TFWSDW 18

Chapter 18

“Y-Yes…”

Derrick quietly carried the child in his arms, walking steadily—though slightly unsteadily.

Then he came to a halt and called out to someone.

“You. Come too.”

“Eh? Y-Yes, Sir Derrick…!”

Bennett quickly followed after him, still unsure of what had just happened.

‘…That girl’s suspicious.’

Still, he found himself leaning toward trusting Nemesia.

Not that she wasn’t suspicious—but he was curious about her condition. And maybe, just a little, he was worried.

Derrick’s eyes met Usher’s.

‘Tch.’

Usher clicked his tongue with regret and nodded at his subordinates.

The knights, still recovering, silently stepped aside, clearing the way for Derrick.

Only once Derrick disappeared from view did Usher shrug.

“Well, that flopped.”

It was a shame.

‘If only she’d fallen into my hands… I could’ve talked her around eventually.’

But being a positively-minded cultist, he quickly moved on with a cheerful smile.

“Clean this up, boys.”

No big deal—he’d try again.

How long could a flawed ex-hero like that last anyway?

Besides, that little candidate girl had no idea how dangerous Derrick truly was.

‘Should I just abduct her?’

Usher grinned darkly.

Ah, what a great day to be alive.

---

I snapped my eyes open.

‘Whoa. That was the best nap ever.’

I knew about the side effect of the “Child Actor” skill, but I didn’t expect to actually faint in real life.

‘I’ll need to factor that in next time.’

Shoutout to my overcharged stamina and willpower for carrying my performance!

I looked around.

‘Still the garden?’

It seemed I’d been moved from where Usher was, but it looked like a park area.

“…You’re awake.”

I looked up and saw Dad’s face.

‘Yikes, those eye bags…’

Worse than last time. And that bulging vein…

I focused on the vein.

‘…That’s a symptom of a corrupted knight about to go berserk.’

I’d seen it so many times before that it made me tense up.

And since I was still in his arms, he must’ve felt my tension too.

‘Something must’ve happened while I was out.’

I could imagine it already.

Usher, that fanatic, probably tried to provoke Derrick hard.

‘But the guardian I chose has sky-high Patience stats.’

In the game lore, corrupted knights couldn’t control their berserk states—but Derrick was the one exception.

“How long was I out?”

“…Not long. About 10 minutes.”

Since “stun” in the game translated to unconsciousness here, the duration wasn’t too long.

Still… his cheek looked even puffier than before I passed out. What happened?

“…What about Bennett?”

“Bennett? Ah… the seedling who was with you?”

“Yeah.”

Weird phrasing, but whatever.

“Look to your side.”

I turned my head to see Bennett lying next to where Dad sat.

“Oh, he’s asleep?”

“I knocked him out. He was saying strange things…”

I froze.

“…Strange things?”

Dad’s expression instantly darkened. Whoa, that was scary.

Was it from the berserk symptoms? Even though it wasn’t directed at me, it gave me chills.

He quickly softened his expression when he saw me flinch.

“He said… the Candidate might be a cultist.”

“…”

Wait—he already spilled everything?!

‘Hey, Protagonist’s Ally. You’ve got a serious loose-lips problem…’

I was speechless.

It was a miracle Dad even brought him along safely.

“He seems to be tainted by cultists, so I was going to send him to the Inquisition.”

“No no no, absolutely not!!”

If he ended up in there, it’d be nothing but brainwashing and faith-checking torture!

The Church may be good in its goals, but their methods weren’t always so clean.

“Just don’t send him anywhere for now!”

“…Alright.”

Wait, just like that? That was easier than expected.

“…Aren’t you gonna ask me why?”

“…”

Dad averted his gaze. Something felt off.

“…I just figured you must have a reason.”

“That’s it?”

“…I want to do anything for you,” he muttered hesitantly.

“…But I don’t know how to do anything for you.”

He still wouldn’t meet my eyes. His arms trembled just a little as he held me.

“…You chose someone like me—a piece of trash. The least I can do is let you be free.”

“There you go again!”

Slap!

My tiny hand went smack smack on his neck. I wanted to hit his cheek, but I couldn’t reach.

