Chapter 30 – Episode 29 – Side Karsilla (2)

Episode 29 – Side Karsilla (2)

“Okay, Karsilla. Today’s the day for the children’s priest group~ Yay, so exciting~ Seeing friends too~ And the nuns who take care of us~ Aren’t you excited?”

Papa seems more excited than I am. I don’t know why he keeps grabbing my hand and swinging it around.
…Annoying.
Without me even knowing, the name ‘Karsilla’ was given to me. Why?
Still, it seems like a pretty name, so I like it. Strangely, it felt familiar from the first time I heard it. Maybe I’ve heard the name somewhere before.

The children’s priest group.
It’s a place I have to go when ‘Papa’ goes to work. There are a bunch of childish kids gathered there, but I don’t have to observe the walls or the floor like I used to.
The nuns here don’t get angry, and they don’t scold. They always smile.
Even at me!

I thought they would dislike it if I looked at them, so I used to walk around with my head down, but when I secretly glanced up and our eyes met, they smiled and said it was okay. They didn’t say I was ominous, and even stroked my hair.
Now I don’t have to be alone.
I don’t have to look at the walls or the ground alone, and no one scolds me.

As expected, things changed when I waited.
I’m glad I waited. I’m glad I didn’t do what the whispering voices told me to do.
It’s all thanks to Papa.
……I miss Papa.

That evening, I was on my way to sleep with Papa again.
I don’t need my own room.
I don’t like being alone, and I don’t like the dark, so why do they keep telling me to be alone in my room? Could this be a punishment here?
We all slept together at the orphanage, so why can’t I just sleep with Papa like before?

Papa says it’s okay, but the nuns keep saying things. It’s annoying. Ah, no. I’m not annoyed with the kind nuns.

Tap tap, I was walking when someone suddenly appeared.
I was so surprised I almost screamed, but a white hand quickly covered my mouth and pulled me into an embrace.

‘Ah. A familiar scent.’

The sparkly woman, it’s Mom.

“Shhh. Karsilla, be good, okay?”
“Okay.”

She’s sparkly again today.
Her hair is sparkly, her eyes are sparkly. …I’m jealous.

“Are you going to see Papa?”
“Yeah.”
“Our baby, do you like Papa?”
“Yeah.”
“I see. Papa is Mommy’s… you know that, right?”

…Scary.
I nodded, and she was okay again. Looking up at Mom’s pretty smiling face, I became jealous again.

I want to be like Mom.
Sparkly. White, pretty, smells good, and someone who makes you feel good just by looking at them.

“Karsilla, our baby. Mommy has a favor to ask… can you do it?”
“Huh? For me?”

For me? A favor?
A sparkly woman asking me for a favor?
Oh. Ohh.

I felt good for some reason. I nodded, and she stroked my head.
Ah, stroke it more.
If I listen to Mom, she’ll stroke me again, right?

“Can you go to Papa’s room and lie down with Papa, and wait until Papa falls asleep?”
“Yeah!”

Papa falls asleep quickly. Really fast.

“Good girl, Karsilla. Papa won’t wake up once he falls asleep, so can you sneak out and tell Mommy then?”
“Yeah!”
“Thank you, our baby.”

She even hugged me!
So fluffy.
Smells good too.
I’m jealous. I still want to be sparkly like Mom.

She held my hand and walked me nearby. Mom stopped near Papa’s room and asked me to wait here, and to come tell her when he fell asleep.
I ran to Papa’s room and opened the door. It’s easy to find him. Inside the room, Papa was lying on the bed.

Ah, he shouldn’t be asleep yet.
Thank goodness. He’s not asleep yet.
Papa, sitting on the bed, was still smiling with a sparkly, pretty face.

“Karsilla. You’re here again?”

…Does he dislike me after all? Or maybe I’m disturbing him while he’s sleeping. At the orphanage, the kids didn’t like sleeping with me either. So I always had to sleep in a corner.
Does Papa dislike me too?

“…Do you dislike me?”

No, that can’t be.
I don’t want to sleep alone. It’s dark, and I keep hearing whispers. And I have to do Mom’s favor.

“No. I’m so happy. Come here!”

Thank goodness. Papa doesn’t dislike me after all.
I jumped into his arms, which were open as usual.
Good smell.

