Chapter 179
—Your Dad was a Cultist?!
It was the time when Lord Demon left to prepare breakfast, leaving her alone.
The Fairy suddenly crawled out from Pastel's back and poked her head out.
"Uwaaak!"
Pastel, who was just about to drink her cocoa, was startled.
"Fairy! A surprise appearance to startle a good-natured Pink Hair is something only villains do!"
It's a problem if a Good Fairy does that!
—Huh? Is that so?
The Fairy panicked. She floated up, sat on the edge of the table, and quickly shook her head.
—I didn't know! If this were a fairy tale, I'd be a good guy, so I'll be careful not to startle you from now on!
"Sounds good!"
The Fairy, who had answered so refreshingly, tilted her head as if she suddenly remembered something.
—But aren't fairies supposed to startle people? I'm a fairy, after all.
Oing, is that so?
If she's a fairy, startling people is a given.
"That's true too!"
—Right? Then I'll just keep doing what I've been doing! Because I'm a Good Fairy!
Uh-oh.
Pastel's eyes rolled around.
She wanted to argue back, but the logic was so perfect she couldn't refute it.
Telling a Fairy not to live like a fairy was too much of a power trip as a Landlord.
To break through this logic, wouldn't she need to bring in the fairy tale expert, Melissa?
"Go ahead!"
—Yeah! More importantly, your Dad was a Cultist?
"That's right!"
—Oh My Goodness!
The Fairy covered her mouth in amazement.
—What a coincidence! This is practically destiny, telling us to save the Great Fairy from the Church!
Gasp.
"Really?! We were born with such a destiny?!"
—Of course! We were destined to save our Fairy Friends confined by the Church, and ultimately save the Great Fairy!
The Fairy, who had shouted with clenched fists, stealthily added.
—So my freeloading here is a perfectly natural situation guided by destiny, not something that creates any special debt. It's not a tenant relationship, after all. Such cold concepts shouldn't interfere with destiny.
A voice that seemed to hold a lot of hidden meaning.
"What?!"
Her Pink Eyes widened.
"Fairy, you didn't actually think of our relationship as landlord and tenant, did you?! We have a family-like relationship destined to be together forever! A mere calculation of gains and losses can't interfere!"
—What?
The Fairy covered her mouth, deeply moved.
—So that's how it was! We had a family-like relationship! To think I doubted our relationship without even knowing that.
A Black Aura fluttered. The Fairy smiled brightly.
—Then could you give me the price for all the hard work I've done granting your wishes? I did eat magic stones, but it still feels right to receive a proper price. No matter how you look at it, free wishes are just my making a one-sided sacrifice.
"A price?"
Pastel's eyes grew wide. She put on a shocked expression as if this was completely unimaginable, and a hint of moisture formed in her eyes.
"What do you mean, a price? Shouldn't such cold concepts interfere with a family-like relationship? Fairy, you said we had a family-like relationship. You just agreed to it. Was it a lie? Was our relationship built on lies?"
Was it...?
"Fairy, you a liar! Bad fairy!"
Pastel looked like she was about to cry. She slumped face-down onto the table.
"Bad fairy! Bad fairy!"
The Fairy panicked.
—Huh? Huh? Is that what it means? That's just an unpaid slave—
"Uwaaang!"
Pastel let out a wail.
"I saved a penniless Fairy, fed her, clothed her, and gave her a place to sleep, but all I get in return is lies and betrayal."
A sniffling sound followed.
"Actually, isn't the good Fairy World just a lie?"
The Fairy flinched for a moment.
"Maybe the Church was just doing a good deed for once, and you were actually a bad fairy? That kind of makes sense. There's no way the organization Dad is in only does bad things all the time. I should hurry and tell Dad about the evil fairy that escaped—"
—Ahem! Ahem!
The Fairy took on an arrogant posture with her hands behind her back and looked up at the ceiling. But only her posture was arrogant; her face was sweating bullets.
—Test passed!
Oing, what does that mean?
Pastel lifted her head from the table and looked up at the Fairy with bright, clear eyes.
The Fairy looked down arrogantly like an inspector.
—The Church is a cunning opponent capable of tearing us apart! I was testing to see if you'd fall for their alienation tactics before our big operation! Seeing your sense of betrayal, I was able to reaffirm that our bond is solid! You are qualified to go with me to save the Great Fairy and our Fairy Friends!
Woah.
Her Pink Eyes widened.
I just passed the Fairy's test!
The Fairy quickly added more words, as if to completely block any suspicious questions.
—Actually, when you said you were going to stick the Love Amulet on your Dad, I was amazed at how well you were using it! The Love Amulet is meant to be slapped right onto an opponent who won't listen!
"Wow! Having even you sympathize with my revenge makes me feel absolutely great, Fairy! Honestly, after seeing Lord Demon hug me yesterday, I figured he was bound to fall for me anyway, even without using the amulet!"
Isn't he too weak for Pink Hair?
Hehe.
"So I'll recycle the leftover amulet and slap it right onto my Dad who won't listen!"
Woah-Woah.
