I wake up, and feel something’s a little off.
I don’t understand what’s wrong at first. I stretch, look around the living room, and realize it.
It’s too quiet.
Normally I would be hearing yells and screams like ‘Daddy! Snacks!’ or ‘Beary wet the floor!’, but I only hear the wind outside.
“…Lily?”
I say as I look into her room. Not here.
I look around the living room. Not here.
Kitchen, bathroom, my room. Not here.
There’s something to be said about a big house. The moment people leave, it feels cold.
Is she napping in the closet again, I think as I open the door.
…Not here.
A bad feeling wells up from my stomach. All my hairs stand up. It’s summer, but I’m cold to the core.
“…No way.”
I run to the entrance. Please, please, please, please be there.
The moment I see the shoe box, those prayers are shattered.
Her shoes aren’t here.
This is getting close to a worst case scenario.
But it’s not quite there. The worst would be Lily being taken by someone.
This is not it, I decide. No one would stop to put on a kid’s shoes before kidnapping her, and there’s no sign of a struggle. Beary and Poyopoyo aren’t here either. The backpack is gone too, so only one possibility remains.
She left willingly.
With that decided, I cool off right on the line.
“…Zenith would be safer at a time like this.”
No one would be crazy enough to touch my daughter there. It might seem like a joke, but that’s probably the safest place in the world for her.
I take a deep breath.
I’m now calm again, and leap out of the house. I don’t know when she left, but she couldn’t have gone that far with her kid legs. Especially with Beary and Poyopoyo.
“…Magic Energy Detection really isn’t picking her up.”
I spread magic energy around, but only pick up a faint scent. Magic Energy Detection is a technique that’s valuable as a net in places you’re familiar with, like home or school. It loses precision outside of that. Especially since I’m not that good with it.
There’s only one thing I can do.
“I’ll ask around.”
She definitely stands out with Beary and Poyopoyo. It should be easy to find people that saw them. If no one did… No, that can’t be. It should be okay.
I go out into the street and jump into a nearby bakery first. The owner that’s sleeping on the counter notices me when a bell rings. Bakers are active during the morning, and this one’s open basically out of inertia.
“Oh, Weiss. Welcome.”
“Sorry, I’m not here for bread. I want to ask something.”
“Is it about Lily?”
“You know!?”
I close in on the counter without thinking. The baker seems to remember something and smiles with her hand on her cheek.
“It was just now… About an hour ago that she passed by. She said she was on an adventure, so I gave her leftover bread. It looked like she was just walking her pets. It was cute.”
“Lily…”
I grab my head. I told her so many times not to head outside on her own…
“I’m sorry to bother you.”
“It’s fine. The bread is happier to be given than thrown away.”
“Thank you for saying that. I will come back as a customer.”
I thank the baker and leave. I’m heading to the shopping district. And as I think about who to ask, a butcher talks to me.
“Ou, Weiss! Lily just passed through here. That was very nice!”
“Nice?”
“She fed her pets first, and then ate. Can kids even do that?”
“Wait. What are you talking about?”
The man gives me too much information, and I feel my thoughts being left behind.
“She came here and I gave her a sausage. Then she gave it to… Beary? And that slime. Smart girl, right? I was so emotional that I gave her croquettes before I knew it.”
“Really!? She did that!?”
“Really. Good thing you passed by, I really wanted to tell you.”
Dammit… How could I have missed that scene? It wouldn’t have happened if I didn’t take a nap.
I have a strong regret rippling through my heart… No, now’s not the time for that. I almost went on about how Lily grows day by day.
“Sorry, I’m looking for her. Can you tell me where she went?”
He points straight forward through the shopping district.
“She’s popular here. You can talk to the others.”
“Lily’s popular?”
I’m curious about that, but it’s not the time to chat. I thank him, and run fast.
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