“You’re not trash, I told you! If you keep saying that…”

I had enough. Time for the nuclear option.

“I’ll go around telling everyone I meet that you said you’re trash!”

“…!”

That startled him enough that he sat up straight against the tree.

His face was shocked.

“No! You have no reason to call yourself that—!”

“Then why do you?”

“Because I’m corrupted—”

“And I said I’m fine with it!”

He fell silent.

After a moment of quiet, he finally spoke in a cracked voice.

“…You don’t resent me?”

That must’ve been what he really wanted to ask.

‘Even I didn’t see this coming.’

I’d been planning to slowly rebuild his self-esteem—but who knew I’d get dragged underground before anything even started?

It was just a mistake. A mishap.

“You called me ‘Candidate’ and not by name because you blamed yourself, didn’t you?”

“…”

Silence meant yes.

“Dad, in this world—accidents happen.”

People break when they carry too much. Derrick was one of them.

“This wasn’t anyone’s fault.”

Sure, I touched a weird door, but how could I have known?

Besides, I already did my penance with a heartfelt prayer.

“You just have to say you were worried about me. And… thank you for coming to save me.”

I smiled brightly.

That’s when I felt his eyes shift to me.

Derrick looked utterly lost.

---

[Let’s express your affection to the ‘Confused Dad’!]
[Cheer him on!]

Whoa!

---

[Say the cheer aloud to Dad! “Dad, you’re the best (♡)”]
[Warning: Summon command errors are stacking up. Strongly recommended to comply!]

Suddenly? Why are there so many hearts? Embarrassing!

---

[Difficulty Increase!]
[Give him a kiss!]

…Damn it, now I want to cheer him on. Maybe I was a cheerleader in a past life.

“Dad… ahem.”

I fiddled with my fingers a moment.

“Dad, you’re the best!”

Even if the prompt added a cringy heart—
I meant it.

Out of all the people in this world, I’d chosen him.

And from that moment, I had resolved to give it my all.

His eyes widened slightly in surprise.

But this time, he didn’t look away.

“You keep putting yourself down and calling yourself names because… you’re too kind.”

“…That’s the first time I’ve heard anyone say that.”

“You’re just tired from carrying too much.”

His eyes looked worn.

A fatigue that seemed centuries old.

“Remember what Siala said about who you really are?”

I’d been thinking about it all this time. And now I knew.

I needed to help him let go.

“If you’re with me, you don’t have to worry like that.”

He was worn down because he never knew how to rest.

“I’m weak.”

I looked into his eyes.

“So just protect me.”

And I’ll protect the rest of the world.

Derrick hesitantly reached out.

As if even he didn’t know what he was doing.

---

[Let’s give the ‘Tired Dad’ a big hug!]
[Hug him!]

Now this was doable.

For the first time, I moved without hesitation.

Because I meant it.

Squeeze!

“Hug me.”

His lost hands gently wrapped around me. It was warm.

“I’ll hug you back.”

---

[Your sincerity has been received!]
[Hidden Skill: “Purify” has been activated!]

A tiny white light, like a snowflake, glowed and melted into Dad’s body.

May it bring him peace.

His hand, awkwardly patting my back, paused for a moment.

“…Nemesia.”

His voice was hesitant.

“Were you… scared?”

I froze at the question.

‘Was I scared?’

When I found the training dungeon’s entrance, I was excited—it was exactly like I expected.

Even when I got dragged in by accident, I was okay.

Then I met Bennett… then the cultists…

“…You don’t have to answer.”

I handled it well.

I even fooled the top cultist with my acting.

“You’re trembling.”

My thoughts stopped.

‘I’m trembling?’

I looked down slowly.

‘He’s right.’

My hands were shaking.

So were my shoulders.

Facing a surreal monster in real life—

Even with perfect knowledge of how to beat it, the fear couldn’t be completely hidden.

Maybe it was because I was in a child’s body.

‘It’s not embarrassment…’

Then suddenly—tears welled up and started pouring down my cheeks.

“Huaaaaang…”

“…Nemesia?”

Tears streamed down my face in big droplets.