---

“I’m telling you, it’s faster for a butterfly to cross the sea than for Dad to get good at playing the flute.”

“…I’ll practice hard, okay?”

The voice echoed from my memories.

A voice I could only hear in my memories.

“Well, it’s fine, Dad. Everyone has things they’re not good at.”

“My daughter has grown up to think like an adult.”

A conversation that had become a memory long ago.

A conversation that could no longer continue.

“But still, you have to play this song for me someday, okay? That song, <Sea Butterfly>.”

“Sure. I promise.”

A promise made so long ago that I couldn’t even remember when.

A forgotten promise that I thought could never be kept.

And yet.

“♩♪♬───”

Beyond the loud warning sounds that filled the space, the clumsy sound of the flute was too clear to ignore.

I no longer had the confidence to hold onto it.

“…I’m sorry. I made you wait for so long.”

After my true feelings mixed in with the stiff mechanical sounds, I ended up facing that gaze head-on.

I stood up from my weakly slumped position and ultimately settled into that rigid embrace.

Finally, the player and the illustration of the reunion with the hibiscus filled the broadcast screen.

The mouse cursor that had stubbornly stopped moving showed no signs of life.

Beyond the gentle background music, all I could hear was heavy breathing and faint sobs.

Hibiscus, choking back tears while clinging to the player, couldn’t even read the flood of support messages that appeared every second.

“…Ugh… Huh…”

– ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– This scene is just a cheat code ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– Wait, are you really crying?

– Dia is sad ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– Sea Butterfly’s crying reaction is always delicious.

– For real?

– This doesn’t seem fake.

– How long has it been since I felt such genuine emotions?

[ Baeksulyeon has donated 10,000 won! ]

: This scene makes me sad every time I see it ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[ Garujag has donated 10,000 won! ]

: Dia’s tears have burst out ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[ Shuuya has donated 10,000 won! ]

: I’m getting sad too because the one who didn’t cry started crying.

The chat and donation windows were overflowing with activity, showing more liveliness than usual.

And as time passed, the number of viewers surged sharply.

It had been quite a long time since the game <Sea Butterfly> was released.

Yet, perhaps because of its reputation, viewers from all over flocked in.

The emotional ending scene, the Alpha and Omega of <Sea Butterfly>, was being broadcast live.

Additionally, the pure sound of crying was broadcasted without any hint of being forced.

Importantly, it was thanks to the so-called “cuckoos” who made short clips of Dia’s broadcast and spread them around that the rumors spread even faster.

Thus, Dia’s broadcast eventually reached a monumental milestone—over 10,000 live viewers.

But.

“Can’t you just run away with me? Please…!”

“I’m sorry.”

“Ah, no. I can’t live without Dad anymore. What meaning does life have without a precious person!!”

In that moment, all I could care about was Hibiscus and the player.

Father and daughter preparing to part once more.

Now, the player had become a humanoid.

Moreover, it had been revealed that their very existence was a taboo—a robot imbued with an ‘intelligence’.

The current situation in the <Inner City>, where both the player and Hibiscus were, was sinking because of the player, whose existence itself was taboo.

If the player’s existence were to surface, everyone connected to them would be arrested.

The mastermind behind the player’s demise in the past, those who produced the illegal gas “Daydream,” were the rulers of this <Inner City>.

As a result, they intended to sink the <Inner City> into the sea, erasing all evidence of wrongdoing.

In the end, the <Inner City> and its citizens were sinking under the sea for the safety of just a handful of people.

Therefore.

“Hibiscus.”

“I don’t want to hear it. Don’t say anything, just live.”

One of the two—the player or Hibiscus—had to remain in the city control room to raise the <Inner City> back to the surface.

There was no option for both to survive.

“Do you know how much Dad loves you?”

The player, who couldn’t allow their daughter to be in danger because of them, and Hibiscus, who couldn’t bear to part with her father again after finally reuniting, both wished for the other’s survival.

But time continued to flow.

“Remember this. Your father’s meaning in your life is enough with that.”

– Sudden silence.

“…I’ll be watching.”

The farewell was carried out by the player, who had finally made a decision.

I couldn’t move my footsteps.

A sacrifice that couldn’t be stopped.

All I could do was watch.

I could only look beyond my already blurry vision.

The parent who loved their child more than life itself, which Haeun had longed for in her past life, slowly faded away as they disappeared.

