"Look at this. What is this?"
'…it's over.'
When I was about to give up everything with a hunch they had caught me, I suddenly heard the noise of someone sitting on the sofa with a thud.
"There's a beauty on it."
"Oh my, really."
Behind the sly director's voice, Ulinee's coy voice which was different, from before followed.
"What kind of trick is this?"
"We don't even have much time together, so take a guess."
"Are you sensible because I asked you not to show off in front of the seniors in case we might get caught?"
"Yes, I'm disappointed, to be honest."
And I immediately heard strange noises. I breathed out a slight breath at the loud sounds of tossing and turning.
'Oh, my god… You two were like this?'
I think the director is already well over his 40s. As far as I know, Ulinee was only in her early twenties.
'No wonder you said you just got into this place so suddenly. You came in because you had someone to look after you.'
Since it's a nursery, that's responsible for the imperial family, no one could effortlessly come in here because the staff here are no less than the civil servant.
'But still, I'm glad. I did not get caught.'
But what if the two of them do something here?
'I have to get out of here quickly…'
I could not see the timing to fall into a sound I did not want to express. I was going to hug myself a little more, but I didn't think the legs I could see before I disappeared.
'It's a problem if that leg accidentally comes under the sofa.'
When the legs come in, you will notice me and then I will …
'Ugh,'
I instinctively thought of the violence that would pour into me if I got caught and quickly erased the terrible thoughts. It's better not to have any negative thoughts.
"I hate it here, it's cold, it's too dark, and it's a workplace, right?"
"When did you argue about that?"
"At least I want to go to a warm room with a bed! It's too cold in here! So let's go home."
"You said you didn't want to talk about work at home."
The director sighed as if he couldn't help it at the irritating voice of Ulinee.
"Okay, let's go home."
Luckily, as Ulinee's voice grew louder, I heard the director moving his body as if he had lost. Soon after, Ulinee got up from the sofa, and both of them smiled and left the room.
I didn't move until the sound of Ulinee's footsteps couldn't be heard in the quiet night. After a long time, I forcibly moved my less trembling body and slowly got out of the sofa. Then I walked straight to the window.
'Haha. I'm sure they didn't find out, right?'
When I looked over at the window, I could see the two people walking towards the nursery's main gate. I thought I had to get out of this room quickly as soon as I saw their backs slipping out of the gate.
'I thought I got caught.'
When I feel relaxed and relieved, I feel a little more tired than before. I wiped my cold sweat and tried to open the door to get into the hallway. Then, right outside the door, I saw an oil-filled lamp.
'In fact, there were a lot of lamps in the warehouse with oil in them.'
As I walked past the lamp, I decided to revise my plan to get out of this place quietly. Then I turned back and found the matchbox that I saw in the director's drawer and put it in my pocket.
***
When I returned to my room, I spread out my last remaining clothes on the bed as if I were sleeping.
'I want you to be fooled by this.'
With that thought in my mind, I put my old shoes at the door. Except for the bag, moving all the household items back to its place were all perfect.
"Please be fooled and hope that I'm hiding here."
I had to make sure they didn't know that I had set the fire or that I had disappeared. My plan will be perfect if they hide my tracks in fear of others knowing that they let the nursery student die.
But the clothes are more likely to burn without a trace… I'd rather burn it to such an extent where my bone disappears as well. Then everyone will think I'm dead.
"Goodbye here, too."
This will be the beginning of my new life. I will survive and twist the beginning of this mess into something else. Now that I've decided, I won't sit back anymore, waiting for my death.
I went out to the warehouse without hesitation, looking at the white breath that bloomed in my room.
I searched the warehouse and saw quite a lot of lamps and oil to fill them up as if they had been saving it hard. When I saw them, I even thought it was cheap that they didn't give any to my room even though there were so many lamps.
"I'll let you know it's no use saving it."
I found the lamps and tossed it all down to the ground. The oil from the crackling lamp started to douse up the floor. They were also flowing gradually into my room. I closed the small door so they could not see my room, and I even filled the locks that the nursery staff had put in the past to prepare for the circumstances I might not have known.
'Because it has to look like I wasn't able to get out of here.'
I hope that when this building burns and the fire goes out, everyone will realize that I'm dead.
'Spread it out, please. It'll be easier if I'm rumored to be dead.'
I moved my hands, trembling in the cold, to light the match. Looking at a burning little match, I threw it up on the floor. A small fire slowly started to built up big with oil.
