CH 9

October 21, 2022

“Ahh, so tired. I’m so, so tired!”

“It’s all over now, sweetie,” said Marie. “You must be tired too, Miss Stella.”

“C’mon, Marie. Why treat me like a child but not her?” Rye pouted, making herself look even more childish.

“Should I not have called you ‘sweetie’?” asked Marie.

“It doesn’t bother me, it’s just . . . you don’t do that to Stella, and she’s younger than me.”

“That’s because Miss Stella behaves like a proper adult. And she’s also our master.”

“Yeah, and I’m just a child acting like a child. Don’t say it. I’m so tired, though! But also glad we had so many customers.” Laughing, Rye wiped the sweat off her face.

She looked tired but satisfied; maybe “fulfilled” was the word. Beck was leaning against a wall, looking more exhausted than anything else. Marie brought each of them a glass of water and then started the preparations for dinner, with such quick and graceful movements that nobody could have guessed she’d been hard at work until just moments before. Stella, on the other hand, was more exhausted than anyone else in the room despite not having done any physical labor. She’d gone too hard on her magic training. This body never fails to disappoint me.

“Good work, everyone. I know it was a hard day, but most of it was because of our guests from the Stock Company. It should get less busy starting tomorrow.”

“I don’t know about that,” said Rye. “There were quite a few common townsfolk too. They’ll probably tell everyone about this place.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing. If you need motivation, how about I give each of you a bonus based on how much we sell?”

“Really?! Now you’re talking. Man, guess I really lucked out, huh. Never mind the rocky start.”

“Lucked out? What are you talking about?” Stella cocked her head. Did she get in trouble while I wasn’t looking?

“About you, uh . . . buying me, I guess,” she managed to say despite her embarrassment. “This feels weird to say.”

“I only bought you because I thought you’d be interesting,” said Stella. It was her honest thoughts.

“Yeah, but still, I was sure I’d be treated much worse. Back in that cage, it was like I wasn’t even human. Now I have good clothes, a bed to sleep in, a roof over my head. I’m not even working for free, and you promised me freedom down the line. What I’m trying to say is, uhm . . .”

“Butter me up all you want, but you’ll get nothing from me today. Besides, it goes both ways. I also got pretty lucky with you and Marie. You two haven’t disappointed me at all.”

“Uh, y-you mean it?” Rye looked up at Stella like a happy puppy.

I can almost see a tail wagging behind her. “I mean it. You’re especially fun to mess with, since you’re so quick to react to everything. And if I’m not wrong, you have some very interesting baggage as well.”

“. . . What? I d-don’t know where you got that from. Nope.” She blatantly averted her eyes.

Rye had been wearing boy’s clothes for a good reason, but there was more to it. Stella could tell. All humans have secrets. But as much as Stella wanted to learn them, she mustn’t pry—it was bound to backfire. I’ll take it slow, with both her and Marie. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to pry. You’re already mine anyway. There’s no need to hurry.”

“H-Huh.”

Rye was visibly relieved. She’s easy to read. It’s one of her qualities.

“Dinner is almost ready,” said Marie. “Would you prefer to have it now or later?”

“. . . I’m sorry, but I’ll just have some soup today,” said Stella.

“Are you feeling sick? I can make something easier to eat.”

“No. I’ll have some soup and go train some more. I don’t have an appetite right now.”

Stella felt that she could push herself a little further today. She was feeling sick yet just as focused, as if her senses were sharper. She could not let this state of mind go to waste. I must train as hard as I can.

“I don’t know anything about magic, but please, you can’t train any more today,” insisted Marie. “And you should really eat some more, or your body . . .”

Stella knew that Marie was right. Without proper nourishment, she would never have a strong body. Right now, though, she couldn’t keep any food down if her life depended on it. “Don’t tell me what to do,” she snapped. “I hate repeating myself.”

Rye stepped in with a serious look on her face. “C’mon, don’t be so stubborn! Have you seen yourself in the mirror? You look seriously messed up!”

“Keep your concern to yourself,” Stella blurted out. “You can look at yourself in the mirror all you like.” She was in a bad mood, and the words had been sharper than she had intended.

‘There’s no need for that, eh, Master? Take a deep breath, cool yer ’ead off. Yer gonna live till yer sixty, remember?’

Clever’s admonition almost made her burst a blood vessel, but she closed her eyes and did as she was told. She’d lost her temper again; it was a bad habit of hers. In her efforts to calm down, she chanted in her head, Don’t get anxious, there’s no need to get anxious, getting anxious will get me nowhere. It helped. It didn’t, in fact, but she pretended that it did.

“All right,” she said. “I’m going to stuff dinner down my throat and turn in. You’re right, overworking is bad. You’re absolutely right.”

