"Ugh, ugh…."

Shiver.
Charlotte trembled, groaning in pain.
It wasn't her body that hurt.
A nightmare was dragging her into deep darkness, tormenting her.

The day she couldn’t forget.
The day she had tried to forget.
Despite desperately struggling to erase it, Charlotte was pulled back to that day with alarming ease.

"Our beautiful daughter. You can sleep well on your own now, right?"
"Mom, where are you going?"
"Well, I have something important to take care of. I'll be back after exactly ten nights. Stay here in the meantime."
"But this is where all the kids without moms and dads stay, right?"
"I can’t help it."

Her mother smiled with an awkward expression.
So much time had passed already.
Yet that face was still vividly engraved in Charlotte’s mind.

Once again, her mother’s face resurfaced, filled with so many emotions.
Apology. Regret. Pain. Suffering…
At the time, she hadn’t realized it, waiting foolishly for her mother to return.

"Hey. Come over and play with us."
"I don’t want to. I’m different from you all. My mom will come back. She said she would be back in ten nights."
"You really believe that?"

I’m different from those kids.
I will leave this place soon.
With that thought, she drew a line with the children.
She built a wall around her heart.

A week passed.
Two weeks passed.
About a month later, little Charlotte finally realized something was wrong.

Most of the kids here were in similar situations to Charlotte's.
They had all gone through roughly the same process to end up here.
After realizing this late, Charlotte tried hard to adapt to the orphanage, but it wasn’t easy.

"You say you’re different from us, right?"
"You said your mom would come. Why don’t you wait a bit longer?"
"Hey. Let’s go play somewhere else. There’s a kid who doesn’t want to play with orphans."

A painful mistake hit her like a boomerang, striking her at the back of her head.
It was useless to regret it.
She had become isolated.

…or so she thought.

"My name is Yuri. What’s yours?"
"…?"
"Your name. What is it? You don’t have a name, do you?"

Yuri appeared and changed Charlotte's world.
The lonely child, who thought everyone was avoiding her.
The strange child who believed she was pushing everyone away.
The only person who approached her without hesitation was Yuri.

"If you keep making that serious face, everyone will be scared. Why not try smiling a bit more?"

As she took Yuri’s hand,
Charlotte broke down her walls.
Once Charlotte changed, the other children in the orphanage began to open their hearts to her.

Instead of lingering in the past,
Charlotte was able to move forward.
She learned to smile.

And so, Charlotte brightened again.
No, she became much brighter than before.
To forget the pain.
To bury the mistakes she once made, and to get closer to the other children.

"Mom? I’m not waiting for someone like that anymore! I’ve forgotten all about it! Now, I have you all!"

Even when she was sad, she forced herself to smile.
When memories surfaced, she laughed and brushed them aside.
When serious thoughts crossed her mind, she acted innocently to dispel them.

She had lived well for years like that.
But sometimes, very rarely,
When Charlotte felt weak,
When both her body and mind crumbled, an uncontrollable agony would wash over her.

"Mom. Don’t go…."

She thought she had overcome it.
She thought she had forgotten.
She believed she had grown strong.
But in truth, nothing had changed.
This nightmare seemed to whisper to Charlotte.

"I don’t want to! I don’t want to…! Huh!?"

"Quite a dramatic outburst, huh?"
"…!"

Suddenly, Charlotte shot up, her eyes wide open.
Aslan, leisurely flipping through a book right next to her, glanced at Charlotte's face before returning his attention to his book.

"Did I say something while I was sleeping?"
"Well, I’m not sure."
"I definitely think I was talking in my sleep…."
"I didn’t hear anything. You were sleeping peacefully."

Oh. Is that really true?
Then that’s a relief…
Charlotte felt her body was more comfortable than she expected and tilted her head.

When she turned to the side, she noticed many wet towels nearby.
Did someone wipe my sweat all night?

"I’m so sorry… for keeping you up all night…."
"It’s nothing. I’m used to not sleeping at night. It was just a matter of reading a book in my office or here."

"Huh?"

Is that really the case?
Time for detective mode!
The book Aslan held appeared to be open around the middle, suggesting he had read quite a bit overnight.

But what mattered was the bookmark!
The bookmark was stuck in the first few pages!
That means he couldn’t have read much before having to put the book down due to being busy!

What could he have been busy with?
I don’t know!
And thus, the deduction ends here!

"Hehe! I’ll believe you!"

With a cheerful smile, Charlotte stretched.
She had definitely felt something was off in her body since yesterday.
But upon waking up, she felt full of energy.

Was something recharged?
I don’t know what, but!
Charlotte rubbed her eyes slightly.

"Uh?"

She noticed dried tear marks around her eyes.
When she looked over, she saw Aslan, still focused on his book, seemingly uninterested in her situation.
I must have cried while sleeping.

He couldn’t have missed that, but he still said I was sleeping peacefully…?
Charlotte realized there was a significant contradiction in Aslan’s words and smiled widely.

