CH 40

Ah!’

You mean the girl.

I nodded right away.

“Ung, I’m going now!”

“But the time is already too late…”

The maid glanced at Betty as if in trouble.

Betty, who stood quietly by my side the whole time, said firmly.

“Not now, Lady. Let’s go see her tomorrow morning.”

“Huh? But you said you’d let me meet her when she wakes up.”

“But you can’t because it’s late. Now you have to go up and wash up and go to bed.”

“But I just had dinner….”

“Children need to sleep before nine to grow taller.”

Betty was determined.

In the end, Arsene and I had no choice but to return to our rooms.

After I came back to my room,

I lay in bed, glancing at the ceiling.

‘I want to meet her right away.’

I wondered what the ‘black smoke’ the girl said.

Did she see Kendrick’s power or something else? 

Like the dark-red air that leaked out of Ester’s body.

I don’t know if it means that.

And what the girl said was— 

If she was really talking about the black smoke I saw that day—.

I jumped up and ran to the mirror.

I turned my head around and reflected my neck in the mirror.

There was still a clear black spot on the neck.

I looked at the spot and bit my lip.

‘I need to find a way to solve the prohibition.’

Only then could I tell Kendrick the truth about what I saw.

Since the black smoke started to flow out, Arsene’s health has gradually worsened. 

Perhaps it is closely related to Arsene’s disease.

Thinking like that, I can understand why it was difficult for me to treat Arsene.

‘Because he came to me as if he were trying to swallow me….’

And it doesn’t match my strength.

I sighed deeply and rubbed the black spot on my neck for no reason.

As expected, the spots didn’t disappear. 

But—.

“Ung…?” 

There were a few red hairs in between the hairs.

Terrified, I pulled my hair out, opened the window, and threw it outside.

‘I can’t change my hair already.’

I still haven’t been able to tell Kendrick the truth that when I molt, I become a red bird.

I jumped on the spot and turned into a bird. 

And,

“Chirp!”

I spread my wings wide in front of the mirror and looked everywhere at my wings.

‘Maybe there are red feathers on the wings too?’

When I wasn’t fully transformed, the wings would pop out, so I had to be more careful.

‘Phew, I’m glad there isn’t a red feather.’

I change back to my human form.

It is a mountain beyond the mountain. (t/n: It means once you finish one problem, another one appears.) 

Phew.

My memories of being rejected because I was cursed in a past life were still very clear.

So it wasn’t easy to say it myself.

I mean that I’ll have cursed.

Of course— Kendrick said he wouldn’t abandon me.

And Yeckhart’s servants are all kind to me, however—.

It had nothing to do with that.

Because Raniero’s employees were also kind to me.

Until I transform into a red bird.

‘Let’s not think about it for now.’

I shook my head.

What’s important is the dark red air that crawled out of Ester’s body.

And the prohibition in my neck. 

* * *

When morning came, I went right to the girl.

Betty followed me with a worried look on her face.

“Lady, please have a breakfast first and go—!” 

“But, she said she woke up. I want to meet her soon.”

I almost ran towards the room where she was lying.

As promised, Betty and another apprentice maid accompanied me.

Betty opened the door to the room I went to yesterday.

“Uh…” 

A dirty little girl was fiddling with the muffin I had left yesterday.

The girl was startled and dropped the muffin on the floor.

I quickly ran over, picked up the muffin, and gave it to the girl.

“Here.” 

“…T, thank you.” 

The girl stuttered and carefully took the muffin.

‘Are you hungry?’

I waited for a while, wondering if she was going to eat a muffin because she was hungry, but it didn’t seem like that. 

Because the girl fumbled for the blanket and hid the muffin underneath. 

She then fiddled with her fingers to make sure the muffins were well hidden.

I stared at it and slowly introduced myself.

“My name is Linsy, Linsy Raniero. I’m from a bird clan. You?” 

“….” 

But the girl said nothing.

I was embarrassed for nothing, so I just smiled awkwardly. 

Betty stepped forward.

“What are you doing rudely? She is the soon-to-be hostess of Yeckhart. Say hello properly.”

Betty shot back sharply.

I grabbed Betty’s skirt and looked up at her.

“Betty, don’t do that. Let me talk. Okay? I have something to talk to this kid. Please go over there for a moment.”

“But, Lady—” 

“It’s all right. If it’s dangerous, I’ll call you right away. Okay?”

In the end, Betty stepped aside for a while as if she couldn’t win. 

Betty and the other maids stood outside the door and looked at me.

So it can be stopped at any time if something dangerous happens. 

“….” 

“….” 

There was silence for a while.

