Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: 2. Orphan Gacha Probability-Up Event
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Late at night, a time when they should have long since been asleep.
At that hour, five children including Tricksy and Karen were huddled together.
Excluding the first day they had arrived at this orphanage, this was the first time they had gathered like this.
And in an atmosphere far more grim than that first day, Tricksy crumpled a small scrap of paper.
"We got a message from that bastard."
"...A-already? We haven't even been at the orphanage that long. Last time, he waited two months!"
"Yeah. But he says this orphanage is small-scale, so this is enough."
"O-Our orphanage is small, though..."
"Our?"
Tricksy reacted to the word that had slipped out unconsciously. The child who had said "our orphanage" hurriedly covered their mouth, but the spilled water couldn't be put back.
Yet no one scolded the child. On the contrary.
"Our orphanage... yeah, it is. The Director took us in, after all."
"And he doesn't hit us like that director does..."
"You call that guy 'Director'? Are you seriously lumping him in with our Director?"
"N-No way! The director is the director! Our Director is our Director! We learned you only add '-nim' when you truly respect someone!"
"Even swinging the wooden sword all day yesterday was so much fun. My hands hurt, but it was really great."
Everyone sided with and empathized with the child's words. The reason was simple. They truly wanted to stay at this orphanage.
The Director doesn't hit or abuse them.
He doesn't make them work all night.
The beds are soft.
The food is delicious.
Every day, learning and picking up new skills feels rewarding.
And above all.
"It's... fun here."
"............"
"Unlike Happy Orphanage... everyone here is smiling."
These weren't forced smiles. Nor were they escapes from reality or laughs at friends worse off than themselves.
The orphanage was filled with genuine smiles born from the heart, brimming with happiness and hope.
"I don't wanna go back..."
"T-Tricksy. Do we really have to go back? To that place? That cramped, cold hell?"
"Let's just stay here... Yeah? I don't care about freedom or whatever. I like this orphanage!"
"......... "
Tricksy fell silent at the children's desperate, almost frantic pleas.
Tricksy soon turned to Karen.
"Karen, what about you?"
"......... "
"Do you want to go back?"
"...What about you, Tricksy?"
Tricksy was momentarily taken aback by Karen, who had always only given short replies, now asking something first.
With a darkened expression, Tricksy answered.
"Of course I don't want to go either. But... you all know what kind of person that guy is."
"That's..."
"If we don't go back, he'll just send other bastards. Worst case, he might cause trouble for this orphanage and the Director."
"......... "
"It was wrong from the start. From the moment we hid our true intentions and came here... it was all wrong."
Tricksy had no desire to go back either. For the first time, she had met a real adult, a true orphanage director. He had recognized her talent. Laila was scary, but orphanage life was so enjoyable.
Yet paradoxically, that's why Tricksy steeled herself to return.
"And it'll be fine. Once we get our freedom—just our freedom—we can come back to this orphanage, right? The Director will surely take us back."
"R-Right, yeah!"
"This is the last time... He promised us freedom..."
"Yeah, it'll definitely be okay. So let's sleep for now. He said to come tomorrow night... so let's get a good rest tonight, okay?"
Relieved by Tricksy's words, the children climbed into bed.
Soon, sleepy murmurs and soft breathing filled the air. Perhaps exhausted from all their worries, the children seemed to fall asleep quickly.
About an hour later, someone quietly sat up and got out of bed.
They opened the door and stepped outside—
"Tricksy."
"...Karen, you're still awake?"
"What are you doing?"
"What else? Just heading to the bathroom real quick..."
"You're going to meet him, aren't you? The director. The meeting was tonight, not tomorrow night, right?"
"...How did you know? I didn't show you the note."
"I saw it with magic."
"You're really amazing."
Tricksy had heard Karen had magic talent, but she couldn't even imagine the extent of it and let out a hollow laugh. Even ignorant of magic as she was, Tricksy could feel how incredibly fast Karen was growing.
"I'm going to negotiate."
"......... "
"At least get freedom for the others. I'll work more in exchange."
"Why?"
"Because they're my friends. My precious friends."
In hellish environments, exposed children band together. They grow tight-knit to survive the inferno.
For the orphan Tricksy, her friends were her entire life, her everything.
"I have Handicraft talent, right? Thanks to the Director finding it. With this, I can produce results even that bastard would be satisfied with."
"............"
"So go back, Karen. Tell the others tomorrow that I ran away in the middle of the night. Otherwise, they'll all worry and follow me back to Happy Orphanage..."
"I'll go with you."
"H-Huh?"
"Two is better than one. Plus, I've learned magic."
"But... you got scolded by the Director. He said not to use magic on people carelessly."
Karen's expression stiffened slightly at Tricksy's words. The sacrifice and love the Director had shown her still occupied a large part of her heart.
Because she had directed her magic at others, the Director had been badly hurt. Remembering that, Karen had vowed never to point magic at anyone carelessly again.
"But it'll be fine. Just threatening them should be enough..."
"...If you say so."
Tricksy was simply too terrified to face the director alone.
She took Karen's outstretched hand.
The Director had promised, after all. This was the last time. He would grant them freedom.
So surely... it would be okay.
"...?"
"Karen, what's wrong?"
"No, it's nothing..."
Karen suddenly glanced back as if something had caught her, but there was only darkness, as expected.
Karen and Tricksy soon set off.
"You're here."
"...Yes."
Dark night.
Entering the abandoned house near the forest, Tricksy swallowed hard. It was filled with faces she never wanted to see, even in her dreams.
