HBWnovel Chapter 53: School Tuition is More Expensive Than I Thought! (4)
Chapter 53: School Tuition is More Expensive Than I Thought! (4)
chapter 53: school tuition is more expensive than i thought! (4)
༺ school tuition is more expensive than i thought! (4) ༻
the small wooden cabin recommended by the stranger horohoro was cramped.
additionally, it was filled with junk.
“is this some kind of a closet?”
cecily questioned the pink-haired girl who seemed to be a resident of the shack.
to her, living in this cramped and miserable place was inconceivable.
“this...isn’t a closet. this is hina’s house...”
the pink-haired girl replied shyly.
her voice was so faint and feeble that one would be hard-pressed to understand what she had said.
“you...”
“what an awesome house! there’s even lots of mice!”
just as the priestess of gluttony was about to speak.
naru cried out.
naru pointed to a small, yet plump mouse wandering around. it had clearly been feeding on the leftover scraps in the house.
“dad told me that mice are born thieves! this one is probably the leader of all the other mice in this shack!”
naru giggled to herself.
however, cecily seemed quite afraid.
“...m-m-mouse!!!”
perhaps it was the loud noise that startled the mouse.
all of a sudden, the mouse began to scurry on the floor like mad.
—n-noooo!!!!
the rat was running wild.
and the sight of it was enough to make the sheltered cecily panic.
“...f-fuck! go away..!!!”
“oh, holy shhh...! why is the mouse so fast!?”
cecily balanced on her heels as she hopped around in an attempt to evade the mouse. beside her, naru had her arms raised as she continued to giggle.
tywin’s expression soon became clouded with frustration.
“you’re acting like this because of one mouse? this is why i can’t stand stupid children...”
although tywin was acting tough, she too cautiously climbed on top of a chair.
it was clear that she wasn’t fond of mice either.
in this situation, elizabeth calmly assessed it would be best to reassure cecily first.
“cecily, you have to calm down.”
“get rid of it! please! hurry! the mouse!”
“you didn’t have an issue with catching a squirrel, so why are you so afraid of mice?”
“...i’m not scared, it’s just dirty! it even spreads diseases!”
she was indeed correct.
elizabeth was very familiar with the characteristics of mice.
within the city state of freesia, her father had been known for his extensive research on mormots, a subspecies of mice.
just when elizabeth believed she had no choice but to step in, something happened.
whoosh—!
something emerged from within naru’s shadow.
it was the furry creature named molumolu.
—miaooooo.
—screech!
molumolu had caught the mouse.
while not even having legs, the creature suddenly began to resemble a fearsome cat.
“molumolu caught the mouse! are you going to eat it?”
naru observed molumolu’s actions.
however, it did not make any move to swallow or chew.
it simply continued to restrain its movements.
watching this, naru shouted, having arrived at her conclusion.
“molumolu is such a picky eater!”
grab—
naru grabbed onto the restrained mouse’s tail.
then, she tossed it outside of the dilapidated shack’s window.
only then did it feel like some measure of control had been restored.
“this is...”
the pink-haired child began to show interest in molumolu.
“a kit...ty? hmm, i don’t think so...”
she picked him up but looked extremely uncomfortable whilst doing so.
“his name is molumolu! naru doesn’t know what kind of animal he is! you’re the priestess of gluttony, right? we came here because i heard you provide information if we give you something to eat! this is a cheese pork cutlet that naru obtained!”
rustle—
naru took out the cheese pork cutlet that she had wrapped in parchment and offered it to the girl.
it was food that she had received from tywin.
grumble–
as the pink-haired priestess watched, her belly began to rumble.
* * *
the name of the pink-haired priestess was hina.
whilst living in the provence village, she had been dubbed the priestess of gluttony.
“can you really predict the future?”
tywin glared in suspicion as she spoke.
hina looked no different than an ordinary girl like herself.
she was impressed that she knew the names of naru, elizabeth, and cecily despite them not having introduced themselves.
she must have used some kind of trick.
his expression seemed rather distraught.
however, he soon shook his head.
“it can’t be. how could that evil man ever have a child? could she be the daughter of the former king of thieves? tamar’s step-sister? yeah, that seems likely.”
slide—
conrad returned his shortsword back to his scabbard before he spoke.
