Above Your Head

Chapter 16: I'm Not Your Father (3)

"There are no aliens in the world."

"..."

I was dumbfounded by her words that were full of common sense. No, what are you saying, Miss Magician Girl? I wanted to refute her, but I held back for now.

'Leave it. I should grasp the situation first.'

I closed my eyes and focused as I realized that I would really die without being able to do anything if I kept being like this.

"Whew…"

I took a deep breath and changed the [Overall Setting] to see the [Objective]. Usually, it is only possible to manipulate the title for one target. Still, I can do it for all the targets in my sight if I push myself. Of course, holding in my breath is a really unnatural thing to do, so I cannot maintain it for long. Still, nothing can be done about it, as even dogs and cows have permanent titles.

The first one I looked at was the guy with the spear that was acting full of himself.

Black Moon Society

Came for you, Magon

"Damn it."

"Excuse me?"

"No. This situation is a mess."

"A mess… Yes, you are correct. It is a mess, indeed. But we should be glad about this situation too."

I followed Bo-ram who was stealthily moving to a corner while maintaining the barrier with a confused expression. I then looked to the side.

For your information, the titles of the human machines that just appeared were like this.

Amon's Duchy

Slaughtering Machine, No. 135

The titles were useless at the moment.

I did not know where Amon's Duchy was, and the names, Slaughtering machines no. 135, no. 17, and no. 221 were not informative at all.

I could know their owners or where they were made if I looked at the detailed [Classification]. However, I would have to stand still for five minutes, and there was no way for me to have such an opportunity. I should be glad if they do not behead me while I am absent-minded…

Anyway, the permanent title was this.

Amon's Duchy

Came to Kill the Imperial Princess, No. 17

'...Imperial Princess? What Imperial Princess? Why is an Imperial Princess being mentioned?'

My head spun at the unexpected word.

The surroundings were still a complete mess and the ones aiming for us were hitting Bo-ram's barrier, but the only thing I could do was to follow her anyway, so there was plenty of time for me to fall into deep thought.

'Is there an Imperial Princess among the people that attacked us? But no matter how big the world is, there is no way they would use an Imperial Princess as an assassin... Wait, Imperial Princess?'

A buckload of terms flashed through my head at that moment.

An Imperial Princess? It refers to the daughter of an Emperor.

So what about an Emperor? It refers to the king that commands feudal lords and rules over his country.

What is an Empire then? It is the country the Emperor rules over.

There were no Emperors, Imperial Princesses, or Empires in the 21st century. It was a word that would only appear in history books.

However... I heard those words just recently.

For the Emperor! I am Lieutenant Alaina, head of the Human Resources Division of the 2nd Corps, Imperial Army of the Leonhardt Empire.

That is right. There was the Leonhardt Empire. What if the Imperial Princess was on their ship?

'But if that was the case, they should have invaded the spaceship. What are they doing here…'

"Kyak!"

I heard a sharp scream. While we were still in the middle of a battle filled with screams and yells, I could hear this particular scream clearly.

Because that voice belonged to someone I knew.

"Cel? Why are you here?"

"Ah, hahaha. I followed you because I was worried... Up we go!"

Kwagang!

At that moment, a slaughtering machine that attacked her was sent flying away, along with a loud explosion. Celestia was holding two flashy, shining golden guns before I knew it.

Kwagagagang!!!

The slaughtering machines crumbled into pieces when the gun fired bullets like a machine gun.

'Wow, what an item!'

I knew that the pair of guns Celestia was holding were not ordinary at first glance.

'They do not fire physical bullets but are rather photon cannons that are equipped on a Gigas! It spreads a barrier to protect the user, and the barrel of the gun absorbs physical energy to remove most of the recoil!'

They were said to be pistols, but their sizes were incredible. It was between the size of a pistol and a rifle.

It was a monstrous structure with a 20mm caliber.

It was no different from holding cannons in both hands.

I could feel an indescribable powerful energy from the golden lion symbol engraved on the two guns' slide.

"Wh, what is that? Monsters that even sword Ki does not work against got destroyed by mere bullets?"

"Did they send her from the Supreme Magic Tower!"

"I was wondering why it was so easy!"

Celestia came next to us while everyone was in confusion.

It probably meant that she would be on our side, but she was stopped by Bo-ram's barrier.

"Open it."

"I don't want to."

"Wh, what did you say? Do you know who I am?"

"Who are you?"

Celestia flinched at that obvious question.

"That... is a secret…"

"Are you a fool?"

"Uwaaak! This is why I do not like inferior civilizations! Ah, come to think of it, I would probably get a scolding from the law officer if I got involved with you!"

It seemed like even she was feeling confused as she was looking out for her surroundings with a frown on her face.

But it was at that moment.

Paat!

The space opened up, and the surroundings changed. The houses that got destroyed by the sword Ki and explosions were restored to their original state in no time, and the enemies surrounding us also disappeared.

"What is this? We moved?"

"We are inside a car. Seems like we are in the same place, but only the environment changed... Ugh, I am exhausted."

Strength left my body at the feeling of the comfy seat as I leaned against it, but Bo-ram reformed the barrier while Celestia looked at the surroundings while holding her guns. That was rather the obvious thing to do since we forcefully moved through space.

However, a low voice was soon heard from the driver's seat.

"...Seems like a strange bunch caught up with you."

"Kim Dong-min…"

Someone I did not expect at all showed up.

Dong-min, a classmate I was not close with despite being in the same class last and this year.

