Chapter 119 – 118 – Carsilla’S Sense Of Crisis

I had a scary dream.
A very scary nightmare.
I don’t remember it clearly, but it was definitely a very scary and chilling dream.

Even now… the way my face is being pressed down is a lingering effect of the nightmare.
Carsilla blinked her eyes open. And she saw it. A little kid was pressing her finger into her cheek.

“……What are you doing?”
“Hiek!?”

The girl made a silly sound and fell on her butt. Her neatly braided brown hair slapped her face.

“Ouch! That hurts!”
“……”

What is this? Is she an idiot?
The girl, as if finally realizing Carsilla’s gaze, quickly got up and stammered.

“I, I’m Emily! I, I lived in Huran City with my dad, mom, and older brother! I, I was chosen by the Saintess this time and I’m training to be a novice nun! A, and… and also… Ah! I was cleaning right now!”
“……Cleaning?”
“Yes! Cleaning!”

Carsilla blinked. Cleaning? Cleaning is the act of making something dirty clean. That means…

“You touched my cheek with your dirty hands?”
“……Hiek! I, I’m sorry!”

Carsilla, who had gotten up, looked down at her hands. A memory came to mind. Surely… was it like this?

Her small, white hand began to emit a purple light. An enormous magical power that could be felt instinctively.
Hmm, so that’s how it’s done.

Carsilla, who had clenched and unclenched her small palm a few times, turned her head at the sudden feeling of being watched.

“Wow. What is that? It’s so pretty.”

Carsilla quickly raised her hand at the sight of the girl with sparkling brown eyes reaching out.

To touch a place where intense magic was gathered, did she want to die? Is she really an idiot?

“……Ah. I, I’m sorry.”

The girl, who had been staring blankly at the raised hand, bowed her head as if she had realized something. Carsilla felt a strange emotion as she looked at the small head.

It was… a sense of crisis.
What is this little kid? Why is she so small, with chubby cheeks, big round eyes, and tiny hands… Why… why is she so cute!?

“You, what are you? Who are you?”
“I’m Emily!”
“I’m Carsilla.”
“Yes!”
“……”

They stared at each other blankly for a moment.
Carsilla gathered the blankets and got out of bed. When they stood facing each other, she was slightly taller.

“I’m taller.”
“Huh? Emily is taller.”
“No. I’m taller.”
“……No, you’re not.”
“Are you stupid? Look, I’m taller.”

Seeing the little kid reluctantly admit it after looking in the mirror, she felt a tickling sensation in her heart. Hmm… so this is…

“Ah!”

I got it. I’m taller, I’m stronger, and I’m smarter.
Carsilla realized.

“I’m the mom.”
“……?”
“Call me mom.”
“You’re not my mom. My mom is at home.”

Emily, muttering with a confused expression, didn’t seem like she would easily give in. Carsilla pondered.

Compared to the image of ‘mom’ in her memories… she was definitely lacking.
Diana, who was called the Saintess and always made her call her ‘mom’ when they were alone, was definitely much taller, much stronger, and much smarter.

“Are you perhaps talking about an older sister?”
“Older sister?”
“Yes! Older sister!”
“What’s that?”
“An older sister is! Older than Emily, taller, smarter~ and, and also~ Ah! She has big boobs!”
“Oh.”

The two’s gazes scanned each other.

“I’m the older sister.”
“……Yes.”

Emily nodded reluctantly at Carsilla’s words, who proudly declared with her chest puffed out. But the pride was short-lived. Carsilla wondered why she couldn’t see anyone else.

“Where’s Papa?”
“Papa? Dad? Hmm… my dad is at home.”
“My Papa.”
“Your dad? Who is he?”
“Yurian.”
“Ah! His Eminence the Cardinal! If it’s this time, he might be in his room?”

At Emily’s answer, Carsilla quickly opened the door and went outside. Come to think of it, her room was Papa’s room anyway.

After leaving the room, she understood. This was where she lived with Papa.
The so-called ‘Saintess Palace’.

The huge temple of the central church had few residents compared to its size. Only a few hundred people lived in this massive building that could easily house thousands.

Therefore, many parts of this huge temple were deserted, and the area where the Saintess resided was particularly deserted.

People called it the ‘Saintess Palace’.
Carsilla, one of the few people living in this area with little traffic, immediately realized where this was.

After all, this place was like Carsilla’s home. It was, so to speak, Carsilla’s playground.
Emily followed behind Carsilla, who was heading to her room… or rather, Papa’s room.

“Um, um. You shouldn’t just wander around like that.”
“……?”
“This is the area where the Saintess resides, so you’ll get scolded if you wander around. Emily also has to go back to her room right after cleaning.”
“Then go.”
“Ah, I can’t.”

Carsilla, with Emily following her, fidgeting but still tagging along, found her room and quickly opened the door. The sight of the room after a long time gave her familiarity and comfort.

The bed where she slept with Papa. The desk where they studied together. The closet they used together. The picture book that Papa made himself, now worn with use.

But Papa wasn’t there. Only the cold air of the empty room greeted her. Carsilla grabbed the doorknob and tilted her head.

‘Why isn’t he here? Is it because it’s not bedtime yet? Then where did he go?’

Ah!
Carsilla exclaimed and closed the door again, then moved her feet.
Her footsteps overlapped with Emily’s as she followed, chattering.

“You shouldn’t just open doors like that. This is where the Saintess and those close to her reside. You’ll get scolded later, you know?”
“I won’t get scolded.”
“You will.”
“I won’t get scolded.”
“……? Why won’t you get scolded? Who are you?”

