have to do something about that, too?

“Cough.”

For some reason… my chest was starting to feel even tighter.

I shook my head again.

“No. I’m independent now, so I have to solve this myself, too. So… Nghhhhh, gnat! Why are you buzzing around so distractingly! When are you going home!”

I couldn’t stand it anymore and spoke to the white light that had been circling around me since earlier.

What was wrong with this thing? I hadn’t planned on having a pet fly yet! It’s hard enough feeding myself!

Right then.

[Child@#,cong..tions#^!$#…@#%ce!]

The white fragments suddenly began zipping around.

And then.

‘Huh?’

BOOOOOM!

It exploded right in front of me!

“Waaah! Fly!”

I told you to go home, not to blow yourself up!

At that moment, pure white letters appeared where the fragments had disappeared.

[Frequency readjustment complete, stabilization complete!]

“Huh?”

Poof!

[Child, congratulations on your first independence!]

What… was this?

[ A child who has decided on early independence deserves special encouragement. ]

[ A ‘reward’ for a beginner independent life has arrived. ]

[ Child, would you like to receive your reward? ]

“What the…!”

I waved my hands around in surprise and accidentally pressed [Yep!] out of [Yes] [Yup-yup:-)] [Yep!] .

The moment I did, the white letters turned red.

[Unable to receive!] [Unable to receive!]

[To receive the reward, you must complete an ‘errand.’]

Aaaah! Those bright red letters are scary!

‘More importantly… an errand?!’

Wait.

That was a word I’d heard somewhere before…

“Oh, now that I think about it!”

My eyes widened.

At the same time, the white letters rapidly changed.

[Checking errand list…]

[An errand from the God of Fate has arrived!]

[Checking contents…]

Beep- Beep- The letters blinked.

I swallowed nervously for no reason.

Poof!

[Errand from the God of Fate:

Drink water (0/1)]

“…?”

[“If you eat bread while running, your fate will be to choke and meet your end.”]

…Huh?

But after seeing the next message, I had no choice but to dash toward the cup of water.

[Errand Reward: 1 Pure, Unpolluted Divine Power Sticker]

Yes!!!!!

* * *

Gulp, gulp, gulp.

I blew on the rainwater I’d collected before drinking it, blinking my eyes. I felt the lump of bread stuck around my chest slide down.

‘That’s right. I can collect divine power!’

Come to think of it, I could.

Near the end of my conversation with God…

[ Child. Now go back to the mortal world. Go live your new life. ]

“Fwoooom.”

[ Go. Just go already. ]

“Fwoooooooooomm!”

[ What do you want?! ]

“You said humans have to take responsibility for what they’ve done. Then shouldn’t God take responsibility, too?!”

[ What? ]

“You said my soul was originally supposed to be born in the divine realm. Then why did you let me be born as my dad’s daughter by mistake?”

I’d argued my case point by point with God. Maybe because I’d read so many books while bedridden in my past life, but I was pretty smart for my age.

“When you think about it, isn’t all of this because of God’s negligence? This totally feels like I should, like, file a lawsuit or something!”

[ Ah, I am God, so I… What on earth do you want?! ]

“Please help me! Let me purify Daddy’s contaminated divine power! Then I’ll do whatever you tell me to!”

God sighed over and over before saying He’d look for a suitable method.

‘This must be that method!’

Gulp, gulp!

‘An item containing divine power.’

Gulp, hold my breath for a moment, gulp!

‘It’s perfect for me. My body doesn’t have a core that can contain divine power.’

Gulp, gulp, gasp!

“I drank it all!”

[Congratulations! You have completed the errand!]

[Would you like to receive your reward?]

This time, I shouted confidently.

“Yeeeeeesssss!”

A bright cluster of light immediately appeared before me. Then,

Plop.

A thumbs-up sticker fell onto my neatly cupped palms.

“Whoa!”

[Sticker condensed with divine power from the divine realm]

– The energy is pure

– Excellent adhesion

– Increases cuteness by approximately 20% when attached

– Purifies contamination within a certain range

My eyes grew as round as saucers.

– Purifies contamination within a certain range

“This is it!”

With divine power this pure, I could save Daddy from the contamination!

I could collect them little by little and, when I got the chance, secretly send them to Daddy?!

‘And maybe… this could be a huge help when I live in the north, too!’

I’d heard that even basic farming was difficult in the north because of evil energy.

Since divine power could purify evil energy, I could show His Grace the grand duke how useful I was!

I wiggled my butt and stared at the sparkling air.

“Another one? Aren’t you going to give me another errand?”

If possible, I hoped it’d be something like eating half a bread roll!

But no matter how long I waited, no more white letters appeared before me.

“…Is that it for today?”

It couldn’t be helped.

I tucked the thumbs-up sticker deep inside my old bag. Then I scurried around the hut, packing my things for the journey.

‘It’s almost time to move!’

That’s right.

I actually didn’t have time to stay here. Because…

‘The holy knights will soon storm into District Z.’

Just like in my past life!

‘If the holy knights catch me, an orphan like me will be sent straight to the temple’s orphanage!’

Then the chances of running into Daddy would become way too high.

Of course… Daddy wouldn’t come here today.

Looking around a remote area like this wasn’t the job of a first-class holy knight and the captain of the holy knights, my dad.

In my past life, Daddy had come here solely to save me.

“Sweetheart.”

I remembered the large, warm hands that used to lift me into his arms, and before I knew it, I sniffled a little.

“Gasp, no sniffling! I need to stay focused!”

Anyway, I had to leave District Z and head north right away.

Without getting caught by the holy knights!

Fortunately, I knew someone who could take me all the way to the distant north.

“Okay.”

I adjusted the strap of my bag and put on a solemn expression.

“Let’s go!”

I charged straight toward the hut door…!

Knock knock.

“…!”

Knock knock!

“Is anyone there?”

At that moment, it felt as though my breath stopped.

Because it was a voice I knew all too well.

Knock knock knock!

“I am Dantalion Klein, a holy knight of the central temple. Is anyone inside?”

My face went completely pale.