I stared at the girl who was only fiddling with her hands, then slowly opened my mouth.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Y, yes…”

“It’s a relief. If you’re sick again, tell me anytime.”

“….” 

The girl nodded her head.

I followed the girl, nodded my head, and asked her a straightforward question.

Of course, the sound was kept low so that Betty and the maid who were outside couldn’t hear it.

“By the way, about the black smoke. What did you mean by that?”

“….”

“You said that while looking at me. Black smoke.”

Then, the girl looked up.

His eyes, which were looking elsewhere as if they were out of focus, looked at me clearly.

“I said… black smoke.”

“Where is the black smoke?”

I move to get closer to the girl. 

Then the girl hesitated for a moment, as if thinking hard, and then raised her finger and pointed to my neck.

“…Huh?”

“N, neck… Smoke…”

“Can you see what’s on my neck?”

I asked again with my eyes wide open. The girl nodded slowly. 

“…Then, really.”

This girl is watching the dark red air that I saw.

I swallowed my saliva and asked the girl. 

“Then, can you tell Kendrick-nim what you’re seeing?”

“P, prohibition…”

The girl frowned for a moment, then let it go. 

I asked with round eyes.

“Oh… Do you know it too?”

The girl kept her mouth shut.

“But can you talk about it? I can’t say anything because of this.”

“….”

“Can’t you speak for me?”

But the girl turned her head as if she couldn’t speak.

Is there something she can’t say?

I was frustrated as to why the girl couldn’t say it to me when she didn’t have the same prohibition like me. 

However, for now, I have confirmed that she can see the ‘black smoke,’ so my goal has been achieved.

I looked at the face that was covered in dirt. 

Faded gray eyes and dirty white hair.

“You… What’s your name?”

“….”

“You have to stay here for a while, so I don’t know what to call you….”

“I…don’t have….”

The girl hesitated and stuttered.

“You don’t have a name?”

The girl nodded slowly at my question.

“Then… I’ll name it for you. What would be good… How about Glene?”

I spit out the name ‘Glene’ and opened my eyes wide in surprise.

‘Why did I think of this name all of a sudden?’

The name Glene popped into my head without realizing it.

I had a strong feeling that I should call this kid that way.

The girl nodded silently.

“Do you like Glene?”

“…Ung.”

“Okay, then I’ll call you Glene.”

The girl, or Glene, turned her head shyly.

“But, you know, I have a question. Are you… are you blind?”

I asked, removing Glene’s shaggy bangs.

The focusless eyes looked at me clearly again.

“…You, I can see you.”

“You can see me? How about anyone else?”

Glene shook her head slowly.

How is it that I’m the only one she can see?

I tilted my head and looked at the girl in front of me.

From how she pointed at my neck and her eyes followed my movements, I think she really could see—.

‘Come to think of it, they said she’s a mutant.’

Is it the nature of a mutant? 

Mutations were very few and rare, so little was known about them.

So maybe there’s such an ability.

‘But it’s rude to ask such a thing…’

Since she was a girl who lived on the street, there was a high possibility that she didn’t even know what her parents were.

“But I’m glad you can see me.”

Glene stared at me who smiling.

Then. 

“Lady, it’s time to eat.”

Betty came up and called me.

‘She didn’t hear, right?’

I take a quick look at Betty’s face. Fortunately, Betty didn’t seem to hear any of our strange conversations.

I jumped out of Glene’s bed with a sigh of relief. There was a wrinkle in the seat I sat on.

Tak tak. 

I shook off the seat I was sitting on and smoothed out the wrinkles, then waved at Glene.

“I’ll be back later~, take care.”

I grabbed Betty’s hand and walked out of Glene’s room.

As I walked all the way to the dining room, I sneakily asked Betty.

“You know, Betty, is there… a disease where they can only see one person?” 

“What? You’re already saying something romantic, Lady. Have you ever fallen in love?”

Hoho, Betty laughed. 

I don’t know what it is, but I waved my hand because it seemed to have caused a great misunderstanding.

“No, no. It’s not that… Normally, if you can’t see, you can’t see everything, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But now she can see a certain person… No, it’s nothing.”

There’s no way there’s such a disease.

Then, Betty answered. 

“It’s possible if you have other eyes. Like the deer clan.”

“Ung?”

“The deer clan don’t have ability, but they have eyes that can see the flow of powers. But it will be possible when those other eyes develop. Because that kid is a mutant— something like that could happen.”

Betty talked one after another.

I nodded quietly.

‘Mutant… That means the deer clan’s blood is flowing.’

Meanwhile, Betty and I arrived in front of the dining room.