Chapter: 14
Sisrain and I headed to a secluded place where no one else was around.
There, I explained everything to him in detail.
About the black shadow I had seen at the hideout, and everything Mrs. Mimosa had told me.
Sisrain listened quietly without showing much of a reaction.
I knew it was better to tell him.
Even as I spoke, I became more certain.
The culprit would definitely keep causing trouble in the future. When that happened, it would be far wiser to know beforehand and prepare than to be caught completely off guard.
Besides, it would be much easier if two people dealt with it instead of just one.
Even so, I deliberately left out one detail.
I never mentioned that I had two suspects.
It was intentional.
I simply didn’t want to bring Heinrich’s name into this.
“So… that’s what happened, Sisrain.”
After finishing my explanation, I carefully watched his expression.
Was he shocked?
But Sisrain simply replied,
“I see.”
Huh? That’s it?
His response was so calm that it almost felt dry.
Even the hurt expression I had briefly seen on his face earlier had somehow disappeared.
“…Sis, aren’t you surprised at all?”
He answered quietly.
“Everyone already hates me anyway. There’s nothing strange about it.”
As he spoke, the boy lowered his crimson eyes.
It looked like he was used to situations like this.
His answer struck my heart without warning.
“I make people angry.”
For some reason, I suddenly remembered those words Sisrain had once said.
Sis… you’re still too young to be used to being hated and hurt.
It felt as though pebbles had filled my chest, making it ache with a dull heaviness.
Before I realized it, my fists had clenched tightly.
“No! I like you, Sis!”
“…Huh?”
Sisrain looked at me as if he’d just been lightly smacked on the head.
Then, little by little, his ears and the back of his neck turned red.
Looking straight into his eyes, I emphasized,
“The children of the forest all like you too. Really! Everyone likes you, Sis!”
Sisrain blinked with an unfamiliar expression.
“…I don’t think so.”
“It’s true!”
No matter how many times I told him, I doubted he would believe me.
Not until he experienced it himself.
I firmly grabbed both of his hands and looked straight into his eyes.
“So whatever that guy does from now on, don’t let it hurt you.”
“…”
“There are lots of people who’ll help you.”
I really hope Sis comes to understand that.
I looked at him with determination.
“And of course, I’m one of those people.”
That somehow didn’t feel like enough.
I raised my fist high into the air and declared proudly,
“No—I’m the captain!”
At my spirited shout, the tension in Sisrain’s eyes melted away.
His ruby-colored eyes curved gently as he smiled.
“Okay, Anette.”
Good.
“Now all we have to do is wait calmly until that naughty little brat makes his next move.”
Just try making a move.
This time, I definitely wouldn’t let him get away.
And the troublesome little demon didn’t disappoint my expectations.
He made his move almost immediately.
“Waaah! My teddy bear is gone! Waaaah! What do I do?!”
Just before the last class of the day,
Reina burst into tears.
“A teddy bear? What teddy bear?”
“My legendary rare teddy bear!”
“Huh? That’s the teddy bear your future parents gave you as a present!”
The children gathered around her like a flock of clouds, all flustered.
“Did you look carefully?”
“Sniff I looked everywhere! I left it safely on top of my desk… but after we came back from outdoor practice, it was gone! Waaah!”
No… why would you leave something that precious sitting on your desk?
Was this how foreigners felt when they saw Koreans leave laptops and wallets on café tables while going to the restroom?
Still, I didn’t want to blame Reina.
There had never been any thefts in the forest before.
The children here were all kind and gentle.
The very idea that a friend might steal from another friend had never crossed their minds.
They also lived fairly comfortably, so none of them were particularly greedy.
So for something to suddenly disappear…
It was a major incident in the forest.
Smiling reassuringly, I said,
“I’ll help you find it. Let’s all look together, okay?”
“Okay! Don’t cry! We’ll find it for you!”
Julian blinked his large sky-blue eyes and raised his tiny fist.
Clapping my hands, I announced,
“Alright, everyone! Let’s play treasure hunt! Find the teddy bear keychain you saw earlier!”
“Yeees!”
The children scattered excitedly in every direction.
Calling it a treasure hunt made everyone search happily instead of worrying.
Just then, Julius entered the classroom.
“Why is it so noisy in here?”
