HBSHF | CH 03

Chapter 3 – “Tiger Run”

Eire suddenly opened her eyes at the sound of loud banging.

“Daddy?” she murmured sleepily.

Still half-asleep, Eire blinked as her father, Michael, picked her up and grabbed his greatsword. There were people outside the door.

An army—dozens, no, maybe hundreds.

But then, along with the cold air, Michael felt a familiar sense of dread.

No… it can’t be.

BANG! BANG!

The pounding on the door grew louder.

“Who’s out there…?”

Eire clung to her father’s clothes, frightened.

It’s him.

Michael’s face turned pale. He knew who it was.

As his suspicion became certainty, he rushed to the back door.

But instead of an escape route, he was met by a man waiting for him.

“It’s been a long time,” the man said.

Michael tightened his grip on the sword. Eire looked up in fear.

The man’s gaze turned toward her—cold as ice.

Eire’s eyes widened as she recognized him.
Golden hair that shone like sunlight. The face she had seen over and over again in her dreams.

That’s him… the man who killed my daddy every night in my dreams.

The nightmare stood before her in real life.

“This… this can’t be…”

It was Chronos, the Archbishop of Asteria.

Eire trembled, and Michael put his hand gently on her back to calm her.

“Michael Arkhanid, heretic,” Chronos said coldly. “You defied the will of God. You hid the demon’s child. Now it’s time to pay the price.”

“Demon’s child?” Eire whispered to herself, confused.

Michael leaned close and whispered softly, “Eire, you practiced your running, right?”

She looked up in surprise.

In the next instant, Michael set her down and swung his sword—straight at the wall.

BOOM!

With a gust of wind, the wooden wall exploded outward, opening a path into the dense night forest.

“Tiger Run!” Michael shouted at the top of his lungs, then turned and pushed back the knights charging toward him.

Eire hesitated, looking at her father in fear.

“Go!” he yelled.

The holy knights’ eyes turned toward the child.

“Y-you have to come after me, okay?!” Eire cried, shutting her eyes tight before dashing through the broken wall.

Her little legs carried her into the dark forest.

Tiger Run… It’s not perfect yet, but I trained with Daddy every day. I can do it.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she ran.

The heavy footsteps of armored men thundered behind her.

But suddenly—

“Uwaaaah!”

One of the knights screamed as his foot got caught in a hidden trap. He was yanked upside down into the air.

Left, right, right again…!

Tiger Run wasn’t just about running fast—it was a secret technique.
Eire had memorized where all the traps were, weaving through them to escape the forest.

I’ll find help outside, then Daddy will be safe…

Just as she thought that—

“Stop!”

A voice like thunder shook the forest.

Eire froze.

She turned toward the sound—and saw her father being dragged out of the cabin.

“D… Daddy…”

Her throat tightened, and no sound came out.

Chronos raised his hand, and Michael’s body lifted helplessly into the air.

“Ghhhk!”

He was hanging, struggling, as if caught by an invisible rope.

“Daddy!!!” Eire screamed.

“I—Eire… Daddy’s fine…” Michael gasped, clutching his throat.

Chronos clicked his tongue. “Pathetic. Playing father and daughter in the countryside? The former Captain of the Holy Knights has fallen so low.”

He walked slowly toward the cliff—the edge of the Demon’s Ravine.

That’s the place Daddy said never to go near…!

Michael’s floating body drifted above the cliff’s edge.

“No! Daddy!” Eire cried and ran toward him.

A knight grabbed her from behind.

“Let me go! Let gooo!” she screamed, kicking wildly, but couldn’t break free.

“You don’t want to see your father die, do you?”

Chronos’s cold gaze turned on her.

Eire froze. It was the first time she’d ever felt pure killing intent.

“Bring me the child,” Chronos ordered.

“Eire…” Michael’s eyes met hers, full of pain.

“Please…” he begged weakly.

But Chronos showed no mercy.

“A heretic needs no last words.”

He opened his hand.

Michael’s body fell—straight down into the dark chasm.

“DADDYYYY!!!”

Eire’s scream echoed off the cliffs.

Even as he disappeared into the darkness, Michael’s eyes stayed fixed on his daughter.

At that moment, a flash of light burst from around Eire.

BOOM!

A blinding explosion of white light spread out from the child’s body.

“W-what is this?!” the knights shouted, covering their eyes. Even Chronos flinched.

Daddy… I’ll save you!

Eire slipped free from the knight’s grasp and sprinted toward the cliff.

“Daddy! I’m coming!”

“Don’t let her escape!” Chronos roared—but it was too late.

The little girl had already thrown herself into the Demon’s Ravine after her father.

***

BANG!

“Do you even know how to drive?! Use your signal light!”

A woman’s angry voice echoed somewhere.

Eire felt a hard, cold surface against her cheek.

Ugh…

The air smelled smoky and damp.

“Waiting for test results is killing me. This time I have to get into a stable job…”

“Hey, did you see that B-rank hunter, Ahn Ji-hoon’s new dungeon raid video?”

People’s loud voices filled her ears.

So noisy…

Eire stirred and slowly opened her eyes. The bright light blurred her vision.

When she finally focused, the world she saw made no sense.

“Where… am I?”

She looked around.

Buildings taller than dragons. People wearing strange clothes. And shiny, moving stones—cars—rushing down the road.

“Waaah…” Eire’s mouth dropped open.

She was standing in a dark alley, just a step away from a brightly lit city street.

She took a few steps toward the light—

Then, suddenly, a glowing blue window popped up in front of her.

[Warning] You must accept the quest. Accept? (Y/N)

“Huh?”

Eire just stared at it blankly. A floating finger cursor appeared and pointed at “Y.”

Curious, she pressed it with her tiny hand.

POP!

A small pixelated firework exploded with a cheerful sound.

Then new words appeared.

[Main Quest] As the Saint, save the world in chaos.

“Saint? Save the world? What does that mean?” she mumbled.

The glowing letters made no sense to a four-year-old child.

The window blinked again, changing text.

[Sub Quest] Saint, please find your father.

Find your father.

Eire read the words carefully—and her eyes went wide.

“Daddy!”

She had forgotten for a moment—in the confusion, she’d forgotten her father falling into the ravine!

Eire ran out of the alley.

“I’ll save you, Daddy!”

She burst into the bright street.

BEEEEEP!

A car screeched. Someone grabbed her by the collar just in time.

“Kid! Watch where you’re going!”

A man jumped out of the shiny “stone” (car) and yelled.

Eire clutched her chest, startled.

“What… what is that?”

Cars rushed past, leaving no space to step.

But something else caught her attention—the long wooden stick that had hooked her collar.

Did those scary knights follow me here?!

She turned her head nervously—

And saw a man.

He had long, messy hair that covered his eyes, filthy clothes covered in grime, and a smell strong enough to make her dizzy.

Eire’s face went pale.

“Are you lost, kid? Do you need hel—”

“KYAAAAH!”

The man had barely reached out when Eire screamed and bolted.

“Waaah! Tiger Run! Daddyyyy!”

Her short legs carried her through the city as fast as they could.

The man stood there as the wind blew past him.

“Jeez… It’s a rough world for a kid to be alone in.”

He sighed, scratching his head.

But something about what she said stuck in his mind.

“‘Tiger Run’… why does that sound familiar?”

He pushed back his dirt-colored blond hair, revealing soft lavender eyes—

Eyes that looked exactly like Eire’s.