Chapter 96 - Sadness And Questions

I lay in bed for a while before I remembered, "Kimi, Ruciel!"

How could I forget them!?

This must be the jerk's fault!

I want to see them. So, I got out of my bed.

"Ow ow ow."

This pain is so tormenting.

I'm hurt but I'm lucky. Even though that someone took my shirt off, they didn't take my pants off. And if they truly did it, that sinful someone will get punishment from me.

Now, back to the moment, forcing my body, I picked up a shirt lying on a chair and put it on.

After I got dressed and looks decent, I walked towards the door. Not long after, I opened it.

Kreet ...

"Oh!" I made a strange noise when I found a female knight standing next to this bedroom door.

She looked at me sharply for a moment before saying, "Where do you want to go?"

"I want to find Kimi and Ruciel, my sister and my friend."

"Can you move?"

I felt the condition of my body for a moment. Yup! Although it's a little troublesome, I'm sure I can walk. The unbearable pain also showed signs of subsiding.

I nodded at the female knight. "I can move."

"Okay, but take this." She gave me a bottle of Potions. "Drink it then we'll go to the place you want."

So I drank the potion. After that, true to her words, the female knight help me to search for Kimi and Ruciel. 

We do find Kimi in the dining room but we can not find Ruciel.

I made observations of the exterior of this building, along the way in this searching quest. Therefore, I can say that right now, I am in an inn.

It's a great place but I'm more interested in my little sister, Kimi, who is now eating a meal with Alan, Chloe, and Ellis.

"Miss Eclaite," Ellis called me.

The woman was the first to see me because she was occupying a chair overlooking the entrance to this dining room.

Kimi turned her head quickly, followed by Chloe and Alan.

Three kids put on different expressions. Chloe and Alan had worried expressions. As for my sister, she's a mess. 

Small black Fox-kin's ears and tail hung weakly. Her eyes were puffy and reddened. Whit that, I didn't have to ask to know that she had just cried.

The little girl left her chair. She ran and...

"Gah!"

That's pretty painful. She did not reduce her power when she bump me. My legs shifted, I almost fell. Fortunately, I can fix my balance, I didn't fall.

"Can't you be careful?" I asked Kimi who hugged me.

She didn't give me an answer, instead, she hugged me tighter. So, I stroked her head.

Minutes passed.

"Is that monster... Is papa Wielth dead?"

The question stopped my hand.

"How much do you know about this episode?"

"Answer me, big sis, I don't have the mood to hear lies."

She surprised me. How did she know that I was trying to lie to her?

If I knew the things she saw and heard during this episode, I would tell lies that the monster wasn't her father.

But now, I had no other choice but to speak the truth.

I took a deep breath then said, "Yes, he's dead."

"... Where is he now?"

"If people haven't moved his body, he's outside this settlement."

"...Papa truly became a monster, right?"

"Yes."

The girl tightened her hug for seconds before finally letting me go. Without energy, she returned to her seat. Instantly, Chloe approached her and hugged her.

I breathed a burdened breath.

I never thought, telling Kimi about the jerk's death was so awful. But on the other hand, I was happy when the jerk finally died.

These two opposite feelings made me feel uncomfortable.

Not knowing what to do, I look at the female knight. "Thank you, miss knight."

"No problem. And if you feel tired and want to rest, please tell me. I will escort you back to the bedroom earlier."

"All right."

The female knight nodded then walked over to the empty table. She then ordered food from the waitress.

Well... I don't want to keep standing here. So, I moved my legs. I joined the table where Kimi and the others were.

"Do you have an appetite, Miss Eclaite?"

I paused for a moment to find the answer to that question. In the end, "Small portions of food are not a bad idea. I also want a glass of water to soak my dry throat."

"All right."

Ellis made a wave of the hand at a Waitress without saying anything. A moment later, a bowl containing "Buryam," a chicken porridge, appeared in front of me.

My fox's ears twitched when I saw this. Ellis acted as if she knew what was going to happen as if she knew I was going to accept the offer for food.

