Chapter 4…
He opened the note and rubbed his eyes as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“…Did you already know we would meet?”
I gave a small smile and answered something slightly different from what he had asked.
“The closer the future is, the more accurately I can predict it.”
“Hah… I underestimated the value of your information. Sorry about that. This is a losing deal for you. At this rate, I can’t even keep up my dignity as a merchant.”
“Does it really look like I’m the one losing?”
A faint chuckle slipped out without me realizing it. It was probably a smile too jaded to belong to a child.
“I didn’t lose anything. Not at all.”
I had gathered information desperately in the previous timeline just to use it here.
And to the merchant leader, I had only given one piece of information out of the hundreds, thousands I knew.
With just that, I could escape that hellish village comfortably—and even take revenge on Aunt Cecile, who tried to kill me.
How could this possibly be a losing deal?
✦ ✦ ✦
After resting in the village for a few days, the merchant group resumed their journey to the capital.
Seizing the opportunity, Aunt Cecile grabbed me and tagged along at the very end of the caravan.
That was when it happened.
“Hey, you there!”
“Y-Yes?”
When the merchant leader pointed directly at us, Aunt Cecile looked at him nervously.
There were cases where caravans demanded protection fees from those who followed them.
“I’ll let the child ride a horse.”
“Ah…”
Relieved, Aunt Cecile hesitantly approached, watching his reaction carefully. But the merchant leader frowned deeply.
“You’re an adult. You walk.”
His expression was cold.
Flushed with embarrassment, Aunt Cecile snapped at him.
“W-Who said I was going to ride? My child won’t be riding your horse either!”
“This isn’t a road meant for children. She’ll tire quickly and fall behind.”
The merchant leader tilted his head slightly, as if puzzled.
“If you’re her mother, you’d naturally want her to travel comfortably. But you’d rather make her suffer over your pride? That’s strange.”
He deliberately emphasized that point, knowing full well we weren’t actually mother and daughter.
Aunt Cecile bit her lip hard but eventually lowered her head.
“…Please.”
It was an unexpected stroke of luck.
I had originally asked for a wagon, but a horse was far better than a rattling cargo cart.
And best of all, Aunt Cecile had to walk.
I waved lightly at her as if wishing her a good walk and approached the merchant leader.
He lifted me effortlessly and placed me on his horse.
“We’re departing!”
Once seated, I shamelessly leaned against his back. The presence of a backrest made it even better.
Being a child certainly came with limitations.
But it wasn’t all bad—there were privileges like this.
After traveling for a while, his low voice came from above me.
“…You’re smaller than I expected.”
“I’m still a child.”
“How old are you?”
“Seven.”
There was a hint of surprise in his voice.
“My son wasn’t this small at seven.”
“Well, I didn’t get to eat properly growing up.”
“….”
Oops. I hadn’t meant to leave him speechless this time.
I’d lived such a harsh life that tragedy slipped out of my mouth automatically.
After a few seconds, he spoke again, trying to ease the awkwardness.
“Our caravan is called Ageratum. If you don’t like the orphanage, come find us. We always welcome someone as clever as you.”
“Is it my ability as an ‘Abiliter’ that you want?”
“Haha, that too.”
I crossed my arms with a slightly pouty expression.
“Well, thanks for the offer. If all my plans fall apart, I’ll consider it.”
Of course, there was no way my plans would ever fail.
Do you know why rain rituals always have a 100% success rate?
Because they continue until it rains.
I planned to use my ability to reset over and over until I succeeded.
✦ ✦ ✦
After passing through several villages over fifteen days, we finally arrived at the imperial capital, Catalea.
During the journey, I grew fairly close not only to the merchant leader but also to others in the caravan.
Of course, Aunt Cecile didn’t sit idly by.
Whenever I tried to talk to them, she would quickly pull me away.
It seemed she was worried I might side with the caravan.
The moment we arrived in the capital, she roughly dragged me away from the group.
Since I had already coordinated with the merchant leader, I followed without complaint.
“Where are we going now?”
“No gambling den will allow a child like you in, so I’ll have to go to the arena and win some money.”
“Then where will we sleep?”
“…Right. Let’s get an inn first.”
Perhaps reassured by my lack of resistance, her expression softened slightly.
But her grip on my wrist didn’t loosen at all.
There was no way I could escape by force.
I would have to follow the plan exactly.
Slowly, I looked around and activated my ability.
[Overwriting the current point with Point 2.]
Then I spoke casually.
“…It would’ve been nice to at least thank the merchant leader before leaving.”
“Hah? You’re the one who received help. Why would I?”
She almost retorted, asking if Aunt Cecile could cross the monster forest alone, but stopped herself.
After walking for a while—
I spotted the merchant leader approaching from behind with the guards.
Judging by how one guard narrowed his eyes, he seemed suspicious that I was being taken by force.
This wouldn’t be enough.
I stopped abruptly and muttered in annoyance.
“What? Do I have to act out a desperate situation too? Fine. I’m actually pretty good at acting.”
“Tania, what did you just—”
Ignoring Aunt Cecile, I memorized the positions of nearby buildings and loaded the saved point.
[Loading Point 2.]
There was a slight delay due to the gap between timelines, and Aunt Cecile frowned impatiently.
“Sorry. I got distracted for a moment.”
I resumed walking as if nothing had happened, waiting for the right timing.
When we neared the buildings I had memorized—
I instantly forced tears into my eyes and threw myself onto the ground.
“Please save me, ma’am! I’ll do anything! Just don’t sell me!”
“W-What? What are you—!”
As Aunt Cecile hurried to lift me—
Right on cue, the merchant leader arrived with the guards and shouted,
“It’s her!”
The guards immediately surrounded both of us.
Separated from her with ease, I clung to a guard’s leg, crying loudly.
“T-That woman said she would sell me! She said I’d fetch a good price because I’m an ability user…!”
I was so immersed that my voice cracked.
“Please… help me…”
Seeing my desperate state, the guard’s expression grew serious. He knelt down to meet my eyes.
“Do you know her?”
“N-No. I don’t. She tried to drag me somewhere as soon as she found out I’m an ability user.”
I trembled as I spoke, and he gently patted my back.
“What about your parents?”
I quietly closed my eyes and shook my head.
Looking at my worn clothes and frail body, he muttered under his breath,
“…A trafficker targeting orphans, huh…”
With a grim expression, he asked,
“Kid, do you know where she was trying to take you?”
“I heard something about an alley near the central clock tower… a cigar shop or something… but I don’t know the exact place…”
The cigar shop I mentioned was actually a long-standing black market location where ability users were traded.
No one would expect a child to know such information.
Once they confirmed it was a trafficking site—
they would naturally assume Aunt Cecile had ties to it and interrogate her.
