The Outer God Needs Warmth-Chapter 209: Lost Dream (4)

"Ah, I want some snacks!"

In the season when the shrubs at the Royal Academy turn a bright red, Victoria muttered as we stepped out of the academy’s dining hall after lunch. She rattled off every kind of snack she could think of in this world.

"It’s been less than a minute since we ate."

"These days, no matter how much I eat, I’m always hungry."

Victoria muttered under her breath. Ever since she fainted in Vern City and woke up three days later, her appetite had grown strangely.

I glance up and down at Victoria.

Purple hair, snow-white skin.

She’s a girl with clear traits of a harvester. She’s the ideal age for a girl who’s not too tall, not too short, and just about the right proportions.

It’s not that she’s gained weight or grown taller. If anything, she seems slightly thinner than before.

Could it be an illness?

But there’s no sign of discomfort in Victoria’s senses. Her body feels normal, and the only thing that has changed is the amount she’s eating.

Or is something broken inside her?

It was strange when the sky began to reflect the sea.

It seemed beyond the abilities of a human being. If she had consumed something like life force or vitality, it would make sense.

But strangely, the light inside her body seems fine.

The color might have turned purple, but the warmth has actually grown stronger.

Normally, warmth increases as you grow up, and decreases with age.

Of course, it can spike up sharply at times, or drop suddenly, but most of the time, it follows a normal distribution.

To obtain warmth most efficiently, you would need to "eat" at the peak, but waiting for the right moment gives you far more warmth than eating right away.

The light, which is presumed to be the soul, is discarded once it has absorbed warmth. If it's beneath the surface, it disappears, and if it’s here, it just scatters.

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Why discard it, you ask?

A warm stone cools down and becomes just a stone. What should you do with a cold stone? Should it be eaten like a demon in some fantasy novel?

How does one even "eat" light?

It feels like that.

The warmth is the product I seek, but the leftover byproduct that has no use is discarded.

When a harvester dies and takes warmth, the demon swiftly claims it. I’m not sure what the demon would use it for, but if it can be used, it probably will.

Light can’t be held anyway.

When it disappears, it disappears.

So, I try to comfort Victoria, who’s feeling hungry.

"Hold off until the end. We still have afternoon classes, right?"

"It’s not a matter of time."

"Is that so?"

Victoria looks directly at me with a serious expression and says,

"I don’t have enough money."

Is she short on money? Well, that’s true.

Sometimes I get some pocket money, but since the Vern City incident, I haven’t received any extra funds.

"Isn’t it because you spend too much?"

"No. No! Bell, I’m careful with how I spend my money, okay? Even though I love snacks, I’m not dumb enough to spend money without thinking!"

Victoria says, almost shouting, and I glance around.

No one is paying attention to us.

Polaris, who has been walking with me lately, said she was going to talk to someone from her faction and decided to have lunch separately.

"Then, is it because you didn’t get any pocket money?"

"That’s part of it, but honestly, I can’t ask my parents for more money now, so I’m not going to complain about it."

That’s understandable.

The letters I get are short and only come occasionally. Thankfully, this time, I sent a letter to Victoria’s address, and I actually got a proper reply.

"So, what about your complaints?"

"Everything’s so expensive these days."

Ah, when I left with my wallet, I sighed and returned, but it wasn’t just because I didn’t have enough money—prices have gone up.

I wasn’t reading her mind, just sensing it, so I didn’t realize the difference right away.

But is it really that expensive?

What was it like when Victoria’s hair was blonde?

Hmm. Compared to that time, prices have risen by about 20%. So, the cost of living hasn’t increased that much, has it?

It’s gone up, but it’s not outrageous, right? At least based on my faded memories, it seems like it’s been like this before.

It sounds like there’s talk of a struggling economy.

Why do some memories trigger words like "catastrophe" or "2% a year"?

Isn’t it common for something that used to cost 1,000 won to now cost 1,200 won?

Too many memories are flickering, and I can’t sort them all out.

Knowing things doesn’t mean being an expert in them. What I know is entirely different from just remembering something.

Having an encyclopedia doesn’t make you skilled in everything it covers, right?

It’s the same thing.

Even if you memorize a formula, not everyone can solve the practice problems perfectly. I’m kind of like that too.

My head must not be that great.

So, I’ll use the truth as my weapon instead of lies.

Let me speak according to what I know.

"The prices are going up."

"Is that so? It might be. But it’s really hard to buy anything now! At this rate, I won’t even get to enjoy something sweet. No matter how good the restaurant is, if they don’t sell the sweets outside, it’s just not worth it!"

