Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 10 - Chapter 1

A Shooting Star and the Runaway Daughter

A mother’s death was an unfathomable loss to a young girl barely six years old.

At that age, children are always with their mothers, whether they’re playing, eating, or sleeping. As sure as the sun would rise in the east and set in the west, they’re always by their mother’s side even coming and going from kindergarten.

“Dad, you meanie! Can’t you just listen a little?!”

Of course, the same was true for this young girl up until shortly after she turned six and lost her mother to illness. It was like the sun had stopped rising altogether. Having become mentally unstable, the girl would fight with her father over even the smallest things.

“I’m definitely going to go see the Kabutonga movie.”

The reason for this fight in particular was the currently airing TV series, Kabutonga, the King of Beetles, an anime staring heroes with beetle motifs that was incredibly popular with kids. It had even spread to this girl’s remote hometown. Whenever the kids opened their mouths, all they would talk about was Kabutonga. As a big fan of Kabutonga herself, she eagerly waited each week for the new episode.

“I don’t care if I can’t go to the surface.”

The series was still airing, but its incredible success had warranted a theatrical version of the show. It took months, but it had finally been released nationwide. Sadly, however, the girl’s hometown didn’t have a movie theater. She wanted to see it so badly that she begged her father to let her go, but he refused.

For a six year old, this girl was very smart and gentle. Insisting on going to see the Kabutonga movie was a rare display of selfishness, but considering what she’d been through, it still wasn’t particularly asking a whole lot. Having lost her mother, she naturally sought more love from her father. What she really wanted wasn’t to go see the Kabutonga movie, but to go see it with her dad.

“Kii is leaving the house and won’t come back! I’m going to live on the surface! I hate you, dad!”

Sadly, her father hadn’t fully recovered from the shock of losing his wife either, and as a result, he failed to realize what it was that his daughter needed from him. Though they both really longed for the same thing, they misunderstood each other and tensions mounted on a daily basis. When the girl, Kii, had had enough, she decided to run away from home.

She ran from the town she was born and raised in, and headed towards Kisshouharukaze City. Back then, it was actually still called Harukaze City because it hadn’t yet merged with Kisshou City. It was Kii’s destination because she knew there was a movie theater there where she could see the Kabutonga movie.

Upon arriving, Kii was left breathless by the sight in front of her.

“Wow...”

There were several routes connecting Kii’s hometown and Harukaze City. The one she had taken ended in a tunnel that exited halfway up a small mountain. After jumping out from the dim underground passage, the Harukaze City skyline unfolded before her in the hues of the setting sun. Harukaze City was usually a bustling sight of many colors, but now that it was evening, it was all dyed the same calming orange. Only the dark silhouettes of buildings were visible against it, and while it was an everyday sight to the people of the city, it was absolutely breathtaking for Kii.

“I didn’t know the surface was this beautiful...”

Kii’s large eyes were sparkling as she looked around in wonder. Before her was the grandly illuminated city, to either side was a great forest, and above her was a seemingly endless sky. She had seen pictures of such things before, but this was the first time she had ever seen them for herself.

“Everyone should just live up here...”

Kii had never understood the feelings of those who wanted to leave her hometown for this place. That is, until she saw it herself. After beholding this world with her own eyes, it started to make sense. The magnificent sights around her and the wondrous smell of fresh air stirred something deep inside. It was a strange sensation. Even though she’d left her hometown behind, she felt as if she had just returned home.

“Ah...”

As Kii continued to look around, the sky began turning darker and a point of light appeared to the east.

“Could that be a star?!”

The small pinpoint of light was indeed the twinkle of a star. Kii had spotted the first one of the night. Remembering something her late mother had once told her, she grew excited. She opened her eyes wide and stared hard into the sky. According to her mother, after the first star appeared, many more would follow.

“It’s just like mom said! There are so many stars!”

Since it was still evening, there was only one bright star. But the longer she looked, the more faint stars she could see all throughout the sky. There were far more than she could ever count using her hands. And each time she spotted a new one, she let out a gleeful shout.

“This is amazing! There are stars all over!”