And a hyung who seemed to be in his mid-twenties was sitting next to him with an uneasy expression.

"Is, is it okay, boss? I did not bring the enemy, right?"

"Relax. They do not seem to be hostile. Well, I will ask you to confirm it either way. Dae-ha, are the two girls over there your allies?"

"...If I were to say, I guess so?"

I did not sound confident, but Dong-min nodded as if that alone was enough and stepped on the accelerator.

I was surprised at his nonchalant attitude and asked.

"Huh? Dong-min, do you have a driver's license?"

"...You sure are in luck. My driver's license should not be the problem here."

The license certainly was not the problem here, just like he said.

I was starting to think that this guy also belonged to [That Side], which was the real problem.

"Ha…"

I had always wished for a normal and peaceful life.

I doubted reality, but that was a doubt mixed with worry. Because I never wished for a world like that.

I was already as exhausted as I could be. I was so worn-out and wounded that I did not want any kind of stimulus.

For me, who had suffered from my memories and mind that had been broken and suppressed, a peaceful, daily life was a precious treasure.

'Normal and peaceful days…only existed in my imaginations. Perhaps I have been ignoring it until now.'

So many things had happened in a day that I could not get a hold of myself.

It seemed like I was not the only confused one as Bo-ram had a puzzled expression on her face too.

"To think that it is possible to bring out a few people from a second dimension… Do you guys belong to the group with superpowers, Prestige, by any chance?"

"Is it superpowers now…"

I feigned a laugh at how bewildering it was.

I had been raised quite typically, but there was no one normal in my surroundings. All of them were weird.

'Jae-seok would not be something like a martial arts expert, right?'

The van continued to move while I was having such thoughts. I was wondering where we were going until I saw familiar buildings.

"What? We are going to my house right now?"

"Obviously. There is no safer place than that at this moment."

Dong-min's calm voice struck my mind.

"So, it really was the case!"

"...What do you mean?"

"My father is someone with great strength, right? He is a martial arts expert or a Great Magician, something like that, right?"

I said with some conviction, but Dong-min and even Bo-ram looked at me pitifully.

"You know nothing about your father?"

"Teacher is a normal human being. Ah, but the word 'normal' here is limited to his talent. He is extraordinary in the remaining aspects."

We arrived at my house in the middle of the conversation.

Our house was quite big, so we parked the car in the garage and entered.

"Excuse me~"

"...Hey, why are you following me inside?"

Celestia pretended to be hurt as I frowned at her when she entered my house.

Regardless of the case, she was still a pure beauty, so even a slight change in her expression felt like a flower had fallen onto the ground.

"Oh, you are so mean. You were planning to throw this frail girl into danger?"

"What danger? You can just ride on that thing and return to your planet... No, to your home. It is not like anyone is targeting you anyway…"

But I flinched at that moment.

Someone was aiming for her? Someone was aiming for Celestia?

Come to think of it, why did she appear while screaming when she was hiding well before that?

It would be because she got attacked by one of those slaughtering machines, right?

"...It's you."

"Eh? What?"

I did not say anything stupid like, 'So you are the Imperial Princess!'

"Those strange robots, they were targeting you, right? Also, looking at how you are behaving now, it seems like they have a way to track you."

"..."

She stiffened in place and could not refute it because I hit the nail right on the head.

Not because she was clumsy, but maybe because she already knew that it would be meaningless even if she made excuses.

Because I was sure of it.

'I would have realized immediately if she had not been the first extraterrestrial being I met.'

Titles are not a measure of absolute and objective information. If I were to describe it, it is merely subjective and a combination of words? For example, when I decided on a title for the target a while ago, did the title not appear as [Came for you]?

Celestia's title was [Extraterrestrial Being] when I first saw her.

But if I were to think deeper about it, it would not be weird to realize how strange that title was.

How could the word 'extraterrestrial being' represent her current [State]?

The word 'extraterrestrial being’ was a relative concept.

Just like how earthlings would be aliens to any species living in the distant Andromeda nebula as well, should there be any.

The reason why I saw her title as an extraterrestrial being was probably because she was the only one I had seen at that moment.

And her current title was this.

Detro Galaxy Union, Fourth Corps, First Advance Squad

Space Idol, Celestia

'What, it still does not show her as the Imperial Princess. And what is a Space Idol? This is crazy…'

I was dumbfounded, but I shook my head. That was not the important thing regardless.

"Anyway, did we not come to my house too defenseless? I think it will get destroyed if those guys from before come barging in."

"...You really know nothing. This place is a kind of sacred place. No one dares to come in here."

"Why? You said that my father was just a normal person."

Bo-ram let out a sigh as I expressed my doubts at the situation I could not understand.

"Teacher Kwan Il-han is a normal person, but... He is someone that the Magic Towers and no outlaws dare to touch."

"Which is why I am asking? It is true that my father is capable and has all kinds of talents, but he would not be able to do anything if the monsters from earlier attacked him."

It was something I could not comprehend. Is it not normal to be unable to endure against monsters that could destroy an entire building with a swing of a steel pipe, no matter how much of a martial arts expert he is?

Dong-min spoke in a low voice as he looked at a very perplexed me.

"Our world. People living in Another Plane refer to Teacher as the one who stole the heart of God."

"The one who stole the heart of God?"

I could not understand what he was saying and had a confused expression on my face, so Bo-ram explained.

"The Primordial God of our world has fallen completely for Teacher."

"...Primordial God?"

"And people say she has already been rejected three times."

"..."