The girl who came again today opened her eyes wide as she looked at the new bed in the basement.
“There’s a bed in your room? And you seem to be gaining weight, too.”
As the girl said, the room the child was staying in was gradually getting better.
The floor was covered with thick carpets to block out the cold, and the windows, which had previously only had iron bars, were now fitted with glass to block out the wind.
The child no longer had to lie on the cold floor.
He slept in a bed with a soft mattress and was able to eat freshly baked bread instead of stale bread.
The girl, who had been looking at the changing room with curious eyes, soon sat down on the bed.
Then she shook her body from side to side to check the performance of the bed.
“It seems better than the bed in the poorhouse.”
The girl often told the child stories about her time in the workhouse.
She kept complaining about how bad the food there was and how her hands were a mess from all the hard work she did every day.
It seemed true that she was doing hard work, as her hands were covered with small scrapes and pus.
The child was always bothered by the girl's bruised hand.
Because it was a wound that didn't suit a girl with transparent skin.
'Would you be happy if I healed all the wounds on your hand?'
As if the people in the room were happy.
The child wanted the girl to praise him with a bright smile on her face.
As soon as that thought ended, the boy grabbed the girl's wrist. Then, the girl opened her eyes wide and asked, "What's going on?"
“You said you didn’t have a name, right? So I’ll give you a name... Why?”
But instead of answering, the child licked the girl's palm, which was full of tears.
She looks forward to the child's bright smile.
“...”
However, the girl's reaction was different from what the child had expected. The girl blinked her eyes as if trying to figure out the situation, then pulled her hand away in shock.
“...What, what are you doing?”
With a face as red as a ripe apple.
Weird.
If he does it this way, everyone will like it.
The child was taken aback by the unexpected reaction.
“This, this, this way... compliment...”
"...compliment?"
The girl's face turned red for a moment. She looked at her palm after understanding what the child meant.
The girl's hands were clean, without a single scratch, and she had disappeared somewhere.
However.
“This is...”
A small crack appeared on the clear girl's face. Soon, the girl began mumbling something unintelligible.
“It’s power... Why do you have power... You, by any chance... Were you a member of the royal family?”
Royalty? What's that?
He didn't know what she meant, but one thing was certain.
The girl absolutely hates royalty.
This reaction was not what the child wanted.
The expression on the girl's face, who had been mumbling to herself that it was nonsense, became even darker.
Then she looked at the child with eyes he had never seen before.
The look in her eyes sent a chill down the child's spine and made his faint heart fall to the bottom.
Two eyes mixed with strong negativity.
It was a deep loathing for oneself.
From that day on, the girl did not come looking for the child.
Does she hate him now?
The child's shoulders slumped at the thought of being alone again.
The child looked at the bed sheet, which had something bulging out.
Under the pure white sheets was a gift for the girl.
There was a vase of roses next to the middle-aged woman whom the child had treated last night.
A child who was captivated by a rose he happened to see in the winter hid a rose in a vase in his bosom and came out without anyone knowing.
He thought giving a rose to the girl would make her feel better.
And as soon as he returned to the basement, he put the rose under a thick blanket, fearing that the flower would die.
If he remembered correctly, flowers only bloom brightly in warm places.
This was done out of concern that the basement was cold and might wither quickly.
The child waited for the girl, hoping that she would come see him before the flower died.
He wonders if the child's earnest heart got through.
The girl came into the basement with the sound of familiar footsteps.
The child ran out in a frenzy as he caught sight of the now familiar dark green hair.
And he stammered with a voice that was slightly filled with resentment.
“Why, why, why... This, my...”
“Why did I come only now?”
The girl, who had somehow managed to understand the child's clumsy words, answered.
“...Originally, I wasn’t going to come. But...”
The girl's face was distorted.
As if she had remembered something she didn't want to remember, the girl realized. What the child was doing here.
And now that she knew that, the girl couldn't ignore the child any longer.
