*Please support the original release by clicking here*
“Supervision?”
My father knit his eyebrows. Mother and I also both stiffened our expressions.
The Chief spoke gently as he gave us a cool look.
“Gray Starling is a dangerous criminal. If your daughter happens to see something or hear something un-conveniently related to him, there’s a possibility he may try and keep her silent.”
“What do you mean?”
Mother raised her voice with a hint of panic. The Chief continued in an attempt to calm her.
“It’s simply that if we release her right now, the possibility will become higher. Honestly, the risks are quite low, but this is to protect your precious daughter.”
–or so he said.
Deep inside, I did not trust the Chief’s words. Most likely it wasn’t to ensure my safety. There had to be another reason.
However, seeming to believe his words, my mother nodded.
“Do not worry.”
The Chief raised his hand in a sign of relief. “Once we a.s.sure that it is safe, we will contact you. Until then, she will stay here at prepared lodgings.”
“If so, then we need to send someone to wait on her hand and foot.”
“No, actually that is—“
“Someone to wait on her hand and foot.”
Her eyes were surely narrowed.
“Understood.”
The Chief gave in. Mother, looking with satisfaction at him sighing and sulking, turned her gaze toward me and beamed at me whole heartedly.
“You need an escort, don’t you think?”
“Um, Mother?”
I smiled back. “If possible, could you call Claire? This place is full of people I don’t know, so I feel a bit uneasy.”
“But she is—“
“I just want someone I can trust to be by my side. Please.”
I made sure to smile as sweetly as possible.
The owner of this body was a pretty boy. If I didn’t make use of it, what good would that be?
“Yes, I understand.”
This time Mother gave in.
Yes!
For whatever reason, I wanted to see Claire.
She was intense. Probably, she was worried about me having gotten kidnapped at the school festival, too. I wanted to see her and show her I was fine.
Also, what I said to my mother was not a lie. Staying in a place like this with a muscly escort who I couldn’t connect with was nothing more than a joke.
The lodgings prepared for me were in a building where the police officers slept.
It was within the premises of the Office and cut off from the rest of the world, so there was no doubt that it was safe.
After my parents returned, I was led to the lodging house by Matilda, finding myself in a plain room.
It was small.
One bed, a desk and chair, a closet, a small window.
Definitely not luxurious. I sighed.
“I need to talk to you a bit.”
As she said this, Matilda closed the door behind her.
Gooseb.u.mps.
I looked at her with obvious caution.
“What is it? Are you going to continue with the questioning?”
“Well…”
Of course.
I dropped my shoulders.
“Don’t make that kind of face. I want you to remember something.”
“What?”
“What you saw and heard in that underground. Don’t you think there might be a hint to where Gray could have escaped to?”
“I really can’t remember well.”
My chest tightened with the feeling of being attacked. What is this? I’m so anxious.
“I guess just telling you to remember is not going to result in anything. Tomorrow, you’ll go to counseling. You can remember from there, little by little.”
“Okay.”
While stiffening my face, Matilda snickered.
“I understand that you’re being vigilant, but we’re on your side. Don’t forget that.”
I simply nodded back.
Matilda then started to leave.
“I’ll come back later.”
She left with that.
Before Matilda came back, Claire arrived at the lodging house.
Led by a police officer to the room, her head was hung sadly.
“I apologize, Miss! If you had had a guard with you at that time…”
As she raised her head, her sentence faded. After gluing her eyes on me for a while, she spoke quietly.
“There’s not even a trace of you left…”
“That may be so…”
After replying equally as quietly, I took her hand. “But I’m still me. Even though I look like this, can you trust me?”
“U—m…”
She took a step back, wavering. Her hand slipped out of mine.
“What about your dark history?”
“When I tried to escape from home and climbed up to the second floor, only to fall out? Then hit my head, and went unconscious? I still can’t remember where that delicious bakery I used to sneak out to is!”
“You are most definitely you.”
Claire hugged me. I was startled, but embraced her back.
Claire felt small.
The arms of this criminal man, his face his only redeeming feature, were long!
“I must find something I can do for you.”
Claire then pushed me aside, raising her eyes. “It’s my fault that you’re in this situation!”
“No, um, Claire”
“At that time, even though you told me not to I should have called for a guard! Please let me bear this responsibility!”
“How..?”
Troubled, I turned my head to the side, wondering if she had cooled down too.
“What should I do?”
“Well, for now just be with me. It seems that I’ll be living here for a while.”
“Here…”
Claire looked at her surroundings and let out a sigh. “There’s nothing here.”
“It’s true.”
“I’ll speak to the master and ask him to send some of your belongings.”
“There’s no need.”
I laughed. “It shouldn’t be for that long. You know? I want to go back to the mansion as quickly as possible.”
“Ah, I see.”
Claire crinkled her forehead.
As we sat there absent-mindedly, a knock came on the door and Matilda peaked through.
“Ah, the servant has arrived. Your room is prepared next door.”
Claire and I looked at each other.
Edgar appeared from behind her. After glancing at us, he snorted. “There will be some awful rumors if we let a guy and girl share a room together.”
“I’m a girl though.”
I replied, becoming nervous.
It’s true, there was that issue.
As I pondered as to whether it was a bad idea to have called Claire, she smiled brightly.
“There won’t be any rumors about the daughter of a respectable family and her servant.”
“Right now, she’s not the daughter of a respectable family.”
“If some awful, horrible rumors start, we’ll just say that we’re engaged.”
She turned her head to the side and looked at me.
While I gave a muddied reply, Matilda spoke, sighing.
“For now, let’s go to the mess hall. After that I’ll show you to the bath.”
Bath.
Again, h.e.l.l on earth!
“That is, Edgar will show you.”
Matilda turned her eyes away.
Claire also, as if to escape, turned her line of sight in the other direction.
Edgar looked at me again with disgust…
“I’ll show you, but don’t get too close to me. You make me sick.”
“That’s my line.”