The big-coming fire gave me an unfamiliar feeling of heat than it did a while back. Soon after, there was a smoky smell of all the stuff being burned within the warehouse. The sudden spread of the burnt smell seemed to cause the flames to rise faster than I expected.
'There was a lot of stuff within the warehouse, but literally, it's just a warehouse, and the kids won't starve if there's food provided to them.'
At least they won't have to skip meals like me.
However, the director of the nursery will have to take responsibility for the fire, and the children will receive the benefit of the damage.
'There's no such thing as guilt.'
The flames, which rose as fast as my anger, rapidly spread to my room connected to the warehouse. I turned my back and quickly escaped from the warehouse, hoping that this large-spreading fire would burn everything. As soon as I got out, the fire began to spread through the door of the warehouse. Finally, for the last time, I saw the small warehouse room I lived in.
'You've really blocked it.'
I couldn't see it well in the dark, but I could see something firmly blocking the door. I swallowed a bitter smile, looking at an obstacle I didn't clear, in case I would secretly sneak out.
T/n: her first plan was to escape secretly, but she changed it later and she didn't really clear it perfectly.
'You should feel guilty that I died because of you all. Feel guilty and sympathize with the fact that I was a miserable dead child. And after you've forgotten about me in your memory, I will appear perfectly.'
I'm going to make this place a mess like my life so far, putting that guilt aside. The reddish-red flame, blooming with oil, swallowed my room before I knew it, and held the warehouse in itself. The sound of the people seemed to be heard little by little, so I hurried out of the nursery through the back door. There was no such thing as looking back on the road.
* * *
I hastened my body in the dark, exhaling white breaths. The cold breeze of early winter permeated my thin clothes, but there was no sign of cold weather.
'The novel said the office of Benedito merchant's group is in the capital. First, go to the fountain in the center of the capital….'
I'm glad there's no one walking around. I sneaked out secretly moving quickly along the path I had taken and arrived at the fountain. Since I came running, I calmed my rough breath in front of the fountain.
'Turn your head to the right here….'
If you turn your head to the right and walk into the streets for about five minutes, you'll find a three-pronged road. Then turn right again and look forward and go straight ahead. Then comes the dead end, and there is a wall surrounded by the vines. As I looked at the vines wrapped around the high wall, it filled my back with pressure.
'It's just beginning.'
I knocked on the door of the wall three times as I remembered reading in the novel.
At regular intervals, knock, knock, knock.
And three seconds later, knock, knock, knock.
And three seconds later, knock, knock, knock.
I've knocked nine times in three turns. This was a hidden secret door of the merchant's group. Nine knock-offs, as they were now, were a secret request to make a deal with the merchant's group.
If, my memory is not wrong. The front door will open.
Fluttering ~
About five seconds after looking at the wall with tension, the wall went into the sky, and space for people to enter appeared.
"… opened."
Really, it's open.
I took a deep breath, feeling a little overwhelmed, and then stepped inside. When I came in, the wall behind me closed again with a sound. As soon as I took a step forward, candles lit on both sides of the corridor at the same time. The brightened corridor was guiding me to only one place, turning nowhere. I felt the warmth right away when I came inside. I tried to warm myself up by slowly stroking my cold stiff arms.
"I'm glad I didn't freeze to death."
I heard my heart beating so loudly. I was a little pleased to think that I was ahead of the success of my plan. I moved forward, feeling the warm air with just a few candles.
'Staircase?'
Walking along the corridor with the bright light, I found a staircase that went down. There was no other way as if it were telling me to come down, so I went down the stairs. As soon as I went down there came a bright light and I frowned.
"A kid?"
The softest voice I've ever heard called me. I flinched at the voice and raised my head up. In front of me was a boy about a seventeen or eighteen-year-old who looked down upon me. I stepped back, unwittingly seeing the surprise in his light green eyes. He backed away, as surprised as I did.
"Why the little kid? No, how could you know this place more than that…."
"Oh, I'm here to see the head of the merchant's group."
"Head of the merchant's group?"
His forehead was crumpled as if he had heard something he shouldn't have heard. I guess the feeling of being surprised at me has already ended. The boy shook his head with a stiff face as if it was his original expression.
"Not anyone can easily meet. You can't meet."
"I'm here to make a deal. Please, Let me meet!"
"I don't know how you got in here, but get out of here."
If not, he seemed to have hidden deliberately the words that he would kick me out. His ferocious eyes, however, seemed to drive me out at once. I told him clearly in a loud voice because I was angry for no reason.
"I want to make a deal! Let me meet the head of the merchant's group!"