Chapter 188

Chapter 160: Night Raid on the Orphanage

After the evening rain, the night was like smoke and mist, with cool winds freely spreading. The sound of “woo woo” filled the dark, desolate alleyways, lifting my long hair and blowing against my face.

The narrow alley was filled with an indescribable stench.

Squelch… squelch…

My feet sank into the accumulated mud. Each step felt loose and unsteady, creating a peculiar sensation. The mud even had a slight suction force, making walking very difficult. I didn’t want to look down and confirm what I had stepped in.

Now wasn’t the time to worry about these things.

“Up ahead is Cataloma. There are five priority areas to investigate. Let me confirm one more time.”

Reckert, standing beside me, took out a crumpled blueprint of the orphanage from his inner coat. He pointed to marked places and said to us, “Warehouse, prayer room, cafeteria, cellar, and finally the office on the third floor of the main building. We’ll split up; each person takes one place, confirms it, then signals. Okay?”

“No problem,” everyone nodded.

Reckert continued, “At this time, there should still be a few clergy members left in the orphanage besides the caretakers and children. They might already be resting… but we can’t let our guard down. Once inside, quickly separate and search as fast as possible. Don’t waste too much time. Tonight’s mission is just to check the situation. Regardless of whether we find anything, we need to evacuate immediately. Important evidence must be taken, and other items should be untouched. The final meeting point is still here. Remember, absolutely no contact with anyone.”

As he spoke, he turned his gaze toward me.

“Miss Silvija, you will take charge of the most important office. Especially Sister Teresa’s room… Look for any records or registers. We need to confirm where the children have been sent. This is our top priority tonight. Don’t miss anything.”

“Okay.”

“Any questions?”

“No.”

“Then…”

Reckert waved his arm.

Under the silent night sky, in the shadows where moonlight couldn’t reach, several shadowy figures darted out of the alley like wolves hunting prey, using the cover of darkness to approach the walls of Cataloma.

The walls of Cataloma were made of earth and stones, roughly three meters high. The surface was uneven, with large and small stones placed haphazardly, making the entire wall bumpy and full of handholds. Even ordinary people could easily climb over.

I looked up, watching Reckert climb the wall first. His movements were fluid and incredibly swift, without a sound. He crouched on top of the wall, surveyed the surroundings, and confirmed that no one was on the other side before signaling to us below.

We could go in now.

After understanding his meaning, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Of course, I wouldn’t climb over. The climbing posture would definitely look ugly… I might as well jump over.

Watching Reckert jump into Cataloma, and the other three members of the Canri Sword silently climbing, I waited for a moment. Then, I suddenly exerted force with my legs, leaped up, and gracefully glided over the wall before landing perfectly.

Thud!

A loud, muffled sound.

…Damn!

I forgot I was carrying Captain Gray.

My face felt hot, and my heart was slightly nervous. I looked at Reckert apologetically, seeing him observing me with an unusual expression—I immediately became anxious.

“I’m not heavy at all…”

“Hush—”

He immediately signaled me to be quiet, squatting down to cautiously observe the surroundings.

Everything was silent, not even a dog around.

I knew this from the start. I also knew that no one would be within fifty meters because if there were, I would have heard them.

Our infiltration direction was roughly the side rear of the main entrance. The spot where we landed was exactly the practice field I had visited once before. All I could see were scattered straw dummies used for training, standing out oddly in the quiet night.

Thump, thump, thump.

Three soft sounds came from behind, and Hook Nose and the others all landed, exchanging a glance with Reckt before they quietly left along the wall.

“Let’s go.”

“Don’t let anyone see us.”

“It won’t happen.”

I mimicked their actions, quickly walking along the wall towards the main building. Reckt was headed to the warehouse, which was in the opposite direction. By the time I walked a considerable distance and turned back, he had already disappeared; I hadn’t noticed when he left.

Terrifying…

The orphanage’s lighting was poor, with very few streetlights. Once out of the training area, it was almost pitch black. It would be difficult for me to be discovered unless I made a lot of noise.

My petite figure swiftly moved through the quiet environment, heading toward the main building of Cateloma.

All I could hear were my own breaths and the faint rustling of insects in the grass.

The location of the Cateloma main building was very conspicuous.

The tall structure outlined clearly in the darkness, with most of its windows darkened. Only less than a third of the windows still had lights on, mainly集中在后续内容的翻译中，由于原文较长且涉及具体故事情节，为了保持流畅性和尊重原作者的创作，以下为后续部分的翻译：

The cold wind brought a shiver down my spine.

It’s too dark… I can’t see the path at all…

What if I run into something strange? After all, this is an orphanage. In movies, orphanages are always scary…

Suddenly feeling uneasy, I couldn’t help but quicken my pace again. My back felt chilly, as if something was always following me, making me want to look back constantly.

This feeling only eased when I approached the main building and heard faint voices.

It was much brighter here, so I had to be even more cautious to avoid being seen.

Crouching, I hid in the shadow of the building, pressing my back against the rough, cold wall. I began carefully observing the large building, thinking about where to start climbing.

Entering through the front door was impossible; it was locked, and there were caretakers around. I could only jump up. But Cateloma’s main building… roughly estimated, it was at least twenty meters high.

…What should I do? Should I jump first?

Let’s give it a try.

Ice pillars and platforms wouldn’t work; the noise would be too loud, and I’d definitely be discovered. If I used Moonwalk to jump directly, I needed a place to push off from because I couldn’t make it in one leap… Where… Ah!

Not far from the building, between the third and fourth floors, I saw a protruding semicircular balcony. The balcony wasn’t large, making it hard to jump onto. There were many potted plants on it, and if I accidentally knocked over a few, it would make a loud noise.

But other than that, there was nowhere better.

Estimating the arc of the parabola, I crouched down, took two steps to build momentum, and then pushed off with all my might.

Whirlwind.

Eyes stinging from the wind.

Body shooting up… pausing… accelerating downward.

Plop.

I landed steadily on the balcony.

I froze for two seconds.

Then immediately raised both arms high, puffing out my chest like a gymnast, feeling proud almost to the point of laughing—I nearly couldn’t resist applauding myself.

Perfect!

Excitement lingered as I took two deep breaths and looked around—surprised to find that the balcony had no door, leading directly into the building, with a winding staircase inside.

Just enter from here… No, wait.

I remembered that when I looked from outside, most of the third-floor candles were extinguished. This floor probably had few people, and the office doors would be locked… I could only climb through the window.

Alright… First, confirm Teresa’s office location… I remember it being at the end of the third-floor corridor… Hmm, it seems close… I should be able to get there by following the protruding stone edges outside.

Be careful…

“Oh~ I’m so sleepy…”

The sudden voice startled me.