Let’s Block the Ruined Route in Advance

The men who had locked the children in a room with thick bars that looked out of place in the old building left the room and talked about something.

 

‘I guess they don’t tie us up because we look young. They’re not even muzzling us, so either this place is deserted or it’s better soundproofed than I thought.’

 

The windows were boarded up, but not tightly, so light came through the gaps, and it wasn’t too dark.

 

After a moment’s inspection, Eileen turned to Felix and was startled.

 

For some reason, the child was staring at her. His mauve eyes glowed fiercely in the fragmented light.

 “Why are you pretending to be afraid?” “Huh…?” 

Eileen, pierced, looked away. The child looked away without further prodding, not sure if he wanted an answer, and then sat up straight, burying his head in his hands.

 “That’s it?” 

Eileen asked, no longer understanding.

 “Aren’t you…afraid?” “…….” 

No answer came back.

 “Well, are you okay?” “…….” 

‘Difficult!’

Eileen felt a little frustrated.

 

She had gotten used to Cordelia and Lucian’s instant answers, but this was a completely new case. After a moment’s pause, Eileen spoke again.

 “Don’t worry. Someone will come and save us!” 

The child looked up. Eileen was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she quickly froze. 

 

The child’s eyes had gone completely blank, and there was an emptiness in them that made her heart sink.

 “Someone will come, but it won’t be to save us.” 

Eileen swallowed hard. Her mouth was dry for some reason. Those tired, worn eyes had an aura that made her heart flutter in a different direction than the mad eyes she’d seen in the future.

 “Why do you say that? They might come to rescue me.” “Do you have someone coming to rescue you?” “Yes, I do.” 

The child smiled shyly.

 “I’m not being captured, I’m playing.” “Playing…?” “Yes.” 

Felix dropped his head again. No matter what she said, he wouldn’t look up again. Eileen couldn’t say anything now.

 “Hey, are you okay?” 

Her nose was in the air, but somehow, she couldn’t get the desperate look in his eyes out of her head.

 

The play.

 

The out-of-context word weighed heavily on Eileen’s mind.

 “Who asked you to play?” “…….” “Do you need help?” “…….” 

Felix’s tightly closed mouth didn’t open.

 

Eileen sighed. She’d never considered herself a thinker. Sometimes she thought she had a calculating side to her.

 

But Lucian, whom she had seen as nothing more than an obstacle to a happy ending, had grown up to be the brightest of them all, and Cordelia, whose life had been turned upside down, was on the right track.

 

If she left him now, she felt like she was denying him another happy moment that could have come his way. It wasn’t Eileen’s fault, but it was hers.

 “I’ve had my moments of despair.” 

There had been countless times in her past life when she’d tasted failure, and no one had been there for her. No adults to comfort her, no one to show her the hard things.

 

In every moment of loneliness, she always needed someone to be by her side.

 

She couldn’t let it go. She saw it in Cordelia, she saw it in Lucian, she saw it in Felix, and now she saw it in her sobbing self.

 “Hey! Look at this!” 

Eileen gently touched the boy’s shoulder. Felix looked up helplessly.

 “Ah…” 

A small flower bloomed with a faint glow in Eileen’s hand. Seeing the light in the child’s eyes, Eileen smiled.

 “Good thing I brought some seeds.” 

For all the light and illusion of Rofan, she knew there was always an abyss lurking beneath the surface, so she carried seeds of various plants, just in case.

 

From vines that could be used as ropes to seeds of fruits that could be used as emergency food.

 “I never thought I’d use it like this.” 

The plant in front of her is a glowing flower, a dragon from the Far East, which has a simple flower but glows in the dark. It’s a plant she hasn’t been able to use much because it’s more restrictive than she thought, in case she gets trapped in the dark.

 “It’s a flower that blooms on the eastern continent, called a dragon. Isn’t it bright and pretty?” “Are you a wizard?” “Mmm, sort of.” 