It feels good to be hugged tightly. When I’m hugged like this and look up, I can see his sparkly face.
He hugged me tight, and we lay down on the bed.

‘Pretty.’

Just like Mom.
Good smell. White and pretty sparkly face.
Just looking at him makes me feel good and at ease.
Papa falls asleep quickly.

And once he falls asleep, he doesn’t wake up easily.
He closed his eyes, and I untangled myself from his arms and got off the bed, but he was still sleeping soundly. I quietly opened the door and ran to Mom.

“Did you come?”
“Yeah! He fell asleep!”
“Good job. Our baby, you did so well.”

She hugged me tightly again and even stroked my head!
So fluffy!
But why did she ask me to tell her? Papa is sleeping. Is she going to wake him up?
Mom told me to wait until she came out, and then she went into Papa’s room.

……Me?
I want to go in too. I don’t want to be alone.
I squatted down in front of the door. Sitting still, I suddenly remembered the past.

When I was at the orphanage, I hated waking up in the middle of the night.
Someone would always splash water on me, spit on me, stomp on me, kick me, or pull my hair. Is Mom doing that to Papa too…?

‘Gasp! No, that can’t be!’

I have to save Papa… I have to save him… but Mom is so scary. She’s pretty… she smiles so prettily, but she’s scary.

‘Ugh. What should I do about Papa.’

I focused on the sounds from behind the door. My sensitive hearing picked up the sounds again.
Faintly audible voices.
Ah, it’s Mom’s voice.

She was scary just now, but I’m not scared now that I hear Mom’s voice. Thinking that Papa and Mom are right behind the door, I don’t mind being alone in the dark anymore.
I listened quietly to Mom’s voice.
……?

‘Strange sounds.’

Is Mom sick somewhere?

‘It doesn’t sound like she’s sick… but why can’t I hear Papa’s voice?’

Hmm. Boring.
Leaning against the wall made me feel a little better.
Squatting down, resting my chin on my knees, I felt sleepy… sleepy.
I dozed off while listening to Mom’s voice and woke up to the sound of the door opening.
Mom’s face was red when she came out.

“You fell asleep. I’m sorry, Karsilla. Was I a little late? It’s been a while, so I was a bit out of it.”

Mom, hugging me tightly, was fluffy, smelled goo…? Huh? A strange smell.

“I’m sorry. You must be tired, go in and sleep. I’ll be quicker next time.”

…Huh? Next time?

“I’ll be faster tomorrow, so don’t worry.”

Huh??

Today, I was squatting in front of Papa’s room again, resting my chin on my knees.
Sleepy.
I keep oversleeping, and I’ve been caught by the nuns a few times. Ugh, Papa told me not to oversleep. It’s all Mom’s fault.
Strange sounds can still be heard from inside the room today. She’s not even sick. Is she faking it? But Papa is sleeping. Why is she faking it?

My thoughts aren’t connecting well.
It’s too sleepy to just wait here. …Should I go sleep in Mom’s room?
Tap tap, I headed to Mom’s room.

I heard at the children’s priest group that Mom is a saint. What’s a saint? When I asked, they said it’s someone very, very precious, noble, and amazing.
Hmm. I see.
So that’s why she’s sparkly. Then what about Papa? Papa is a guardian, they say. Do they both sparkle the same because they’re always together?

Then why doesn’t the red-haired lady sparkle? She’s always with them too.
Come to think of it, that lady is a bit strange.
Her way of speaking and her actions too.

She’s kind of like a man. She’s a woman, but why is she like a man? She’s so pretty, but strange.
Anyway, the good thing about Mom being a saint is that this place is Mom’s territory, so no one can come and go as they please. It’s good because it makes it easier to go to Papa’s room.

‘The light is on?’

When I went to Mom’s room, the light was on. Did she leave it on?
I peeked my head through the slightly open door.

“Haa, haa… Lady Diana.”

……?
It’s the red-haired knight.
What is she doing?

“Huuu. Lady Diana’s scent.”

I watched quietly, and she was smelling panties.
Is that so good?
Mom also smells Papa’s panties. Last time, I was curious, so I stayed awake and listened, and Mom was sniffing too. I think she was saying something about how the panties smelled today. Is she doing some kind of inspection?

Hmm. I should smell Papa’s panties later too.
Ah! Come to think of it, Papa’s weak spot is there. There’s a handle, and it looks really uncomfortable, and he gets startled if I try to touch it. It was so big and dangling. Isn’t it uncomfortable?
Could it be that Mom is managing his weak spot?

