Chapter – 08
“……?”
“Are your ears clogged? I said, bark.”
A slender, long hand gripped Dominic’s shoulder, whose eyes were blinking rapidly.
*Crack.*
It didn’t even seem like he was using much force, but Dominic felt like his shoulder was about to shatter.
Just where was this strength coming from…!
“What are you doing? I told you to bark. You need to compensate for my torn heart, don’t you?”
Bark.
At the urging, laced with laughter, Dominic gulped.
‘My breath….’
Instinctive fear started from the tips of his toes and crawled up his body.
It felt as if he was staring directly into an immense darkness.
Driven to the edge, Dominic finally…
“…W-woof.”
He barked.
It was a bark that abandoned human dignity.
“…….”
“…….”
For a moment, silence fell over the hallway.
And then, a short while later.
“Wow. He actually barked?”
Haha.
A short laugh followed.
* * *
“Live the rest of your life without barking again. Unless you want to be silenced forever.”
“Y-yes, sir!”
“Then get lost. It’s annoying to look at you.”
Almost before the words finished, Dominic scurried away as fast as his legs could carry him.
Contié watched the pathetic figure retreat, standing askew.
Ah.
Should he have just gotten rid of him?
‘Leaving scum like that alone tends to become more troublesome later.’
Because vermin have a habit of crawling back up without knowing their place.
The dirty feeling just wouldn’t wash away.
Thinking of the marshmallow he had to deal with instead of that son of a bitch….
“What to do. What should I do~”
A humming voice flowed from his crookedly raised lips.
A pondering finger drew circles in the air.
A dark energy flickered at the tip of his index finger.
However.
“Well, whatever.”
Giving a chance once in a while wouldn’t be so bad.
“Niki oppa and the new ajussi are good people, don’t say bad things about them!”
After all, he himself was a good person.
Really.
“Being a good person isn’t easy either.”
Clicking his tongue, Contié headed towards the cafeteria.
A round, plump marshmallow would be waiting for him there.
The deep night hour when everyone was asleep.
Hehehe.
I, alone, unable to sleep, let out a meaningful laugh.
‘Finally, I got rid of it.’
No, I did it.
During lunchtime, after Dominic left, I successfully brought up the topic of the orphanage to Uncle Oliver, who had just entered the dining hall!
“Uncle. Did you know? Orphanages are… very scaary.”
“Suddenly?”
“Yesh. I heard from somewun that it’s super scary. Like, they even steal money! If they steal your money, you become a penniless beggar, right? Then you’re always hungry, always crying, and then you die.”
“Die? It goes that far?”
“Because the world outside is a cold wurld.”
“I see. Cold and extreme.”
‘Kheu. Awesome, Melony!’
You’re the best, Melony!
I’m proud, Melony!
The coolest 4-year-old in the Empire, Melony!
My cheeks wouldn’t come down, not knowing how to handle the rising sense of accomplishment.
‘Since I’ve built up some favor, Uncle Oliver will probably look for a decent orphanage for me, right?’
Besides, I even scored some points today.
“Brat. If Bramshua were to close and you had to live with one of us three, who would you want to live with?”
Just as my orphanage story ended, Ricky oppa suddenly threw a question at me.
After agonizing for a moment over the sudden question—
“…Uncle Oliver.”
I chose Uncle Oliver.
It wasn’t a decision made solely with the impudent intention of scoring points with him, but a conclusion reached through my own valid reasoning.
‘Ricky oppa has to take care of his mom and sick sibling, so that’s a no, and Jeanne unnie is too responsible, so that won’t do either.’
If unnie takes me in, it’s clear she’d try to take responsibility for me for life.
‘I can’t become a stumbling block in bright future of unnie, who has a promising future ahead.’
So, I had no choice but to choose Uncle Oliver.
‘Don’t investigators have child protection as part of their duties?’
He seems like the type who would protect me for a few days and then just send me off to a decent orphanage.
Fortunately, Uncle didn’t seem to mind being chosen by me either.
The sausage he silently handed over was proof.
Heehee.
Recalling the events of the day with a smirk, I lay down on the bed, gently rubbing my sore cheeks.
“Okey. Now I gotta sleep.”
Because kids should sleep early and wake up early.
Just as I was about to close my eyes with a heart full of contentment—
*Tap tap.*
“Are you sleeping, Marshmallow?”