Carsilla swept her gaze over the little kid with a reproachful look, as if asking if she still didn’t know.

“Because I’m the older sister.”
“………??”

Carsilla and Emily’s strange journey continued for a while. Emily, tired of trying to stop Carsilla from opening every door she came across, just sighed and followed her for a long time.

“Aren’t you going home?”
“……I have to.”

Glancing.
Emily hesitated, looking at Carsilla’s face.

She was already ten years old. She wasn’t at an age to be called a little kid, but she had to say these words. She was embarrassed, twisting her body and fidgeting with her fingers in front of her chest. Carsilla stared at her blankly.

“I, I don’t know the way very well.”
“……An orphan?”
“My mom and dad are at home. ……I’m not a lost child?”
“……”
“……”

Emily grew up in a fairly wealthy family. Of course, it wasn’t comparable to nobles or the wealthy, but she grew up without worrying about meals under her farmer father, and thanks to the harmonious couple and the kindness of the parish priest Johannes, who was doing missionary work near her house, she was able to maintain a pure and innocent heart.

But that didn’t mean she was an idiot. Emily was quite bright, and parish priest Johannes had realized this early on and encouraged her that if she worked hard, she could become a nun serving the Saintess she admired.

In Emily’s eyes, the doll-like girl in front of her seemed a bit… stupid.
She mostly spoke in single words, and how could she be so immature as to wander around this place where the Saintess was? No matter how much she tried to stop her, she wouldn’t listen, just like the little kids in the neighborhood, making her sigh.

Surely she wasn’t younger than me? A sudden suspicion ran through her small head’s thought process, and she concluded that it was plausible.

“How old are you?”
“……Me?”
“Yeah.”

Hmph. I knew it.
Carsilla was enraged by Emily’s gaze, who crossed her arms and tilted her head haughtily. How dare this little kid challenge her ‘older sister’.

But rather than hastily revealing her age, Carsilla decided to find out the other’s age first. …There was no way she wasn’t the ‘older sister’ but… just in case.

“What about you?”
“Emily is 10 years old!”
“……Carsilla is 11 years old.”
“Eek? That’s a lie! You just made that up!”
“It’s true. Look, I’m taller.”
“……”
“Older sister.”
“……Older sister.”

A look of satisfaction settled on her expressionless face, and her small hand stroked her head.
Emily blankly accepted the touch. Surely she wasn’t lying? Well, maybe not. The parish priest said that if you lie, a demon will come in your dreams, and a kid living in the temple wouldn’t lie.

“Since you’re lost, your older sister will take you. Hand.”
“Huh? Really? Thank you!”

The two, holding hands, walked through the temple.
Until Carsilla’s ears perked up.

“……? Older sister?”
“Sound.”
“Huh?”
“Sound. Papa’s sound.”
“Older sister?”

Emily, who didn’t know the way, had no choice but to follow Carsilla’s sudden change of direction. Soon, a long corridor appeared before their eyes.

“Huh? There’s someone over there.”

A suspicious woman in the direction Emily’s small hand was pointing. Hiding behind a door and peeking inside, she looked suspicious to anyone.

The woman, who was frantically peeking inside, was startled when she saw them and quickly put her finger to her lips.

“Shh! Shh!”
“……Shh?”

The woman, relieved that Carsilla and Emily had closed their mouths, pretended to be nonchalant but disappeared in the opposite direction at an incredible speed.

“What was that?”
“That was the Chief Administrator.”

The two’s gazes met again and then turned forward. In place of the woman who had disappeared, there was a door open in the middle of the long corridor.

For some reason, the two approached cautiously and peeked inside with their small heads.

“Ugh! St, stop! Irian, let’s, let’s take a break!”
“Haa… I, I! Haaah!”

A bizarre scream and a figure with red hair flailing, collapsing on the bed and convulsing. And then, as if waiting for it, what took its place was…

“It’s the Saintess.”

At Emily’s small whisper, overwhelmed by the strange atmosphere, Carsilla nodded.
The scorching heat. The fishy smell. The strange noise.

Carsilla realized.

‘That’s right. Mom secretly came to the house every night.’

Hmm. Hmm.
She felt relieved, as if she had finally come home.

“Um. Older sister.”
“……?”
“Wh, what is the Saintess doing? Why are three people fighting on the bed, sweating profusely?”
“……Heh.”

The corners of Carsilla’s mouth curled up. Well, a little kid wouldn’t know.
Mom said. This is a game for ‘adults’.

“Ca, Carsilla older sister?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you… do you know what that is?”
“I know. I know.”

And Mom said this was their secret. A secret they promised with a wish ticket.

“Kids don’t need to know.”
“Ohh. So you know, older sister. That’s amazing.”
“Heh.”

Emily, who had been looking at Carsilla with admiration, was startled and fell on her butt. Carsilla, sensing something, slowly turned her head and met the gaze of Papa, who was standing tall, wrapped in a blanket.

“……Carsilla? Oh, when did you wake up?”
“A little while ago.”
“I, I see. Emily was here too? Did you two… see it?”
“N, no! Emily didn’t see anything!”

Emily desperately shook her head, feeling like she shouldn’t say she saw it. She didn’t want to be kicked out of here!

“R, right? You didn’t see it?”
“…Y, yeeees.”

What should I do? I lied.
Emily’s gaze, with a tearful face, turned to Carsilla. A silent pressure to lie too, since she couldn’t die alone.

Carsilla blinked her big eyes and said with an innocent expression.

“Carsilla is a baby. She doesn’t know.”
“Okay, our baby. …But Emily, why do you look like that?”

Yurian scratched his head at the sight of Emily, who had her mouth open in betrayal.