‘I see! That’s what it was!’

I must have made a sound without realizing it. The red-haired knight and I made eye contact.

“Hiyat!?”
“Ah!”

Scary.
Why is she so surprised? I waved at her, and she turned as red as her hair and hurried out.

“Ka, KaKarsilla?”
“Yeah. Hi.”
“Hii, hi. Wh, why are you here?”
“Hmm.”

Mom said it was a secret. A secret just for me and Mom.
What should I say?
I was lost in thought, and the red-haired knight quickly waved her hand.

“Th, there’s something. Karsilla. Won’t you make a promise with your sister, no, your brother, no, your older brother?”

Why is she like that?
She’s acting strange today, so I just stared at her, and she was startled and took a step back.
…Why? Am I scary?
Ah. That’s right. I’m scary.

“Krr!”
“Eek!”
“…….”
“…….”

I guess I’m really scary.
This lady seems surprisingly sensitive, so I should treat her well.

“A promise?”
“Y, yeah! A promise! If you make a promise with your older sister, no, your older brother, I’ll do anything for you!”
“Anything?”
“Yes! Anything!”

Hmm. This lady is a fool.

“Okay then. What is it?”
“Th, the thing you saw just now. Th, that……”
“Smelling panties?”
“Th, th, thaaat!! Don’t tell anyone! Okay!?”

Is that so embarrassing? Mom smells Papa’s panties all the time.
I should ask Papa later… Ah, that’s right. Mom said it was our secret. Who should I ask? Should I ask Mom after all? But this lady also asked me to keep it a secret.

Hmm.
I guess I just shouldn’t call her “lady,” right?

“Okay.”
“Thank you! Thank you, Karsilla! I, I’ll go now. You should go in and sleep too.”

Then she ran away.
…She’s a fool.

* * *

It was one day.
It’s been a long time since I got used to the temple. It was a clear day like usual, but the temple was noisy today.

“Oh my, really? Why did they come from that far away?”
“Well, in my opinion, the things they’re carrying on their backs look suspicious.”

The nuns said that people came from a place called the Irup Lowlands.
…So what?
People always come to the Great Temple of Hespolte. Even from really, really far away. Even from places I’ve never heard of, they come to look around outside, pray, and then go back.

Are they people with nothing to do?
So I thought these people were also from far away, but Papa suddenly came to see me.
Huh? It’s his work time.

“Where?”
“The Irup Lowlands. How is it, good, right? Yay~ It’s a trip, a trip~ …You don’t like it?”
“Annoying.”

A trip?
Oh. Hmm. It’s my first trip.
Can I go with him too? Won’t other people dislike me if they see me? …I don’t want to be separated from Papa.

I can’t help it. I have to protect Papa. I promised Mom. To tell her if he meets another woman. So I have to follow him.

“You said you weren’t going?”
“When did I say that?”
“……?”
“I said it was annoying.”
“That’s the same thing.”

No, it’s not. It’s annoying to keep the promise with Mom.

“It’s different. It’s annoying to pack.”

It’s a secret, so I can’t help it.
Papa, who packed all my things, left right away as if he was busy. He’s probably going to Mom, right? I should follow him too.

Papa walks fast. I was following his back, which was already far away, when he seemed to meet the red-haired knight in the middle. They talked for a bit, and then Papa dumped all the knight’s bags on the ground and found the panties.

‘Oh. Panties.’

And it’s the one I know. The panties I smelled in Mom’s room before.
When I made eye contact with the knight, she seemed very flustered. Ah, that’s right. It was a secret.
I nodded to show that I would keep the secret, and her face turned red. Why?
Ah. Papa smells panties too.

Hmm. I see.
They must smell each other’s.
I should smell them later too. Ah, it’s a nun. While I was saying hello, Papa had already disappeared. …He’s fast. I should just wait in the room.

And so, we departed for a place called the Irup Lowlands.
At first, it was so amazing, exciting, and thrilling. But it quickly became boring.

It seems that Papa keeps secretly meeting a pretty lady outside. When I looked through the window, they even kissed.
No.
Mom will scold him.

“…Is that so? Good job, Karsilla.”
“Yeah!”

Papa’s lip was bleeding.
…Scary after all.