The na of the village nestled deep between the rocky mountains past the barrier was Fallen.
It was said to an “to fall” in the ancient tongue of the fairies.
A well-chosen na. A village fallen away from the kingdom where people lived.
And a place that sustained itself on the things falling from the fissure in the sky far beyond. There could be no na more fitting than Fallen.
“I, Leadernoi, have served continuously as village chief, king, and president of this village since long ago...! If you need anything, just say the word...!”
The nymph Leadernoi was the leader of Fallen village. His real na was apparently sothing else, but after becoming the leader here, the villagers began calling him “Leadernoi.”
I’d assud that was his actual na.
Apparently, not just Leadernoi but all those who settled in this village were expected to forget their old nas and live anew under a new one.
I asked,
“Then... should we also be given new nas?”
While checking whether the heater next to my bedding was working, Leadernoi replied,
“That is up to you...! In this village, you are free to do as you wish—so long as you don’t ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ infringe on the freedoms of others...!”
Freedom, huh.
To think I’d hear such textbook 21st-century liberal values in a place like this. There wasn’t really any deep reason behind their belief in liberty.
The guest room I was shown to had originally been Leadernoi’s personal study, and in it were books that seed to be remnants of the 21st century.
They must have read the books falling from the sky and had their thoughts changed. Looking at the various technological tools and literature containing the essence of 21st-century civilization made curious.
“Do things fall regularly from that fissure in the sky?”
“They do...! On nights with a full moon, the largest fissures open up...! Then, all sorts of things co pouring down through the big cracks...!”
“Have any people ever fallen through?”
“People, you say?”
Leadernoi paused with a thoughtful hum. Then he said, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that...!” and reached out to switch off the light.
I quickly said,
“You can leave the light on.”
“Electricity... must be conserved... The generator broke down recently, and it’s not easy to repair...”
I couldn’t say for sure, but it seed life in Fallen wasn’t exactly convenient.
With guns and heaters around, I’d half-suspected they might live at the level of 21st-century modern life—but in truth, it was a poor village.
A place built by those who had fled in search of freedom, full of shortages and lacking in many supplies.
They even seed short on food.
And yet, despite all this, they had accepted six guests and were doing their best to provide for us. Perhaps their bodies were poor, but their hearts were not.
Feeling grateful, I said,
“I should have said this earlier, but thank you for your hospitality. Honestly, I expected a hidden village like this to be more hostile to outsiders.”
“We are nymphs...! Nymphs don’t believe in ‘mine’ and ‘yours’...!”
It was a strange logic—but sohow, I felt like I understood. Maybe they were treating like a countryman they’d t by chance in a faraway land.
With that thought, this place almost felt like a hotown.
We agreed to talk in more detail once the sun was up, and I sank into the soft pillow and blanket.
But sohow, just falling asleep felt wasteful.
— Light.
I summoned a small magic light and pulled out a few nearby books.
“The Collapse of Neoliberalism in the 21st Century and Its Alternatives”
Even the title was enough to make drowsy.
Every book I picked up had the kind of title you’d only see in a college lecture hall. I quickly lost interest.
Still, whether it was from reading or from the warmth of the electric heater, that night I dreamt of eating chicken and cola—things I’d long wanted.
But since it had been so long since I last tasted them, even in the dream the flavor wouldn’t co to mind, and I ended up feeling disappointed.
***
“So this... this is the wrapper from that honey potato snack that fell from the sky?”
Elga held up a golden honey-colored snack bag and asked. Leadernoi threw both arms up and cheerfully shouted,
“Yes, that’s right...! Honey potato chips...! A snack nymphs find extrely delicious...! It’s a precious item, but for now, I’m willing to trade it for one of those cotton blankets...!”
Leadernoi was offering to exchange the honey potato chip wrapper for one of the blankets we had brought.
Apparently, in this village, they survived by trading items fallen from the sky with daily necessities brought in from beyond the southern barrier.
“If the honey chips don’t suit your taste... we also have glass bottles of Coke Cola with the lids still on...! These are especially popular with the smugglers...!”
Originally, smugglers would co every few days to trade goods with Fallen village. But due to the recent massive wildfire and the heavy rains that followed, they hadn’t shown up in a while.
It might very well have been because I set fire to Gargarta Fortress.
I suddenly felt guilty, wondering if I had inadvertently cut off this village’s supply line.
Elga furrowed her brows.
“So where are the actual chips that were inside this bag?”
“I, Leadernoi, already ate them all...!”
“So you’re offering to trade an empty snack bag for our blanket? That’s a horrible deal.”
“There is still the sll left inside the bag...! And that scent is not sothing just anyone gets to enjoy...! I’ve heard it goes for more than five gold coins south of the barrier...!”