“Since when did you start doing ‘that thing’?”
'That thing'.
The child tilted his head, not understanding what was being said.
The girl frowned as if she had eaten bitter herbs while looking at the child.
“...Yes. You don’t have to answer.”
But she muttered quietly as she asked the question.
“There’s no way a child who is being treated like this is that man’s illegitimate child... You must be a collateral branch that just came from somewhere.”
The child still didn't understand what the girl was saying, but soon, he lifted the bed sheets as if he remembered something important.
And he offered the rose he had been keeping to the girl.
“What is this?”
“Giving. Me, me.”
It had long since lost its shape due to being pressed down by the heavy sheet, but thanks to that, the scent had become even stronger.
"Sorry."
“...”
“I made you feel bad.”
“...No. You weren’t bad. It’s the adults who are bad.”
A strange smile appeared on the girl's lips at the fact that the child had hidden the flowers as an apology.
Then he was handed a rose held in his hand like a fern brake.
“It’s pretty.”
“Yes, pretty?”
“Yeah. It’s pretty. This is what they call pretty.”
“...Yes, okay.”
The girl, who had been smelling the flower the child had given her for a long time, opened her lips again.
“Giving someone a name means that you are bound by a special bond. Do you know what bond is?”
"This, bond?”
The child who had no one to talk to and couldn't speak began to speak little by little, although he stuttered.
Recently, he's been trying to make somewhat plausible sentences by stringing together short words.
The girl smiled as if she was proud of the child who had begun to speak to some extent.
“Yes, fate... Originally, I wanted to give you a name. However, I don’t want to create that kind of fate with you. To be exact, I don’t want to be entangled with the blood flowing in your body.”
This time, he didn't quite understand what she was saying, but it was definitely not good.
The child's shoulders slumped in frustration.
“...Instead, I’ll let you out of here. You don’t want to do what you’re doing right now, do you?”
The girl seemed to know what the child was doing in the room.
Because of that, there was a bit of sympathy mixed in when looking at the child.
The girl's face darkened for a moment.
But he shook his head as if trying to shake off his depressed mood.
The girl let out a short sigh at the child's expression and ruffled the child's hair.
“I promise you. I’ll take you with me when I leave this place. When that time comes, you’ll leave with me. So hold on a little longer. I’ll hold on too.”
As she spoke, the girl said that someone was waiting at the workhouse. If that person came to get her, she would leave the empire and never set foot on this continent again.
She won't do anything like revenge; she'll just live quietly and hide.
“Don’t worry. The person I’m waiting for is of a higher status than Count Gott. If I ask him to take you with me, he’ll definitely listen.”
This time, the child did not understand what the girl was saying.
Still, he understood one thing clearly.
'Let's go out together.'
He nodded vigorously at those words.
And that day came sooner than expected, without any warning.
That day was nothing special.
The child was waiting for the girl in the basement again today.
Because the girl always came here late at night after work.
He waited for the girl for a long time.
He heard someone coming down the stairs earlier than expected.
The only strange thing is that his normally calm footsteps seem more urgent than usual.
The girl spoke in an excited voice, her cautious behavior that had made her wary of being caught gone.
“The old man is here! I only saw him briefly from afar, but it’s definitely him!”
The old man the girl had been talking about for a long time was said to be a long-time friend of the girl's father.
He added that as the head of a prestigious marquisate family, the family has had a very deep connection since ancient times.
“My father said that when there was a crisis in the family, we should go to the Great Marquis’s house. That’s why I came here on purpose. The poorhouse where Count Gott is the director is one of the places that the Great Marquis’ house supports.”
The girl spoke in an expectant voice, saying that she would soon be able to leave this wretched place.
“I’ll give you a detailed explanation later. If you have anything to pack, pack it quickly. Come out with me. It might be a little dangerous if we move together, but if we meet the old man as soon as possible, it’ll be okay.”
