Chapter 36

Chapter 10 The Orphanage

Morning.

Gentle sunlight streamed into the room, piercing through my sleep.

“Mmm…”

A sticky moan escaped my lips. My brows furrowed slightly as I half-opened one bleary eye and gazed out the window drowsily.

…It’s too bright, so annoying.

Feeling it was still early, I was too sleepy to get up and pull the curtains. So, I decided to turn over, face away from the window, and try to go back to sleep. But as I turned my head—

“Ahh! Sis… my hair—”

I had pulled on my own hair.

This sudden pain completely wiped away any remaining sleepiness. Grimacing, I sat up and scratched my head in frustration, making my smooth black hair messy and tangled. A few strands floated down and landed on the blanket.

…Damn it.

This always happens when I’m half-asleep! This isn’t the first time!

Why can’t I learn?

Is this something all girls struggle with?

…Maybe I should just cut my hair short someday.

As I thought this angrily, I moved my legs to get out of bed. But as soon as I moved, I felt a warm, slippery sensation between my legs.

…Did I wet the bed?

My heart skipped a beat, and I immediately reached into the blanket to check.

No, it’s leaking.

I…

Without even thinking about swearing, I threw off the blanket.

The hem of my nightgown had rolled up to my waist due to my restless sleeping position, revealing my white lace panties. They were somewhat bulging from the sanitary napkin, with a faint red stain seeping through and dripping onto the sheet below, staining it with a small bloodstain.

…With this much bleeding, even a sanitary napkin won’t help me, will it?

I changed it last night!

What now? I can’t afford to lose face as a strong man. If anyone finds out, I’m done for. I need to hide the sheet quickly.

As I frowned, at a loss, there was a sudden knock on the door, followed by Carlos’s somewhat lazy voice.

“Little Hill, are you awake? …Hmm, why isn’t the door locked… I’m coming in.”

Oh no, I forgot to lock the door last night!

“Hold on, don’t—”

I hurriedly shouted towards the door, but it was too late.

The door creaked open, and Carlos’s stubbled face appeared.

“Little Hill, why didn’t you lock the door—”

Before he could finish, a pillow hit him squarely in the face.

“Get out—!!!”

I screamed at the top of my lungs.

The pillow hit his face harmlessly. Carlos was still confused, but when he saw me grab the vase from the bedside table, he jumped in fright. His head retracted, emitting a weak electric spark, and he mumbled “what’s wrong with you,” but as soon as he saw my fierce expression, he slammed the door shut.

Sitting on the bed with the large vase in my arms, I was so angry that my chest heaved rapidly.

I almost got caught by that scoundrel Carlos.

Next time, if he dares to barge in without permission, I’ll split his head in two!

Fuming, I gently placed the vase back where it was and prepared to get out of bed. But suddenly, I stumbled.

Dizzy and in a foul mood, I felt a slight twinge in my lower abdomen.

Even though I just woke up, I felt weak and exhausted.

After a while, I slowly got out of bed, struggled to pull the sheet off, and stuffed it under the bed. Then, I took out a new sanitary napkin from my bag and put it on, throwing the old one under the bed as well. After checking around to make sure there were no traces left, I slowly walked to the door and pushed it open forcefully.

Standing dumbfounded outside, Carlos, who was in a daze, immediately closed his eyes and raised his arm to shield his face, expecting a vase to come flying.

After a moment, Carlos mustered the courage to peek out. He looked at me as if I were an idiot.

“…Kakashi, what’s up?”

I asked him expressionlessly.

“Cough, cough.” Carlos lowered his arm and awkwardly rubbed his stubble, “Well, I just came to see if you were awake… wanted to check where you went last night.”

“Where I went, what’s it to you?”

“Not that, King Silgaya came specially to see you yesterday. At least show your face before you leave.”

Carlos looked helpless.

“…I don’t want to.”

I remained unmoved, which puzzled Carlos.

“…What’s wrong with you? You’ve been acting strange since yesterday. Angel said you weren’t feeling well. What happened? And yesterday during the day…”

“None of your business!” I interrupted him harshly, then quickly changed the subject, “Good timing, I have something to ask you.”

“…What is it?”

Carlos looked at me with suspicion.

“Come in.”

“I… maybe I shouldn’t come in? We can talk right here.”