"Are you feeling better now?"
"I feel great. I’m fine."
"Then let’s go out and eat. It’s about time Yulia is having her meal too."
"What about you?"
"I’ll finish reading."
"…."

With a thud, Charlotte pulled the blanket off and lightly sat on the floor.
She took light steps.
When she examined her clothes, she realized they had been changed, while Aslan was still wearing what he had from last night.

"You moved me here, right?"
"Sylvia moved you."
"I remember. You carried me."
"…Yeah, I did carry you."

Aslan reluctantly admitted.

"And who changed my clothes?"
"The maids did."
"I remember. You put them on me."
"…Don’t lie."
"Hehe. It was a joke."

With a leap, Charlotte jumped onto Aslan’s back.
Her face peeking over his shoulder.
Charlotte leaned in close to Aslan’s ear and whispered softly.

"That I cried… Please keep it a secret from Yulia. I usually don’t act like this, but I’ve gotten so comfortable with my body and mind lately that I guess I let my guard down."
"I won’t tell. I won’t remember what happened last night at all."

He really is such an inconsiderate person.
Charlotte giggled.

"And if I ever want to cry, can I come to you?"
"Do as you wish. Holding in tears will eventually make you sick."
"Hehe. I’ll be sure to come find you if I want to cry."

I’m fine.
I’ve forgotten everything.
I’ve overcome it all.
…or so I thought, but holding back tears was reaching its limit.

I had hidden it from Yuri.
I had concealed it from Yulia as well.
But I figured it wouldn’t matter in front of Aslan, who already saw through everything.

"From now on, I’ll only show my weak side in front of you."

The moment she whispered with a sweet voice,
Charlotte felt Aslan flinch and tremble slightly.
Hehe. I feel like I got him good!
Charlotte laughed leisurely and jumped off Aslan’s back.

"I’m hungry! Let’s eat! What’s for dinner, Yulia!?"
"…."

With her always energetic voice, Charlotte rushed out.
As Aslan was left alone in the room, he muttered while rubbing his flushed ears.

"I really feel like a babysitter now…."

I didn’t care what kind of past Charlotte had.
I didn’t care what kind of trauma she held.
I just wished that since coming here, she would only have memories of happiness.
I earnestly hoped that her future would hold nothing but happiness.

…Because that way, I wouldn’t get killed.

[The Evil God, 'Carly', insists on checking our Dark Knight’s health again.]
"Are you sure you’re okay?"
"I’m fine, really."

She says she’s fine.

[The Evil God, 'Carly', demands one more check of our Dark Knight's temperature.]
"Let me feel your forehead for a moment."
"Ugh. At this rate, my forehead will wear away."

I must have checked it around ten times already.
With my hand and with a thermometer.
The results were all normal.

[The Evil God, 'Carly', insists on calling the healer again…]

"Alright. That should be enough. It seems you’re better now, so you can go outside and train."
"Yay!"

[The Evil God, 'Carly', openly expresses her discontent!]

At this point, it’s overkill.
The healer must be busy, so calling them for something trivial would be a bit much.
I nodded off Carly’s final request and gave Charlotte the go-ahead to play since she was bursting with energy.

"…."

When I saw Charlotte’s fragile side, I worried a lot inside.
Even though she looked bright, I could see the wariness in her demeanor.
I had expected the darkness she carried in her heart would be quite deep.

Just how deep were the wounds she hid from view?
Was she perhaps already withering away?
If she found out that I knew, would she start to distance herself from me?
Those worries were weighing on my mind, but…

"Phew. That little devil…."

I never expected her to turn that into a secret between the two of us.
I deliberately pretended not to see, not to hear, and yet she insisted that she would only show her weakness in front of me.
Though I was a bit taken aback, this was a good thing.

For Charlotte, it meant she now had an outlet for her tears.
As a child without parents, the importance of such a person in her life was beyond words.

Would Yulia need something similar too?
Should I try telling her later that she could cry in front of me?
…I considered it for a moment.

'She would probably just tell me to get lost because she feels uncomfortable.'

I quickly decided that it would be better to drop that thought.
I could enjoy her disdainful looks about ten times a day, but anything beyond that would be damaging.

With a sigh, I closed the book and stood up.

"Whoa?"

Was it because I had been sitting for too long?
Suddenly, I felt a cramp in my leg, and my body wobbled.
It hurt. I can’t get up like this.

Silvia. Isn’t she around?
That girl. She always hides in the shadows when she’s not needed.
But when I actually need her, she’s nowhere to be found.

"Ugh."

At that moment, the door swung open again.
Charlotte peeked in and tilted her head curiously.

"Huh? Are you cramping in your leg?"
"It’s fine… just go away…"
"If you’re cramping, you have no choice but to use the massage coupons. Right?"

Ugh.
Charlotte slowly approached with a smile that resembled that of a little devil.

…I never expected to be using the massage coupons like this.