“Uh, yeah!”
Previous Next
“There’s a bed in your room? And you seem to be gaining weight, too.”
As the girl said, the room the child was staying in was gradually getting better.
The floor was covered with thick carpets to block out the cold, and the windows, which had previously only had iron bars, were now fitted with glass to block out the wind.
The child no longer had to lie on the cold floor.
He slept in a bed with a soft mattress and was able to eat freshly baked bread instead of stale bread.
The girl, who had been looking at the changing room with curious eyes, soon sat down on the bed.
Then she shook her body from side to side to check the performance of the bed.
“It seems better than the bed in the poorhouse.”
The girl often told the child stories about her time in the workhouse.
She kept complaining about how bad the food there was and how her hands were a mess from all the hard work she did every day.
It seemed true that she was doing hard work, as her hands were covered with small scrapes and pus.
The child was always bothered by the girl's bruised hand.
Because it was a wound that didn't suit a girl with transparent skin.
'Would you be happy if I healed all the wounds on your hand?'
As if the people in the room were happy.
The child wanted the girl to praise him with a bright smile on her face.
As soon as that thought ended, the boy grabbed the girl's wrist. Then, the girl opened her eyes wide and asked, "What's going on?"
“You said you didn’t have a name, right? So I’ll give you a name... Why?”
But instead of answering, the child licked the girl's palm, which was full of tears.
She looks forward to the child's bright smile.
“...”
However, the girl's reaction was different from what the child had expected. The girl blinked her eyes as if trying to figure out the situation, then pulled her hand away in shock.
“...What, what are you doing?”
With a face as red as a ripe apple.
Weird.
If he does it this way, everyone will like it.
The child was taken aback by the unexpected reaction.
“This, this, this way... compliment...”
"...compliment?"
The girl's face turned red for a moment. She looked at her palm after understanding what the child meant.
The girl's hands were clean, without a single scratch, and she had disappeared somewhere.
However.
“This is...”
A small crack appeared on the clear girl's face. Soon, the girl began mumbling something unintelligible.
“It’s power... Why do you have power... You, by any chance... Were you a member of the royal family?”
Royalty? What's that?
He didn't know what she meant, but one thing was certain.
The girl absolutely hates royalty.
This reaction was not what the child wanted.
The expression on the girl's face, who had been mumbling to herself that it was nonsense, became even darker.
Then she looked at the child with eyes he had never seen before.
The look in her eyes sent a chill down the child's spine and made his faint heart fall to the bottom.
Two eyes mixed with strong negativity.
It was a deep loathing for oneself.
***
From that day on, the girl did not come looking for the child.
Does she hate him now?
The child's shoulders slumped at the thought of being alone again.
The child looked at the bed sheet, which had something bulging out.
Under the pure white sheets was a gift for the girl.
There was a vase of roses next to the middle-aged woman whom the child had treated last night.
A child who was captivated by a rose he happened to see in the winter hid a rose in a vase in his bosom and came out without anyone knowing.
He thought giving a rose to the girl would make her feel better.
And as soon as he returned to the basement, he put the rose under a thick blanket, fearing that the flower would die.
If he remembered correctly, flowers only bloom brightly in warm places.
This was done out of concern that the basement was cold and might wither quickly.
The child waited for the girl, hoping that she would come see him before the flower died.
He wonders if the child's earnest heart got through.
The girl came into the basement with the sound of familiar footsteps.
The child ran out in a frenzy as he caught sight of the now familiar dark green hair.
And he stammered with a voice that was slightly filled with resentment.
“Why, why, why... This, my...”
“Why did I come only now?”
The girl, who had somehow managed to understand the child's clumsy words, answered.
“...Originally, I wasn’t going to come. But...”
The girl's face was distorted.
As if she had remembered something she didn't want to remember, the girl realized. What the child was doing here.
And now that she knew that, the girl couldn't ignore the child any longer.
