‘What…?’
I stared blankly at the legs he was pointing at.
He wanted my legs? I almost laughed at how absurd it was, but then something suddenly crossed my mind.
1. All transactions are conducted through bartering only.
However, due to the lack of goods in Monter Village, parts of your body may, in certain circumstances, be considered valid items for trade. Please keep this in mind.
Right. There really had been a rule like that.
But until now, it hadn’t truly sunk in.
Because… according to every bit of common sense I had, the idea of treating healthy body parts still attached to someone as trade goods was completely ridiculous.
“Why do you need my legs?”
That was the only question that came out of my mouth.
“Oh? You’re the first person who’s ever asked me why…”
Really?
Normally, if someone demanded your perfectly healthy legs, you’d panic. If this were real life, I’d think I’d run into a complete lunatic and sprint for my life.
But…
‘This is a game.’
Maybe that one simple fact had turned my fear into curiosity and interest.
He answered calmly.
“Perhaps it would be easier to understand if I simply said… I need them.”
“Then why specifically my legs? I have arms and other body parts too. Why the legs?”
“…You truly are an unusual young lady.”
His quiet chuckle was followed by an answer I never expected.
“It’s for my daughter.”
“Oh.”
“My daughter is gravely ill. Very, very ill.”
“Because of her illness, much of her body has deteriorated… and now she can’t even walk properly.”
The calmness in his voice slowly gave way to profound sorrow.
“Mm… and?”
“I want to give your beautiful legs to my poor daughter.”
Well…
Putting aside what he was actually saying, his feelings at least seemed genuine.
As a parent who loved his child, watching her suffer from illness must have been unbearable.
But…
“Um, Mr. Scrooge… even if you took my legs, I don’t think it’d be possible to attach them to your daughter…”
In the end, all I could do was shake my head awkwardly.
I couldn’t imagine this world having transplant technology anywhere near modern medicine.
But he remained firm.
“On the contrary. There is a way. I can even show you myself.”
“Sh-show me?”
“Of course. My daughter is resting upstairs right now. She’s about your age… I’m sure she’ll be delighted to meet you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he opened the door leading upstairs himself.
“This way.”
“Right now?”
“Are you pressed for time?”
[06:45:22]
I still had plenty of time before I needed to return to the Duke’s Castle.
“It’s not that I don’t have time…”
“Then please come meet my daughter.”
As Mr. Scrooge urged me again, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
‘Maybe this is some kind of special quest.’
If I were about to stray from the story, the system would have warned me already.
Just like it had back at Belmond Duke’s Castle.
And even if things went horribly wrong and I got a Game Over… I could always restart or continue from a checkpoint.
‘More than anything… I’m curious about Mr. Scrooge’s daughter.’
Having made up my mind, I slowly followed him up the stairs.
“What’s your daughter’s name?”
“Carol.”
We arrived on the second floor.
Perhaps it had once been part of the shop, because there wasn’t a single trace suggesting anyone actually lived there.
After passing through an empty hallway lined with abandoned display shelves, Mr. Scrooge stopped in front of a door in the middle of the dim corridor.
Knock. Knock.
The voice that followed was completely different from the one he’d used with me.
It was warm and gentle.
“Carol, may I come in? It’s Daddy…”
But there was no reply.
“Carol? Are you not feeling well? I brought a friend to meet you…”
Knock. Knock.
Only after his persistent knocking did a faint voice finally answer.
“…Come in.”
It was so quiet and weak that I wasn’t even sure I’d heard it correctly.
Even so, Mr. Scrooge nodded and opened the door.
The room we entered contained only a small single bed against one wall.
Slowly, I looked toward it.
Then I froze where I stood.
‘What… is that?’
Something was lying on the stained bed.
Calling it a person felt… wrong.
Its shape was too bizarre to make out properly.
The only thing I could tell was that its silhouette resembled a cocoon far more than an ordinary human being.
As if nothing about his daughter’s appearance was unusual, Mr. Scrooge bent down and mimed kissing her.
“This is my daughter, Carol. Carol, this is…”
Still gently stroking what I assumed was her face, he turned toward me.
“I-I’m Nadia. Nadia Windsor.”
“Ah, that’s right. Miss Windsor.”
“N… nice… to… meet you.”
“N-Nice to meet you too…”
Mr. Scrooge’s large frame completely blocked my view of Carol.
Even so, my mind was in complete chaos.
What is that? A monster?
The game isn’t suddenly going to activate a combat system, is it?
“Carol? Hmm? What did you say?”
While I was still trying to process everything, “Carol” whispered something to Mr. Scrooge from the bed.
Even that alone sent chills down my spine.
“…so… together…”
Her voice was thin.
It sounded like a breeze blowing from somewhere impossibly far away.
“Ah, you’d like to have tea together? Of course. Since you’ve met a new friend your own age, it would be nice for you two to chat.”
Even though I could barely hear her, Mr. Scrooge somehow understood perfectly.
He nodded and slowly stood up.
“I’ll prepare some tea. Until then, I’d appreciate it if you could keep my daughter company.”
“Huh? But…”
We’ve literally just met! We don’t even know each other!
Before I could protest—
“Ah…!”
Bang.
The door slammed shut behind him.
What now?
My body was still facing the door.
‘If I called for help here… would Edwin come?’
Absentmindedly, I fiddled with the crow keychain hanging from my waist.
But… nothing had happened yet.
And Carol, who should have been the threatening one, didn’t even seem capable of moving.
After a moment of hesitation, I slowly lowered my hand.
If I turned around, Carol would be lying right there on the bed.
…She probably wasn’t a monster.
Right.
Logic told me she was just an ordinary person, exactly as Mr. Scrooge had said—a girl whose illness had left her in that state.
No…
I wanted to believe that.
‘I need to see for myself.’
After a brief hesitation, I slowly walked toward Carol.
[Blocking unverified visual data.
Visual Protection Filter activated.
Warning! Prolonged exposure may cause discomfort and cognitive disorientation.]
But the moment I tried to get a closer look, the visual filter activated before my eyes.
Carol was completely obscured by a mosaic.
Rather than a person…
She looked like nothing more than a shapeless mass.
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