Chapter 7

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter Title: I'll Raise the Villain Properly - Chapter 7

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"Y-Yes...?"

I opened my mouth again toward the director, who was stupidly asking back.

"That's the reason I came all the way here. To check if the Vusnie Orphanage is being run according to the report that was submitted."

Of course, it was a lie.

The Bellomon Duke had only allowed me to enter the ducal family's domain; he had never delegated any special authority to me. So there was no way he would have entrusted me with investigating an orphanage.

Normally, I would have been cautious about getting caught in a lie...

'But if I screw this up, my baby might die.'

For the future of my beloved nephew, Lucian, there was nothing I wouldn't do.

In truth, what bothered me most was something else entirely.

'The state of this orphanage is worse than I thought.'

Cold drafts whistled through the broken doors and windows, making it no place for children. And on one wall, black mold was rampant. The cause of the kids' skin conditions was obviously that mold.

Children who should have been playing innocently were busy cleaning instead of playing house, and they couldn't even eat the already meager meals properly because they were watching the director's mood.

Watching that, I couldn't just stand by as an adult.

It wasn't because I was kind. This was simple compassion and morality that any human, any adult, should have.

'And those plaques.'

The plaques displayed on the bookshelf in the director's office had inscriptions like "Best Orphanage for Children to Grow Up In" and "Orphanage of the Month."

'How the hell is this dump winning any awards?'

It was obvious without looking. He'd embezzled funds and bribed his superiors to get those awards. The nobles would have heard it was an award-winning orphanage and adopted kids from here.

'I can't just let that director slide; he's too infuriating.'

The orphanage's budget all came from the Bellomon Ducal Family. If the duke later nitpicked this, I could just say I'd stepped in to prevent ducal funds from being misused.

'Above all, this is for the Bellomon Duke's son.'

The duke should be thanking me on his knees.

With that thought, I pulled out the documents I'd carefully tucked into my handbag.

"According to the documents submitted at the end of last month, you spent 20 gold on window repairs and playground maintenance. And yet..."

I trailed off, and the director's Adam's apple bobbed heavily.

"The windows, the playground—nothing's been fixed. 20 gold isn't a small amount, you know."

10 gold was enough for a commoner's family to live on for a month. That meant he'd pocketed twice that much.

"I heard you got a top grade in this quarter's orphanage evaluation, but to me, even a fourth-grade rating seems too generous."

Fourth grade was the lowest score possible. And yet he'd swept up all those awards.

"Th-That is... Ah, it's winter, so the winds are especially fierce, aren't they? That's why the windows and playground are in such bad shape..."

"Is that so?"

"Yes! Exactly!"

Thinking he'd found an escape, the director nodded vigorously.

"If it's fallen apart like this just a month after repairs, it must be shoddy workmanship. Call the contractors right now. We'll punish them in the name of the Bellomon Ducal Family."

"......"

I'm not an idiot. There was no way I'd fall for such an absurd lie.

"Why no answer?"

"I-I'm just trying to remember where I put the related documents..."

"Think hard while I'm checking the kitchen."

"Wh-Why the kitchen...?"

The director stared at me with terrified eyes.

"I need to confirm if the children are being fed properly."

Amelia, peeking only her eyes over the windowsill outside, watched Lucella and the director talking. But she couldn't hear a word. The window was shut tight.

She couldn't just fling it open, either. An old window like that would creak loudly the moment she touched it.

One thing she could guess was that the director's expression wasn't good. Especially when Lucella pulled out some mysterious paper—his face had gone completely pale.

'I don't know what they're talking about, but from his reaction, it doesn't seem like she's here to adopt a child.'

Amelia let out a sigh of relief.

She still didn't know what kind of person Lucella was, but seeing her make the director panic like that made her think she might not be a bad person.

'First time I've seen the director make a face like that.'

His sweaty, distraught face was comical.

'You lazy slugs! Can't you move faster?! Can't you see that trash in the corner?!'

It was nothing like when he yelled at the kids and made them work.