“W-Wow, you changed your mind fast. You sound kind of pissed, though.”

“It seems I have a short fuse. Which is ironic, considering my body is the way it is. In a way, I suppose that’s very human of me.”

“I think it’s just called being childish. I mean, you’re ten years old. There’s nothing ironic about it.”

“To think I’d hear that from you.”

“What?! That’s just mean!”

With her hands crossed on her chest, Marie gave a sigh of genuine relief, as if she’d heard the greatest news of her life. “I’m glad you’ve changed your mind,” she said. The look she gave Stella then was overflowing with kindness. It was the look a mother would give her child, she knew; her own mother had loved her dearly.

The conversation died down after that, and time went peacefully by for Stella and the others.

After dinner, Beck appeared in front of Stella with a troubled look on his face. He was supposed to be locking the store for the night.

“Uhm, Stella, ma’am?”

“What? Be quick about it.”

“Someone’s at the door. I mean, a visitor. Says he’s a friend of Glenn’s. Looks pretty desperate to see you. Uhm . . .”

“And his name is . . . ?” she asked impatiently.

“His name? Uh . . . Uhm . . .”

The most important thing, and he forgot to ask. “You never change, do you?”

“Uh . . .” He gave an embarrassed chuckle. “Thank you, ma’am.”

“And that just now was even more like you. Go take a good look at him. If you’re convinced he’s not here to kill me, let him in. If he’s armed, tell him to leave.”

“Got it.” He went back to the store’s entrance.

Stella couldn’t see the entrance from the living room. If Beck got stabbed, she would have only a few moments to get ready to fight.

“Y-You think whoever’s there would want to kill you?”

“It’s not unthinkable, at least. What was it called again? The Palpud Union? They’re at war with the Stock Company here in the West District. We can never be too careful.”

“What’s that got to do with us?”

“Everything. We’re clearly on the Stock Company’s side here.”

Stella had taken the side of her father’s enemy—an unthinkable decision, perhaps, but she didn’t care. It had been her easiest and most lucrative option short of abusing her powers to knock the company to the ground, which was very likely to kill her. I’ll make good use of them to further my own purposes.

Deep inside, there was a voice coaxing her to slaughter them to a man, but she ignored it. She was yet too young to do anything at the expense of her own life. That was something to consider after turning sixty.

Beck reentered the living room accompanied by a plump middle-aged man whom Stella recognized as her father’s friend. She searched her memories for a name—Dominique. Their families had been close; even Stella knew him, unsocial as she was. Dominique came from a family of blacksmiths who took up shop in the West District. His customers were thugs, mercenaries, gladiators—naturally, he had deep ties with that kind of people.

“. . . H-Hey, Stella,” he said. “Long time no see, huh. You’re as pale as I remember, but you seem to be doing well. That’s great.”

Stella silently glared at him. Dominique got visibly uneasy.

“No, wait, it’s not what you think. I, uh . . .”

“Good evening, Uncle Dominique. How long has it been, a year?”

“. . . Yeah. I heard Glenn and Luana died, so I’m here to—”

“Oh, really. And how exactly have you heard that?”

“One of the sisters at the church. And I couldn’t stand around doing nothing, so I—”

“The Astral Church? How would they know?” she asked, turning to Beck.

“Uhm, I . . . I buried my partner and your parents there. It just didn’t feel right to dump them in the sewage canal like the rest.”

“It was completely unimportant one way or the other, but that was quite thoughtful of you. Well done.”

“Thank you so much!”

Stella had been sure Beck had simply taken them to his company’s favorite body-dumping spot. She wouldn’t have minded that. And though the church must have demanded a donation, Beck never mentioned anything of the sort. Should she take that as his idea of consideration? He might have just forgotten about it. Still, maybe he wasn’t as tactless as she’d thought. Stella added one point in his favor on her mental notes. Now he was finally at zero.

“. . . I don’t know what’s going on,” continued Dominique, “but why’s the Stock Company helping you? I heard you’re not in debt anymore . . .”

Stella giggled. “Fate works in mysterious ways. My debt is settled, and let me tell you—today was so busy, what with me starting a new chapter in life. A shame you didn’t visit earlier, or I could have given you a sample of our new product.”

Dominique hesitated, then said, “Good, good. I thought you’d be Leroy’s slave by now. So . . .”

“Please. Who would want a kid with one foot in the grave?”

“Hey, d-don’t say that. I’m sure you’ll grow up to be as pretty as Luana was.” He put on an ingratiating smile.

Stella giggled again. “By the way, Uncle Dominique . . . are you sure that’s what you should be asking? Wouldn’t a good family friend like you want to know how Glenn and Luana died first?”

