Chapter 32

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 32

Chapter Title: Really?

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Really?

You're giving this to me as a gift?

A deed of rights?

To the biggest toy store in the shopping district, no less?

Calm down. I have to calm down.

If I swallow something this terrifying, it might tear my throat apart.

As the fake Child of Destiny, I know all too well how agonizing it is to possess something beyond my capabilities.

I can't even take it with me when I flee into exile.

A kid like me can't run a store this big, so the castle's management will handle it instead. That means it's money I can never touch anyway.

The moment I try to sell it for cash, the Duke will find out, and my escape plan will blow up in seconds.

With tears of blood in my heart, I carefully tucked the document away and handed it to the Duke.

"You can't read the words yet, can you?"

The Duke spoke arrogantly, and Lea smiled warmly as she said, "I'll read it for you."

"Oh my, this is a deed to a toy store, Little One!"

I spoke in a gloomy voice.

"Leblu, this no good."

"It's not just paper, Little One. With this, you can have all the toys in the store!"

I shook my head with a sad expression.

"No want this... Just toys better."

Then, a stifled chuckle came from around me.

Henri and Ishak grinned wickedly, their arms draped over my shoulders as they looked at the Duke.

"A shopping district deed doesn't click for a child."

"Yeah. A bow or a dress would make her happier."

The Duke looked like he'd been struck by lightning. But the young masters just beamed, keeping me wrapped up between them.

"Let's go to your room, Leblain."

"Yeah, we'll tuck you in."

As I trailed after the young masters without a fuss, the Duke's low voice came from behind.

"Bring me the list of those who handled this matter."

Looked like something was going on in the castle that I didn't know about.

I woke up before dawn and slipped out of bed in secret.

'Good, I packed the bow Ishak gave me.'

Just in case, I slipped the tracking magic tool Lea had given me into my pocket.

Someone was targeting me enough to let human traffickers infiltrate even inside the castle, so I had to be careful.

I crept stealthily into the underground prison.

There were soldiers on patrol, but drawing on my beggar days when I was called Little Mouse, I snuck in successfully.

Of course, picking the lock was a skill I'd learned from my beggar gang buddies.

"Celia."

I called softly, and she looked up from where she was huddled.

"Little One...!"

"Shh!"

I pressed my finger to my lips, and Celia flinched, lowering her voice.

"What brings you here?"

"Gonna go somewhere with Celia."

I grabbed the hand of Celia, who blinked in confusion, and led her out of her cell.

The place I took her was the remotest cell in the underground prison.

A horrific groan, like metal scraping iron bars—scraaaape—leaked through the bars.

Celia gasped sharply when she saw the figure inside.

"Jacob...!"

She shot me a look demanding to know why I'd brought her here.

I shrugged casually and said, "Just tell him you're gonna help."

"But it's locked."

"Nah, it ain't."

With that, I opened the door.

"How...!"

Jacob hadn't revealed who his 'client' was to the end, they said. He'd wailed that he really didn't know.

So the Duke must have left the door open.

'To let Jacob escape.'

The only place a Jacob on the run from Duvered could go was to the 'client' who'd ordered him to kidnap me.

'That's why they left the cell area so empty.'

It made it easy for me to move around.

They'd probably fed him or attached a tracking magic tool ages ago.

That was the kind of terrifying man Duke Duvered was, from what I'd heard.

"Let's go in."

I opened the door for her, and Celia slowly stepped into Jacob's cell.

Jacob, sprawled on the floor, barely managed to move his eyes to look at us.

"Save... Save me...!"

"That's not what I want to hear!"

Celia screamed in fury.

She lunged at Jacob and grabbed his collar.

Jacob, who'd already endured hours of horrific torture, had no strength to shake her off.

"Where are my siblings from the House of Hope? Where did you sell them...!"

When Jacob didn't answer, she started choking him hard.

His face turning blue, Jacob groaned "Guhhh!" and flopped like a fish on dry land.

"Th-the client."

"What?"

"The client took them."

"You mean the client who ordered you to kidnap Little One? The one whose identity you claim not to know?"

Celia loosened her grip, and Jacob clutched his reddened throat, gasping for breath.