Pastel clapped enthusiastically.
—Good thinking! You just have to stick it on an opponent who won't listen! I'll teach you the know-how! It's best to stick the amulet on a flat back, where it's easy to attach and hard for the opponent to react!
Gasp, practical know-how.
Pastel quickly jotted down a memo on the documents she had been reading just moments ago.
Love Amulet = Something to stick on the back of an opponent who won't listen.
Reading the memo over and over again brought a proud smile to her face.
I feel like I've acquired some incredibly useful knowledge!
Ding~!
Knowledge +1
Woah.
—I'll show you a demonstration!
The Fairy took a stance on the table and performed the motion of sticking an amulet. Her palm thrust forward without hesitation, casting 'Turn Opponent into a Slave~!'
"Ah! Me too! Me too!"
Pastel stood up from her chair and copied the action.
Aim at the opponent and slap them on their back!
"Slap it on their backs!"
As the girl practiced diligently, the fairy stopped her demonstration. The fairy wiped her forehead with her forearm.
—Phew!
She had successfully changed the subject.
The fairy watched the naive girl, feeling proud of her own crisis management skills. Then, she paused as something came to mind.
—Wait. Even if it's a family-like relationship, isn't it abnormal for me to be the only one unilaterally granting wishes? If it's a family-like relationship, even if we don't call it a price, she should at least bear the cost of the wishes.
An astonishing realization.
In her life as an Artificial Spirit of less than a year, there had never been a more incredible realization, because it had been less than a year.
—If that's the case, it's perfectly justified for me to demand the cost?!
The fairy covered her mouth in surprise. She was amazed by her own enlightened brain.
With this justification, her days as a tenant were over. She could even drive out the Landlord and become the new Landlord herself. She could just gift the soon-to-be homeless Landlord some comfortable newspapers.
Her gaze turned toward the girl. Her mind filled with thoughts of pressuring her to hand over her soul as the price for all the past wishes.
—Wait!
The fairy's palm spread open with a slap—!
—I think we suddenly have something to talk about!
"Slap it on the back of an opponent who won't listen! Yes?"
Pastel, who had been practicing sticking the amulet, turned her head.
The Fairy was staring at her with a look that said she had caught her weakness.
Oing.
The Fairy triumphantly began pointing a finger at her.
—You! You might have tried to trick me with your ridiculous sophistry, but it won't work anymore! Pay the cost of the wishes right now! Exploitation shouldn't interfere in a family-like relationship like ours—
Something dropped from Pastel's back with a tap.
Perhaps because it had been forcibly attached with glue since it wouldn't stick otherwise, the paper fluttered down, having fallen off due to her vigorous movements.
The drawing of ppyongppyong hearts caught her eye.
The Paper Friend said hello.
Paper Friend: I'm just a Paper Friend! For real!
Oing.
Her Pink Eyes widened.
Silence flowed.
Her gaze turned toward the Fairy.
The Fairy was dripping with cold sweat.
Silence flowed once more.
The Fairy's gaze wandered aimlessly.
Then, as if she had thought of something, she clapped her hands together and flashed a bright smile.
—A surprise gift~!
Her exaggerated hand gesture pointed at the Love Amulet.
—Because you need one to use on the person you like!
For me...?
Gasp.
Touched.
Completely touched...!
Her Pink Eyes welled up with tears.
"Fairy! To think you cared about me this much!"
No wonder! No wonder!
I was wondering why the Fairy was so stubbornly insisting on startling Pastel earlier, but it was actually a build-up for the surprise gift~!
Uwaaa!
"You're the best, Fairy!"
Deeply moved, Pastel picked up the amulet.
She raised the amulet high.
The Heart Ppyongppyong Amulet fluttered.
"Love Amulet~!"
Just stick this on, and the opponent becomes a Slave of Love!
Now I have two of them~!
Pastel hugged the amulet tightly.
Goodbye to the future where Pastel tries hard to seduce Lord Demon but ultimately fails to overcome her dead Mom, ending up with dead eyes~!
"I'll definitely achieve my love!"
—You can do it, because this Fairy, who has a family-like relationship with you, will help!
"That's right, because we have a family-like relationship!"
Hooray!
Pastel cheered "Go, go!" together with the Fairy.
Then, she paused, remembering that the Fairy had been about to say something before the surprise gift.
"But didn't you say we had something to talk about?"
What was it again?
"Something about paying the cost of the wishes right now...?"
Oing.
The Fairy and I have a family-like relationship, so I don't know why she'd tell me to pay the cost of the wishes. Isn't it natural for family to help each other?
There's no way the Fairy would think our relationship isn't like family, after all.
When she looked at the Fairy, the Fairy flinched.
Then she rolled her eyes, and as if she were gradually agreeing, her eyes widened. It was an expression that said this was the first time she was hearing of such a thing.
—Me? When? We have a family-like relationship! A Fairy doesn't charge her family!
Woah.
"Right! Right! We have a family-like relationship, so there's no way!"
I must have misheard!
Hooray for the family-like Fairy!
Let's keep this great relationship going for the rest of our lives!