I love time travel the most!

Upon hearing his subordinate's report, Hestia couldn't help but ask in astonishment, "Is this true, Zolf?!"

"Yes, it's on the 20th floor."

"We were also received by monsters."

"To be honest, I was almost scared to death."

Zolf and the others complained all at once. After all, being surrounded by a group of powerful monsters and not being eaten on the spot was already a blessing.

The atmosphere became frozen.

Winnie's breathing slowly stopped.

After a long silence, Hestia asked again, "Those monsters... what kind of feeling did they give you?"

“At the very least, I think they’re more intelligent than Winnie. While some are clumsy or completely mute, there are also some who speak fluently… and then there’s the fact that they seem to know something.”

The deity of the clan gasped in shock.

She couldn't imagine monsters being as intelligent, thoughtful, and talkative as humans, or even inviting humans to banquets. But the goddess, who unconditionally trusted her followers, chose to challenge her prejudices.

Winnie, who was eavesdropping, covered her mouth in surprise. She never expected that there would be someone like her.

A tense atmosphere filled the room.

At this moment, Lily, who had been silent, spoke up: "Lily believes that we should no longer protect Lady Winnie."

Ok? ? ?

This statement left everyone speechless.

The one who reacted the fastest was Ming, who shouted in a slightly louder voice, "Lady Lily, what do you mean by this?"

“Lily put it bluntly. We’ve stepped into a very suspicious area, a path that even the gods don’t know about, and there are even other groups tracking talking monsters.”

Based on the information gathered so far, Lily provided a very insightful explanation of the situation.

They are being drawn into a major trend.

"But! If we say we'll stop protecting her, what will happen to Lady Winnie? If we abandon her, she will...!" Ming said anxiously.

“I didn’t say abandon her,” Lily said. “Since the monsters all live on the 20th floor, we should send her back to the monsters’ lair, which is where she should be.”

"Lady Lily!"

"So, Lily, what's the point of continuing to protect girls?"

"!"

"Do you really believe we can remain undiscovered forever? Are you suggesting she live her entire life in silence and with her face covered? Do you think you can get away with it? If the gods take a liking to us, they'll definitely come and mess with us for fun. Then, as the target of everyone's wrath, no one will be able to protect us!"

Lily, unusually eloquent, was rendered speechless by the force of correct arguments, her indignation rendered speechless, and the remaining human and god also remained silent.

Because Lily is right, they are also aware of their own situation.

There is currently no way to break the status quo, and the best and most priority option is to send Winnie to her companions.

Lily seemed to understand why Fels had the monsters host a feast for them.

To achieve her goal, she went even further and became more extreme: "She's like a bomb right now. Even if nothing happens now, she'll eventually plunge the clan into crisis... It's no use talking to the kind-hearted Lord Bell. Even if it makes people resent us, we have to make a decision to protect him."

Bell's status in the hearts of these people is self-evident.

But they also understood their clan leader's personality, which was why they held this meeting behind his back. To ensure the plan was implemented effectively, they had to act swiftly and decisively!

"Humans and monsters cannot coexist!"

Lily's words pierced through the walls of the room, stabbed into Winnie's ears, and went deep into her mind, stirring up her thoughts.

boom!

The sound of a door opening came from the next room.

The heavy atmosphere in the room made everyone's thoughts feel as heavy as lead, fatally slowing down their actions. It wasn't until they heard the clatter of someone running that they snapped out of their daze, opened the door, and looked left and right, but there was no one in the long corridor.

At this moment, Bell came up from another staircase and asked after seeing everyone, "Everyone, I don't know if you've seen Winnie, I can't find her anywhere."

"Could it be that……!"

Everyone was shocked and had a bad feeling.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Ha ha……!"

Winnie ran.

She ran through the corridor, rushed down the stairs, opened the courtyard door, and after taking a different route from Belle, she dashed out of the mansion and out the back door onto the street.

The overheard conversation was still stirring up my thoughts.

We must make a decision.

—We can't be together.

—She is a demon.

Lily's words were like a terrible knife, carrying a deep curse that pierced her heart. For the first time, the monster (dragon girl) felt such pain in her heart.

The pain is like convulsions, the pain of being crushed, the pain of being pounded.

Her beautiful silver hair danced in the air, the ruby ​​on her forehead shone brightly as if shouting, and her amber eyes welled up with clear tears.

why?

Why is this happening?

Will my inability to live with everyone put Bell in danger?

No!

Absolutely not!

If it would endanger Bell, if it would trouble that person, if that were the case...

I want to get out of here!

The monster girl pulled her hood down low and wandered along one of the streets.

She had never seen so many pedestrians before; the sheer number of them terrified her.

The shouts of the vendors around her, the beautiful melodies coming from the shops, the horse-drawn carriages speeding along the road, and even the innocent laughter of the children all made her shoulders tremble with fear.

The icy touch of her bare feet relentlessly eroded her heart.

She covered her entire body with a long-distance runner, fearing someone might slash her with a knife at any moment, while walking along the street corner to avoid attracting attention.

Then, as she peered around, she saw that scene.

On a street corner, a horse-drawn wagon was parked in front of a shop. First, the horses neighed, then there was a jolt, and the stack of goods, piled high, seemed about to collapse like building blocks.

I don't know if the ropes were tied too loosely, but the fact is that the cargo gradually tipped over. And underneath it, there was a little girl who didn't notice anything.

Winnie's eyes widened.

A few people around noticed it, gasped, and prepared for the impending scream.

The sheer quantity of goods, the wooden crates, were about to fall on the little girl.

Not good!

You'll get hurt!

That person will definitely get hurt!

—I saved her!

Seeing the little girl's frozen expression as she realized the goods were about to hit her, she was reminded of herself, unable to move in the face of an attack, and the boy who saved her from being surrounded by villains.

This will seemed to become the trigger.

Winnie's body began to move.

Her back bulged, followed by strange fleshy sounds, and a single wing with a bluish-silver skeleton and gray membrane opened, breaking through her pale skin and gray robe.

With a dull thud as her footsteps pounded on the stone slabs, Winnie dashed off like an arrow. To those around her, it seemed as if she had teleported, appearing before the little girl in the blink of an eye.

"……what?"

The little girl was swallowed up by the cargo that kept falling to the ground as she muttered to herself, but fortunately all the falling boxes were spread out by the large dragon wings, protecting the little girl from injury.

However, this can happen after the intense noise subsides.

The people, unable to move, stared in astonishment ahead.

Amidst the grains, fruits, and various miscellaneous items, the little girl sat slumped on the ground, her eyes wide with terror as she looked at the monster (Winnie) who had covered her with her broad dragon wings.

"You're okay..."

"Wa ...

Winnie's concerned words were drowned out by screams. What she saw were gleaming amber eyes and a non-human single wing. Terrified, the little girl fled from the astonished Winnie.

Then——

"It's a demon...!"

"Monsters!!!"

In the blink of an eye, screams piled up in layers.

The little girl's screams seemed to trigger a switch; for a moment, the quiet street erupted into a deafening roar, and the entire street went completely out of control.

The crowd receded like a receding tide, distancing themselves from Winnie. Even the cargo wagons parked nearby fled far away as the horses went berserk.

The crowd was almost driven to madness, with footsteps echoing and screams filling the air. As evening fell, the streets were shrouded in a wave of panic.

But some adventurers drew their weapons and shielded the crowd behind them.

Winnie flinched at the sight of the drawn steel blade.

However, the people around her looked at her with even greater fear, dread, and disgust, and this feeling continued to escalate.

"Die, you monster!"

The next instant, an elven woman threw a stone, which hit Winnie.

This seemed to serve as a prelude.