"Katherine, what did I tell you about hugging Flocky?" the father lectured softly.
"Don't hug him too tight, or he'll suffocate…" Her voice was mixed with sadness. She then let go unwillingly.
"Good girl." The father smiled and patted her head. "Would you play with Flocky for a minute, dear? Daddy has a job to do."
"Okay!" she replied. Her mood shifted as she ran to the empty field. "Let's go, Flocky!"
Before Shun took a step, however, he glanced at her dad. He went to a barn not far from here—maybe thirty steps away—and caught a glimpse of two figures revealing themselves from the barn.
One's arm bulged with a massive firearm on his back, and one seemed to be a woman, covering her face with her hoodie.
Shun shifted his line of sight and chased Katherine, playing tag with her.
At some point, Katherine grew tired and rested under the shade of a tree. She lay down on the soft patch of grass.
Shun was lying next to her.
"Flocky, do you think Dad will finally be with me forever like we used to?"
Don't know.
"Baa!"
"You think so? Daddy hasn't returned home recently because of his job." She paused. "I felt so lonely, but I still have you." Katherine brushed Shun softly. He didn't say a word.
"If everything returns to what it used to be, I'd like to show Daddy what I've been working on!" Excited, she raised her torso in a jolt and pressed her hands against Shun's soft cheek. "Do you think Daddy will like it?"
He will.
"Baa!"
"Katherine! We're going home!"
Her dad's voice echoed across the empty field.
"Okay!" She got up and glanced at Shun.
She then started to pick up her pace and declared, "Whoever reaches Daddy first wins!"
Hey, that's cheating!
"Baa!"
Shun moved his four legs, but there was only so much speed he could manage with such a fat body. His stomach swayed about like a loose sack.
"I win!" She put her hand on her waist.
Shun arrived a couple of seconds later and looked at Katherine.
Little cheater!
"Baa!"
She giggled and gripped his front legs before lifting him up.
This girl is lifting me? Shun asked himself, puzzled.
A seven-year-old kid lifting a sheep that probably weighs more than a hundred kilograms!
As he tried to make sense of this, he saw two figures from the corner of his eyes. Taking a full look, they were standing next to the father.
"You still keep that thing around?" The mage's voice dripped with intense hatred and disgust.
"I thought we told you to eliminate her!" The soldier motioned his hand to the holster and tried to pull it out.
"Please, don't hurt her! I have everything under control. She isn't dangerous!" The father spread his arms and stood just before Katherine.
The little girl heard the ruckus but was too young to understand anything. She turned around and asked, "Are you guys fighting?"
"Of course not, dear. We're just getting a bit too excited." The father gave a reassuring smile that put her at ease.
"Okay!"
With her hands on Shun's armpits, she ran to her car while throwing Shun into the air.
This brat!
"Baa!"
Shun exclaimed mid-air, and she caught him—then did it again and again until she reached the car.
Resting Shun on his four feet, the girl pulled the handle as gently as possible, as if it were made of brittle glass.
The hatch opened. She then made little noises of struggle as she pulled the door. Shun walked over and pushed it open.
Seeing that, her smile became brighter and her spirit lifted, evident in her energised eyes.
"Yay!" She raised her hands to the heavens.
As she did, Shun heard steps behind Katherine.
"Dad, did you see that?!"
"What a smart girl! And not even a single scratch! That's my daughter!" He rubbed her hair softly.
"Hehe!"
She then climbed to the seat, turned around, and placed her hands on Shun's forelegs. He accepted it at first—he was only a sheep—and knew exactly what happens to a slab of meat at night.
The little girl dragged Shun to the seat with a bit of difficulty.
As this occurred, her father closed the door with a light thud and entered the driver's seat.
Shun's eyes stayed on her father for a few moments, then drifted to the two.
In the distance, they were discussing something before the man's eyes slowly changed. Both pairs of eyes met.
His mind raced for a moment.
He found me! What should I do? He pondered briefly and figured it would be wise not to make any sudden movements but to do something a sheep would do.
And so he opened his mouth and chewed the girl's hair.
"Flocky!" The little girl coiled her arms around Shun's neck and hugged him like a pillow but didn't stop him from chewing.
The man didn't spot anything strange and shifted his focus.
A heartbeat later, the car advanced. Shun stopped chewing the girl's hair—a few strands in his mouth, unpleasant and a bit revolting. He used his foreleg to get them out.
As he busied himself with the hair, the radio flickered on.
"It's unfortunate what happened in the New Continent."
"A moment of silence for our fallen brothers and sisters. Their efforts for humanity will not be forgotten."
"Indeed." The cast paused for a moment. "Moving on to the next news." The voice is grim, "With the recent development of Eclipse at the first human settlement in the New Continent, the cybernetics have declared a war on humanity."
The Eclipse, New Continent, cybernetics...
He contemplated for a bit and continued, Everything is connected. This world might be related to the city in the Dream Realm and the Tower! He said in his head with enlightenment.
But one thing bothered him. The New Continent; the books he read never explicitly mentioned them and the wars...
It is contradicts the book.
Henceforth, he came up with two answers in his head, Either the book is fabricated or this world is symbolic to the real events, not depicting them truly.
The radio immediately turned off. The abprut quietness snapped Shun from his reverie.
"Daddy, what's cybernetic?"
"They're living creatures. Unlike us, who are made of squishy bodies, their bodies are tough."
"Can they poop?"
"No. As living metallic beings, they don't need food to survive, so they don't produce any waste."
The little girl grunted in acknowledgement.
Both then chattered about everyday things. Shun glanced at the sky, enjoying the view.
It felt incredibly real—he almost forgot everything here was an illusion. He needed to remind himself it was all fake.
Yet the touch of her hand. The soft motion of her body as she breathed. Her flowery scent.
The seat, not as comfortable as modern cars but acceptable. The car's fragrance was like lavender.
If he didn't remember how he got here, he might just think he had been reincarnated into another world.
As the car proceeded calmly, Shun noticed something ahead—lifeless presences.
Why would there be dead bodies in the middle of the road? Shun asked himself. Just as he thought he might be mistaken, the car came to a halt.
Shun focused his eyes forward and saw several dead bodies with pools of blood underneath.
"Daddy, what's wrong?" She moved her seat to the middle to see the front, but before she could, her father turned around, leaning slightly between the two seats to block her view.
"Katherine, how about we play a game? Close your eyes and count to twenty, okay? But you can't say even numbers—Flocky or I can!"
"Un! Sure. One."
"Two." The father opened a map from the drawer and traced their location with his finger.
"Three."
The father still focused on searching where they might be.
"Three!"
Still no response. That naturally made her agitated.
As she was about to throw a tantrum—
Four.
"Baa!"
"Five!" she continued.
As they played the game—
There are a few routes I can take, but some are a two-hour ride. Will I have enough fuel to get there before it's too late? the father thought in a low voice, but loud enough for Shun to hear.
The father retracted his gaze from the map to the road blocked with corpses and carriages.
His hand clenched the steering wheel. His foot hovered just above the pedal. Should I?
Just then, Shun felt a few new presences with killing intent. They were creeping closer.
"Baa!"
Without wasting time, he leapt to the shotgun, but his hind legs got stuck between the gaps of the chairs. He tried to slip through as his back legs moved up and down quickly.
"Flocky?! Katherine, do something!"
"Un!"
She got behind Flocky and pushed him.