Chapter 32
"Ranon, it's time to eat. Wake up."
The child rubbed his eyes and got up from his spot. The room had white bedding stretching continuously on both sides rather than the colorful bedding children would use, making it look somewhat eerie.
"Did they eat while I was sleeping?"
"Yeah, twice."
Mary found it strange that Ranon asked how many meals had been eaten between his sleep and waking, but since there was no reason to hide it, she answered honestly.
"Thanks, Mary."
Ranon patted the head of the child who barely reached his shoulder.
The children of Ainoa Orphanage were trapped in this shaded underground together with the Director. With no windows, it was hard to tell for sure, but assuming three meals a day, at least ten days must have passed. If they were given only two meals a day, even more time would have gone by.
"You missed two meals, so they said you have to eat this time for sure. Let's hurry."
Led by Mary, Ranon headed to eat.
It was funny to be worrying about meals while being confined, but what could he do when the gentle kidnappers kept providing them? The meals even seemed more plentiful than when they lived at the orphanage.
Walking hand in hand with Mary, she suddenly stopped and pulled his arm. Thinking she had something to say, Ranon bent at the waist, and the child whispered in his ear.
"Ranon, are we being sold?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Yulma said so. They're feeding us well and washing us because they're going to sell us. Is that true?"
What kind of talk is that to tell a child. Ranon felt不满 with Yulma but couldn't deny what Mary said. Even in Ranon's eyes, it looked like they were taking good care of the children to sell them off.
"I don't know."
"So there's something Ranon doesn't know either!"
That was because no matter how mature Ranon acted, he was still only fourteen. The oldest child at the orphanage was sixteen, and anyone older would usually leave and become independent like Daisy.
"And earlier, I heard footsteps from above."
"Footsteps?"
"Yeah. The Director said that must be Troy and told us to shush."
"I see."
Before long, they arrived at the room used as a dining hall. Everyone gathered eating was a familiar sight, but the fact that not a single laughing sound could be heard despite so many young children made them face reality.
"You're here, Ranon."
"...Yes."
The Director pushed a meal toward Ranon. It seemed she had set aside a portion in advance to give him when he came. After all, he had missed two meals.
Ranon accepted the meal from the Director and cautiously asked while watching her expression.
"Director. Are we going to be sold now?"
"Oh, child...."
The Director sighed as if grieving, but did not reveal the truth. Ranon, afraid, did not press her to tell him the facts.
The mealtime ended quickly, and the children followed the Director back to the room with the bedding. Since they had arrived late, Ranon and Mary, who had eaten last, stood at the very back.
"Ranon!"
"Yeah?"
"Shh."
Mary's footsteps seemed to slow, and then she led Ranon in a different direction. Ranon quietly followed Mary while watching the person at the front of the line.
Mary had taken Ranon to a narrow room. Inside, a man with chains wrapped around his entire body, wearing a black veil over his eyes, sat in a chair.
"Mary. The Director said not to pay attention to this place."
"But that uncle hasn't been eating at all."
"He must have taken care of it himself."
"No. I heard him shouting 'I won't eat!'"
Mary said she had brought some of her own food and rummaged through her clothes pocket. It was bread with the child's fingerprints still visible on it. Having taken it from on top of the soup, it was soggy.
If Yulma had seen that, he would have thrown it away calling it dirty. But Mary headed straight to the man with bread even a beggar wouldn't eat.
"Uncle. Aren't you hungry?"
"...I'm hungry, so get lost."
Mary didn't seem hurt by those words as she stuffed the bread into the man's mouth. The man spat out the bread and gagged.
"It tasted like trash...."
"My bread...."
Mary picked up the bread again and put it back in her pocket. Why is she keeping that? Maybe as a weapon? Ranon thought for a moment that if the bread hardened in that state, it would be appropriate to use as a weapon.
Having now put bread in that mouth once, it seemed like they could go back, but Mary instead sat down right next to the man.
"Uncle, what's your name? I'm Mary. Ranon is Ranon."
Introducing themselves to a man bound in chains in a dark basement—the child's sociability was beyond understanding.
Ranon thought the man naturally wouldn't answer the question. But after a while, the man quietly opened his mouth.
"...Mellec."
