Chapter 4
Yes.
This was a huge accident.
It had only been a single day since they arrived in the North, but a shocking truth had already been revealed.
That day, Airi saw a dark mist swirling faintly around a cheerful maid.
“That must be it— the demon energy!”
As a righteous hero, Airi immediately tried to purify her. But then…
“Sir attendant, I’m sorry for suddenly grabbing your hand.”
“Eh? My muscular hand? Why are you grabbing it? Here in the North, grabbing someone’s hand like that usually means you’re about to kill them!”
“T-that’s not it! I just wanted to ask… can you feel anything from my hand?”
“Um… it feels soft? Cute? Moist? Like a hand you’d never find in the North?”
‘What? The mist isn’t going away!’
It was supposed to disappear—she was a “purifier,” after all!
She thought it would be easy to cleanse the evil energy once she got here,
but even when she touched it, nothing happened.
And what’s worse, not everyone could see the mist—only a few people could.
She had no idea what to do next.
To make matters worse—
“When will the Grand Duke return?”
“Well… it seems he won’t be back for at least a week. But he did say we should provide you with everything you need, Lady Airi. Please rest comfortably during your stay.”
That was a disaster.
“Does that mean I’ll be kicked out after six nights—without even meeting the Grand Duke? Or purifying anything?”
Shock.
“Then the world will end like this?!”
Airi clenched her little fists tightly.
She couldn’t just sit still.
“Think, Airi! What would the Hero of Justice, Regent, do in a situation like this?”
“The Hero of Justice, Regent” was an anime Airi had loved when she was little.
She remembered every single line perfectly.
In one of its most famous scenes, Regent defeated a terrifying villain.
“Regent… I’ve lost. How did you defeat me…?”
“Because I’m not like villains like you.”
“What’s so different about you? What makes you stronger than me?!”
“A true hero always fights with friends.”
Behind Regent, five of his friends stepped forward.
The sunset glowed brilliantly behind them.
‘What an amazing scene!’
Then the narrator’s cheerful voice said:
[Remember, kids! A true hero stays close to their friends and helps each other out!]
“That’s it! I can’t do this alone!”
Exactly. A hero always has heroic friends by their side.
Airi clenched her fist again and remembered something important.
“There’s a friend sleeping somewhere here… one that will make me even stronger!”
The kind of “friend” no one else had ever possessed.
At that time, Airi had no idea—that the creature she was about to summon…was something truly terrifying.
3. A Hero Needs Friends
It was late at night.
All the adults were fast asleep.
But brave little Airi was still awake, clutching her hungry stomach as she slipped out of bed.
“The first step of the great hero begins now!”
In her head, the Hero of Justice Regent theme song started playing—
Dun dun, du-du-dun!
With that epic music, Airi took a bold step forward.
But the moment she opened the door—
“Ah, round little miss! I mean, young lady!”
The northern servants were standing right in the hallway, blocking her way.
“I… I have something to tell you.”
“Oh! What is it? Do you need me to show off my muscles for you?”
“Or are you hungry? We have some fermented sardine pie! Very good for building muscle!”
Airi’s face twisted. Ew… I really don’t want that.
Before she could react, five professional maids surrounded her tightly.
They were all much taller and bigger than Airi, and she couldn’t help but feel a little scared.
But she quickly told herself—
“Don’t be scared! I have to summon my monster friend!”
Luckily, Airi had already figured out how to deal with them.
She quickly put her hands together politely, bowed her head, and said sweetly:
“Um, I have a favor to ask.”
The maids froze.
“A… a favor? Not… an order?”
“Yes! A favor!”
Airi smirked inside.
The northern servants were big, muscular, and rough.
Unlike the southern maids, they didn’t care much about manners.
But—they were very emotional.
When Airi acted polite and gentle, they always got flustered.
Like people who had only ever seen rude, selfish kids.
That was their weakness!
So Airi declared confidently:
“I’d like to take a walk in the garden out front!”
“R-right now?”
“Yes! I know you’re all busy, but… I really, really want to go!”
The maids froze again.
Had they ever heard a child say “sorry” before? Probably not.
Then Airi added softly:
“Is that… not allowed?”
Her eyes sparkled. Her voice was kind and careful.
That one sentence asking for their opinion completely melted them.
Airi grinned secretly.
“Just as planned… hehehe.”
She thought of her idol, Regent, and his famous line.
Now all she had to do was find the tree that hid her monster friend.
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.
But Airi had spent her childhood with her grandmother, learning all about plants.
So when she reached the garden—
“Huh? There’s… only one tree?”
“Yes, my lady. It’s the only living tree in the North. The others have been killed by demonic energy.”
Unbelievable.
She had found it immediately!
Now there was only one problem left—
getting rid of the maids who were following her everywhere.
“They keep asking, ‘Little miss, where are you going?’ Ugh!”
Then Airi’s eyes lit up.
“That’s it! A true hero always has a good idea!”
She turned dramatically toward the maids.
“Huff! I suddenly want to play hide-and-seek! Is that okay?”
“Hide-and-seek…?”
Airi nodded hard.
But would they really play with her?
Wouldn’t they think she was just being a troublesome child?
Still, that was the only idea she had to make them leave.
Then, to her surprise, one of the maids’ eyes started to water.
“H-huh? Why are you crying?”
“No child has ever asked us to play hide-and-seek before…”
“Usually they just yell, ‘Catch me if you can!’ and then kick us until we’re it.”
What kind of horrible kids live up here?!
Thanks to their sad stories, though, Airi’s plan worked easily.
“Okay! Then I’ll be ‘it’ first! Everyone, go hide!”
While pretending to count numbers, Airi secretly turned to look at the tree—
specifically, at the little knot hole on its trunk.
“That’s it! That’s where my monster friend is hiding!”
She remembered what she’d read in The Monster of the Northern Snowfields:
To summon a creature and form a proper “contract,” your wavelengths had to match.
So far, no one had ever matched.
But the chosen hero—Airi—was special. Her wavelength was perfect.
After making sure everyone was gone, she ran to the tree and pressed her small hand against the knot.
She had to summon her friend before the maids came back.
Adults were dangerous—they had eyes even on the back of their heads!
If they noticed she was doing something strange, it’d be all over.
So Airi clenched her fists and began the ritual.
“O mighty… um… spirit of power… no, um, summoned beast!”
She tried her best to say the words correctly, even with her short tongue.
Leaning close, she whispered into the knot hole:
“I am of the blood of Ortezo.”
…What came next again?
After a short pause, she shouted:
“Please appear—just like the form I know you have!”
And with that, Airi bravely called out to the mysterious friend sleeping within the tree.