He was the teacher in charge of noble etiquette classes, as well as the social education of the tree children.
After hearing the whole story from me, Julius’s deep blue eyes beneath his blond hair turned cold.
“So… it’s a theft.”
“…Or maybe it was just misplaced! Hehe.”
Teacher, if you put it that way, you’ll scare the children. Read the room a little.
“Anette, what’s a theft?”
Julian asked, his sky-blue eyes sparkling.
Thank goodness he’s too young to understand.
At least he wasn’t frightened.
Smiling, I gently ruffled his fluffy hair.
“I’ll tell you what it means next year.”
“Okay!”
Just then—
“Ah! I found it!”
One of the little children held up a teddy bear with sapphire-colored eyes and shouted brightly,
“The teddy bear was inside Sisrain’s locker!”
“…!”
In an instant, everyone’s eyes turned toward Sisrain.
Reina, still covered in tears.
Heinrich.
Even Julius.
I bit my lip.
So… it finally begins.
“This is absolutely unacceptable.”
Mrs. Mimosa hurried into the classroom and quickly assessed the situation.
“I completely agree, Mrs. Mimosa. To think that a promising young noble destined to lead Eldorado in the future would develop the habit of stealing… It’s horrifying.”
Julius stared at Sisrain with open contempt.
Sisrain lowered his head like a criminal.
“…”
Seeing how accustomed he seemed to being unfairly accused made my heart ache.
My poor baby, don’t shrink back!
I spread both arms in front of Sisrain protectively.
“Sisrain would never do something like that! Someone clearly planted it there to frame him!”
“What do you think, Reina?”
At Mrs. Mimosa’s question, everyone’s gaze shifted to Reina.
“…”
Her eyes and nose were red from crying as she looked at Sisrain.
Sisrain couldn’t bring himself to meet her eyes.
He probably thought she hated him too.
But the words that came out of Reina’s mouth were completely unexpected.
“I don’t think Sis took it. Maybe… maybe it was one of the house fairies playing a prank…?”
Rather than suspecting Sisrain of stealing, the innocent girl found it easier to believe that a legendary fairy had done it.
Then Julian suddenly jumped forward, clenched both fists, and shouted,
“That’s right! Sis is nice!”
“Sis isn’t a bad kid, Teacher!”
Shasha trembled as if it were her own problem.
Her fluffy pink pigtails bounced upward.
The other little children nodded their chestnut-colored heads.
“Yeah! Sis would never do that!”
“It must’ve been a house fairy!”
“You dummies! There aren’t any house fairies! …It was obviously the bald apple tree that got angry and called a spirit!”
Another child who had played in the water with Sisrain eagerly raised a tiny hand.
“Sis is a good kid. He’d never want someone else’s things, Teacher.”
You’re all even kinder than Sis, you little angels.
My chest tightened as I watched the children rushing to defend him.
“…”
Sisrain looked at them with unfamiliar eyes.
His gaze trembled with emotion.
Perhaps…
This was the very first time in his life that someone had believed in him.
“Everyone already hates me anyway. There’s nothing strange about it.”
For a boy who truly believed that…
This must have been an overwhelming, unfamiliar warmth.
His crimson eyes, like a midsummer sunset, slowly closed.
Then, as though making up his mind, his long eyelashes lifted again.
Looking straight ahead, Sisrain slowly opened his mouth.
“I…”
Everyone’s attention immediately focused on him.
Though his voice was still youthful, it rang out with unmistakable determination.
“I never stole anything, Mrs. Mimosa.”
“…!”
I gasped and covered my mouth with both hands.
It was the first time.
The boy who once found even facing other people unbearable.
The boy who had hidden himself away in a cave.
The boy who used to do nothing but tremble in fear.
For the first time, he had found the courage to speak.
Sis… you’ve really changed so much…
Suddenly, I remembered what Viscount Puterio had once said.
“You children are lives abandoned by your parents.”
Perhaps those words were true.
But even if they were…
That didn’t mean he wanted to spend his entire life silently accepting injustice and cowering like an insect every time someone wronged him.
No matter how someone was born,
their life was precious.
And the boy was proving that with his own actions.
You did so well, Sis…
Overcome by emotions I couldn’t put into words, I felt my eyes sting with tears.
