The “monumental day” that Hoshino, with his ruinous attributes, mentioned.
First, I needed to know the date that led to the downfall of City D.
“Well, it’s probably not something like Christmas or Chuseok. If it were, they would have just mentioned that holiday.”
First, the era is probably not far from now.
It had been a game I put down 10 years ago, so my memory was a bit fuzzy, but what was certain was that City D’s downfall had been mentioned as occurring roughly 10 years ago, from the very beginning of the service.
A wide city that became a ruin due to the appearance of monsters.
It was a setting introduced to showcase that example.
But now that I think about it, it was also an unbearably harsh past for the young Hoshino.
“About 10 years ago… right now it’s exactly 10 years ago, so nothing has happened yet. I guess ‘roughly’ means it could be 1 or 2 years later?”
Ah, developers.
If they had released an S-class character, they could have unveiled some past storylines through the connection quests.
Even if the original Hoshino was a nearly silent character, a tsundere, this far into the game, didn’t they just half-heartedly skip over things because they didn’t want to hire a voice actor?
…Even though I wanted to argue, from the beginning, <Kaiju Frontline> didn’t even have fully voiced stories.
“Sigh…”
“…?”
The monumental day.
That day in the original, Hoshino mentioned was the only one she called ‘monumental,’ even though she was constantly cutting her wrist in her connection quests.
Damn, when could that have been?
“If Hoshino, who fights only to die, remembers it, then it must have been something extraordinary…”
“Jang-hoon!”
“Oh, yes, Miss.”
It had already been a week since we arrived at the Okami estate.
“Is something wrong these days?”
“Work… are you talking about?”
“Yeah, you look particularly gloomy…”
The one who was supposed to be playing with Princess Hoshino.
I was doing better than expected, possibly because I had some nanny-like talents, and today I was strolling around the family courtyard with the young lady.
The Okami family.
True to its Japanese-inspired origin by the developers, the estate had the vibe of a ‘ryokan’ you might encounter on a trip to Japan.
However, the difference was that the estate, built in the style of Japan’s Edo period, was so vast that it felt like I had time-traveled a few centuries back to old Japan.
“Well, it’s the level of detail that likely allowed the service to last up to the 5th anniversary.”
“Are you… feeling sick?”
Meanwhile.
It seemed like I had been overly tense, possibly in preparation for the upcoming monumental day.
From a glance, I looked exhausted.
Noticing my condition, Princess Hoshino wore a worried expression.
“No, it’s just that there’s something on my mind.”
“Something on your mind?”
Now that I think about it, the person involved was right next to me.
Maybe this was an opportunity.
As if voicing my emotions, I carefully lifted the young lady’s drooping ear and raised it again.
“Um, Miss.”
“Yeah? What is it?”
I, with my brain, a proud top 23% in South Korea (grade 3), thought about the monumental day.
I figured one of them might be Hoshino’s “birthday,” so I decided to ask about that first.
However.
“Heh, hehe… my, my birthday?”
“…?”
Suddenly, the young lady’s face turned as red as a tomato.
She looked both happy and embarrassed.
Anyway, as a princess of such a family, her birthday must have always been celebrated in a grand manner, so was there something special happening?
“Miss, your face looks red, are you okay?”
“I-I’m fine! It’s just a bit hot!”
…Hot, you say?
I’m still shivering over here.
Is this some fox beastkin trait?
The young lady, insisting that it was just hot, was fanning herself incessantly.
Juur.
“In the original, Hoshino was also vulnerable to heat, but does that mean she’s strong against the cold?”
Anyway, maybe she was really hot, her golden eyes spinning around.
“My, my birthday is June 9th!”
She casually revealed her birthday.
“June?”
“Yeah! Since it’s January now, just 150 more sleeps!”
Right.
Now that I think about it, it is January.
For the New Year, like being possessed by the game, I must have come into this world exactly on January 1st.
And since the prologue of the original <Kaiju Frontline> mentioned the start of the New Year, it seemed like I was exactly reincarnated 10 years ago.
“Seems like I really ended up reincarnating exactly 10 years ago.”
Anyway, if it’s June, there’s still some time left.
That means it’s a good time to prepare for something ahead of the issues.
Moreover.