“That’s—I, uh . . .”

Stella’s urge to harm this man grew stronger with each passing moment. Despite appearances, Dominique was the lowest of the low—and so was Glenn, for that matter, but it was Dominique who had deceived him into making the choice that would be the greatest mistake of his life. He’d visited the store every day to coax Glenn into this new plan of his—it was great, it was flawless, it would make the both of them rich. He vowed that Glenn wouldn’t be alone, as he would throw all of his money into it as well. In truth, Dominique had been in debt with Leroy, and he’d accepted to sell his own friend in exchange for having it reduced. Stella had seen it all happen firsthand.

So that’s why. Sickly, untrusting, and unable to leave home without being chased by debt collectors. This was my only safe haven.

It was also where she’d almost been killed by the person she’d trusted the most. Had she not gotten her memories back, that would have been the end.

“I know everything,” she said. “Did you have your debt reduced after all? Congratulations. I’ve had mine reduced all the way to zero, so I know exactly how it feels. Like a weight’s been lifted off your shoulders, right?”

“No, wait! Let me explain!”

“Oh, don’t bother. My parents may be gone, but I’m doing perfectly fine without them. Here with me I have three new humans to call my own. I couldn’t be happier.”

“S-Stella, please . . . I’m so sorry. I never meant for it to end like this! I was tricked, just like your father! That bastard Leroy said he’d reduce my debt, but he was toying with us all along!”

“Yes, yes, I’m sure he was. And I’m sure you didn’t mean for him to die, Uncle Dominique. You’re too kind for that. I know, I know. You needed to believe those excuses yourself, or else you could never betray your best friend.”

“S-Stella . . .” He looked like he was about to cry.

Stella returned the look with a full smile. “It’s all right. You enjoy your life, and never mind the people who are already dead. Tell the wife I said hi.”

“I . . . Oh, that’s right! Stella, is there anything I can do for you? Anything at all? I’ll do whatever I can to—”

“Whatever you can? Do you mean it?”

“Uh, yeah. I can look after you if you want. Or do you want more able hands? I can have my son help you out.”

He didn’t mean a single word of it. He surely knew about the success of today’s new product, and the mere fact that she had the support of the Stock Company meant that she was running a profitable business. He just wants the crumbs. Little drops of emotion gradually leaked from Stella’s core despite her best efforts. Was this what humans called hatred? She had never felt it before. Every ounce of her being was screaming to rip this man apart piece by piece. She did her best to repress it.

“Then, kind Uncle Dominique, I do have one thing in mind,” she said. “I want you gone, as fast as possible. I’m trying to forgive you for everything, but it’s proving very hard to keep my head clear. I can hear a sweet voice whispering over and over, ‘Kill this worthless man. Kill him.’ But you see, this place, it’s been tainted enough, and I don’t need your blood, the smell of it, permeating these walls. So . . .”

“W-What are you talking—”

“If you don’t want to die, get out of my sight now. You’re still here? Should I gut you alive? You’ll scream nicely for me, won’t you?” With a warped smile, she took out her Magic Crystal.

Upon seeing the eerie light of the crystal, Dominique immediately fell on his behind screaming, then staggered to his feet and bolted out the door, almost tripping on the way. That was a look of primal fear in his eyes. The reaction was no less than she had expected from a cautious man like him. He was bound to live a long life, yet Stella didn’t like the idea of using him as a role model.

“Do you think I went too easy on him?” she asked Clever.

‘Killin’ ’im ’ere woulda caused an uproar. I know it musta been ’ard to ’old back, but don’t worry, eh? I’ll finish the job later.’

“No. Leave him be for now. He’s quite the interesting specimen, and I want to see what kind of life he’ll lead from here on out. Besides, I have other ways to get back at him.”

Judging from his behavior, he still owed a considerable sum to the Stock Company. He said he’d been tricked by Leroy; Stella could use Mace to pressure him even further. She’d found herself a great toy to play with. Let’s see how much rough handling he can take. This is far from over.

“That was a great scream, though, I’ll give him that. Even if I can’t stand a single thing about the man.”

“. . . Uhm, Stella?” said Rye. “Uh, I’m not sure what’s the right thing to say here, but . . .”

“Hmm? Might as well hear it. What is it, Big Sis Rye?”

“Uh, you know. Cheer up, and all that.” She rubbed Stella’s shoulder.

Shaking her off felt like too much work, so Stella let the hand stay. Giggling, she said, “Nice words, if a little overused. I’ll accept the sentiment.”

After Rye’s clumsy display of concern, Marie hugged Stella close without saying a word. Quite considerate of them, thought Stella. There’s really nothing like people who can act spontaneously.