I Became the Cute One in the Troubleshooter Squad-Chapter 139: Surviving in the Sky Garden (2)

The ecosystem here was likely built around less aggressive animals to accommodate them.

Probably, the most dangerous animal here would be a weasel.

At the weasel level, I could chase it off without using telekinesis.

There definitely wouldn’t be any monster weasels that could tear people in half.

“....”

Anyway, it was a relief that it wasn’t dangerous.

As I thought this, I glanced down at my wrist.

On the inside of my wrist, where the watch was attached, there was a white paper band.

This paper band looked like something you'd get at an amusement park.

This was something the staff had given me. It was a device to attract the fairies.

It was designed to make the wearer’s presence faint and create a wave of curiosity that would draw the fairies near.

But what made me uncertain was whether the fairies would actually approach me.

I knew it worked, but sometimes fairies would avoid it if it seemed uninteresting.

If the fairies didn’t feel curious and just fluttered around before disappearing...

‘Hmm... To get the World Tree Seed, I need to find a fairy that’s hiding it. Once I meet one, I’ll know what they like, and I’ll try to lure them... But what if I can’t ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) even meet one?’

Thinking about it, meeting a specific fairy in this vast place seemed like it might be quite difficult.

As I thought this, I slowly looked around, and a cold sweat began to form on my back.

This might end up being a real headache.

At that moment, something faintly shimmering in the air caught my eye.

“...?”

I stopped in my tracks, narrowing my eyes as I focused on the particles floating in the air.

Instinctively, I recognized that this was a trace of a fairy.

The color scattering in the air was yellow.

The fairy I was looking for was purple, so this was probably a fairy that wasn’t the one I needed.

Should I just ignore it and pass by, so I don’t waste energy?

No, maybe I could still gather some useful information.

After a brief hesitation, I straightened up and carefully examined the trace.

Then, I took the chocolate cookie I had hidden in my pocket and placed it on my palm.

“Cookies!”

“...!”

Whoosh!

With a breeze that ruffled my hair, a loud child’s voice echoed.

Then, I felt something soft and warm cling to my arm.

Naturally, I staggered a little from the sudden impact.

But since I had expected this situation, I carefully supported the small thing on my arm to keep it from falling.

However, no matter what I did,

the unidentified thing clinging to my arm just munched away at the thin cookie on my palm.

“Mmm... delicious, delicious! This is even better than the honey cookies Mingling made... Ah.”

By the time the cookie crumbled into pieces, the creature that had been clinging to my arm was staring up at me with wide eyes.

And the expression on its face was one of utter embarrassment.

It seemed like it hadn’t expected to be so drawn to the cookies.

I let out a small chuckle inside my mask as I looked down at the little creature clinging to my arm.

‘This is a fairy. Surprisingly... it’s cute. I was worried it would feel like the uncanny valley, but it’s actually adorable.’

The fairy, up close, was surprisingly cute.

Considering the ratio of its head and body, it was about 2.5 heads tall?

With its fluttering clothes,

it felt more like a moving doll than a living creature.

Add to that the large eyes like bells, cute little lips, and exaggerated movements,

and it looked like something a person who loves cute things would go crazy for. Alice, be careful!

“This, human... I’ve fallen into a human trap! Luring Chiril with cookies! You intend to harm me!”

But the fairy, Chiril, who had finished devouring all the cookies, was now on alert, eyeing me suspiciously.

It was strange that she had come to me and was now on guard, but...

Still, I had no intention of harming her.

I kept my steady grip on the fairy and carefully placed a new cookie on my palm.

Maybe she was surprised by the cookie appearing out of nowhere on my hand.

Chiril widened her eyes in disbelief and shouted.

“C-Cookies appeared on your palm! It’s magic! But you shouldn’t have any magic power!”

“....”

So, you’re not going to eat it?

I tilted my head and gently tapped the cookie with my thumb as if to ask her.

Maybe she felt reluctant to give up the cookie.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Chiril loudly declared she would eat it and shoved the cookie into her mouth.

Then, her wariness naturally faded away. Well, this couldn’t get any easier.

Ah, just so you know, this wasn’t telekinesis, it was the principle of magic.

I hadn’t hidden extra cookies, just like how you hide cards behind your fingers.