Eileen smiled sheepishly and handed him the flower. Felix took the kite and stared at the sparkling flower for a long moment before he spoke again.

 “Then can you finish the piece for me?” “What is the piece?” 

Felix held the glowing flower to his eyes as if to put it in them.

 “Like when I cry.” “Huh?” “He’s always done that. I’m afraid of the dark, and I hate to cry, but he always leaves me in places like this.” “What’s the game…?” “It’s over when he comes looking for me and I’m hanging there crying and he strokes my head. Then it’s over.” 

Eileen put her hand over her mouth. Her heart was beating wildly in shock.

 “But you know what? I really hate playing. I hate being locked in a dark closet. Or being tied up in the woods all day with snakes and scorpions. I don’t like being dragged around and beaten by scary people.” 

The child looked up from the light and back at Eileen.

 “I thought I was going to be stuck here all day again, alone, but I’m glad you’re here.” 

Felix handed the glowing flower back to Eileen. Dazed, Eileen took it without resistance.

 “Can you finish the game for me?” 

Eileen could not answer, and the child did not press her for an answer.

 “At least you have someone to help you, so you don’t have to play, and you can go home, thank goodness.” 

The child smiled again. And at that moment, the flower’s glow faded.

 “Ah…” 

The life drained from Felix’s eyes as the flower quickly faded, and Eileen bit her lip in horror at the sight.

 

The reason the dragons glow is because a special substance is released before they go to seed, covering the surface of the flower. After they go to seed, they quickly wither and lose their glow. That was why Eileen couldn’t use the kites as a tourist attraction for the botanical garden.

 

Felix didn’t say he was sorry to see the flower completely wilted; he just turned off his life force, like a flower whose time had come.

 

It was so devastating that Eileen hastily reached for the remaining seeds in her hand.

 “I’ll do it again, again!” “…?” “The next time we meet, I’ll show you so many more flowers, and these seeds aren’t the only ones!” “Next time?” “Yes, next time!” 

Eileen knew it was an open promise. But she was afraid that if she didn’t say it, the child would scatter and disappear.

 

She knows how to say sweet things.

 

She knows how to say thank you. She couldn’t imagine what this child had gone through to be as completely broken as the original. 

 

It was a terrible backstory, not found in the original story, which was told from Cordelia’s point of view.

 

The child who had accepted the flower seed stared at Eileen with a puzzled expression. His lips, which had been parted for a long time, struggled to open.

 Bam! 

A boom rang out, sending the planked wall flying.

 

‘One Day’s Déjà vu…’

 “Eileen!!!” 

The angry wolf shoved Cordelia into the cage, carrying her on his back. Eileen, wrapped in Cordelia’s arms, took a moment to choose her words.

 “This is what I get for doing this.” “Shut up.” “Yep.” 

She looked into Cordelia’s bloodshot eyes and bowed her head in a

“I’m the sinner”

kind of way. 

 

Just as she was about to ask about the whereabouts of Lucian and the knights, the old door flew open again, this time with a bang.

 “Eileen!!!” 

Lucian stood there, holding the bloodied former slave trader in one hand. He had a pitiful puppy-dog look on his face, but it was harder to tell how badly he’d been beaten.

 “He’s the big one, I hope?” 

Eileen breathed, finally calm enough to apologize to the Knights who had come in after dealing with the rest of the gang.

 

She assured them that Star had gotten upset, that she was being held here out of concern for the child, and that everything was

fine.

 “You’re following a slave trader because you’re worried?” 

Cordelia shouted, which infuriated Eileen, but Eileen was glad to hear it.

 

They found Felix first, so they’ll be able to take him to the duke. They’ll save the child and talk to the duke later. Just as she was thinking this, a knight spoke up with a proud look on his face.

 “Miss, if it’s a child, you don’t need to worry, I’ve met the Count’s man who’s looking for the child right here.” “…what?” 

Just then, I heard someone coming up the stairs.

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