CH 13

She was afraid that little crook from earlier will hold a grudge and harm me.

It wasn’t hard to guess how she came to that conclusion.

That crook must have been a common type among human traffickers. Naturally, Elodie must have seen how much harm such people can do to others.

Because of that, she came to a natural conclusion.

‘The problem was me.’

Of course, I should have thought about the shock Elodie would receive, and yet, I can’t believe I missed out on the unusual reaction of the child by focusing on getting the most profit I could rip from the fraud.

A belated regret fluttered deep inside my heart.

“You know…”

I slowly opened my mouth towards Elodie.

“You heard what I said earlier, right?”

“……Yes.”

“It’s all real. I said no lie to that man.”

Elodie nodded her head with a bewildered face, as if not realizing my intentions.

“I mean…….”

I took a breath.

Maybe this is a little bluff, but I had an obligation to reassure this child.

“It’s not the first time I’ve met someone like that and I dealt with all of them the same way. I have never been retaliated against.”

“……But…….”

It was when Elodie answered in a watery voice ready to cry again.

Ian opened his mouth in a calm manner.

“Elodie, I promise. If that man comes to you saying he’s going to get revenge, ask any security guard for help right away. I’ll let them know in advance he is a person of interest. He will go to jail right away.”

(Note: Person of Interest definition by Law- is a term used by law enforcement when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime.)

“……Really?”

“Of course.”

Ian nodded his head slightly to me. It meant that it wasn’t a white lie to appease the child. After giving Ian a small smile of thanks, I turned to Elodie again.

“Did you hear what the Captain said? You don’t have to be scared anymore.”

“…….”

“But thank you for your concern. If not for Elodie, who would think of me like this?”

Elodie pouted her mouth.

“Aria needs to be more careful.”

(Note: Changing her name to Aria, simpler and does not need zillion of edits…)

“Of course I’m careful.”

I answered firmly.

“So, don’t worry about anything. Because that man will never appear before our eyes again. Got it?”

Very slowly, the fear and anxiety on Elodie’s face began to disappear.

As I hugged Elodie tightly and stroked her hair, I thought that meeting Elodie was the greatest luck of my life.

* * *

“That damn bitch……!”

Jim Kershaw, a man who failed a good deal at <Cafe Aria>, wheezed in rage and kicked a stone on the side of the road.

He couldn’t get rid of his anger.

I thought there was something she believed in, but I didn’t expect she would call for the captain.

The usual guard would snort at the request of ordinary citizens and go their way, but that young man was about to settle down in the cafe as he seemed to have nothing else to do.

Jim frowned.

His anger was still not quelled, but if the captain of the guard was at her back and call, it seemed difficult to settle down in the cafe again to nitpick.

But who is he?

He was the one who could jump around so well that he was nicknamed a ‘frog’ by the capital guards.

“……Come to think of it, there was a little girl.”

Jim suddenly muttered aloud.

She is a woman in her early 20s who is raising a child who had grown up enough to understand everything she says.

Looking at her behavior, it was clear that she had an unusual relationship with the Captain of the guard.

An evil smirk appeared on Jim’s face.

After all, she is a woman who is nothing more than a one-night stand for the Captain of the guard. If I threaten her by using the child as a weakness, she will have no choice but to get down on her knees and beg.

If I work outside the Guard’s office hours, the Captain will consider her to be a nuisance and will not help.

‘……?’

Jim quickly turned around.

It was because he suddenly felt an unusual energy. He, who had been trained in the alleys of the capital, quickly recognized its signs.

‘I have been followed. Who the hell is it?’

As soon as he looked around, a man slowly emerged from the setting sun.

He was obviously the young man with a fair and handsome face who was sitting uninterested in the cafe earlier.

He didn’t pay much attention back then, but the man followed him. Jim couldn’t understand the reason.

“What is it, you-……!”

His words were cut off as soon as they started.

It didn’t take long for his eyes to widen with astonishment and horror.

* * *

‘I want to sleep more….’

I rolled around under the covers, enjoying my first holiday in a month.

