“Are you here to hit me too?”
It wasn't a question, but a confirmation of an established rule.
“No.”
Esper pulled her hand back, resting her hands on her knees while remaining in a squat.
“Didn't I just chase them away? Didn't you see? I was helping you!”
There was no response.
The sky-blue eyes simply stared at her. There was no gratitude, no confusion, no wariness. She was just looking.
As if she were looking at a rock, or a cloud.
“...My name is Esper.”
Esper hesitated for a moment, ultimately deciding not to give her real name.
The Catori surname wasn't obscure, even outside the Demon Realm.
If someone discovered a child here who looked exactly like the second princess of the Vampire Court and shared the exact same name, there was no telling what might happen.
“What's your name?”
The silence lasted for a long time.
So long that Esper's knees began to ache, and a chicken in the distance walked from one side of the road to the other.
“...I don't have one.”
Her voice was very quiet, like an echo floating up from the bottom of a deep well.
“No name?”
A gentle nod. It was so slight that one might have missed it if they weren't staring right at her.
Esper cursed in her mind.
Six years old, and she didn't even have a name. Were the people at the convent completely useless?
No, according to what Eladia had said before, this convent wasn't a good place to begin with. They sent orphans out to the streets to beg and scam tourists. To the locals, these children were just pests.
“Then what do people usually call you?”
“...The blue-haired monster, or just monster...”
No one needed her to have a name. Because no one needed to speak to her about anything other than begging and chores.
“Then how about I give you one?”
The sky-blue eyes lifted slightly.
Not with anticipation, but with confusion.
Why would a stranger want to give her a name?
“No need...”
“I've already thought of one. From today on, you'll be called Eladia.”
She had been taken in by the Church at the age of six, so the name Eladia must have been given to her by them.
She didn't like the Church, and had no reason to.
Calling her "Ela" out of habit was the main reason, but if there had to be another reason...
She hoped that when Ela thought of where the name Eladia came from, she would think of her face.
Even if this was just a dream of her memories, she wanted to make her as happy as possible.
...
The little girl curled up on the ground didn't respond immediately. Her fingers tightened slightly, clutching the fabric of her skirt.
“Why did you help me?”
Again, it wasn't a question.
Esper stood up and brushed the dust off her knees.
The fabric of the clothes made by the Catori family was of excellent quality; the dust came off with a simple pat.
“Because I didn't like what I saw.”
...
“Pretty easy to understand, right? They were hitting you, I didn't like it, so I beat them up. That's all.”
Eladia lowered her head, looking back at the ground.
“They'll come back.”
“Huh? Then I'll beat them up again.”
“They'll keep doing it when you're not around, or in places where you won't notice.”
Eladia's voice was very calm, without that hesitant, stifled quality she would have in the future.
She was simply stating what she thought.
Esper paused for a moment.
“Then... Then I'll tell their parents...”
“It's useless even if you call the adults. They don't care about me. Neither does Sister. Sister says I won't die anyway.”
Esper's hands clenched tight.
The pale blue Mana Barrier rippled slightly on the surface of her skin, blocking out the holy light leaking from Eladia.
“Noelle.”
Esper spoke in her mind.
“Yeah?”
“How long can I stay in this space?”
“I'm not sure. But it shouldn't be too short. Based on what you've said, the memory sharing caused by the Holy Sword's resonance will probably last until the end of her most deeply ingrained memory.
During this time, the passage of time in the outside world will also slow down. At least from my perspective, outside time has basically ground to a halt. So do whatever you want. It's her dream and memory anyway.”
“Yeah. That's enough.”
Esper redirected her gaze to the little girl in front of her.
She squatted down, closer this time.
“Are you hungry?”
...
Eladia buried her face in her knees.
“I'm not hungry.”
Esper couldn't help but chuckle.
Right, she wouldn't feel hungry.
The holy light would keep her in a state where she never felt hunger, just like how she could barely sleep at night.
But needing something and wanting something had always been two different things.
“Then do you want to eat something?”
...
“Come on, I'll take you to get something to eat.”
Esper stood up and offered her hand.
It wasn't taken.
Eladia just looked up, staring at the outstretched palm with her empty eyes. She stared for a long time.
Then she stood up on her own, without touching Esper's hand.
“...Okay.”
As they passed the village entrance, a few women sitting on doorsteps preparing vegetables looked up. Their gazes fell first on Eladia, filled with an indescribable disgust, before shifting to Esper walking beside her.
Their eyes lingered on her exquisite children's clothing for a moment.
The blind-stitched piping, hand-sewn beads, and pleated cuffs were of the capital's popular style in recent years.
Even if they didn't recognize the Catori name, just looking at the fabric and tailoring was enough for them to weigh their own worth.
The women withdrew their gazes and went back to their vegetables.
No one said a word.
Esper noticed, but said nothing.
She simply slowed her pace, keeping herself perfectly aligned with Eladia, neither too fast nor too slow.
“Where do you usually live?”
“The convent.”
“Are there other children in the convent besides you?”
“Yes.”
“Do they hit you too?”
Silence was her answer.
They walked for a while.
There was a small griddle cake stall by the roadside, steam rising from the iron plate, carrying the aroma of flour and oil.
Esper searched her pockets.
She had money.
A few silver coins, exactly the same amount of allowance her sister used to give her.
...
She remembered that Eladia was the same age as her, so the cost of living should be about the same.
“Two, please, boss.”
The stall owner glanced at her, then at Eladia standing behind her.
“That child...”
“She's my friend. Two, please.”
The stall owner opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing, handing over two griddle cakes.
Esper took the cakes, turned, and handed one to Eladia.
Eladia looked at the cake, took it, and began taking small bites with her head lowered.
She ate quickly. So quickly that by the time Esper had only managed half of hers, Eladia's was almost gone.
But Esper noticed that there seemed to be some other emotion hidden beneath her eyes.
Unease? Confusion? Or something else?
Whatever it was, it didn't matter.
“Good, right?”
“Mhm, it's good,” she whispered, clutching her hands together.
It was good. But she wasn't used to this.
She wasn't used to someone buying food for her, wasn't used to standing by the roadside eating normally, and wasn't used to having someone next to her who wouldn't hit her.
Esper handed over her remaining half-eaten cake.
“Here, eat this too.”
“...But that's yours.”
“I'm full.”
Eladia hesitated for two seconds before taking it. This time, she bit into it a little slower.
Esper leaned against the wooden railing by the roadside, watching her eat.
“Ela.”
The chewing stopped.
She was reacting to the nickname. Although she hadn't fully accepted it, she at least knew Esper was calling her.
“If anyone tries to hit you again in the future, come find me.”
No answer.
She just kept nibbling on the griddle cake with her head down.
Her eyes were slightly downcast.
Rate on N.U.
