Chapter 3…
In the end, Aunt Cecil let me inside her house.
Not only that, she even allowed me to sleep on the rug in front of the fireplace and served me some stew.
Thinking back to this same time in the previous timeline, this was an unimaginable luxury.
With a gentle smile on her lips, Aunt Cecil spoke in a sing-song voice.
“Within a few days, a merchant caravan that regularly visits the village will arrive. Let’s follow them to a larger town.”
“Yes.”
Outside the village, monsters were crawling everywhere. Because of that, one would normally need to hire mercenaries…
For those who couldn’t afford it, trailing behind a merchant caravan was the safest way to travel.
In the previous timeline, I barely managed to escape the village with Uncle Aiden’s help.
It was a shame I couldn’t recreate my first meeting with him here.
But he wouldn’t save me for at least another six months.
So, if I wanted to leave this place quickly, I had no choice but to choose a different method.
I half-listened to her while sipping the stew, which was so thin it was practically rice water with barely any solids.
She probably didn’t want to waste proper food on me.
Still, after starving for so long and having a weakened digestive system, it was actually suitable.
Of course, the fact that it tasted terrible was another issue.
‘Even the food police… no, even the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office might not be enough for this.’
It felt unreal that just a few hours ago I had eaten a breakfast prepared by a top-tier chef.
This was exactly why I didn’t want to return to this point in time.
Letting out a small sigh, I still scraped the bowl clean.
To survive.
✦ ✦ ✦
Just as Aunt Cecil said, within a few days, a fairly large merchant caravan arrived at the village.
Having passed through a forest teeming with monsters, they all looked relieved.
Amid the bustle, I approached a man who seemed to be the leader and pointed at the mountain of goods.
“Mister, where are you headed with all these things?”
He paused while tying his shoelaces, glanced at me, and answered indifferently.
“We’re taking goods bought from other regions to sell in the capital.”
“The capital… Cataleya?”
“That’s right.”
Fortunately, it matched my destination, so I wouldn’t need to take a detour.
Well, if a caravan passed through this village on its way to a major city, there was a high chance the destination would be the capital anyway.
Having decided to follow them, I asked him again after a moment of thought.
“Excuse me, are you the head merchant here?”
His gaze lingered on me, as if surprised.
“You figured that out? Even adults often can’t tell because of how plainly I’m dressed.”
“In that case, Mr. Merchant, would you like to make a deal with me?”
At that, he let out an amused chuckle and ruffled my hair.
“Sorry, kid. Merchants don’t do business that doesn’t make money.”
“Don’t worry. I don’t like deals where only one side benefits either. If it’s not win-win, it’s not a deal, it’s just extortion.”
“What? Hahaha!”
He stood up and looked down at me with interest.
It seemed he thought I’d make a good story to share over drinks with his companions.
“A win-win deal, huh? Now I’m curious. What could a child like you possibly offer me?”
“Information so tempting it’s irresistibly sweet.”
“My, ‘tempting,’ you say!”
He burst into laughter again, even tearing up slightly, before replying with clear interest.
“I like your boldness. Go on, let’s hear what kind of deal you want.”
“What you need to do isn’t much.”
With a bold expression, I began counting on my fingers.
“First, let me ride in a wagon on the journey to the capital. Second, once we arrive, help send the woman I’m traveling with to prison.”
“…What?”
At words no child should be saying, his expression quickly stiffened.
Only then did his gaze move to my frail body.
Sensing it, I calmly rolled up my sleeves and revealed the wounds and bruises covering me.
“Do you see? This is how an orphan like me is treated here.”
“……”
The merchant shut his eyes tightly and rubbed his face, looking troubled.
“Child, I understand your situation is pitiful, but you can’t just throw someone into prison like that.”
“I know.”
This wasn’t Earth, where children’s rights were taken seriously.
I never expected anyone to take action based solely on the words of a guardianless street child.
“A few days ago, I overheard them saying they were going to take me to the capital and sell me. I’ve awakened an ability.”
“……”
“They said I’d sell for a high price. Is that true?”
It’s easy to turn someone into a criminal. But proving innocence is difficult.
If there was no evidence that Aunt Cecil had committed a crime, then I would simply create it.
Slave trading was considered a serious crime in the Empire. Even with insufficient evidence, it wouldn’t be easy to escape such a charge.
After staring at me in silence for a long time, he let out a heavy sigh.
“Let’s say we do put the person who tried to sell you in prison. Then what will you do? You’ll have no guardian.”
“There are plenty of orphanages that accept Ability users.”
“Ah.”
At my perfectly reasonable answer, he blinked and let out a short exclamation.
After hearing so many unreasonable things, he probably didn’t expect such a normal response.
With a resolved expression, he placed a large hand on my head.
“Alright. I’ll take responsibility for getting you to the capital.”
“You won’t even hear what information I prepared?”
“This isn’t a deal. I have no intention of taking something from a child like you. I don’t know what information you have, but keep it.”
I rolled my eyes.
Trying to get away without paying the proper price?
“Hmm. Since I’m in a good mood! I don’t usually give things upfront, but I’ll make an exception.”
With my hands behind my back, I cleared my throat theatrically.
“There are two pieces of information. I’ll give you one now, and the other after you fulfill my request.”
“Hah, dealing with you feels like handling a seasoned fox. Are you really a child?”
It was a question I had expected.
I had no intention of acting like a child.
Of course, I would use my age when it benefited me.
Looking at him calmly, I replied,
“I have the ability of foresight. Seeing the future is like living in both the present and future at the same time.”
“What?”
“I live several times longer than others, so naturally I’m more mentally mature.”
“I see… that explains it. I thought the way you spoke was unusually mature…”
“Haha, I’m kidding!”
“What?”
I stuck out my tongue playfully, and he stared at me, dumbfounded.
“What kind of kid are you?”
“Well… you could say I grew up fast because I had no one to rely on.”
At that, he fell silent, unable to respond.
Smiling faintly, I leaned in and whispered,
“There will be a great famine next year. So buy as much grain as possible this year.”
His face twisted instantly.
“And how can you be so sure of that—”
“Didn’t I just tell you? My ability is foresight.”
He rubbed his temples, looking like he had a headache.
“You did say that… So you can even see the distant future.”
“That’s right.”
“Of course, that’s assuming you really have ‘foresight.’”
“As proof… will this be enough?”
I held out a crumpled note I had kept in my pocket.
It contained the entire conversation we had just had, written in advance.
Yes… this wasn’t actually my first time speaking with the merchant.
I had simply turned back time to make it seem that way.