As time passed, the sky grew darker and the stars grew brighter. Even the ones that had started out just a dim glow were now bright little lights of their own. Like a box of brilliant jewels, the sky twinkled with the light of the stars.

“With this many, I might be able to find mom’s star!”

That was the real reason why Kii was so fixated on the night sky.

“Don’t cry, Kii-chan, even if I die. When people die, they become twinkling stars in the sky.”

“Stars?”

“That’s right... So if you ever go to the surface, then look for my star. It will be a glowing blue one, so I’m sure you’ll see it right away.”

“Okay! Kii will find it!”

And the unthinkable had come to pass. Her mother was now a star. That’s what she honestly believed as she looked all over for her in the sky.

Kii hadn’t run away from home just to see the Kabutonga movie. She had also come to see her mother’s star. In the end, it was all because she missed her mother. Her loss had left a void in Kii’s life. Wanting to go see a movie with her father and counting stars in the sky were both signs of how starved she was for love.

“Ah! It’s a blue star!”

When the sky turned completely black, a bright blue star appeared.

“It’s mom! It’s mom’s star!”

It was the blue star Kii had been looking for all this time. And now that she’d finally found it, her whole body cried out with joy. She reached out towards the star with both her hands and jumped up and down over and over again.

“Mom! It’s Kii! I’m right here!”

Her eyes were alive with hope and her heart was dancing with joy at the thought of reuniting with her mother. She called out to her repeatedly. Kii was desperate to see her mother again. She wanted to hear her warm, gentle voice again too.

“Mom! Answer me, mom!”

But no matter how many times Kii called out, the star didn’t respond. It simply twinkled in the sky without offering an answer.

“Mom...”

Eventually Kii’s voice faltered and her shoulders drooped.

“Is that star... not mom’s star? Or can she not hear my voice...?”

The blue star appeared to be indifferent to her, and that indifference inflicted a crushing loneliness on Kii. It reminded her of the weighty sadness she’d felt when her mother passed. The thought of it alone was too much.

“Mom... Mom...”

Large tears formed in the corners of her eyes. The slightest shake would send them running down her soft cheeks. But even with her eyes brimming with tears, Kii looked up to the sky once more. She couldn’t give up. She touched the necklace around her neck and called out to the star again.

“Mom... it’s Kii... I came to see you...”

But the star still didn’t answer. It only twinkled in silence.

“Hnnngh... Hic...”

Unable to bear it any longer, Kii finally began crying. The sadness of losing her mother, the frustration of her father not giving her the attention and affection she needed, and the loneliness of being rejected by the silent star—her last hope. It was all too much for a six year old girl to handle.

“Hic... Hngh... Huh?”

Kii blinked twice. Tears scattered from her eyes, clearing her vision some.

“Mom’s star is getting bigger...?”

The blue star she had first seen was just a glowing point of light. Looking at it now, however, it was much more pronounced. Kii was sure it had gotten bigger and brighter.

“Did she hear my voice?”

Kii’s tears immediately stopped as she realized something was happening. She didn’t know what, but just the thought that it might be her mother responding to her sent her heart racing.

“Mom! Kii is right here!”

Kii waved her hands and desperately called out to the growing star. Words couldn’t express how badly she wanted to see her mother again.

“It really is getting bigger... Mom!”

The star was already as big as a baseball and it was still getting bigger. Elated, Kii shouted louder and louder. In response, Kii heard an unfamiliar sound similar to a beast roaring or a car driving through a tunnel.

“What is that...?”

She looked up towards the sky and strained her ears. When she did, it sounded like the noise was coming from the star.

“The star is... growling?”

The star was definitely what was emitting the sound. She was sure of it now. And as the star grew to the size of a basketball, it quickly flew by overhead.

“What?!”

Kii hurriedly turned around to follow the star with her eyes. She watched as it disappeared into the shadow of the mountain, still growling.

“The star fell!”

The star had appeared to be getting bigger because it was getting closer and the howling sound was because it was moving so fast. Kii was a clever girl and easily able to piece that much together. And once she did, she hurriedly began climbing the mountain.

“It’s mom! Mom noticed me and came to see Kii!”