It was only one day a month, a humble but very precious holiday for a self-employed like me.

On a day like this, I won’t do anything and stay in a warm blanket with Elodie…….

‘……whops.’

My eyes opened wide.

Today was a picnic day with parents raising children of Elodie’s age.

I pulled myself out of the comfy bed, trying not to wake Elodie, who was sleeping soundly. Fortunately, it wasn’t cold, because the Duke of Vanice almost covered the whole house with insulation and carpeting.

I skillfully grilled bacon and eggs and made a salad by slicing tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions.

‘Elodie will wake up a little late.’

She was so excited about today that she couldn’t sleep well last night. Going on a picnic with children of the same age seemed very exciting for her.

‘It’s understandable.’

Elodie had no friends her age.

It was only natural, because she moved around with the human traffickers before living with me, and after living together, there was no proper opportunity for her to make friends.

But today was that opportunity.

I opened the newspaper delivered every morning.

Since raising Elodie, the morning hours have gotten even crazier than before and I hardly read the newspaper. As Elodie was oversleeping, I was thinking of going through the newspaper for a while before packing the picnic lunch.

I opened a local newspaper, there was no major international news or big events happening all over the empire. In order to do business, what happens in the town I live in is more important than what happens among the high-ranking people in the Capital.

The headline on the first page caught my attention.

<The capital’s famous criminal ‘frog’ is found insane!>

I narrowed my eyes.

There was also a small picture drawn in the newspaper, and the description was somehow familiar.

‘No way…….’

I rubbed my eyes and looked at the picture.

Apparently, the crook who disappeared while messing around at the cafe a few days ago was really the real deal.

I hurriedly read the rest of the article.

<Jim Kershaw, a 23-year-old criminal, nicknamed the ‘Frog’ because the Guards of the capital repeatedly missed to catch him, was found by passers-by last night.>

I swallowed dry saliva.

Contrary to the grandiose headlines, Jim Kershaw was a petty criminal. His past deeds were all insignificant. Most of his crimes were like the scam he tried to pull on my Cafe.

The article said that such a Jim Kershaw was sitting in a deserted alleyway, completely absent-minded. The passerby who found him thought he was drunk at first, but it seemed that in the end, he reported it because Jim was rolling his eyes in an unusual way and talking nonsense.

Jim Kershaw seemed to have lost his mind so badly that he couldn’t communicate properly.

‘Did he get karma’s punishment or something?’

I quickly lost interest and closed the newspaper. Whether he’s crazy or not has nothing to do with me. Rather, it was a good thing.

I’ll be relieved if this could completely purify Elodie’s worries.

I got up and started preparing for the picnic.

I wanted to make sure that Elodie wasn’t swayed in the slightest by the children who grew up with both biological parents.

It was time for me to get all sorts of ingredients out of the cupboard.

“……Aria?”

A small voice was heard.

I turned my head.

Elodie, still half asleep, stood at the doorway of the bedroom, rubbing her eyes.

Since it was a small house with a kitchen, a living room, and a single room, Elodie would come to eat breakfast as soon as she woke up.

“It’s okay to sleep a little more.”

We decided to go for the picnic around lunchtime anyway.

It will be the last outdoor picnic before winter, it was too wasteful to spend it nodding and sleeping.

Elodie shook her head.

Her clear eyes showed a burning will, and it seemed she had no intention of going back to bed to sleep.

“What’s all that stuff up there?”

Elodie asked, muttering at the bacon.

“Oh, I’m making a lunch box. When we go out, we usually eat twice as much as usual, so I have to make a lot.”

“Lunch box…”

“Will Elodie help me later?”

“Yes!”

I smiled and began to trim the ingredients again.

Lunch boxes were just the beginning.

I had to hurry to prepare Elodie’s clothes and pack the small things like a mat, blanket, and a bottle filled with warm water.

How long has it been?

Before I knew it, Elodie, who had finished breakfast, was sneaking up to my side.

“It’s dangerous, so stay behind.”

I said sternly, slashing the mini sausages and Elodie looked at me with curious eyes.

“What are you doing?”