If he'd starved for over thirty meals he should be hungry, yet he spat the bread back out and was introducing himself despite being in a similar situation—the other side was remarkably laid-back too. But Ranon didn't want to bring that up and make Mary realize their situation.
Instead of stopping the two, Ranon began keeping watch. They might come to get them knowing their numbers were short.
"Mellec, do you know why we're here?"
"Yeah, I know very well."
"Even Ranon didn't know."
Mary said Mellec was smart and gave a thumbs up, then realized Mellec's vision was blocked and awkwardly lowered her hand.
Mary looked at Mellec intently. Seeing how smart he was, he must be a young noble just like Yulma said? Yulma had said they bound Mellec this tightly because the person who would sell for the highest price must not escape.
"Are we being sold?"
"Something like that."
"Something like that? Then Yulma was wrong?"
Mellec, who had no intention of answering, jerked his chin as if to say leave quickly, but Mary misunderstood it as a gesture to come closer. When Mary approached, Mellec sighed. It seemed he would have to scare her to keep her from coming close.
"That kid named Yulma has good perception but lacks imagination."
"What!"
Mary was surprised in a very small voice at the fact that Yulma, the smartest and coolest in the orphanage, had something lacking.
"You're going to be eaten by a monster. That's why they're raising you to look nice. They say a good-looking pig tastes better too."
"Eaten...? P-pig...?"
Mary imagined herself becoming a pig and being roasted instead of bacon, then eaten by a monster, and rubbed both her shoulders as if getting goosebumps. When told they were being sold she hadn't felt it was real, but being eaten made her afraid—truly childlike.
Ranon attended to Mary who was in shock. Faint footsteps were heard from the end of the corridor.
"Mary, I hear footsteps. Let's go quickly!"
"But we're going to be eaten."
"That's nonsense."
Mary, with tears welling up, held Ranon's hand. Footsteps? Could it be the monster Mellec mentioned coming to eat us? Walking quietly watching only her feet, Mary soon bumped into Ranon's back.
"Ouch. Ranon, why did you stop? I bumped into you."
Mary, clutching her forehead and scolding Ranon, saw a giant shadow standing right in front of her and buried her head, holding her breath. What Mellec said was true. Are Ranon and I going to become bacon now?
Mary, trembling, was greatly relieved by the familiar voice that followed.
"Ranon, Mary. Why are you here? I've been looking for a while."
The person who came to get the children was the Director.
The Director reached out her hand with a scolding tone, and Mary tried to take that hand. She would have, if only Ranon hadn't pulled her back. Mary understood that Ranon must have been very scared too, thinking a monster had appeared, and patted him. Really, Ranon—it wasn't a monster, it was the Director.
"Let's go back quickly."
The Director glanced at Mellec, then pulled the children's arms and left the spot.
'Finally gone.'
Mellec swallowed as he listened to the child's footsteps growing distant.
He was truly starving. He felt like he would die from hunger. When the child put her hand in his mouth, he almost bit and chewed it right then.
"Children are not allowed? A demon, of all things? Then I'll make sure you have no choice but to accept the children as offerings."
He had clearly let the children go on purpose. With a presence that sparked curiosity just by being seen within the children's reach, everyone pretended not to but kept coming to Mellec to talk to him.
Mellec's chains were only flashy on the outside with no actual restraining power. He was bound so he wouldn't recognize they were children, his eyes covered, but his mouth was left free so he could feast whenever he wanted. Must be telling him to eat whenever he's hungry. Well now, who's the real demon here.
***
Alright! Now let's try to find them!
Would it be faster to find Troy and pinpoint the location rather than finding the kidnapped children? This vast empire likely has more than one or two places dealing in human trafficking, and since this story is tied to Daisy, Troy will probably be the key needed for the plot progression. The problem is how to find Troy.
Criminals leave their traces, so should I go to the orphanage first? Ah, find something of Troy's and let Jelly smell it, then track by scent!
Seeing how well Daisy found things, it seems good to rely on Jelly's sense of smell.
"Why are you looking at me?"
"Can you find Troy?"
"Even I can't do that."
So it won't work.... That's a bit disappointing. Though come to think of it, if this is an episode connected to Daisy and Jelly just sniffs around to solve the case by scent, it wouldn't look very cool.
But then how am I supposed to win favor? See. Even Daisy looks disappointed.
"You too... seeing you like this, you seem ordinary."