Kii ran with all of her might chasing after the fallen blue star. Her heart was pounding and she was having trouble breathing. But even then, she didn’t slow down. She pressed on without faltering.

“Mom! Mom! It’s Kii! Kii is right here!”

No matter how painful it got, Kii refused to stop moving her legs. Her mother, who she wanted to see more than anything else in the world, had come down from the sky just to see her.

As soon as they arrived on Earth, the first thing Koutarou and Clan did was hide the spaceship, the Cradle, they had used to return from Forthorthe. They were planning on burying it in the forested area of a small mountain outside of Harukaze City.

“Veltlion, this place really won’t be under any development, will it?”

“Yeah, it’s fine. This mountain will remain untouched. I came here hunting for beetles every year as a kid, so I’m sure of it.”

“I’ll take your word for it.”

Koutarou and Clan watched as the Cradle sank into the soil as if it were water.

Clan’s small spaceship, the Cradle, had been designed with the primary purposes of observation and research in mind. It was equipped with all kinds of stealth functions so it could study a subject without disturbing it or its environment. The ship’s ability to bury itself was one of said stealth functions. Using a barrier, it essentially created an excavator by repelling the dirt around it, allowing the ship to slowly sink into the ground. Once it had sunk down far enough, the only thing that would remain on the surface would be a hatch to enter the ship. There would be signs a hole had been dug, certainly, but nature would eventually cover that up on its own.

“So what do we do now?”

“We don’t do anything. We just freeze time inside the ship and wait until we leave for Forthorthe in this timeline.”

At first, Clan had planned to use her second Super Space-time Repulsion Shell to return home to the present from Forthorthe two thousand years in the past. By reversing some of the parameters, they could have hypothetically returned to where they’d departed from. However, the second repulsion shell had been used in their battle on Forthorthe. Clan had had to come up with another solution.

Her plan B was to wait out the two thousand years somewhere they wouldn’t be disturbed. By making some modifications to the technology used for warping, she was able to safely freeze time on board the Cradle. That way, they’d be able to sleep away two thousand years, and then simply return to Earth by normal means once they woke up in the future.

There was just one flaw in the plan. A specialized part of the Cradle had been damaged, leaving it incapable of spaceflight. Worse yet, the parts required to repair it wouldn’t be invented until twenty years before they’d originally left Earth. Knowing that, Koutarou and Clan only slept 1,980 years so that they could wake up and repair the ship with then-modern technology. Once the repairs were complete, they then began their long voyage back to Earth.

Warp drive essentially opened up a hole in space to create a shortcut between two places. It was a quick way to travel long distances, which was exactly why Koutarou and Clan chose not to use it the whole way home. By predominantly relying on regular spaceflight, the trip would take nearly ten years. Using the warp technology inside the ship to manipulate the perceived flow of time, however, it only felt like a few days to them.

They’d chosen to take the scenic route, so to speak, in order to avoid spending longer than necessary on Earth. If they’d used the warp to reach Earth in a matter of days, they would have had to spend the remaining twenty years asleep on Earth’s surface. But since Earth didn’t have anywhere as safe as Veltlion’s special territory in Forthorthe, it was a much riskier proposition. Ideally, they would spend as little time as possible asleep on the Cradle once they reached Earth in order to reduce the risk of being found. That said, if they took too long to get back to Earth and arrived after Theia was already there or on her way, they might get found out anyway. In order to be safe, they decided to split the difference and spend the first ten years in space, and the last ten years on Earth.

And now that they’d safely made it to Earth, all they had to do to finally get back to their own time was take one more long nap in the Cradle. In order to do that, they’d chosen a place Koutarou had frequently come to play as a child to hide the ship.

“How many years do we have to sleep this time?”

“Just hold on. I’m calculating that right now.”

Clan accessed her bracelet to determine exactly how long they would need to sleep in order to wake up at the right time. Clan had a nonchalant look on her face as she worked it out, but it was actually an extremely complex calculation with a great deal of parameters to factor in. It would take some time, and Koutarou soon began fretting.

“Clan, you could just make a rough estimate.”

“...”

