Griseo's Extra Story: Knight of Dawn

The little painter, clutching a painting, weaved through the bustling crowd. Everyone's face was etched with worry and confusion about the future.

She tilted her head up, a hint of bewilderment in her eyes, as if searching for a familiar figure among the throng.

But people came and went, and the one she sought never appeared.

The little painter first went to Aunt Mobius's laboratory. That was where the person she was looking for usually appeared. The little painter didn't know why, only that he was sick and needed Aunt Mobius's treatment.

She stood at the laboratory door. The door opened, and she saw only Aunt Mobius speaking to Klein's armed puppet. After giving instructions, Mobius sat quietly in a chair, lost in thought, staring at something, as if she hadn't noticed the little painter's arrival.

The little painter peeked into the laboratory. The person wasn't there, so she left.

Next, the little painter arrived at Sister Vill-V's Spiral Workshop. As she walked down the spiraling staircase, she happened to look up and saw a portrait she had once given to Sister Vill-V. However, Sister Vill-V didn't seem to like it and hadn't hung it in the workshop. Now, it was displayed on the staircase, a path everyone had to take.

Finally, she reached the outside of Vill-V's studio. The little painter stood outside, not going in, because she heard the voices of Kosma and Vill-V from within.

"What? You've decided to board the Ark now? Didn't you think that made you a deserter?"

"... Am I not a deserter now?"

"Heh..."

"...Finality's power and its way of existence exceeded all our expectations. Without Feng, we would have been utterly defeated. He, as a hero, left before us. We... returned from the moon like deserters."

"He wouldn't want to hear you say that. He always believed we were all heroes."

"...Is that so... Then, let me do what a hero should do one last time. The Ark Project, I was always the most suitable candidate. Humanity has not yet failed. He and Elysia secured the last spark of hope for us... This last spark must be carried on!"

"Do you know what Griseo said when she offered to carry out the Ark Project in your stead?"

"..."

"She said you were very afraid of being alone. Boarding the Ark, you would be flying alone in the sky. But she wouldn't be afraid, because the stars are her friends."

"...It's my fault."

"So, you're not afraid of loneliness anymore?"

"I... Since Feng believes I am a hero, I should do what I, as a hero, must do. And loneliness... is something a hero must experience and face."

The little painter stood outside, listening for a while. She only knew that Kosma was going to board the spaceship to the stars, and the person she was looking for wasn't there either.

Kosma and the others also mentioned little sister Elysia. It seemed little sister Elysia had also gone somewhere. Had she hidden with that person?

Thinking this, the little painter left the Spiral Workshop.

Sister Pardo often pulled that person along for naps. Maybe she knew where he was?

So, the little painter headed towards Pardo's room. Before she even reached it, she saw Pardo walking from a distance, carrying a dirty box.

"Little Griseo? What are you doing here? Isn't Abu with you?" Pardo looked at the little painter with some surprise and said. Then, as if remembering something, she muttered softly, "Oh, right. When we returned from the moon, Abu said he was going to find Sister Vill-V to do what he was supposed to do... something about the Ark Project, wasn't it?"

The little painter looked up at Pardo and first asked, "Sister Pardo, did you see Brother Yu Feng?"

"Brother Yu Feng?" Pardo was startled, and then her expression turned very sad. She said, "Brother Yu Feng... he's a great hero, very busy... He... went to a very faraway place. Both Sister Lilith and Sister Elysia are there too... Maybe... they won't be back for a long, long time..."

Sister Pardo is lying.

The little painter thought this as she watched Pardo's tail swing back and forth. But she didn't expose Pardo, because she had always been a good and obedient child. So, if Pardo didn't want to talk about it, she wouldn't press further.

The little painter then looked at the box Pardo was holding and asked, "What's in this box you're holding, Sister Pardo?"

"In my box..." Pardo looked down at her box. "It's nothing much, just some of my little things..."

"But why does it look so dirty?"

Pardo pursed her lips and replied, "Because I buried it in the ground before, and I just dug it out... I still need to ask Sister Vill-V if there's a way to preserve the things inside..."

"Oh." The little painter nodded. Since she couldn't get an answer from Pardo, she had to continue her search elsewhere. "I'll be going now, goodbye Sister Pardo."

"Ah, goodbye, little Griseo..." Pardo finally noticed the painting the little painter was holding. She asked curiously, "Little Griseo, who is this painting for?"

The little painter replied, "It's for Brother Yu Feng."

Although it should have been given to him long ago, the little painter didn't like this painting and didn't want to give it to him. Sister Elysia had said that you shouldn't give things you don't like to others, because they might not like them either.

But no matter how she tried afterward, the results were even worse than this painting. So, after a long time thinking, the little painter finally decided to give the painting to him. If he didn't like it... what should she do then? The little painter became a little troubled.

Pardo, hearing the little painter's answer, fell silent again. She watched the little painter leave, then looked down at the box in her hands and sighed softly.

The little painter continued walking through the dim corridor. She planned to find Brother Kevin. That person had a good relationship with Brother Kevin, although Brother Kevin always seemed very unapproachable. She wondered if he would tell her where that person was...

She arrived at the place everyone called the "Schicksal Hall of Heroes" and saw Brother Kevin talking with Sister Mei. The little painter tiptoed and hid behind the counter, quietly listening to their conversation.

"...The child's eyes... are very much like yours."

