Chapter 228

Chapter Fifteen – Invitation

I was silent, reaching out to pat her back gently.

Because of her young age and lack of proper nutrition, the girl’s body was frail, making me feel as if she might break with just a slight effort. I could clearly feel her protruding spine and sensed her small, trembling body, overwhelmed by confusion due to the devastating impact on her worldview. In that moment, I felt at a loss.

I didn’t know how to respond to her or offer comfort; there were no answers in my heart.

“Sister,” after a while, Ellie lifted her head, “Sister Theresa was killed by you, right?”

I remained silent for a moment before nodding lightly.

“Mm-hm.”

“…”

She murmured in response. Her slightly reddened eyes gazed ahead at the magnificent wall carvings in the nave, lost in thought.

“Lucas is gone, and so many others. Sister, I saw Theresa cut off their heads without hesitation and pour the blood into the pool. I don’t understand why she did that, but I’m not stupid. I know she must be evil, just like the bandits who killed my parents. No, worse than them—completely wicked. If it weren’t for you saving me, I would have been killed too.”

Ellie spoke out what she had seen that day and her true thoughts. However, since there were still many children nearby, someone occasionally cast curious glances in our direction, so her voice was very soft.

The only ones who witnessed everything and survived were Ellie and another little boy; the other children likely didn’t know the truth. Perhaps someone saw my battle with Theresa that night, but the darkness and chaos made it impossible for their young minds to piece together the real story.

For them, knowing nothing was the best outcome; otherwise, they would end up like Ellie now… perhaps even worse.

“The Catacombs were destroyed, and the bell tower collapsed. The next day, the Holy Maiden brought many nuns here. They took us to the church here and let us stay, gave us food, and talked to us. My room was behind the church, very warm. I’ve never slept on such a comfortable bed. Every day, I ate well, and the sisters were so kind, really treating us exceptionally well. But… they said Theresa was a hero.”

At this point, Ellie fell silent for a moment.

I looked at her profile and saw her sparse eyebrows unconsciously furrow, her head tilted slightly, her eyes reddening. Underneath her long nun’s dress, her legs were tightly intertwined, her toes gently touching and separating, as if silently conveying the deep confusion and bewilderment within her.

“They said Theresa is a hero, a great hero like you. The bishop told us the same thing. He later told me that there were special reasons behind this, not as simple as what I saw. It’s very complicated. I’m still young and don’t understand, so he warned me not to speak rashly, or it would cause trouble for everyone… Sister, is Theresa really a hero?”

After a brief pause, the girl continued.

“If she’s a hero, then why did she kill Lucas and everyone else? Are we the bad guys? Did we do something wrong—”

I turned my body and gently held her frail form in my arms.

“Ellie… no one did anything wrong. This happened because Theresa wasn’t good, she was the worst person. Ellie, never doubt yourself…”

Suddenly, my heart felt heavy, and I felt so sad.

I held her tighter, gently patting the top of her head buried in my chest.

“You, Ellie, Lucas, Abel, everyone from Catacombs, are all good children. Theresa is absolutely, positively not a hero. Heroes protect people and would never do such things.”

After a moment, Ellie grabbed the back of my clothes and asked hesitantly, “Really?”

“Really.”

I nodded seriously.

“But they all say Theresa is a hero…”

“That’s because if they didn’t, many people would end up like you, feeling pain. They might even do terrible things.”

“Mm-hm…”

Alice hesitated for a moment, seemingly pondering my words. Then, she shook her head gently in my arms and said in a muffled voice, “Sister, I’m very slow-witted. What you said is too complicated for me to understand. But I don’t want others to feel like me; it’s really heartbreaking. I haven’t been able to sleep well recently, and even when I do, I have nightmares. I keep thinking about that night, about Sister Theresa, and wanting to see Lucas again… I don’t know what to do. But talking to you today made me feel much better.”

After saying this, she immediately became worried: “Sister, did I cause you trouble?”

“No trouble at all,” I said, playing with her soft hair, finding it quite amusing. “Alice, if there’s anything you want to talk about with your sister, you can tell me anything.”

I found myself increasingly fond of this strong and considerate child who also thought about others.

“Thank you, Peyalo Sister~” Alice snuggled against me, then said shyly, “Sister, I’m feeling better now. You can let me go… There are so many people watching us.”

I looked up and noticed indeed more eyes were secretly glancing over here. When they saw me looking, they quickly shifted their gaze away, pretending to be busy with their cleaning work.

They were all innocent children who couldn’t hide their emotions, their pure and adorable expressions were quite endearing.

I released my hold on her back, and Alice hurriedly stood up. Her face was flushed red, and her eyes sparkled like those of a cute little rabbit, making her look particularly lovable. She blinked at me and smiled.

“Sister, you smell so nice,” she raised her hand to her nose and sniffed her sleeve. “It makes me smell nice too, it’s really pleasant.”

My face turned hot, realizing I had rubbed sweat onto Alice.

Then she covered her forehead with her hand, her eyes darting around, smiling like a cunning little fox.

“But, Sister, you’re so hard, it feels similar to mine.”

I felt a surge of anger.

“Nonsense!”

I raised my hand as if to hit her head.

“There’s no way!” Alice, frightened, closed her eyes and hugged her head, but still persisted, “Sister, you held me so tightly, I didn’t dare move, my forehead turned red… Don’t believe me? Look!”

I focused on her forehead and noticed a patch that was slightly darker than the rest.

… I was very angry.

“That’s because the position was wrong.”

Alice must have been exactly in the middle of my chest just now… I hadn’t paid much attention, but it must have been like that.

“Alice, does this bother you?”

“Not really.” I quickly denied and then changed the subject. “Can’t go back to Cataloma for now. Alice, have you thought about doing anything recently?”

“Mmm… I’ve thought about it.” The little girl nodded at me. “But I’m not sure what I should do.”

My heart sank slightly.

“Do you still want to be a Holy Maiden?”

“Mmm… I’m not sure…”

Looking at her increasingly confused expression, I understood that despite Alice’s strength, this incident had caused an unforeseeable impact on her. I tilted my head, thinking for a moment.

“Alice.”

“Yes?”

“Would you be willing to come to your sister’s house?”

Alice looked puzzled. “Your house?”

“Yes. That is, my house is at 3 Londor Street. Usually, I live alone.” I spoke carefully, organizing my words to avoid making the girl uncomfortable. “But the house is big, and living alone can be a bit boring. If you’re willing, you can come visit me in your free time and chat. I have a courtyard, but I don’t know how to take care of it. Alice, you’re very meticulous, could you teach me? I’ll cook delicious food for you!”

Alice’s eyes sparkled.

But after thinking for a moment, she shook her head.

“It would be troublesome for you.”

“No, I really hope you can come.”

“Well…”

The little girl rested her chin on her hand, thinking. I watched her nervously. After a while, she lifted her head.

“Sister, let me think about it, okay? I’m not sure what I can help you with. If you don’t mind—”

“I don’t mind.” I grabbed her hand immediately. “Sister will soon return to the academy. I’ll be there most weekends, you must come!”

“Okay!”

After a while, I bid farewell to Alice and left the church.