"I don't know the identity. For real. His men always came and bought the kids. All the ones raised at the House of Hope were bought by him."

"What does he plan to do with my siblings?"

"......"

"Tell me!"

Jacob swallowed dryly and looked up at Celia.

"A slaughterhouse provides meat. It's not a place to dig into the client's background."

Thwack!

I kicked him in the face.

"Think that makes it okay!?"

Celia, fists clenched and trembling, stared blankly as I mercilessly stomped on Jacob's face—thud, thud!

"Fine, why don'tcha get slaughtered yourself!"

"Argh!"

I jumped up and down on his face, and dying gasps came out.

"L-Little One."

Celia looked shocked instead and pulled me into a hug.

I glared at the passed-out Jacob and said,

"If he claims he doesn't know even though he's too scared to run, means he really doesn't."

As I panted heavily, the arms around me tightened.

I hopped down to the floor and looked up at her.

"Got a question."

"Ask away."

I stared straight into her face before speaking.

"How desperate are ya to find your siblings?"

"...Pardon?"

Celia's eyes trembled faintly.

"Would you strip flesh from bones, drain blood if ya had to, to find 'em? Could you kill even more of those devils who ravaged your and your siblings' lives so brutally?"

Her eyes twisted strangely at my question.

"You're... no ordinary child."

I grinned.

"If you're prepared for that, I'll help you."

I slowly extended my hand.

She stared at my tiny, maple-leaf-sized hand, then bit her lip hard.

"I've already resolved to kill that bastard."

She took my hand.

"What do I need to do?"

To her, asking with a slightly tense face, I replied brightly,

"First, wanna go collect your bounty?"

Celia stared at me, who was smiling innocently like a child, with a dumbfounded expression.

"You want me to walk into the security office myself? With my accomplice, no less?"

"Yup. That's how ya get the bounty. Can't if ya turn yourself in."

"Then I'll be executed!"

"Nah, ya won't."

"How can you be sure?"

"Priests come pray to the gods before executing prisoners. Tell 'em this then."

I stretched out my index finger and lowered my voice.

"I know where the original Holy Scripture is."

Celia's eyes widened.

"Impossible. Why would I know something like...!"

"I know."

And if it's that, the temple will lose their minds.

They'll surely spare Celia in their frenzy to get it.

"The original Holy Scripture is priceless. Why use something like that for the likes of me?"

"'Cause you're worth it, Celia."

She couldn't speak for a while, just staring at me intently.

Her trembling pupils and quivering lips showed how deeply moved she was.

'For real. Celia is worth it.'

She'd devoted her life to siblings she shared not a drop of blood with, just from growing up together in the orphanage.

That meant she'd never betray someone she was loyal to.

Above all, Celia was smart.

Unlike Jacob, who barely became an administrator with the 'client's' help, or Charlie, who passed exams thanks to tailored noble education.

She'd passed Duvered's administrator exam with scraps of knowledge peeked from lowborns, without proper orphanage education.

'And she didn't pry into my situation even after realizing I'm no ordinary kid.'

It didn't matter who I was or what kind of person.

As long as she could grasp my hand.

She had resolve and sharp instincts.

'A talent rivaling Nos.'

No one better to keep by my side.

"So, where do I say the original is?"

"Empress Dowager's secret library."

Plus, screwing over the Empress Dowager too? Best of both worlds.

The devout Empress Dowager had kept possessing the original—a secret.

The temple, so chummy with her, would tremble with betrayal if they learned she'd secretly hoarded what they should safeguard.

I giggled hee-hee, then felt Celia's gaze and tried to compose a dignified face.

"Leave before dawn."

"I won't forget your grace, Little One."

Celia knelt and bowed her head.

"Never, ever. But... it's terribly shameless, may I ask one favor?"

"A favor?"

"Please leave this place first."

She glanced coldly at Jacob and continued.

"And no matter what sounds you hear, don't come back."

I gazed into her darkly rippling eyes.

"...Got it."

As per her request, I left the cell first.

Behind me came Jacob's agonized screams.

That day, Jacob left the cell as a corpse, and Celia slipped out of the castle unscathed.

A few days later, a bundle labeled 'Child's Day Gift' was delivered to me.

Inside were 30,000 francs.

Celia's bounty amount.