I had practiced it while watching shorts before bed. I never thought the day would actually come where I’d use it.

‘Fairies living in the Sky Garden aren’t allowed to come into contact with outside things for protection. They go crazy over cookies like these, which are filled with sugar, even though they usually only eat snacks made from natural ingredients.’

By the way, fairies loving cookies is a typical trait of theirs.

They usually only eat rough cookies made with natural honey on rare occasions.

They can’t resist cookies that are carefully made, no matter how hard they try.

Well, it’s different for each fairy, so getting one that likes cookies on the first try was probably luck.

But, on second thought, it wasn’t entirely a good thing.

If the goal was to pass the task, I could just lure her with cookies and become friends, then be done.

But my real goal was to find the World Tree Seed hidden by one of the fairies in the Sky Garden.

At this point, passing the task didn’t matter as much.

After all, stopping the world’s destruction was a far more important task.

‘Hmm, maybe... I should just let her go.’

I handed Chiril more cookies as she squirmed, and gently patted her head.

Chiril, seemingly satisfied after eating enough to make her stomach round, looked up at me with an adorable face full of cookie crumbs, proudly declaring,

“Hehe, hehe... I understand! You, who gave me cookies, are a good human! I will give you the opportunity to become friends with me!”

“....”

I glanced away from Chiril, who was smiling confidently on my palm.

If we became friends, honestly, that would be a little troublesome.

Think about it. All the actions of the candidates in the Sky Garden were being monitored through their watches.

So, if I became friends with a fairy and kept wandering around the Sky Garden?

That would be like blatantly advertising that I had an ulterior motive.

At least, for me, it seemed best to go our separate ways here.

I still had plenty of time to legally explore the Sky Garden. I didn’t want to be disturbed just yet.

But perhaps Chiril had caught on to my thoughts.

Her confidence slowly faded, and her body shrank in size as she looked at me nervously.

“Ch-Chiril wants to be friends with humans...”

Maybe she had a sad experience of not being able to become friends with someone before.

Chiril hesitated, then spoke with a trembling voice.

“You... don’t want to be friends with Chiril...?”

Drops of tears began to gather in Chiril’s large eyes.

Her innocent face was like a dagger to my conscience.

I broke out in a cold sweat as I saw Chiril pressing her soft cheeks against my arm.

This felt like she was pleading with me to become friends.

But if I rejected her here, I had no idea what Chiril would do.

She might make it so that no other fairy could approach.

That would be problematic. I wouldn’t be able to meet the purple fairy I was looking for.

I might have made the worst mistake.

‘Hmm, then... Ah, I’ll just secretly become friends without the staff knowing.’

I put the hand not holding Chiril in my pocket and grabbed the echo with my hand.

I then asked the echo if anyone nearby was holding any devices.

[ I’ll check! ...No, there are no other electronic devices within 100 meters. ]

‘Then can you hack the watch so that it doesn’t send information for a moment? I’d appreciate it if it’s done without being detected.’

[ Understood. I’ll send a repeating loop of your actions from 10 minutes ago for the next minute. ]

Good. It’s not perfect, but it’ll work as a decoy.

Plus, I confirmed there are no staff members keeping an eye on us.

I lifted the fox mask I had been wearing and looked down at Chiril.

The fairy, who had been crying out of frustration, now looked up at me without tears.

“Y-Yes... Beautiful...”

“...!”

I raised my finger to my lips and made a “shh” gesture.

The fact that we became friends should remain a secret.

That was the clear meaning behind my action.

Chiril, seemingly understanding, nodded vigorously.

I gave her a small smile before gently lowering her to the ground and covering my face with the mask again.

As a parting gift, I gave her a few more cookies.

Chiril, with her cheeks flushed red, munched on the cookies and mumbled absentmindedly.

“Se, secret... The secret between Chiril and the human...”

“....”

So cute.

I stroked Chiril’s head, sitting on the ground, and walked toward the inner part of the Sky Garden, as if I was about to leave.

Now, I wouldn’t have to worry about any repercussions.

I felt like I had handled this pretty cleverly.

But just as I thought that, a loud explosion echoed from somewhere nearby.

It felt like the peaceful atmosphere up to that point had crumbled away in an instant.