Clan adjusted her glasses and unhappily furrowed her brows. She was trying to make an accurate calculation because he’d asked for it, so she was annoyed to hear him backpedal.

“Veltlion, you like just casually trampling all over a scientist’s values, don’t you?”

“I just feel like you’re wasting your time...”

“Wasting my time?! You’re the one―”

“You know, you’re cute and all, but it’s because of stuff like this that Theia calls you sly and whatnot.”

“...”

“Just chill out a little, you know? Be more― Huh? What’s with that face?”

“I-It’s nothing! Ahem, more importantly, I’ve finished the calculations!”

Clan cleared her throat as her face turned red and she changed the subject. She swiftly moved her fingers across the controls of her bracelet to display the results in hologram form.

“Sorry, I’m not wearing the armor, so I can’t read any of that. I might be able to if you use Ancient Forthorthian instead, though.”

Koutarou had picked up some Ancient Forthorthian during his time in past Forthorthe, but he couldn’t understand Modern Forthorthian at all.

“That’s right. I forgot.”

Clan had more or less started to think of Koutarou as a fellow Forthorthian, so she hadn’t thought twice about using Modern Forthorthian as the display language. Once she remembered he couldn’t read it, however, she simply decided to report the data to him herself.

“Well, getting to the heart of the matter, we need to sleep for ten years and 323 days, or just shy of eleven years.”

“Ten years... Couldn’t you have just counted that in your head?”

“Now you’re just being mean, Veltlion! You know it’s not that simple!”

“You’re just so much more lively and fun when you’re angry.”

“I’m not having any fun at all!”

Though it had been dying down, Clan’s rage erupted once more. That had been Koutarou’s goal all along, but now that she’d gotten emotional, Clan didn’t realize that much.

“Ten years, huh? Ten years...”

When Koutarou contemplated that, he realized something. As he did, his smile unconsciously faded into a stern frown.

“Besides, you― Wait, what’s wrong?”

Seeing the change in his expression, Clan relented. They had spent so much time together that she realized whatever had come over him was serious.

“It’s nothing. It’s just... I was just thinking that my mom is going to die soon,” he said as he forced a small smile for Clan.

Koutarou and Clan had been sent to Forthorthe on January 24th, 2010. Ten years and 323 days prior to that would make today’s date March 7th, 1999. Koutarou’s mother passed away on April 16th, 1999. In other words, just forty days from now, his mother was going to die.

“...I know how you feel. I’m sorry.”

Clan glanced down at the ground before giving Koutarou a sympathetic look.

“Thank you, Clan... you should always be just like that.”

“Don’t be rude.”

With the ability to cross space and time, Koutarou and Clan could have prevented all kinds of tragedies if they’d tried. Mutually, however, they’d come to the conclusion that that wasn’t reasonable. It wasn’t their place to change the course of history but so much, and they had finite resources as it was. As such, they’d agreed that they would only interfere in events that involved them, like the virus weapon in past Forthorthe. Other than that, they wouldn’t abuse their knowledge of the future or actively seek out events to correct.

If they went around preventing all the tragedies they knew of, Koutarou and Clan would never make it back to their own time and place. And they weren’t immortal, so they had limited time on their hands. Moreover, they questioned their place in interfering with the past. Who were they to decide who or what was worthy of saving? They had no right to decide whose life was important and whose wasn’t. That said, they simply couldn’t overlook the suffering that happened in front of them. It would be wrong to ignore those people. And so they reaffirmed the decision they’d made in Forthorthe: they would help where they could with what crossed their path, but they wouldn’t go out of their way to find those in need.

Originally, their goal had been not to change the past at all, but things hadn’t worked out that way. They’d had to settle for making minimal changes while doing what they believed to be right. They weren’t gods, however, so there was a limit to what they could do. But in the interest of fairness, they’d agreed not to use the time slip for personal reasons. As such, Koutarou wouldn’t be able to save his mother. Waking up in forty days to go save her would break the rules.

“Veltlion, this is your mother we’re talking about, right? Why don’t we just bend the rules a little bit for this one and go save her?”

“Clan...”

