Chapter 40
“Who…?”
Could it be the knights coming to catch him, or a priest? Jamil’s voice trembled, and he couldn’t even open his mouth properly. Clutching the pouch containing gold bars to his chest, he stepped backward. The room he had been assigned was on the third floor.
Would a person die if they jumped from the third floor?
“Hey there.”
As he considered forcing the door open, he thought he might really release the latch and jump. His mind was entirely consumed with the thought of escaping, regardless of breaking his legs. But at that moment, he realized that the voice beyond the door belonged to the innkeeper.
Jamil slumped against the wall. Finally, he could take a deep breath and tried to respond as casually as possible.
“What is it, or rather… what brings you here?”
He had almost spoken disrespectfully but corrected himself mid-sentence.
“I noticed earlier I took the wrong amount for the room. There was a silver coin mixed in with the copper ones.”
“Excuse me?”
Only then did Jamil reach into his pants pocket and pull out the few coins he had. He had hurriedly fled, and all he had were five silver coins and fifteen copper coins. But now he realized one silver coin was missing. The cost for one night was three copper coins.
The inn had been extremely busy recently, so much so that when Theodor returned, there wasn’t even a chance to assign a room. Once the return feast ended, people left in a rush. The innkeeper had to clean the rooms and restock them. Jamil had been told the cost roughly, and only after a moment of respite did the innkeeper check the payment left behind.
It turned out he had taken too much money. Normally, he might have ignored it and pocketed the extra coins, but thanks to Theodor’s return, he now had a substantial sum in hand and came to return it conscientiously.
Jamil tucked the pouch under his blanket and shakily stood up, gripping the trembling legs. His hands shook, rattling the doorknob.
When the door opened, the innkeeper stood there, with streaked black hair and silver coins in hand. Jamil received the coins and, saying “just a moment,” handed over nine copper coins.
“I might stay… for another three days.”
He didn’t know when his older brother would read the letter. He wanted to go straight to the Marquess’s estate, but meeting a knight on the way would be disastrous. More importantly, paths could cross, so he planned to remain at the inn until he had enough money to move safely.
The day the High Priest took the donation ledger, Jamil’s letter had read:
<They found out the gold bar is missing! And the High Priest checked the ledger! If they suspect anything, I’ll leave the temple after assessing the situation. I’ll hide at the Tilla inn. If I don’t send a letter within a week, come straight to the Tilla inn to find me.>
In hindsight, he thought he should have written four days instead of a week. The innkeeper glanced alternately at the copper coins and Jamil’s face, nodded slightly, and turned toward the stairs. He didn’t seem particularly suspicious. Jamil breathed a sigh of relief and locked the door firmly.
‘Now I’ll wait here for my brother… and when he comes, I’ll punch him once…’
Jamil slowly revised his plan.
Originally, he intended to collect the gold bar and deliver it to the Kenis couple, then retire from priestly duties under the pretense of illness and move to a foreign country to live a luxurious life. But the plan was derailed, so first he had to find a way to sneak out of the capital.
‘I’ll exchange the gold bar for coins and take a smuggling ship… no, the temple might issue a warrant, so I should give the gold to a smuggler directly…’
As he methodically considered ways to escape safely, Jamil suddenly widened his eyes and screamed, “Ah!”
‘Damn, I forgot about that!’
Covering his mouth, he remembered one crucial detail he had forgotten. On the day he was ordered to collect the gold bar, he had completely forgotten what his sister-in-law had said. When the High Priest unexpectedly took the ledger, he had been too anxious and missed something important.
‘What if my brother has already left? I wasn’t supposed to send the letter to the Kenis estate!’
He began tearing at his hair again. It was highly likely the Kenis couple wasn’t here!
[What are you saying? You’re adopting the child?]
[Well, we did donate regularly. Even though our family is minor, we’re respected. If we suddenly disappear, people would be curious, right? So even if we leave, we need a proper reason. There’s a Baroness we traded with in Nostrie. She was caring for a woman’s abandoned child, so we decided to take the child. We’ll send someone separately to deliver the gold bar.]
[After bringing the child?]
[We’ll spread a rumor that we adopted the poor child and moved to a quiet, good place. There shouldn’t be any gossip.]
[Then what about the child? Are we taking them?]
[No, on the way, we’ll sell the child to a slaver for money.]
Snow fell. It seemed Anna’s promised snowstorm had begun.