Victoria screams in frustration.

Of course, even when she says sweet, it’s not the kind of sweetness that’s packed with high-fructose corn syrup. It’s more like fruit-flavored bread or sugar-filled cookies.

In this world, there are corn-like plants, so they could make a lot of fructose from that.

But that kind of sweetness hasn’t really evolved.

Based on my faded memories, it tastes quite mild, but it seems like that’s enough for Victoria.

Of course, people like Polaris or Kanna who enjoy sweets in their own space aren’t rare, but they don’t eat it at the Royal Academy. They wait until they return to their villa or home.

For Victoria, eating such things is difficult.

"How about earning some money?"

"Ughhh, earning money, huh. Yeah."

Victoria crosses her arms and thinks deeply.

From ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) my perspective, earning money is easy. If you have the ability to manipulate water at will, you could easily get work.

I wonder why she isn’t thinking in that direction.

"Right. Bell, how do you manage money? Does the royal family cover all your expenses?"

At that moment, Victoria suddenly asks me how I handle money.

Huh?

Now that I think about it, I’ve never really held money in my hands. I once thought about how to get money, but that idea faded away and disappeared in the flow of consciousness.

After leaving with Maleficent, my relationship with Victoria became strained, so I couldn’t even think about it anymore.

So, I’ve never really had money, but the royal family provides me with everything I need to live.

"Yes, I haven’t had the opportunity to hold money, but it hasn’t interfered with my life."

"Ah, I see. Well, don’t you think it’s better to have at least some money?"

"Why?"

When I ask, Victoria gives me a look as if she’s seeing something not human.

"Bell, a person needs money to live."

She says this seriously, like she’s trying to explain it to a child, placing her hand on my shoulder.

"I understand barter."

"That’s strange! We’re learning about economics in class, and you’re one of the top students, aren’t you?"

"I can recite it."

"Do you understand it?"

"My head finds it too hard."

Victoria looks at me with a "wow" expression.

"Bell, wait a minute. If you wanted something, what would you do?"

"I’d wait next to them."

Why does she make such a frustrated face at my answer?

"No, many people won’t give it to you even if you beg."

"If I wait, eventually they’ll hand it to me."

"Bell... Some people won’t give it, and if you wait too long, you’ll be kicked out for disturbing business..."

Disturbing business?

No one would push away a helpless girl standing next to them unless they were doing it to protect her from danger. Most people would pull her closer.

"Unless they know my true identity, anyone who pushes me away is a good person."

Victoria tilts her head at a 45-degree angle, clearly confused. She couldn’t understand what I was saying.

"Are we talking about buying things with money?"

"If you can buy what you want with money, I’d give you anything."

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Turning a stone into gold isn’t that hard. Gold is quite common among the elements in the universe, right? So unless you create it out of nothing, gold will simply pass without any resistance.

Victoria looks at me with full confusion in her eyes.

I pretend to say something else on purpose. No matter how foolish I am, I know what I’m saying.

I’ll stop being so direct with my true intentions.

What I want is warmth, and if I can buy it with money, I’d turn this entire planet into gold just to get it.

No, if I turned stone into gold, it wouldn’t be the same weight—it would be the same volume, so the planet would explode if it turned into gold.

Would anyone even want that?

I’m not sure.

And with such a large volume, reality would most likely break under the strain.

"So, what you want isn’t something you can buy with money, right?"

"Not right now."

Maybe in the future, when the world develops, I might do something in exchange for warmth, but not yet.

For now, I’ll dodge the question. I picked up a stone from the ground and placed it in my palm for Victoria to see.

"Do you need gold, Victoria?"

Then, with a flick of my wrist,

If I push reality down, it turns to gold.

Victoria comes up to me, grabs my hand, and says,

"Don’t ever show that to anyone. Ever."

She says it with a face full of chills.

"It’s just a stone."

"Thanks for reminding me of what you are. Don’t do it."

"Alright."

Already, what I want has become something I shouldn’t ask about.

"Still, is your allowance enough?"

Victoria stares at her clenched hand with a very troubled expression, then speaks in a voice that almost seems to stab her.

"Forget it."

Then there’s nothing I can do. I turned it into sandstone.

Somehow, memories keep flashing with various elements, sparkling. My mind’s search program is a bit chaotic. Without AI, it’s like random related searches keep lighting up, making it difficult to sort through.

I return the stone to the ground and, with a dazed expression from Victoria, we head back to the classroom.

It’s time for our afternoon classes.