Clan’s suggestion made Koutarou waver. It was his mother. The same mother he’d previously thought he’d do anything to save.

But... can I really do that to Clan?

When they had woken up to repair the Cradle ten years ago, a similar opportunity had presented itself to Clan. But she had held strong and returned to Earth without acting on it. Koutarou felt like bending the rules to save his mother after that would be incredibly unfair. Both to Clan and to everyone else in the world who would never get that kind of chance.

And if I save mom, it will definitely change history...

That was yet another cause for concern. If Koutarou’s mother survived, he likely never would have moved into Corona House. Once his dad had gotten the promotion, Koutarou would have just stayed at home with his mom. He never would have met the invaders that way. His life would be completely different, and Koutarou couldn’t even get his head around what the consequences of that might be. Just like in sci-fi movies, he might lose his place to return to, or he might even disappear.

“Since we’ve come this far, I’ll stick with you until the end, whatever you may decide. The royal families owe you an immense debt, after all.”

Clan was well aware of what Koutarou was worrying about, including the dangers it might entail. But despite that, she still wanted him to follow his heart. It was both an expression of her friendship, and a token of gratitude on behalf of the royal families of Forthorthe.

“Thank you, Clan. But... can you give me some time to think? I can’t decide right away.”

Koutarou was happy over Clan’s offer, but he wasn’t sure what he should do. If possible, he wanted to save his mother. But at the same time, he wanted to return to his own world. That’s what he had worked so hard for up until now. Moreover, he had no way of knowing what would happen if they did irrevocably change history. Koutarou felt what happened to him would be what he deserved for meddling, but Clan didn’t deserve that. He didn’t see an immediate solution that would satisfy everyone, so he couldn’t make up his mind right away.

“We still have time. Take your time to think about it.”

“Yeah...”

Koutarou nodded vaguely and looked up into the sky. The Cradle had already finished burying itself and had vanished underground, so silence had fallen over the area.

What should I do...?

Koutarou’s mind, however, was a cacophony of thoughts. His emotions were in horrible disarray and his heart was pounding like he’d been doing heavy exercise. No matter what he chose, he would lose something important—either his mother or his life as he knew it. Both were precious beyond compare. Just the thought of losing either one send his mind spinning. He was so distraught that he barely even noticed the starlight twinkling in his eyes.

“Hey, Onii-chan.”

A strange voice suddenly called out to the troubled Koutarou. Surprised, he abandoned his thoughts and looked in the direction of the voice.

“Did you see a star falling down around here? I am looking for it.”

Koutarou saw a tiny girl, just a little too young to be going to elementary school. She was wearing a white robe and a long red skirt. It looked like a shrine maiden’s outfit. Her hair was short, and her large eyes sparkled in the starlight. She looked like a healthy, energetic girl.

“A star, you say? Well, I haven’t seen one...”

Koutarou tried to hide his shock as he answered the girl. It wasn’t just her appearance that had taken him by surprise.

She’s talking about us...

The star the girl was looking for was most likely the Cradle that Koutarou and Clan had flown in on. She must have spotted it landing in the area and came to take a look.

“Veltlion...” Clan whispered to Koutarou.

“Yeah, I know.”

Clan had only said his name, but he knew what she was getting at. She wanted him to get more information from the girl—really, find out if there were any other witnesses.

“What about you, Onee-chan?”

“I-I haven’t seen a star either.”

Not used to talking to strangers, Clan forced an awkward smile as she answered the girl’s question before quietly moving to hide behind Koutarou. She was planning on making him deal with the girl.

“Then did you hear a really loud sound? It went like wrooooom!”

The girl lifted her arms up above her head and swung them around in a wild gesture.

“I can’t quite remember. An airplane might have passed by though.”

“Hmm, I see...”

The girl nodded a couple of times and then politely bowed.

“Thank you for telling me. Bye-bye, Onii-chan, Onee-chan!”

After saying goodbye, the girl quickly turned and ran off. Like one could have guessed from her appearance, she was an active girl. Koutarou quickly called out to her, however, as he still had more he wanted to ask her.

“Wait a moment! Where are you headed?”

The girl stopped and looked back to answer Koutarou.