“By the way, could I also find out your mother… I mean, the family head’s birthday?”
“Mom’s too?”
Again, as a top 23% thinker, I wasn’t foolish enough to just consider one possible date.
That’s why I intended to investigate every date that could be called a “monumental day” by the original Hoshino.
“Our mom’s birthday is February 4th…”
“February?”
“Yeah.”
Look at this.
The moment I let my guard down, events that could strike me from behind are being mentioned.
“February, huh… Well, I can probably deal with that.”
“…I guess you’re not just looking out for me.”
“What did you say?”
“No, nothing! Hmph, let’s just finish our walk.”
“Miss, you’re walking a bit too fast!”
Thus, the monumental dates that Princess Hoshino was concerned about.
I meticulously recorded all the dates, except for my birthday, in my notebook.
“One of these dates is definitely going to be the worst monumental day ever…”
The date I had to pay the most attention to was February 4th.
It was the birthday of Princess Hoshino’s mother, Lady Makoto.
“If it’s her mother’s birthday, it would be a perfect candidate for the monumental day that the original Hoshino mentioned.”
Moreover, the early February date was close to Korea’s traditional holiday, Seollal, which could overlap with the ‘holiday season.’
So, it felt a bit strange that a family inspired by Japan would celebrate Seollal, but still, the world of <Kaiju Frontline> included it.
[Seollal Special! 3000 diamonds for just 25,000 won (originally 30,000 won) today only!]
“Wow?! They’re selling something worth 30,000 won for just 25,000?! Will there even be any profit?!”
Looking back, I realize there would have been a ton of profit.
In fact, it wouldn’t have been strange to give extra supplies during Seollal, but back then, my head must have been completely shattered.
“Anyway, if the family was destroyed on the day of Mom’s birthday right before Seollal, then everything the original Hoshino mentioned makes sense.”
Lady Makoto’s birthday.
On that day, there was about a 25,000% chance that the monster sealed within the estate would break free.
I wasn’t a fan of gambling, but this time I was confident enough to ‘all-in’ on that date.
“By the way, what exactly is this sealed monster?”
Now that the monumental day was confirmed, it was time for the next problem.
The monster that had been sealed up until now but was suddenly unleashed on that monumental day to obliterate City D.
Why had the seal been broken?
“Hmm… As a ‘playmate,’ I probably can’t ask about that kind of thing.”
That evening.
I was walking alone through the overgrown courtyard, trying to cool my hot head, when I heard a rustling noise.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
“Mm?”
Was it near the lake within the estate?
At first, the lake had been so large I felt like they had brought in the Han River.
Now, with the moonlight reflecting on the rippling water, the view was even more enchanting, even though it was nearly time for bed.
“Yap! Hah!”
Had she snuck out?
There, I saw Princess Hoshino practicing swordsmanship alone with a wooden sword.
“Miss, you’re really serious…”
The Okami family had passed down a swordsmanship style called ‘Wolf’s Breath,’ divided into eight breathing techniques, and they were known for their swordsmanship.
The next family head, Princess Hoshino.
She had always been seen practicing swordsmanship on her own in the original work, and it seemed she had this habit from a very young age.
“Come to think of it, every time I met her, she was always injured somewhere.”
The training grounds, only accessible to those permitted by the head of the Okami family, were off-limits to me. Perhaps because I wasn’t trusted yet, or because I was too young, I’m not sure, but when I came out from the training area, Princess Hoshino’s face was always covered in bruises.
And yet, she wasn’t satisfied with that. Even late at night, she would sneak out to train on her own.
It was admirable, but at the same time, it made me worried.
“If she gets too tired, I might have to sneak up behind her and carry her…”
But, did the other servants also know that Princess Hoshino had snuck out?
As she swung the wooden sword, more and more people gathered around her.
Surrounded by women in kimono, the young lady seemed to be talking, though I couldn’t hear her clearly from this distance.
“Mm?”
When the kimono-clad servants scattered for a moment.
Thud.
“?!”
Something seemed to collapse immediately, and Princess Hoshino fell limply into the bushes.
The servants, with no regard for her, grabbed her by the hair and started shoving her into a sack as if she were an object.
“Miss!!”
“…?!”
“Who is it?!”
Without thinking, I shouted out loud.