I shook my head to the thought of Ellis was an oracle. So, I picked up the first bite of my porridge while watching Kimi bury her face at the table. She used her two hands as pillows.

Haa... How do I cheer up that little girl? The last time, when mama Haruka died, she locked herself in a room for three days.

I ate the porridge while thinking of a way to cheer up Kimi. Time passed and in the end, I couldn't find the answer I was looking for. 

My incompetence makes me angry.

Suddenly, four Knights entered this dining room. Lucky or unlucky, when I saw the knights, I instantly recognized two of them.

The two knights I'm referring to are Rose and the old knight. Honestly, I still can't believe what he did to me. Old knight, I mean.

He carried me without my consent and how could he do it without hesitation?

I ignored those knights but they wanted my attention. The knights approached the table where I and everyone else were.

"It's good to see you're okay, miss," said the old knight.

I made a wry smile. "Actually I'm not okay. But anyway, is there anything I can help you with, sir knight?"

"Yes, there are some things we want to make sure of. Can we talk?"

"Is this about th-Wielth?"

My sister's fox ears twitched. She immediately raised her head. The little girl looked at me.

"If that's the name of the monster that attacked this place, then yes. We want to know more about him. Can we talk somewhere else?"

"Of course."

Kimi approached me as quickly as possible after I finished speaking. She tugged at my sleeve without saying anything.

The thing that she did was more than enough for me to know what she wanted. 

"You want to join us, Kimi?"

My sister nodded without having any hesitation.

"I don't think it's a good idea," Rose told me.

"That man is our father. And it's natural for Kimi to know what happened to him," I said firmly.

The four knights were silent for a moment. Afterward, Folcion made a decision.

"If you don't mind, so do we. Please miss, follow us."

So we left the dining room. And to be honest, I was a little surprised, the place we were going to use for this conversation was the bedroom I was in earlier.

So... In that bedroom, I answered the questions asked by the knights.

Who's the jerk?

When was the last time I saw him?

The motive that incited him to attack the settlement?

Do I know of this attack plan?

Why and how did he become a monster?

All these questions along with a dozen other questions came to me. And of course, I answered all their questions.

In the end, they were satisfied.

"Before we leave, there's one thing I want to say. In a few days, I'll invite you to the knight's headquarters. I want you to be a witness and to give testify again. Can you do it?"

"Of course and sir knight, can I ask you a few questions?"

The old knight nodded. "Of course, please ask."

"Can we take Wielth's human part? We want to bury him."

Even though I said that, burying the jerk wasn't my real intention. I intend to make Kimi feel relieved.

I'm sure Kimi will be sadder if I decide to abandon the jerk's corpse just like that.

"... I think you can do it but It's going to take time. So, let me talk to the other knights to do something about it."

"All right." I nodded. "For the second question, do you know what happens to Ruciel?"

"Ruciel?"

"She is a Fallen Elf girl. I'm sure, she was with Kimi in a wooden cage when the monster left the settlement.

"Ah, that girl. We're imprisoning her now."

"Imprisoning her? Why?"

"Because she and some other adventurers helped your father."

"Help him to attack this place?"

"That's not all. They are also mastermind behind the disappearance of several adventurers and several other cases."

"What will happen to Ruciel or those adventurers?"

"They will get a punishment that is in accordance with the crimes they committed."

"Can I see Ruciel?" 

"Of course, but not now. You can see the girl tomorrow after we've finished interrogating her. Is there another question you want to ask?"

"No, that is enough."

"Alright, a knight will pick you up and guide to the girl tomorrow. Please, take a rest."

"Thank you."

Folcion nodded and a moment later, he and the other three knights left us to our own devices.

"What are we going to do now?" I asked my little sister.

And just like before, she didn't say anything.

The little girl went up to the bed and lay down there. A few moments later, she started crying.

I approached the little girl and hugged her.

We or I decided to rest, we slept together in this bed.