“I’m going to look around this area a little more! I want to find that star!”

“Wait a minute!”

With a few sweeping strides, Koutarou caught up with the girl. He couldn’t just let her go like that. As he approached, the girl stared at him with wide eyes.

“What is it?”

“I’ll come with you. It’s dangerous for a girl to be alone at this hour.”

There were two reasons Koutarou really wanted to go with her.

The first was because he was genuinely worried about her. The sun had already set and it was now pitch black outside. Moreover, they were in the middle of a mountain forest. It was hard to see where you were going, making it especially dangerous for a small girl to be walking around on her own.

The second reason was that he wanted to talk to her a little more. He wanted to make sure that there wouldn’t be any others who would come looking for the Cradle.

“Will you help me look?”

“Yeah.”

“Really?! Thank you, Onii-chan!”

Seeing Koutarou nod, the girl’s expression lit up. Her wide eyes were practically glowing, and her smile was beaming.

“You don’t mind, do you, Clan?”

Koutarou turned back to Clan to make sure, and she nodded in response.

“I’ll leave that to you. I will remain here and continue with preparations.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

Koutarou would tag along with the girl while Clan stayed behind to make sure things were in order for their return to the future. The division of labor seemed obvious enough. Of course, it didn’t help any that Clan was naturally shy.

“Oh, and Veltlion, take this with you.”

Clan tossed something to Koutarou, and he quickly plucked it from the air.

“This is...”

It was a silver bracelet just like the one that Clan was wearing.

“You wouldn’t want to get lost, right?”

“Ah, so that’s what it’s for.”

Koutarou looked over the bracelet in his hand.

The bracelet’s original purpose was to serve as a remote control for the Cradle and the Hazy Moon. Naturally, it was linked to both ships, and it sent and received all kinds of information. It displayed the Cradle’s current location, observed the wearer’s current condition, and more. So as long as Koutarou wore the bracelet, he wouldn’t have to worry about getting lost. Without it or Blue Knight’s armor, he would be in just as much danger as the little girl walking around a dark forest at night.

While Koutarou was staring at the bracelet, Clan approached the girl and pinned something that looked like a small badge to her chest.

“And this is for you.”

“What is it?”

The girl tugged on her shirt to look at it.

“With this, we’ll be able to find you right away if you get lost.”

“I see. How smart.”

The girl let go of her shirt and smiled at Clan. Unused to having strangers complimenting her, Clan simply blushed.

“I don’t really get how to use this, but... thanks, Clan.”

After looking over the bracelet, Koutarou slipped it on his right wrist as he thanked her. The next moment, a small gem started glowing on the bracelet. It seemed to be a sign it had activated.

“That’ll do it.”

“Then let’s go!”

After he put on the bracelet, the girl grabbed Koutarou’s arm and started walking right away.

“Don’t be in such a hurry! It’s dangerous!”

“It’ll be fine. You’re such a worrywart, Onii-chan.”

“W-Well, I guess I’m off, Clan.”

“Stay safe.”

Pulled along by the girl, Koutarou vanished into the woods. After seeing them off, Clan crossed her arms and pouted.

“That Veltlion... Why wouldn’t he ask me to come with him? I might be uncomfortable around strangers, but still!”

Clan was shy and she had her own work to do, but she was still unhappy that Koutarou had been so eager to leave her behind.

Though she was looking for a star, it wasn’t like she had any leads. The girl was relying on only her intuition as she walked around the black forest. The uneven forest floor was obscured by darkness, but the girl’s steps were confident and firm. Seeing that, Koutarou realized how determined she must be to find this star.

“Hmm, it should have fallen around here...”

“Did you see it?”

“Yeah. It came from the sky and zoomed past me.”

“And that’s why you came looking for it?”

“Yeah.”

“All alone?”

“That’s right! I came alone! I came here the whole way on my own and I found the star on my own!”

Koutarou followed behind the girl as they talked.

She’s never going to find it... I should come up with a good way to get her to give up...