Charlotte opened a window that hadn’t been blocked yet and stretched her hand outside. The flakes were large enough to accumulate quickly. The snow that touched her skin melted instantly into water, dripping down—clear like the tears in Aria’s eyes.
Peering out, she saw the railing and castle walls turning white.
“Aria. Shall we go make a snowman with mommy?”
“Do we have to…?”
“It’s okay if you don’t want to. Then what shall we do? Oh, how about spreading raspberry jam on a baguette and reading a fairy tale?”
Charlotte gently stroked Aria’s head, who had pouted at the mention of going outside.
Seeing Aria struggle and shout that she wouldn’t go had been a shock to Charlotte, especially knowing the child might have been abused. It was painful to think of touching such memories. She didn’t want to affect Aria negatively, so she tried to shake it off.
‘How can I make Aria feel better, make her happy?’
There was no one to ask for advice. She had considered asking married ladies, but Lady Rossi, a friend she knew, had already left for the capital after learning a rare tea from abroad had arrived at her usual tea shop.
Then she suddenly thought of her father.
Looking back, Aria’s childish clinginess was nothing compared to her own childhood. Though she didn’t remember everything, she recalled that she was always crying as a child.
Her father had said it was natural given her environment, but still, she cried often.
When she realized many people hated her, she would run around or sit down and cry bitterly. Her father comforted her, but even after crying all day, she would continue to sob while eating baked potatoes and lamb the next morning. Five-year-old Charlotte was a crybaby.
‘What did my father do when I clung to him crying? When I buried myself under a blanket and cried uncontrollably, what did he say? I stopped crying and smiled at his words.’
Charlotte remembered vaguely her father’s warm smile as he held her under the blanket, and the words he had said…
[Do you want daddy to pull the blanket over too?]
Just recalling the memory brought warmth, as if her father was gently brushing her tears away. Even though he had never had a daughter who cried so much, he had never been angry and was always gentle.
Could she, like her father, stop Aria from crying?
“I’ll do anything for you, so Aria, don’t cry. I want you to smile.”
Charlotte hugged Aria, holding her close as always but gripping her more firmly. Aria lifted her head.
“…Will mommy be happy if Aria smiles?”
“Huh?”
“I want Aria to smile.”
Of course. Charlotte wanted Aria to smile. Her curved eyes and bright mouth were so lovely when she did. Charlotte kissed her forehead and repeated,
“I want you to smile, Aria. Then mommy will be happy too.”
It wasn’t just to cheer Aria up. Though not related by blood or long shared time, Aria, who had come to make her laugh despite her wounds, was very precious to Charlotte. So she wanted Aria to smile, just as she did. That was happiness.
“…I want to make a snowman.”
“Huh?”
“I want to make a really big snowman.”
Aria spoke with a somewhat weak voice, got down, and took Charlotte’s hand.
“A snowman as big as mommy!”
“…Mommy isn’t that big.”
Fortunately, Aria seemed to have regained some energy. Just then, someone knocked at the door—Anna.
“Miss…”
“Sis!”
“!”
“Sis, please find Aria’s gloves. We’re going to make a snowman.”
Anna peeked through the door, then flung it open and lifted Aria, who was crying and struggling. Charlotte wasn’t the only one surprised—Anna rubbed Aria’s cheeks roughly.
“You little rascal! You kept crying!”
“Aria didn’t cry!”
“Your cheeks are swollen! This tiny thing, I’ll suck your cheeks dry!”
Though rough, Anna’s tone was affectionate. She seemed pleased that Aria had regained energy.
“Oh, right, miss. Um, a guest has arrived.”
“A guest?”
Anna hesitated, then confessed.
“I… mentioned the black liquid covering the hallway.”
“To Duke Valian?”
She waved her hand, whispering it wasn’t to him.
“No! To the Snow Mountain scouts! I’m also from Nostrie, and if I don’t know something, perhaps the scouts who’ve been here longer do. I thought to ask. Sorry, miss.”
“No, your choice may have been right. It’s okay.”
Charlotte had felt it might have been careless not to tell earlier due to Aria’s worries.
“Good! I met Pedro on the way, so he came directly. He’s waiting outside the castle gate.”
“Well done. Let’s go quickly.”
“Mommy, snowman.”
Charlotte cupped Aria’s cheeks and kissed her alternately.
“Aria, play with Anna first. Mommy will be there soon.”
Aria’s eyes widened. Already round, they looked even bigger as she nodded a few times.