“…Come in!”

Impatiently, I grabbed his arm and dragged him into the room, slamming the door behind us.

“What are you doing?”

Carlos crossed his arms, looking like a young boy about to be violated, though there was a hint of mockery in his frightened eyes.

I frowned, not in the mood for his silly jokes. I turned and walked to the desk, pulling out a chair and sitting down. Then I gestured towards another chair with a nod of my head.

“……What’s going on?”

Carlos sat down nervously, looking puzzled.

“It’s about last night……”

I stumbled through telling him what had happened last night.

“……So you snuck out to play last night?”

Carlos lazily put his hands behind his head, adjusting to a more comfortable position, his dead fish eyes looking around boredly.

“Not this. What about those kids?”

But Carlos seemed not to have heard me at all, sniffing absentmindedly.

“Where did your bedsheet go?”

“……Carlos.”

I called his name sternly. The warning in my tone should be clear enough for him to understand.

Sure enough, Carlos immediately sat up straight, looking at me seriously.

Seeing his attitude change, I nodded approvingly.

“Those kids……”

“Oh, I get it.” Suddenly, Carlos slapped his palm on the table, “You’re talking about that, aren’t you? That’s why you’ve suddenly become so irritable, hahaha! Did it start yesterday? Is this your first time, or have you done it before……Ah, your strange behavior during the ceremony……”

He spoke animatedly, getting more and more excited. But when he saw me standing motionless, staring at him as if he were a corpse, he finally felt a chill, and his speech slowed down.

I gave him a sweet smile and stood up, walking toward the bed.

“Hold on, what do you want to do……Let’s talk it out, put down the vase first! A true gentleman uses words, not violence. Let’s sit down and resolve our issues, don’t do anything rash! This will only make things worse—”

Carlos dodged, and the vase flew past his head with a whoosh, smashing against the wall with a loud crash.

He wiped off a cold sweat, then turned to see me raising my fists, charging at him like an angry little lion.

“Calm down, oh dear—”

Little fists rained down on his face and body. Painfully, Carlos immediately used his old trick, finding an opening and grabbing my wrists tightly.

“Alright, alright, stop hitting me, I surrender.” Carlos pleaded.

As if!

I widened my eyes, lifting my head to butt his chest.

“Mmph—”

Carlos let out a muffled groan, stumbling backward several steps and clutching his chest while coughing.

“Cough, cough— Alright, little Hill, I apologize, I’m an idiot, okay? Don’t you feel better now?”

“No—!”

I roared at him.

“What now?” Carlos shrugged, “How about I sing a song for you?”

“No!”

“……Hill, come sit down and calm down.” Carlos approached me with a forced smile, carefully grabbing my shoulders and pushing me back into the chair, gently patting my back to help me relax, “Let’s talk about the real issue.”

“……”

I wanted to tell him I didn’t want to talk, but thinking about those poor little girls, I suppressed my anger and looked at him with a pitiful expression.

“I was actually listening to you earlier. You went to the ruins of Emerald City last night… What I want to tell you is that there are too many people in this world who suffer because of fate. Natural disasters, banditry, plagues… These factors can easily destroy a family. Too many people are displaced, too many children lose their support and become homeless orphans…”

Carlos paused here.

“Hill, I know you desperately want to do something for them. But one person’s power is limited. Even if you give them more gold, what good does it do? They will eventually run out. And even worse, your kindness might bring them unbearable disaster. So in this matter, just leave it to me and let the Holy Church handle it. They have orphanages specifically for these homeless children. We just need to send them there.”

“Orphanage?” I asked doubtfully.

“Yes, orphanage. The Holy Church has such institutions in every main city, providing shelter and teaching survival skills to children who have lost their families.”

“Then, does that mean we should find Angel?”

I pouted.

“I’ll tell him. Hill, don’t underestimate him just because of his appearance. I’ve known him for many years, and I know he’s someone very trustworthy.”

When Carlos said this, his gaze toward me revealed an unprecedented seriousness.

“……I want to see those children again.”

“There’s nothing you can do. What could you do if you went? Get some rest. Do you need me to make you a hot water bottle or anything?”

I lowered my head at his words, my cheeks flushing red.

“No… Just get me a new bed sheet.”