Watching the girl’s back, he tried to think of a way to get her to abandon the search. They’d been walking and talking long enough now that Koutarou had learned everything he needed to know. The girl had come up to the mountains on her own, and she just happened to spot the Cradle as it landed. She was the one and only witness. So as long as Koutarou could get her to give up her star search, there shouldn’t be any problems.

Koutarou knew that her search was pointless because her “star” was actually the Cradle, which was already buried underground. No matter how hard she looked, she would never find it. They’d already moved a good deal away from where it actually was. But since Koutarou couldn’t tell her that, he simply followed her lead. Knowing she was wasting her time, however, it was getting harder and harder to watch. Now that he had gotten the information he needed out of her, there was no reason to keep up the charade and get her hopes up.

“You know, it really is dark now. If you don’t go home soon, your family will get worried about you.”

“It’s okay. I’m looking for my mom.”

“Your mom?”

That certainly wasn’t what Koutarou had expected her to say. He was quite stumped by the response, but she just turned around and smiled at him.

“Uhuh. It’s been a while since I saw her last.”

“Weren’t you looking for a star?”

“Yeah, I am. My mom’s blue star.”

“Ah...”

It was in that moment that Koutarou understood what the girl meant.

I was worried about getting her hopes up, but this is worse... What have we done?

The girl’s next words confirmed his fears.

“My mom said when she died, she would become a blue star. And when I looked up at the sky before, I saw a blue star falling! My mom must have found me and come to see me!”

She’d mistaken the Cradle for a falling blue star, which had given her false hope that her late mother had come to see her. That’s why she was searching the mountain all on her own.

If this girl realizes that what she saw wasn’t her mom’s star...

If she didn’t find the star, she would likely be devastated. When he thought about that, Koutarou was overcome with guilt. If he and Clan hadn’t landed here, they wouldn’t have had to break this little girl’s heart.

“...I’m sure you’ll find her soon.”

Koutarou couldn’t find it in himself to tell this desperate little girl the truth. He knew all too well the pain of losing a mother. That’s why he said what he did, even knowing it was just a temporary comfort.

“Yeah! Thank you, Onii-chan!”

The girl gave him a big, bright smile. Koutarou couldn’t help but want that smile to remain unchanged if possible.

More than four hours had now passed since Koutarou and the girl had begun walking through the mountain forest. After so long, even the energetic girl was starting to grow weary, so Koutarou suggested that they take a break at a nearby brook.

“By the way, I never got your name.”

“Oh yeah, now that you mention it!”

The girl had been so focused on finding her mother that she hadn’t even properly introduced herself. She’d immediately taken to calling Koutarou “Onii-chan,” and since it was just the two of them, they hadn’t had any trouble communicating. It was only now that they had a minute to take a breather that Koutarou thought to ask her name.

“I’m Kii!”

“Kii?”

“Yes!”

“That’s a nice name...”

Koutarou had never heard it before, but he knew lots of kids these days had unusual names. He didn’t give it much thought.

“What about you, Onii-chan?”

“Koutarou.”

“Hmm, Koutarou, huh? What a weird name!”

“Is it weird?”

“Yeah!”

The girl—Kii—nodded with a broad smile. Seeing her bright expression lifted Koutarou’s spirits.

I guess the name Koutarou isn’t used as much now, huh?

“Can I still call you Onii-chan?”

“Sure. Can I call you Kii-chan?”

“Yeah! That’s what mom called me!”

Kii cheerfully smiled and nodded. It was an innocent, happy smile that revealed just how much she’d come to trust Koutarou these past few hours.

“Since dad calls me Kii, I like Kii-chan better.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because dad is always so mean. Even before when I said I wanted to go see the movie, he said no!”

“All right, then I’ll call you Kii-chan.”

“Thanks!”

Kii’s family was now motherless.

It’s the same as mine...

After the death of his mother, there was a time Koutarou’s relationship with his father was quite strained. Reflecting on that, Koutarou could vaguely understand how things were between Kii and her father. At the same time, he couldn’t even imagine how worried her dad must be about her. He probably didn’t even know where she was.

“Kii-chan, I’m sure your dad is worried sick about you at home. Why don’t you go home for now and continue looking for the star tomorrow?”

