Surviving a Cruel Fairy Tale

30 – Act 2. Eternal Neverland – Prologue (2)

Little Red Riding Hood was looking up at me in a panic.

Maybe I have a similar expression.

In an instant, my hair went white.

A child’s paradise, Neverland.

In the fairy tale, Neverland was a place where adults did not exist, so it was a little strange that they were let in without hesitation, but after seeing Little Red Riding Hood, I finally realized the clue.

“By any chance, writer, have you grown up?”

“No. It is true that you have become smaller.”

Little Red Riding Hood turned into a child.

Why?

No, I vaguely understand why. Maybe it’s because it’s Neverland. If you think that Little Red Riding Hood has turned into a child based on the rule that adults cannot exist, you can understand it roughly.

But what I’m really curious about is how they did it.

If it’s a wide-ranging ability to interfere with others just by entering, this place might be as dangerous as Little Red Riding Hood’s Forest, maybe even more dangerous.

The forest was a huge prison for humans.

However, even such a forest has not had such a dramatic effect on individual humans, so there are more than enough reasons to be wary of Neverland.

After thinking that far, I confirmed it by looking alternately at Little Red Riding Hood and my body.

Little Red Riding Hood has grown young.

But if I’m still the same as before, are there other conditions besides just entering this island?

“Writer.”

“…… Huh?”

As I was constantly thinking, she reached out and tugged at the hem of my sleeve.

“What are you going to do with that?”

“That one?”

Following her lead, she turns her head and sees the children watching her surroundings.

The figure is not unified in terms of gender and even race.

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Even so, everyone was looking this way as if it was natural that the fact that they were children had not changed.

“…… You are an adult!”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen an adult.”

“Why are you so tall?”

The voice stings my ears.

An empty plaza behind the gates. If you go straight ahead, the scenery like a city spreads out, but I felt a sense of rejection for some reason at the sight of him watching this way from a distance.

I’m not paying attention because I’m a foreigner.

Not even Little Red Riding Hood.

It’s me.

Everyone is paying attention for one reason: they are adults.

Surely, Neverland is a paradise that is not open to adults. The surroundings are like that, and the background of the fairy tale is like that, so this Neverland must be similar.

Then what will happen to me?

Although he is an adult, he has stepped into the borders of Neverland. Little Red Riding Hood can become a child and blend in, but I still remain an adult…….

“Hyung, it’s dangerous here.”

“Huh?”

At that moment, I heard a boy’s voice right next to me.

When?

No matter how preoccupied you were, you couldn’t even notice someone was approaching you?

Actually, Little Red Riding Hood was staring at the boy as if he was a little surprised.

“…… Is it dangerous?”

“Wolves come out here?”

Wolves?

“I didn’t bring you.”

“I know.”

It can’t be that way, so it’s all the more strange.

However, this plaza has always attracted the attention of children, and since this boy was the first to talk to me, I listened to him first.

“Wolves?”

“It’s a scary wolf. Just kill people It’s dangerous here. Brother, follow me.”

What should I do?

I was a little worried, but once I didn’t move, nothing would change, so after exchanging glances with Little Red Riding Hood, I nodded to him and followed the boy.

I take a step forward and look around.

The children are watching us as if they were observing us, but no one except this boy tried to approach us.

Just watching from afar.

Thanks to this, it was easy to observe the surroundings with a wide field of view, and I thought while keeping my eyes on the entire area, including the area around the plaza.

A world where adults do not exist.

I’m still not sure if it’s limited to this area, but considering the name of Neverland, it would be right to assume that it doesn’t exist in the first place.

From there, the style and background of the building I took a step further was closer to the modern era than the Middle Ages.

Stone rather than wood.

The roads were well paved and relatively smooth, and the buildings entered seemed to faithfully follow the stonework style with concrete or marble.

But that’s why there are things I can’t understand.

There are no adults in Neverland.

When you think so, is it really possible to build, maintain, and repair a building like this with only children?

“Oh, brother! You can come this way It will be safe if you come this far.”

“This is it?”

While thinking for a while, I passed through the village and entered a dark alleyway.

The expression wolf was like that, but I don’t know where this boy is trying to lead us.

“…… You know.”

“Huh?”

“I’m sorry, but I think we have to act separately.”

Anyway, the feeling is a bit strange.

Even if it is a child’s language, this world is a fairy tale world. I thought it was not good to go deeper than this in a situation where no matter what happened, it was not strange.

“Huh? That doesn’t work.”

“I’m sorry… ….”

“That is very difficult. Huh. I’m really in trouble.”

Troubled? What the heck…….

“It’s dangerous.”

Before I even thought about those words.

My body fell down at the force of the strong pull from below, but immediately after that, I got goosebumps from the hideous sound of the wind cutting through his head.

