Rustle.

Laurel opened her eyes wide at the faint sound.

‘……I think I just heard something outside?’

She had been sitting beside the sleeping children knitting a sweater, but must have dozed off at some point.

Laurel put down the ball of yarn she was holding and carefully checked the orphanage window once more.

The news from outside had been ominous lately.

The daily papers were filled with stories about people disappearing from somewhere, bodies suddenly being discovered, or assailants being caught attempting kidnappings.

Heinous crimes occurred daily, targeting women, men, and children indiscriminately.

The frightening thing was that these crimes occurred regardless of whether the victims were nobles or commoners.

Because of this, the administration was in chaos.

The fire department and police, responsible for protecting civilians, patrolled daily, and nobles either avoided going outside or moved around with escorts.

Among these, places like the Robata Orphanage, which had neither the strength nor resources to protect themselves, were the most vulnerable.

The children were careful not to cross the orphanage fence, but that fence was too weak and low.

The teachers guarding the orphanage were just a few powerless middle-aged people.

They took turns standing watch, but even that was equally worrisome.

‘And I’m concerned about those strange men who have been lurking around for the past few days.’

The one fortunate thing was that the Lashantia mansion had sent many supplies, allowing them to keep these expensive lamps lit at night.

“I should have asked Jeffrey to stay with me.”

Laurel sighed as she locked the door tightly.

Jeffrey had offered to stay with Laurel when she said she had to stand watch today, but she refused.

He wasn’t part of the orphanage staff, and his helping out had only been for a day or two.

She thought there was no need to burden him unnecessarily since he couldn’t stand watch with her every day.

But today felt unusually eerie, making her regret refusing his offer to stay.

“What can I do about what’s already been sent.”

Laurel muttered as she checked the beds where the children were sleeping.

Unaware of the adults’ anxiety, the children were sleeping so peacefully and beautifully.

Laurel gently smiled as she wiped the tear marks from Lala’s face who had fallen asleep after crying, and fixed the bedding of Grosch who had kicked off his blanket while sleeping.

These children had deficiencies.

And the children’s deficiencies closely resembled Laurel’s own.

The children seemed to instinctively recognize this.

That they and Laurel could fill what each other lacked.

Laurel wanted to protect these small, pitiful children.

When she thought of her own child whom she couldn’t protect, that feeling grew even stronger.

Laurel sat back down in the old rocking chair and grabbed the ball of yarn.

Just before continuing where the knitting needles had stopped.

—……some are sleep…… doesn’t seem……

A suspicious voice came from outside.

“……!”

Startled, Laurel jumped up from her seat and slightly opened the window to check the surroundings.

She saw the chaotic outside scenery, and soon after, several black shadows flickering on the ground.

‘Who is it?’

Perhaps thinking everyone was asleep?

They were whispering in careless voices.

Laurel listened carefully to what they were saying.

“……Still feels wrong to target kids though.”

“What can we do? Something like this has to happen for things to really get stirred up.”

“I still feel uneasy about killing them directly, how about using poison?”

“Hey, what’s the point if they die from poisoning? They need to die spectacularly. That way it’ll be front page news! Weekly magazines! The whole country will be in an uproar.”

“Ha, sh*t……! Well, gotta do what we’re told. F*ck!”

Laurel’s face turned drastically pale as she listened to the conversation.

They were here to harm the orphanage.

Laurel quickly scanned the interior with trembling eyes.

She looked for anything that could be used as a weapon but couldn’t find even a common poker.

They had removed anything that might be dangerous because of the toddlers walking around.

‘……If only I had a gun, a gun.’

While she was searching for a weapon, she felt the men’s voices drawing closer.

Laurel quickly stood behind the door and held her breath.

“Shh. Didn’t you hear something from inside?”

“Is someone awake?”

“……Let’s make sure before we go.”

Laurel gripped her weapon with trembling hands.

Creeeeak—

The wooden door opened with the sound of old hinges scraping.

At that moment, Laurel didn’t hesitate to raise her hand and attack the intruder.

The eerie sound of a sharp knitting needle piercing flesh rang out.

“Ugh, aaaaargh!”

“What the hell, you f*cking b*tch!”

Blood splattered and screams erupted.

Laurel didn’t miss the opportunity while they were confused and moved her hand once more.

“Argh!”

The first one who entered was stabbed in the shoulder, and the next person was stabbed in the side.