Five gold coins could buy an entire pouch of honey candy. That a re snack sll could be worth so much... If you stocked up on convenience store goods and sold them here, you could probably get rich.
With such silly thoughts, I nodded and said,
“Alright, let’s trade.”
Elga protested, “Seriously? You’re trading our blanket for this?” but I figured it was likely my fault that Fallen’s supply chain had been disrupted due to the fire at Gargarta.
So, as a gesture of apology, I traded the blanket for the lingering scent of a snack bag.
Of course, I could just ask Marmar back in Monarch City to send more blankets via the dinsional carpet.
Leadernoi’s face lit up.
“Thanks to you, we’ll stay warm through this winter...! If you have more food or other goods, would you be willing to trade again? Go ahead, pick out sothing you like...!”
Leadernoi then opened the storage room—one that he normally only showed to trusted smugglers after receiving paynt.
Inside, various trinkets were arranged behind glass, like in a museum. Just browsing them was entertaining.
“What’s this?”
Nare, ever the curious one, picked sothing up. It was an old-fashioned iron with a wide base.
“What’s it for?”
To that innocent question, Mirna confidently replied,
“I know. It’s a tool for smoothing wrinkles in clothes. You press this flat side against the fabric and rub it back and forth.”
“Oooh, that actually makes a lot of sense!”
Mirna’s deduction was impressively accurate. Keen eye, that one. Nare then picked up another object.
“Sis, then what do you think this one is?”
“...Hmm.”
As Nare fiddled with the device, sothing clicked, and it began to hum with a low vibration.
“Whoa, it’s shaking!”
“Maybe it’s a massage tool? If you press this vibrating part against your shoulder—”
Shk.
Mirna placed the vibrating part against Nare’s shoulder. Her face imdiately lit up.
“Ohh, it feels kinda nice! So it really is a massage tool!”
...Was that really a massage tool?
It looked suspiciously like one of those round vibrating gadgets from those certain videos. I suddenly felt lightheaded. I’d never used one myself, so I wasn’t sure—but sothing felt off.
That’s when—
“Hey, Mirna. Then what about this one?”
Elga held sothing up toward Mirna, who recoiled like a cat spotting a snake, her hair standing on end.
“Th-that’s positively indecent! How could you show sothing like that to ?!”
“What? What is it?”
“T-that’s...”
Unable to speak further, Mirna turned bright red, as if mortified. Her eyes were fixed on the object in Elga’s hand—a stone Dol Hareubang statue.
...Yeah. Those things do look a little... suggestive.
If I told her it was just a decorative souvenir, she’d probably realize she was mistaken and beco even more embarrassed. I kinda wanted to see that—but chose to stay quiet for her dignity’s sake.
Anyway.
We continued trading food and goods we brought for various trinkets collected here in Fallen.
“Marmar, I’m sending another batch—make sure to receive it.”
━ Okay! By the way, do you have more of those honey potato chip bags? The nymph comrades went crazy over the sll! If you have a few more...
“...I’ll try.”
I gave a vague reply into Marmar’s tail wand, then sent her so broken cell phone parts and a power strip riddled with holes.
They probably wouldn’t be of much use without proper electrical systems, but if left with Angmar’s research team or Stella’s elf lab, they might eventually be reverse-engineered and adapted.
At that mont, Leadernoi looked down at the dinsional carpet and exclaid in wonder.
“A carpet where things disappear and appear...! That’s amazing...! I wish we had one like this too...!”
He must have taken a liking to the dinsional transfer carpet. He had good taste. It was a rare and extrely practical item in today’s world.
Leadernoi said,
“If you give this to us, I’ll tell you everything I know about the half-fairy I once saw...!”
Was he offering a deal?
Elga shook her head firmly.
“This carpet is valuable to us too. Without it, we might starve.”
Leadernoi looked disappointed—but I nodded without hesitation.
“Alright, let’s trade.”
“Hey, Teo. If we don’t have this—”
Elga started to object, then fell silent.
She must’ve realized the decision rested with , since I was the owner of the carpet.
Though she pouted, clearly displeased, she didn’t push the issue any further. I spoke to reassure her.
“It’s okay. I have more of them. And I want these carpets to be used all around the world. Like setting up bases.”
Before he beca the Demon King, Solomon had installed dinsional portals all across the land.
Thanks to that, I’d greatly benefited from them. But his portals were difficult to install and power.
However, if these mass-produced dinsional carpets could be placed across the world? I couldn’t picture it entirely—but life would certainly beco more convenient.
And besides—I really wanted to hear what Leadernoi had to say about the half-fairy he’d seen.
So we concluded our strange bartering and prepared to get down to business.
—Or we should have.
“Ayra-nim, what exactly are you doing?”
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