Chapter 189

Chapter 161 Unforeseen Circumstances

I anxiously hid behind a small flower bed, cradling Captain Gray in my arms, squatting down and curling up into a tiny ball, concealed in the shadows.

“…Did you see it during the day?”

“See what?”

“My practice. I worked really hard. That dummy was almost chopped to pieces! Hehe, impressive, right! My limbs are sore now…”

“Be quiet, or the caretaker will catch us.”

“There’s no one here.”

The conversation came from the stairs. A boy and a girl, judging by their voices, must be young children from the orphanage… The third floor is for offices, right? It’s this late, what could these two kids possibly want?

Probably just passing by… but their footsteps were getting closer and closer, and they were heading straight towards the balcony.

“Let’s go look at those flowers. With all that rain today, we shouldn’t let them get damaged.”

“Flowers are boring. A steel sword is much prettier.”

“Barbarian.”

“Tsk, that’s why girls… don’t understand.”

Their voices were getting closer, and the two children had stopped about five meters away.

I crouched quietly in the corner, nervously fidgeting with my fingers, counting my heartbeats, too afraid to look up and confirm, fearing discovery.

The two children chatted about trivial matters, as if their voices were right beside me; I could even hear their breathing clearly.

“I just don’t understand. What’s so great about swords? I like pretty dresses… Look at this new dress, isn’t it beautiful?”

“Meh.”

“What’s wrong with saying it’s pretty…?”

“Sickening… Did you get it yesterday?”

“Yeah, and there are more. They’re all very pretty. And look, they’re brand new… right! And honey… hehe, Sister Teresa is so nice to us.”

“But I want a sword…”

“Then wait until you become a real knight.”

Huh? Clothes…

Does this mean the goods have been brought back to Cataroma and distributed to the children?

Sister Teresa… how fast she works.

You’re not a bad person, are you? At least… you would never hurt these children.

Right?

… I’ll figure this out soon.

As I thought, the green leaves above suddenly rustled, making me jump. I quickly snapped back to reality, tightly hugging my knees, holding my breath, motionless.

After a while, a girl’s innocent voice echoed from above.

“Look, look, the jasmine is going to bloom!”

“You just told me to be quiet… Let’s go? Grandpa Pierre can see us from here.”

“He went to sleep ages ago.”

“How do you know?”

“Grandpa Pierre goes to sleep early every night. He doesn’t need to open doors at night. And in the afternoon, I saw him with some wine… He can’t drink it, so he must have been drunk!”

“Oh… then we…”

“What are you doing…”

“Don’t, don’t here… uh!”

rustling… rustling…

Moments later.

hissing… chirping…

???

What… what are you doing…

My cheeks gradually heated up.

Out of curiosity, I peeked out from behind the flower bed, half-closing my eyes, and looked in the direction of the sound, secretly peering.

Not too long, just a glance.

In an instant, I saw the couple leaning against the balcony railing. They hugged each other, their closed eyes trembling slightly, their lips pressed tightly together, their faces glowing red in the darkness.

They’re kissing!

I immediately covered my eyes, quickly pulling my head back.

Do not look at indecent things… do not look at indecent things… wait, no! How old are you! Are you fifteen? No way!!

Early love?!

You

Still just a child!

I should call the police… Why is my face so hot—?

“Mm~”

“Um~”

The soft, velvety nasal sound was making me feel itchy inside, an indescribable odd sensation.

Hey hey~ There are people around…

“It’s too rough…”

“I like you.”

What am I even doing here… Can I leave? Or maybe they should hurry up and go…

But these young lovers kept clinging to each other for what felt like ages. The longer it went on, the more I felt the urge to just knock them out, a thought that grew increasingly uncontrollable over time.

Gradually, I felt my legs starting to go numb, but I didn’t dare change my position, afraid of disturbing them. I was almost at my limit.

Would they take it further…

Fortunately, they didn’t.

After kissing, they proceeded with their usual sweet nothings.

“You will marry me even if you become a knight in the future.”

“Of course!”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“Mmm.”

“…Then let’s go back.”

“Okay.”

Sigh—

I could finally breathe a sigh of relief in my heart.

As their footsteps faded away, so did their conversation.

“…So when will you become a church knight?”

“I’ll work hard.”

“Lucas and Ellie have gone to study in the parish… How nice.”

Huh?

Are they Ellie’s friends… Wait, gone to study in the parish?

I suddenly froze.

Ellie and the others aren’t in Catoloma anymore?!

What’s going on? I saw her just two days ago. She went where… When… Without any warning, she had promised to come visit again!

“I don’t know why, but this time so many people left all at once.”

“They’re probably not in the capital anymore.”

“Probably…”

“Sigh— Everyone seems down lately… Feels a bit lonely.”

“I’m still here…”

“I heard a lot of clergy members went to Silgaya, so they were sent to help there… Some kind of early practice? Sigh— If only there was a spot for me too.”

“Do you want to leave too?”

“I’ll leave with you…”

Until they were far enough away that I couldn’t hear them anymore, I remained stunned, unable to shake off the shock.

Abel’s disappearance, the connection between the heretics and Catoloma, some children acting strange, the gourd grass, and Ellie’s sudden departure…

A strong sense of unease washed over me, my heart sinking deeper.

…No, I must find out where Ellie has gone tonight. I need to make sure she’s safe.

Tomorrow… I doubt I’ll have much enthusiasm for the academy.

Quickly standing up, I shook the numbness from my legs, tied Captain Gray to my chest, left the terrace, and stepped onto the narrow stone ledge outside, pressing my back against the building as I slowly moved toward Teresa’s office window.

This process was smoother than I expected. In no time, I was at the window, peering in sideways.

It was pitch black inside, no one in sight.

Reaching out, I gently pushed the window—it wouldn’t budge, locked tight.

But that didn’t stop me.

On the way here, Reckt gave me a flat iron hook about the size of my palm, which can slide into the window slit and unlatch the lock from inside.

…Click.

See? It’s easy.

I jumped in silently. As I landed, I quickly adjusted my steps, using Moonwalk to move forward slightly, so even with Captain Gray’s weight, there would be no loud noise.

Once steady, my gaze swept the room.

Old wooden tables and chairs, no sofa… It was still simple and plain, unchanged since my last visit, except…

I looked up.

The black double-bladed axe that used to hang on the wall was now nowhere to be seen.

…