“to think i would meet the former king of thieves’ illegitimate daughter. this must be fate guided by nocturne. everyone, let’s hurry and go to the ‘kowloon mountains’. we have no time to waste. everyone get into the carriage.”
the children carefully climbed inside the prepared carriage.
at that moment, naru quietly asked a question.
“where is horohoro...?”
horohoro of class.
was now nowhere to be found.
* * *
“the carriage just took the kids and left.”
they were in provence village.
smelling of cow dung and possessing a disheveled appearance, an old woman explained what had occurred.
“the man was so terrifying, we all hid in our closets. this region is notorious for having lots of thieves that originate from the old kowloon mountains. only bloodshed would come from getting involved with them. still, i managed to spy on them through the window.”
hearing this, the pharmacist ilgast lanafeld clutched his head, crying out desperately.
“elizabeth, no! i’m sure elizabeth must have been kidnapped by that evil hook-handed man! it must be because she is a kind and adorable child! of course, they would want to kidnap someone like that!”
ilgast.
he was the best doctor on the freesia continent.
he also seemed to be quite the doting parent.
we had been shocked when an unknown man had knocked, asking “do you happen to know where elizabeth is?” it had been quite shocking.
in the evening, a father went to retrieve his daughter from her friend’s house, only to discover she wasn’t there.
naturally.
elizabeth was nowhere near brigitte’s laboratory.
despite it nearing dinner-time, naru was not present either.
had they gone to cecily’s estate?
i had made my way there and asked, but it seemed cecily had not returned either.
“judas, i think something happened.”
whilst pacing near the entrance of the ragdoll estate, cariote spoke.
“i have something i must ask cecily. if she disappears, things will get complicated. i’ll help you find them.”
cariote was soon able to discern that the kids had boarded the magic carriage.
it was heading to the nearby providence village, which was the reason that we were currently speaking to this elderly woman.
“the carriage headed in that direction. make sure to be careful though! you see that thorn-like mountain right? the entire area is their base of operations!”
the kowloon mountains.
it was a common term used for places where thieves gathered.
“it seems the thieves kidnapped them! what do we do...!?”
elizabeth’s father, llgast, was clearly distraught.
he felt that his daughter had been kidnapped.
however, i noticed something strange while listening to his account.
“you said that the children went with them willingly. if they were intent on kidnapping them, they would’ve just tied them up and thrown them inside. from what you’ve told me, the kids boarded a luxurious carriage.”
it was strange for a supposed kidnapping organized by a bunch of thieves.
additionally, the children didn’t raise a fuss.
naru and cecily weren’t the type to stay quiet in a situation like this.
“this might not be a simple kidnapping.”
“...how do you know that?”
“did you forget who you’re speaking to? i’m an expert in this field.”
“ah.”
ilgast seemed to come to an understanding.
of course, i couldn’t guarantee that i was right, but i had my doubts about the situation.
“we were planning on heading to their hideout anyway. still, i didn’t think things would get so tangled.”
naru continued to get tangled in various incidents.
it wasn’t unexpected, as she had to live as my daughter. but strangely, it felt like someone was pulling the strings from behind.
i wasn’t exactly sure about it, that was just my intuition.
and it ended up being correct a lot of the time.
with gloves on, brigitte examined her staff as she spoke.
“even if i tell you to stay away, you won’t. let’s make this as short and sweet as possible. we’ll split off into two groups from here. i’ll face them head-on, so watch my rear.”
“alright. i’ll infiltrate their hideout and find the kids. once i’m sure they’re safe, i’ll send out a signal. afterward, you and cariote can move in.”
brigitte was a black magician.
her ability to cause destruction and chaos was unmatched.
furthermore, our years spent working together meant that we were very much in sync.
“w-what should i do? can i come along with you?”
dr. ilgast inquired about his concerns.
no matter what angle i looked at him from, it was clear he had no affinity for combat.
to think this man was willing to enter the thieves’ hideout, where thousands of enemies would be awaiting him, all to save his daughter.
was this the heart of a father?
“you said you were a pharmacist, right? can you make something for me?
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