Amelia giggled into her hand before turning away from the director's office and heading to the kitchen.

'I promised Edwin I'd bring him cookies.'

She had to steal some before Lucella and the director finished talking.

Amelia entered the kitchen. The stench hit her nose the moment she stepped inside. It was the smell of rotting ingredients.

In cold weather like this, food didn't spoil easily. But the director and staff had managed to achieve the impossible.

'Let's see.'

Pinching her nose with one hand, Amelia headed to the drawer cabinet next to the stove. If her memory was right, the cookies should be in there.

'Found them.'

Soon, she spotted cookies in a paper bag inside the drawer.

But her joy was short-lived. Rats had gnawed them all; not a single one was intact.

'I made a promise with Edwin...'

The thing Amelia hated most in the world was lies. Of course, she was lying right now to prevent adoptions, but still.

Anyway, she didn't want to do the thing she hated most to Edwin.

In the end, Amelia took out one cookie. Then she cut away all the rat-gnawed parts.

The palm-sized cookie shrank to half its size, but it wasn't bad. Smaller ones were easier to hide anyway.

'Gotta get back before I get caught.'

She had just slipped the cookie, wrapped in paper to keep it from crumbling, into her pocket.

"Is the kitchen this way?"

The nearby voice made Amelia stiffen. Footsteps—two sets—were approaching.

'I can't get caught!'

If they found out she'd come into the kitchen on her own, she might starve all day.

'What do I do?'

Looking around frantically for a hiding spot, Amelia's eyes landed on a large jar. The one for storing cooked oatmeal was big enough for a child to fit inside comfortably.

Without hesitation, Amelia opened the jar's lid and folded her small body inside.

She closed the lid just as Lucella and the director entered the kitchen.

'Phew, close one.'

Her relief was brief; curiosity took over.

'But why'd they come to the kitchen?'

Dragging that flustered director along, no less.

Amelia carefully cracked open the lid with delicate fingers. Peering through the tiny gap, she watched outside.

The first thing she saw was Lucella, frowning deeply and pinching her nose.

"What is this smell?"

"It's from the food waste. We dispose of it on different days of the week."

"It's the dead of winter, and it reeks this bad?"

Ignoring the director's words, Lucella sniffed around like a dog, trying to track the source of the stench.

Soon, she succeeded.

"The food waste is stored so prettily."

"......"

"It looks like it could have gone straight into a dish if it hadn't rotted."

The director couldn't open his mouth at her bone-chilling words.

If Lucella hadn't visited today, all that rotten food would have ended up in the children's stomachs.

But the problems didn't end there.

"Why are ingredients stored next to the trash? Disgusting."

"The floor's covered in grime."

"This is all the food for twenty kids? You trying to malnourish them?"

Lucella tore through the kitchen, inspecting every corner. Her face was ice-cold, utterly different from when she'd played with the children.

"What's the snack for today?"

"S-Snack?"

As if there was any. At Vusnie Orphanage, three meals a day were already something to be grateful for.

But he couldn't say that outright. Scrambling, the director yanked open a drawer.

"H-Here, we have butter cookies stored."

"......Are you kidding me right now?"

The moment Lucella unwrapped the cookies, her expression darkened fiercely.

"You were going to feed the children these rat-gnawed cookies today?"

"I-It wasn't intentional! I had no idea rats had gotten to them!"

"How do you even run this place if you can't manage today's snack properly!"

Amelia flinched and squeezed her eyes shut at the sharp scolding that stung her ears.

"No need to look further. I'll report everything to His Grace the Duke as is."

"I-I'm sorry, milady! My mistake! Please, anything but that..."

"Do you even know what you did wrong?"

"Yes! I've committed a grave sin!"

"You know it's wrong but didn't think to fix it. Your character is utterly rotten."

"M-Milady!"

Looking down at the director with cold eyes, Lucella spoke in a firm tone Amelia had never heard before.

"You, as director, and all the staff of Vusnie Orphanage— you're all fired."

It was no different from a death sentence.