"Don't joke at a time like this, Kevin. You know, I have congenital myopia. When designing this child with Mobius and the others, your genes were used for this part."

"No... that's not what I meant..."

"Kevin, you also know that my current physical condition doesn't allow me to move towards the future with you. But... you still have a long time ahead of you. I hope this child can become the last link between you and the world."

"..."

"..."

Both fell silent. The little painter waited for a while, then quietly left.

She walked aimlessly through the corridors, clutching her painting. Everyone seemed unwilling to tell her where that person had gone, but in truth, she already knew.

They said Sister Disaster was a hero, and then the little painter never saw Sister Disaster again. Only occasionally, when Kosma played his harmonica, would he tell her about Sister Disaster's past.

They said Father and Mother were heroes, and then the little painter never saw her father and mother again. When her mother became a hero, her father cried for a long time while holding her. It was the first time the little painter had ever seen her father shed tears. And when her father became a hero, it was that person who told her. At that time, he gently crouched down and hugged her, saying, "I'm sorry, I couldn't bring your father back. I'm sorry..."

Why apologize?

Later, it was that person again who told her that Sister Astaroth had also become a hero and had gone to deliver her message to her parents, who had also become heroes. He said that after her parents heard Sister Astaroth's story, they would surely be happy for her.

As he spoke, the color of his hair and eyes had already changed to the same color as Sister Lilith's hair, as beautiful as the Milky Way on a summer night.

Now...

He too had become a hero. Everyone said he was a hero. But just as she couldn't find her father and mother, she couldn't find him either.

Why did he have to become a hero? Did he go to find Sister Lilith and the others?

Was he... like Kosma, someone who feared loneliness? Sister Lilith and the others had become heroes, leaving him alone. He was lonely, so he went to find Sister Lilith and the others...

Heroes... what exactly are they? Kosma always wanted to be a hero, so he prepared to board the ship that could travel to the place where the stars lived.

Heroes... do they go to the place where the stars live?

Thinking this, the little painter unknowingly walked out of the place everyone called "the base." She looked up at the vast night sky, where stars twinkled, and the starlight was reflected in the little painter's eyes.

Speaking of which, Sister Elysia had always wanted to meet that person. They were both heroes now, so... had they met? What would they say?

Before Sister Elysia left, she had found and gently hugged the little painter, telling her she was leaving. She also said that if she could see him again, she would definitely tell him the answer she never gave back then and her true feelings. Even if there would be no response, she had to tell him that belated answer.

"Is Brother Yu Feng important to you?"

"Yes, very important..."

There would definitely be a response, because that person had been very gentle from beginning to end.

"Hey, kid, why did you run out?" a deep, hoarse voice sounded from above the little painter.

The little painter looked in the direction of the voice. It was that strange masked adult. He leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, looking down at her.

The little painter was a little afraid of this strange adult because he always shouted, but now the color on him seemed a bit dim, like everyone else's. Yet, he also had more vibrant colors than others.

"I'm looking for Brother Yu Feng," the little painter said. "Do you know where he is?"

"Huh?" The strange adult's voice suddenly became louder, startling the little painter into taking a step back.

Seeing the little painter's reaction, Qianjie shifted his gaze elsewhere, and his voice returned to normal volume. "Why are you looking for him?"

"I want to give him this painting, but everyone says Brother Yu Feng became a hero and no one tells me where he is..."

"He's dead. He died alone, abandoning the world."

Faced with this answer from the strange adult, the little painter felt a bit confused. "What does 'dead' mean?"

"Dead is dead. What meaning is there?" Qianjie said impatiently. "You can't give him this painting anyway. If you're done, hurry back. I don't want that Aponia fellow to see you here and start rambling about useless nonsense again!"

In the little painter's eyes, when this strange adult mentioned that person, his colors became very angry. But it seemed he wasn't angry at that person...

The little painter looked up at the night sky again and walked back to the base.

On her way back to her studio, she saw Mother Aponia, and Mother Aponia saw her too. She walked over and said, "Griseo, where did you go? Everyone said you were wandering around the base. I was a little worried..."

The little painter looked up at Aponia and asked, "Mother Aponia, what does 'dead' mean?"

Aponia froze.

"That strange brother with the mask said Brother Yu Feng is dead," the little painter said. "But you all said he became a hero, so, are Father and Mother also 'dead'?"

"Qianjie..." Aponia's eyes narrowed slightly, with a faint red tint appearing within them, but it quickly disappeared. She crouched down and stroked Griseo's head, saying, "They... they've all gone to a very, very far away place. None of us can go find them now. 'Dead' is very distant for you now. One day you'll understand what it means, but for now... you don't need to understand the meaning of that word."

The little painter nodded, as if she understood but didn't quite.

Although Mother Aponia hadn't explained, the little painter already had a general concept of "death." It probably meant that person had disappeared from this world, and no matter how much she searched, she wouldn't be able to find him.

"Griseo, you've been walking around so much today, it's time to rest. I'll take you back first, and then... I'll go and have a good talk with Qianjie about polite ways of speaking..." Aponia said.

The blue-haired painter stood by the window, gazing as always at the rising sun outside. She looked at the completed painting by her window, which had been finished long ago but had been continuously altered over the long passage of time.

The knight, walking into the darkness with his back to the sun, his silhouette gradually began to clear. The sunlight, which had never shone on him before, now illuminated him.

The Knight of Dawn brought the dawn, and he too would eventually return to this world, revitalized by him.