Along with the sound of a very soft knock, Uncle Oliver’s voice was heard.
“Uncle?”
I shot up from my spot and tiptoed towards the door.
I opened the door as quietly as possible and peeked out to see Uncle Oliver leaning against the wall.
“Oh my. Good children should sleep early.”
“…I’ll sleep affter 5 minnutes.”
“Then I guess I have to talk within 5 minutes.”
*Nod nod.*
At my nodding, Uncle Oliver smiled wryly.
He plopped down onto the hallway floor.
I quickly scurried over and sat down next to him, plopping my bottom down.
It was a dark hallway, but strangely, sitting side by side with Uncle wasn’t scary at all.
Haha.
Uncle let out a small laugh and ruffled my head.
“Marshmallow, what do you think about Panteyeve?”
…Huh? Suddenly?
I was flustered by the question I had never really thought about.
‘So this is what he came to talk about in the middle of the night.’
But the fluster was brief; I quickly thought of an answer.
“Umm, a good family…?”
Since he’s an investigator sent by Panteyeve, it’s better to speak well of them, right?
Fortunately, my answer didn’t seem to be wrong.
“Ah, really? You think it’s a good family?”
A sense of satisfaction seeped into Uncle’s voice.
He’s that happy just because I praised the family he belongs to.
‘Uncle must be a very loyal person.’
Then.
“Yesh. Unnies and Oppas said it’s a very good fambly! And they said the Young Master is very handsome too!”
Panteyeve is the best!
The Young Master is super cool!
The best! So cool!
I even gave a double thumbs-up, enthusiastically praising Panteyeve.
Little did I know, dreaming of what consequences this would bring in the future.
* * *
‘Uncle is nowhere to be seen again today.’
As expected, did he leave Bramshua?
Several days had passed since my last conversation with Uncle.
After our night talk, Uncle had disappeared from Bramshua.
Everyone seemed curious about where Uncle Oliver had gone, but no one seemed overly concerned.
After all, no one can easily leave Bramshua.
‘Well, yeah. This is Bramshua, where you can’t just leave.’
But Uncle Oliver is different.
He’s an investigator who infiltrated to search Bramshua, so he must have surely planned an exit strategy in advance.
‘Seeing that he’s gone…’
Did he finish investigating Bramshua and leave?
That means Bramshua will soon close down—.
“…Sigh.”
I guess my peaceful life is coming to an end.
“What’s with the sigh, kid?”
“Just. Time is so cruel…”
“Well, I’ll be. Where did the kid learn to say that?”
*Chuckle chuckle.*
Ricky oppa, who let out a laugh, started braiding my hair.
“How is Unnie Jeanne? Is she still very sick?”
“No, she’s much better. She said if she rests well today, she’ll be fully recovered.”
Unnie Jeanne had been suffering from a terrible cold since a couple of days ago.
Worried that the cold might spread, she had isolated herself in a secluded room.
As expected, the responsible Unnie Jeanne.
“She shouldn’t be sick…”
“You said it. Health is the most important thing.”
Ricky oppa’s hands, which were answering, paused for a moment.
Then—
“…I wish my sibling would get healthy again too.”
He muttered in a bitter voice.
‘Now that I think about it, he said his sibling was sick.’
He said they had a very rare disease and had been bedridden for a long time.
“Do you know how cute our Rina is?”
“Our Rina… I hope she hasn’t gotten worse.”
“Ah, I miss our Rina.”
‘Our Rina.’
Oppa always worried about and missed his sibling, whom he had to leave outside.
Whenever he did, I…
‘I was secretly envious.’
To have a family that loves you that much.
Of course, even now, I still feel a little envious.
‘…No. This is just too shameful.’
Rina must be suffering because she’s sick, and here I am envying her.
Stung by my conscience, I turned to look at oppa and said.
“Don’t worry. Oppa’s sibring will definitely get better. Melony promises!”
“Really? Our kid’s promise is very, very trustworthy!”
Oppa, who lightly pinched my cheek, laughed brightly.
I also smiled back at him and thought.
‘I hope Rina gets better soon.’
So that oppa can always laugh like that.
But somehow, wishes don’t come true easily.
A few hours later.
“No—!”
Oppa’s desperate scream echoed through Bramshua.