All that remained was Hibiscus, a girl the same age as Haeun.

“………………”

Having wished for it their entire life, Haeun now understood how significant a parent’s existence could be.

Meeting a true parent in the end, she could easily comprehend the pain of loss.

Perhaps that was why.

[ It was fun. ]

– ?

– Why did you suddenly go mute, Dia-dia?

– Were you that sad you couldn’t even speak? ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– As expected, <Sea Butterfly> is indeed a masterpiece.

Instead of her completely blocked throat, she began communicating with the viewers through the notes.

She felt like if she didn’t force herself to keep quiet, she wouldn’t be able to maintain her rationality.

However.

[ Yes. It’s a well-made game. ]

While she conveyed her impressions of <Sea Butterfly> to the viewers via the notes.

– Slurp.

<Heavenly Martial Arts Dad>

A drawing slowly began to surface on the monitor.

It was a representation of the player, drawn by young Hibiscus with her clumsy art skills.

“………Ugh.”

– Oh my ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– There’s still a bit left ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Junjangnim ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– Dia is sad again ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– It’s so sad until the very end.

– <Sea Butterfly> (complete)

Feeling her throat choke again, she finally left a closing remark in the notes for her broadcast.

Almost simultaneously, Dia’s broadcast switched to the waiting screen.

Although the chat and donation windows remained lively, she was already psychologically drained, unable to focus anymore.

Eventually, not long after, the broadcast completely ended.

Yet, she remained seated for quite a while, dazed by the aftereffects of <Sea Butterfly>.

Then, she slumped down.

With even less strength than usual, she tossed and turned on the mattress.

At that moment, clear memories of her past life followed one after another.

The fleeting moments of those memories were like bubbles that popped in an instant, bitter to the taste.

Her mind was filled with assumptions that held no meaning, from one to ten.

Recalling the times she had parents even though she didn’t have them cast a shadow on her ‘true’ expression.

‘…Perhaps it would have been better if I had no memories at all.’

Having cried once already, she felt no more tears.

That was the only source of comfort she had.

*

– Ding.

[ ㅇㅇ has donated 1,000 won! ]

: Cream Cream, did you see Dia playing <Sea Butterfly>?

“Ah, yeah. Maybe because she’s still young, she’s quite sensitive.”

– One year old is indeed still young ㅋㅋㅋ

– As expected, <Sea Butterfly> is indeed a masterpiece.

– So what will it mean for Mile, who cried throughout part two of the broadcast?

“Mile? She was just born with an F rating.”

– Such a T-rated comment.

– Cream, are you T too?

– Alright, Cream, let’s play <Sea Butterfly> together!

“It looks too difficult for me. I’ve only seen Dia reach the ending; if I try, I won’t be able to make it even if I play all night, you know?”

– Dia did it on Hero Difficulty, that’s why.

– Oh yeah, it was Hero Difficulty ㅋㅋㅋ

– I got so wrapped up in the baby crying that I totally forgot it was Hero Difficulty.

[ ㅇㅇ has donated 10,000 won! ]

: If you call Dia and ask if she’s okay, it’s 30,000 won ㄱㄱ

“Um….”

As she considered the missions that were quite generous, Maria, the owner of the nickname Cream, hesitated.

Thinking about how emotional Haeun had been throughout the <Sea Butterfly> playthrough and how she couldn’t even speak properly in the end made her worried.

Eventually, she decided to call Haeun.

Just a brief chat might help improve Haeun’s state even a little.

However.

– ♪

– ♪… Click.

For some reason, the call connected in almost one second.

​

[ …Hello?]

​

– Huh?!

– Oh my!

– Older sister! Ahhh!!

– Wow!

– Oh!

– What’s this voice?!

– Older sister, I’m dying!!

“Di-Dia! You’re live right now!!”

Just a few seconds later, Maria realized she had made a mistake.

A big, huge mistake.

To put it in strict terms, the calls with Dia during broadcasts were not new.

Chatting about the content of Dia’s broadcast was also not new.

​

[ …Ah. ]

​

– Oh my!

– Older sister! Ahhh!!

– Who are you??

– Ugh!!

– Wow, that voice is insane ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– The viewers are going to turn red!!!!!

Her voice, heard through the speaker mode of the phone, was not Dia’s but Haeun’s for the first time.

And it was especially striking because it was a hoarse voice.