“Since when did you start doing ‘that thing’?”
'That thing'.
The child tilted his head, not understanding what was being said.
The girl frowned as if she had eaten bitter herbs while looking at the child.
“...Yes. You don’t have to answer.”
But she muttered quietly as she asked the question.
“There’s no way a child who is being treated like this is that man’s illegitimate child... You must be a collateral branch that just came from somewhere.”
The child still didn't understand what the girl was saying, but soon, he lifted the bed sheets as if he remembered something important.
And he offered the rose he had been keeping to the girl.
“What is this?”
“Giving. Me, me.”
It had long since lost its shape due to being pressed down by the heavy sheet, but thanks to that, the scent had become even stronger.
"Sorry."
“...”
“I made you feel bad.”
“...No. You weren’t bad. It’s the adults who are bad.”
A strange smile appeared on the girl's lips at the fact that the child had hidden the flowers as an apology.
Then he was handed a rose held in his hand like a fern brake.
“It’s pretty.”
“Yes, pretty?”
“Yeah. It’s pretty. This is what they call pretty.”
“...Yes, okay.”
The girl, who had been smelling the flower the child had given her for a long time, opened her lips again.
“Giving someone a name means that you are bound by a special bond. Do you know what bond is?”
"This, bond?”
The child who had no one to talk to and couldn't speak began to speak little by little, although he stuttered.
Recently, he's been trying to make somewhat plausible sentences by stringing together short words.
The girl smiled as if she was proud of the child who had begun to speak to some extent.
“Yes, fate... Originally, I wanted to give you a name. However, I don’t want to create that kind of fate with you. To be exact, I don’t want to be entangled with the blood flowing in your body.”
This time, he didn't quite understand what she was saying, but it was definitely not good.
The child's shoulders slumped in frustration.
“...Instead, I’ll let you out of here. You don’t want to do what you’re doing right now, do you?”
The girl seemed to know what the child was doing in the room.
Because of that, there was a bit of sympathy mixed in when looking at the child.
The girl's face darkened for a moment.
But he shook his head as if trying to shake off his depressed mood.
The girl let out a short sigh at the child's expression and ruffled the child's hair.
“I promise you. I’ll take you with me when I leave this place. When that time comes, you’ll leave with me. So hold on a little longer. I’ll hold on too.”
As she spoke, the girl said that someone was waiting at the workhouse. If that person came to get her, she would leave the empire and never set foot on this continent again.
She won't do anything like revenge; she'll just live quietly and hide.
“Don’t worry. The person I’m waiting for is of a higher status than Count Gott. If I ask him to take you with me, he’ll definitely listen.”
This time, the child did not understand what the girl was saying.
Still, he understood one thing clearly.
'Let's go out together.'
He nodded vigorously at those words.
And that day came sooner than expected, without any warning.
***
That day was nothing special.
The child was waiting for the girl in the basement again today.
Because the girl always came here late at night after work.
He waited for the girl for a long time.
He heard someone coming down the stairs earlier than expected.
The only strange thing is that his normally calm footsteps seem more urgent than usual.
The girl spoke in an excited voice, her cautious behavior that had made her wary of being caught gone.
“The old man is here! I only saw him briefly from afar, but it’s definitely him!”
The old man the girl had been talking about for a long time was said to be a long-time friend of the girl's father.
He added that as the head of a prestigious marquisate family, the family has had a very deep connection since ancient times.
“My father said that when there was a crisis in the family, we should go to the Great Marquis’s house. That’s why I came here on purpose. The poorhouse where Count Gott is the director is one of the places that the Great Marquis’ house supports.”
The girl spoke in an expectant voice, saying that she would soon be able to leave this wretched place.
“I’ll give you a detailed explanation later. If you have anything to pack, pack it quickly. Come out with me. It might be a little dangerous if we move together, but if we meet the old man as soon as possible, it’ll be okay.”
“Uh, yeah!”
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