BDEFML 22

 Chapter 22

‘Ah, I haven’t gotten out yet…!’

I clutched the ledger and jewels tightly in both hands, feeling restless, and hurriedly hid behind a large flower pot.

Right at that moment, the director and Carrington entered the room.

“And also… it seems they are investigating Chester.”

……Great.

I bit my lips in frustration.

‘In the novel, the Viscount Phillips couple never appeared, so I didn’t know….’

That person seemed like someone who would sell Chester’s information to the Duchess of Ortega without hesitation.

If that happened, not only Chester but the entire orphanage could be in danger.

‘…Why do I have to witness things like this?’

I held my head in my hands.

The thought of returning to my world was still strong, but leaving the children who would be in danger was becoming increasingly worrying.

“…Why that child?”

“I do not know.”

“It’s suspicious. Attach someone to the Viscount Phillips couple.”

“Yes, Director.”

Watson let out a tired sigh and asked Carrington,

“Any news from the inspector?”

“No news so far.”

“It will soon be time for an investigation… For now, we should block any adoptions from Class 3.”

Watson, approaching closer, stopped right in front of the flower pot where I was hiding.

I shrank even further, worried I might be seen.

After a short pause, Watson spoke.

“We need to call Teacher Anna back.”

“Megan won’t stay quiet, though.”

“I am the director here. She crossed the line when she tried to argue with me in front of the Viscount Phillips couple. The children follow her so well that leaving her alone could be harmful. We need to handle this quickly.”

After saying that, Watson left the director’s office with Carrington, having presumably dealt with their business.

Click. The door closed and locked firmly.

‘Things just keep getting worse.’

Not only the Phillips couple, but now Watson planned to drive out Megan, the one person protecting the children.

Thinking about Watson bringing Anna as well made my heart even heavier.

I bit my lips tightly, fiddling with the jewels in my hands.

‘…I can’t escape immediately. I need to do what I can here until I gather enough information.’

Pretending not to notice the children was impossible for me.

Especially Arden trembling like that still remained clear in my mind.

There were many other children here with sad pasts.

Chester, whose stepmother threatened his life, and Klein, experimented on illegally because of his magic…

Because of this half-hearted sense of responsibility, I might not survive by my own rules.

I sighed, holding the ledger tightly.

‘First, I’ll make use of this ledger.’

Before the director called Anna, the people I needed should arrive…

‘They’ll come, right?’

They came suddenly, but in the original story, it was around autumn, so they should be arriving soon.

Listening for a moment, I realized the hallway was quiet, and I cautiously opened the door.

I returned the emergency key to its original place and hurried toward the dormitory.

The ledger and jewels were hidden in a corner of the storage room, where only Class 3 children could enter, so no one else could find them.

‘How can I use this ledger more efficiently?’

I wanted to use it to make Megan the director if possible.

‘Then I could escape freely without worry.’

…Wait. If Megan became the director, I wouldn’t need to escape at all.

She would let us be free and wouldn’t restrain us.

If I asked to go outside, she would agree without hesitation.

‘It will be much easier to gather information without hiding. I won’t need to risk myself like this.’

Then, making Megan the director would be the best solution for both me and the children.

As I left the dormitory heading to the playground, I saw Klein and Chester running toward the forest.

At the same time, I heard two excited girls chasing after them.

“Look at them rushing to stop Medina from confessing!”

“Confess?”

“There was a note in the shoe locker! I secretly told Klein and Chester!”

“Why did you tell them?”

“Last time, they asked me to let them know if something like this happened.”

“You took a bribe!”

“No, I didn’t!”

Ah, that was like a trap from the original story, meant to kidnap Medina.

Speedy Teacher Megan!

I searched for Megan, but she was nowhere, and Gale had also disappeared.

‘There’s no one to help me!’

I grabbed my head and finally sighed.

Reluctantly, I had no choice but to ask Carrington for help.

I rushed into the staff room and reached out to call him.

“Teacher…!”

Thwack.

But he brushed my hand away, looking at me with disgust.

“I’m busy. Go play somewhere else.”

“It’s not that! Medina is in danger!”

Carrington raised an eyebrow, glaring at me with disbelief.

“How do you know that?”

“Someone sent a note to Medina. She went into the forest because of it…”

I tried to explain, but Carrington cut me off, uninterested.

“I’ll check it myself. Go back.”

“You need to go now…”

He didn’t look up from his papers, mocking me.

“Can’t you see I’m busy? Do you want me kicked out like Anna?”

What was wrong with these people?

I sighed.

Some people in the world were good like Megan, and some were ugly like Carrington.

Someone working at the orphanage being hostile to children…

Then there was no reason to try to please him.

The ledger from the director’s office had Carrington’s name in it too.

“Teacher Anna didn’t listen to my warning. Will you?”

I asked directly, and Carrington finally looked up and stood from his seat.

He was huge, able to fold my body in half, but I did not flinch and met his eyes.

“You are no longer Class 1.”

“What does that matter?”

“This means it doesn’t matter anymore.”

As soon as he said that, he pushed me hard to the side. I rolled sideways like a bowling pin hit by a ball.

Thunk!

I hit my forehead on a desk leg.

Pain shot sharply through my head.

“Ouch…”

“Fine, let’s go into the forest, as you said.”

Carrington sneered and left, still ignoring me lying on the floor.

‘…This has crossed the line.’

I wiped the blood from my forehead, thinking.

Did he really underestimate a child?

I approached Carrington’s desk directly.

I grabbed the necklace lying there and opened the last drawer.

‘I didn’t want to do this…’

I took the documents inside, hid them in my secret space, and entered the forest.

I even carried a bat.

I didn’t feel safe leaving the children’s safety to him alone.

“Let go of Medina, you brat!”

Angry Klein charged at the man.

No matter how strong he was for his age, he couldn’t beat an adult man.

Whack!

The masked man lightly sent Klein flying from his attack.

“Ugh!”

Seeing Klein clutching his stomach and groaning, Medina cried with tears falling.

“Kyah! Klein!”

“Medina!”

Chester grabbed a stone to strike the man’s leg, but he easily pushed him away too.

Rolling on the ground, Chester fell, and Medina pleaded to the man.

“Stop! Please leave Klein and Chester alone! I’ll go myself!”

“No, Medina!”

Klein reached out, but Medina shook her tear-stained face.

“Stop, Klein! You’ll get hurt!”

If only I followed this man, they would be okay.

The man grabbed the crying Medina and lifted her.

Chester and Klein, aching, sprang up and charged at him again.

“Let go of Medina!”

“Don’t touch Medina!”

Seeing the two children persistently, the man swung his fists toward them.

He intended to knock them out so they couldn’t follow.

“…Huh.”

At that moment, Lopez appeared from the bushes with an indifferent expression.

Klein shouted in surprise.

“Hey! Get out of the way!”

But Lopez couldn’t dodge, and the man’s fist struck her cheek.

Smack—!

“Lopez!”

“Damn it!”

Seeing this, Chester and Klein, pale-faced, ran toward Lopez who had been thrown backward.