Happy Orphanage executives and vile adventurers who caught runaway children and punished them as examples.
Over ten adults glared at her with murderous intent. Even Tricksy couldn't help but shrink back.
And at the center, Victor, the Happy Orphanage Director, was smiling.
"But why did only you two come? Where are the rest?"
"...I want to make a deal."
"A deal? What deal out of nowhere?"
"I'll work harder from now on. Pickpocketing, anything—you name it. So... give the others their freedom first. You promised."
Tricksy clearly remembered the director's promise. Freedom after this one job.
She hadn't completed this job, but Tricksy pulled something out in front of Victor.
Jingle!
"What's this?"
"Silver coins I took from the orphanage. Isn't this enough?"
These were silver coins Tricksy had obtained with her Handicraft talent. A whole handful, no less.
Inwardly, Tricksy apologized to the Director countless times. He had discovered her talent and cared for her warmly, yet here she was betraying that kindness with theft. Tricksy swallowed her tears.
'I'm sorry, Director. I'll pay you back somehow, no matter what.'
But she needed something to convince Victor. Bringing the other orphanage children was impossible, so this was her desperate measure.
'The Director said it wasn't a talent for pickpocketing and such.'
Still, if she could repay the Director's debt with this talent, she could return not just a handful, but a whole pouch of silver coins.
She'd take the scolding herself. The other friends would be safe—
"Hmm, not bad at all."
"Right? So then..."
"But freedom? Not sure about that."
"...What?"
"Ah, right. I can give you freedom. You're no longer part of Happy Orphanage."
Clank.
At Victor's gesture, a grim-faced executive nearby picked up an axe and approached. A face Tricksy recognized from the village. Carlson, was it?
Carlson licked his lips with glee, as if this were routine.
"Now, no one cares what happens to an orphan who's not part of the orphanage, right?"
"What the hell does that—!!"
"Kill her."
"Yes, Boss!"
"...Everyone, stop!"
Whoosh!
The moment Victor gave the order, the executive swinging the axe at Tricksy recoiled in horror. Flames had suddenly erupted in the air.
Karen, who had been silent until then, stepped forward in front of the despairing Tricksy, maintaining a fireball to pressure the executive.
"Move even an inch, and you'll burn alive."
"Boss! W-What's this?!"
"...Magic? How the hell...?"
"B-Boss!"
"Tch."
"You too, don't—"
Snap.
"Ma...?"
"Doesn't matter how you learned magic—you're an idiot."
With a mere finger flick, Victor dispelled Karen's magic and rose with a greedy smile.
His eyes, full of amusement, fixed solely on Karen.
"You think I haven't seen plenty of fake little mages like you in the capital's back alleys? Block the ambient mana, and it's over unless you've awakened your affinity."
"M-My magic...!!"
"Still, an unexpected bonus. I like it."
"What?"
"We were short on manpower. Perfect timing. I'll personally be your godfather."
That was why his gang was called the Smile Family.
Victor, the boss, always wandered around smiling. And he always hid a lethal move behind that smile.
"You'll escape your orphan fate. No more sleeping on straw, no all-nighters, no whippings."
"............"
"You'll become an executive at our orphanage too. Rising to manage the livestock."
Victor drew closer to Karen with every word.
Finally reaching Karen, who stood protectively in front of Tricksy.
"But first, an initiation test, right?"
"......... "
"Daddy's orders. Kill that brat back there. Then you're family."
In this situation, Victor clearly held the upper hand. Karen's magic was sealed, surrounded by his underlings. The moment her magic was blocked, she was utterly powerless. Just like her childhood self.
To survive, to cling to the budding thread of revenge, she had to obey Victor.
"...No."
"What?"
"That... isn't a father."
It wasn't Victor's other words that stung Karen. It was the offer to become her godfather—her father.
Those were the exact words a certain orphanage director had said to her not long ago.
Only then did Karen realize.
"I have only one father. And..."
It wasn't the biological one, nor this self-proclaimed godfather bastard.
To Karen, her father was.
The one who had enveloped her in love and sacrifice, like a mother—
Thwack!
"Aaagh!"
"This brat sure talks a lot. Want me to spell it out simpler? Do it if you don't wanna die. Can't even understand that, you uneducated orphan scum?"
"Fath... er..."
"Tch, whatever. Some training, and you'll be useful. You lot, kill that brat over there and head to the orphanage as planned. One guy's already on his way—link up with him."
"Yes, Boss. Burn it down and kill everyone?"
"Did that go in one ear and out the other? I said kill only the Director bastard! Kidnap the rest! Bring 'em back with all limbs intact. Easier to work 'em that way. And it's Director for him, got it?"
"Ah, yes. Understood, Director."
Father. And Director.
Even amid the pain clouding her mind, Karen heard those two words clearly. They referred to Victor, but at the same time, they could refer to another.
'...No.'
She couldn't lose her true father too, after her mother. She didn't want to be alone again. She had finally realized her feelings—too late for regrets.
That's why Karen.
"I'll... kill you..."
"All talk. We'll train that mouth too."
She wanted to stop Victor and those human scum.
Even if it meant breaking "Father's" teachings.
Even if it meant breaking the rule against pointing magic at others carelessly.
Karen.
"...Die."
She wished it more desperately than anyone.
"Huh?"
The executive holding the axe, Carlson, uttered a dumb sound.
"Cough, hack! Hack!!"
From his eyes and mouth.
...black blood poured.