The crochet hook she had been using to knit for the children became a threatening weapon covered in red blood.

But further attacks were impossible.

The men grabbed Laurel by the throat.

“Ughk!”

“Wh-where did this b-b*tch come from!”

The man who had been stabbed in the shoulder tightened his grip on Laurel while gasping for breath.

Perhaps enraged by the sudden attack, he violently struck Laurel repeatedly while holding her down.

“Urgh!”

The commotion must have woken the children, as crying erupted from inside.

“Jack! Go inside and shut those brats up!”

“O-okay……!”

……No, no!

Don’t touch the children!

If you touch the children, I won’t let you get away with it!

Laurel scratched at the hands choking her and struggled desperately.

Though the man was dripping blood, possibly from being stabbed near the collarbone, he continued to grip Laurel’s neck tightly.

But perhaps due to his injury, the man’s hands quickly lost strength.

Laurel didn’t miss that moment and scratched the back of his hand.

She pushed the staggering man away and stabbed the back of his hand with a knitting needle that had fallen nearby.

“Aaargh!”

Pushing away the stumbling man, Laurel ran to where the children were sleeping.

There, the fairly larger children who had woken up were clinging to the man.

“Have these kids gone crazy!”

“No! Bad man! Bad man!”

“Wh-what did you do to our teacher? Bad man!”

One child hung on his leg, another on his arm.

There was even a child clinging to the back of his neck.

The man kicked Josh, who was hanging on his leg, knocking him down.

Then he threw the child hanging on his arm and the one on his neck to the floor one after another.

“Aaah!”

The moment she heard the children’s screams, Laurel rushed at the man and bit his nape.

“Aargh! You crazy b*tch!”

Blood splattered with a grinding sound.

The staggering man pulled out a knife from his pocket and swung it.

The sharp blade grazed near Laurel’s chest, and she fell backward.

“T-teacher!”

“Don’t come! Stay there!”

The area where the wound opened felt burning hot.

Laurel gritted her teeth and endured.

Soon the teachers from the main building would come running.

Three minutes?

Five minutes?

She just needed to hold out for a very short time.

Laurel desperately grabbed the man’s hand.

“Let go! Let go of me!”

She could die here and now.

But these children were innocent.

She wished that no more innocent children would die.

‘……Tommy.’

My Tommy. My child.

I’m sorry. I’m sorry.

I should have protected you like this.

I should have protected you with all my strength like this.

‘Mom is sorry.’

Fists flew, kicks were exchanged.

The blade grazed and blood splattered.

To make matters worse, the man who had collapsed at the door was staggering toward them.

“F*ck, everyone just die now.”

The man, perhaps thinking it was too late, threw the kerosene-filled lamp against the wall.

With a crash, flames erupted.

In that moment, light flashed in Laurel’s eyes too.

Through her blood-blurred vision, a warm and lovely light flashed, and then the object placed on the railing above the man who had started the fire collapsed with a rumble.

It happened so suddenly, without any warning.

“Ugh, gah!”

The man fell backward with a death cry.

In the pile that had fallen on his head was a brazier used in winter.

“You bastards!”

“Oh my, Laurel……!”

The door of the annex burst open and teachers who had been sleeping elsewhere rushed in.

Only then did Laurel close her dimming eyes.

The warm light that had flickered before her darkening vision trembled and faded away.

* * *

The background was revealed as the intruders who broke into the orphanage were caught.

The captured men were all laborers working at ‘Isaac,’ and the police raided the store to arrest its owner.

“I don’t know those guys! Let me go!”

Shantes, the owner of Isaac, insisted it wasn’t his doing even as he was being arrested.

And shortly after Shantes was taken away, the intruders who had broken into the orphanage died in detention.

The cause of death was poison, but it was impossible to determine who had poisoned them.

The problem came afterward.

Someone had also poisoned Shantes’ meal.

Whether he had good instincts or not, Shantes complained of stomach pain that day and skipped the meal, and another prisoner sharing his room ate it and passed away.

Through this series of events, suspicions about Shantes diminished.

Public opinion stirred that someone might be trying to frame him by using his laborers.

Shantes was released on parole until further evidence emerged.

The police made this decision while considering Schultz, who had been backing Shantes all along, but when Schultz Tartien heard about Shantes’ parole, he became even more agitated.

“How could they release him! Such fools! Find him immediately, right now!”

Schultz urgently searched for Shantes, but he had already disappeared without a trace.