“No.” Kii puffed up her cheeks and shook her head. “I won’t go back home! I’m going to live on my own!”

“What?!” Koutarou’s eyes opened wide in surprise. “J-Just wait a minute! You mean you ran away from home?!”

“Yeah!” Kii declared with a smile and a nod. “Dad wouldn’t take Kii to see the Kabutonga movie, so I came by myself!”

She seemed quite proud of what she’d done, and she was just as satisfied that she was able to impress Koutarou.

“Th-This is bad! I have to take you to the police right away!”

“The police?”

“They’re the people who will take you home!”

If Kii had run away from home, her father might have filed a missing person’s report. With a child this young, they would probably be in the middle of a major search operation. That was bad enough, but if they came into the mountains, they might stumble across the Cradle. Kii seemed quite happy, but this was a potentially fatal threat to Clan and Koutarou.

“Hey, Clan―”

Koutarou immediately went to use the bracelet to contact Clan.

“No!”

Before he could, however, Kii reached over and pushed the button that Koutarou had used to activate the bracelet, which put it back in standby mode.

“Kii-chan?!”

“If you take me to the police, I’ll tell them that you kidnapped me!”

“Wh-What?!”

Koutarou existed in this world, but he should only be a child at this point in time. If he met anyone and had to give them his name and birthday, it would raise a lot of questions. He would likely be taken into custody and interrogated about his identity. Clan was in an even worse situation. The police would probably think they were illegal immigrants, which would lead to a whole new series of headaches. Being made out to be kidnappers would be the least of their problems at that point.

“Kii-chan, that’s not good! You have to go home!”

Koutarou frantically tried to persuade Kii to listen to him. If he didn’t get her to go home fast, the cops might show up.

“No! I won’t go home!”

But no matter how much Koutarou insisted, Kii refused and shook her head. She was resolute.

“I’m going to find mom, and we’ll go see the Kabutonga movie!”

“Kii-chan...”

Kii had run away from home after fighting with her father because she wanted to see the movie. She’d mistaken the Cradle for her mother’s star and come looking for it once it landed, but there was no way she would ever find it. If left to her own devices, she would spend the whole night just wandering the mountain.

“Say, Kii-chan, if you do find that star and get to see the movie, will you go back home?”

It was a particularly difficult situation for Koutarou, but he couldn’t just leave a young girl alone in the woods. He wanted to do what he could to help her. He figured that letting her search for the star until she was satisfied, then taking her to the movies would be the least problematic way to get her to go home.

“Hmm...”

Kii crossed her arms and began pondering Koutarou’s proposal. She furrowed her shapely brow, looking quite mature for her age.

Huh? This girl...

Watching her make that face, Koutarou got the feeling he’d seen it somewhere before. He couldn’t put his finger on who it was that this little girl reminded him of, but he soon brushed it off. There were more important matters at hand.

“In that case... I might go home... Maybe...” Kii said, pensively holding a finger to her chin.

She hadn’t had much of a reason for running away to begin with. It was really just a misunderstanding between her and her father born from the loss her mother. The only things that were keeping her from going back were the search for her mother’s star and the Kabutonga movie. If she got what she wanted, there should be no reason for her not to go home.

“Then I’ll help you out.”

“Really?!”

Kii’s expression lit up once more after another unexpected offer from Koutarou. Her mature expression was replaced with a childlike grin.

“Then promise me that you’ll go home once you’re done with both.”

“Okay! I promise!”

Kii accepted Koutarou’s proposal with a wide smile. Really, it was a welcome offer. No matter how clever she was, she was still only six years old. Running away from home all alone was a big, scary adventure, and she had no reason to refuse Koutarou’s kind hand now. After opening up to him over the past couple of hours, he felt like a friend.

“Okay, then here.”

Still smiling, Kii looked up at Koutarou and presented him with her right hand.

“What?”

“A pinky swear. It’s a promise, right?”

The young girl formed a fist with her right hand and stuck out her pinky. Koutarou did the same, and they crossed their pinkies over each other’s.

“Pinky swear! Cross my heart and hope to die!”

With the promise sealed, they resumed their search together.