“What? Why are you interfering?”

Little Red Riding Hood.

She tugged at me even with her young body, then she confronted the boy and opened the now rather large book.

“Don’t touch this person.”

“Sorry, but this is our rule. My sister is fine, but that older brother can’t stay here.”

A boy who still smiles with a friendly expression.

But now I know.

The sticky emotions that ooze out from each look, gesture, and voice are definitely intense hostility.

“If you interfere, I will kill you.”

“If you can, do it.”

“Aha, not bad. Huh. I like that If you do that, I will kill you all at once.”

After that, the boy swung the wand that he seemed to have wielded at me a moment ago, and Little Red Riding Hood immediately raised a golden light and blocked her way.

“Ha ha ha!! Wolf, the wolf is here!”

“Keugh…… !”

The boy’s cane knocks on the golden curtain, and each time Little Red Riding Hood opens the book and lets out a small moan.

Little Red Riding Hood’s magic was powerful.

Unlike hunters, she did not receive compensation from the forest, and she even blocked the Tin Woodman’s power with only her natural strength.

Even if that boy is stronger than he looks, she can hardly imagine that it compares to the Tin Woodman.

Even so, Little Red Riding Hood looks tough.

Then there is only one thing she can think of, so this phenomenon leads to her younger body.

“It’s a mysterious power, but it’s nothing special!!”

Before long, the veil of mystery was removed from her, and Little Red Riding Hood took a stand against the boy who rushed at her.

A big swing leading to the top.

I don’t know what the power is, but the speed is definitely not fast. The hunter’s speed would feel even more so to Red Riding Hood, who was accustomed to it.

In fact, she immediately lowered her stance to avoid his staff, then clench her fist to strike him.

But.

“Ahahahaha!!”

As a child, she flies fleetingly and crashes into a wall.

Obviously avoided.

I confirmed that with her own eyes, and Little Red Riding Hood suddenly flew away in a situation where there was no harbinger that could hit her.

“…… How?”

She grabbed her shoulder as if it had been hit, and slowly stood up, looking at her boy with a questioning look.

“Curious? Yeah, I can tell you, but what can I do?”

There is no time to think.

If Little Red Riding Hood was weak because of her youth, fighting in such a narrow place was dangerous.

Especially if you use power that the opponent cannot understand.

“…… Little Red Riding Hood!!”

I ran straight ahead and grabbed her hand.

“What?”

“Hold tight!”

“Huh? Are you running away? An adult?”

There are things even adults want to avoid.

Fortunately for her, when I saw her movements a moment ago, she didn’t seem to have the overwhelming physical ability of her hunter or tin woodcutter, so I immediately ran with her back to me with her on my side.

“Brother! There are wolves out there! Is it dangerous?”

“Crazy.”

I will be fooled by such words again…….

No, wait.

I see. Speaking of a boy who deceives people by saying that wolves appear, there is only one thing that comes to mind.

The shepherd boy.

An anecdote from Aesop’s Fables and a fairy tale about lies.

If that boy is a shepherd boy, is the attack different from the one shown earlier a trick related to lies?

…… Even if you know the identity, there is no way to deal with it right away.

First of all, let’s avoid the body.

It was never nice to meet a bunch of fairy tale characters who were hostile to a lot of unknowns.

It was time to run like that.

“Sorry.”

The red cloak tucked around my right arm said.

“I said I would protect you.”

“That’s not it.”

Our relationship is complementary.

It was also a pleasure for me to be able to help her in this way because I did not want to be protected by her one-sidedly.

I want to tell you this, but it was not easy to open my mouth because I had to keep running.

“…… First of all….”

“Wow, I am an adult!”

“It’s an adult, an adult!”

“That’s an adult? Wow!!”

…… There will be no time to catch your breath

If the surroundings are noisy like this, they will be caught right away.

Looking at the situation, it seems difficult to deal with the shepherd boy right away, but even if you try to hide, there is no place without children.

Anyway, I wanted to avoid drawing attention right away, so I ran and ran again and finally arrived at a street with few people.

“…… Look!”

“Little Red Riding Hood. Are your shoulders okay?”

“No problem.”

If she says it’s okay, it’s probably like that, but since she’s so hard to read her expression, I don’t know if she’s serious.

Anyway, now I need a place to hide from the spotlight. Including her condition, you can catch your breath and grasp the situation…….

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“Hey!”

“Hmm?”

While I was thinking about it, I turned my head to the voice I heard in my ears, and I saw an adult male beckoning me through a distant alleyway.

“Adults?”

“Shh! Don’t make a fuss, run right here!”

Is there an adult besides me here?

In addition, when he said to follow him recklessly, he looked like a shepherd boy, but it was also true that it was difficult to stay on this roadside for a long time, so he moved towards him first.