Chapter 34 : Chapter 34
Volume 2, Chapter 3. Do You Want to Live?
When she woke again, what entered her sight was the roof of an unfamiliar room.
The interior was simple: a bed, table and chairs, a small cabinet—that was all. The window lay diagonally opposite the bed. A little sunlight slipped past it, sneaking in and brightening the room.
Outside came the somewhat noisy sounds of people. Many were moving about, back and forth, freely spilling the vigor of life.
She felt a trace of warmth.
“Mm...”
Struggling a little, Leticia propped herself up, looked at the thin sheet covering her body, and remained silent.
Why was she here?
“Yo, rare to see you sleep in, huh?”
Stano’s voice suddenly sounded in her mind. That guy’s tone was still as hateful as ever, carrying a bit of arrogant self-importance. “That nasty woman didn’t teach you a lesson?”
“What does that have to do with you?”
Leticia’s cold reply left Stano momentarily stunned.
“What kind of attitude is that?!”
He asked angrily. “Did I provoke you somehow?”
“...”
She had wanted to say more, to argue properly with this shameless brat who had no self-awareness. But the more she tried to speak, the more the dizziness in her head surged again, like some evil spirit clinging to her.
So she had to suppress her emotions, breathe deeply, calm her heartbeat, her temperature—bit by bit easing herself.
The dizziness slowly subsided.
“It’s nothing.”
She could only reply perfunctorily.
“Hey, have we reached town already?”
Since he could no longer freely manipulate Leticia’s body, Stano could only observe through that skylight (her eyes) into the other side. “That paper my uncle entrusted me—can you get it out somehow?”
That paper, which she couldn’t even read, had been taken by the Lady in Black, Yemi Ai. Leticia naturally would never take the initiative to ask for it back.
“Please be quiet, all right?”
Curling up small, Leticia buried her face in her chest. “I’m not in a very good mood...”
“Hey, that nasty woman toyed with you again, right?”
Stano said with a trace of sympathy. “She really hits hard, that one.”
Shut up, will you...
Receiving no response at all, Stano spat irritably and stopped talking to this bamboo pole.
She had changed so much compared to before.
He thought so, then turned his mind toward breakfast. The servants at home surely had already prepared it: crusty toasted bread, rich cream, sizzling smoked meat. Just the thought made his mouth water.
He couldn’t wait to eat!
Finally, a bit of peace.
Leticia raised her head wearily and looked at her palm. She carefully arranged her thoughts, in a way Stano could not hear.
Is my life slowly draining away?
If what Lady Yemi Ai said was true, then after these dizzy spells, she too would age quickly like those soldiers, and in just a year or two, end her life.
But she was only ten years old...
Two lifetimes, yet shorter than another person’s one. If she said it aloud, people would laugh their teeth out.
Her hands trembled faintly. Leticia touched her face: messy hair cut short by Stano, a thin little body, scars not yet healed.
The sharp dizziness attacked once again.
“I... I don’t want to die...”
A faint voice slipped from her lips, leaking through the fingers pressed tightly against her mouth.
She really didn’t want to die...
Suddenly she heard faint sounds. Leticia’s body jolted. She quickly wiped her eyes, grabbed the sheet, lay down again, pretending she had just woken.
“Ah, awake?”
That hoarse crow-like voice. The Lady in Black, Witch Yemi Ai, pushed open the door and entered. She glanced at Leticia casually. “I thought you’d rest longer.”
“Lady? I...?”
Leticia asked cautiously.
“Oh, you fainted~”
Yemi Ai’s laughter was full of ridicule. “So I brought you to town. After all, whatever shape your body’s in, it can’t delay my business, right?”
“Thank you.”
Leticia said softly.
“No need!”
From her small bag, Yemi Ai pulled out a piece of bread and tossed it onto Leticia’s bed. “Sure, your death would make things easier for me. But keeping you alive, savoring your fear and pain—that’s my greatest pleasure.”
“Your tastes really are vile...”
Leticia gently picked up the bread. Hard as wood, but at least not moldy—for her, that counted as decent food. “But I’ll still give my thanks.”
“Hehehe, rather than thanking me, you should be thinking how to live on, or just find a good place to lie down and be done.”
Yemi Ai spoke with malice. “Time won’t wait.”
Leticia paused mid-bite.
After swallowing the tough bread with effort, she caught her breath before speaking slowly: “Lady, may I receive... just a little help from you?”
She bowed her head to the person before her. Even though she feared this Witch, even though she brought her pain, even though she was a lunatic—
Leticia had no better path left.
“Help?”
Yemi Ai’s uncovered eyes narrowed beautifully. She hissed with laughter. “Of course. Struggling in pain, grasping at straws of pitiful hope and persistence—that’s the secret to making pain sublime, more delicious. Why would I refuse?”
“But, you’ll have to pay a great price.”
Yemi Ai smiled. “So great it’d be better just to die. Even so, you’re willing to accept?”
“It’s not about willing or not...”
After a moment of silence, Leticia lifted her head, met Yemi Ai’s eyes. “It’s fine, Lady. Please tell me!”
So dizzy...
Her emotions had swayed too strongly when she spoke, and the dizziness struck again.
“Hehehehe...”
Yemi Ai spoke slowly. “This sort of thing is practically unsolvable. After all, those who used such measures were ordinary men—soldiers. To halt an ordinary person’s life from slipping away, perhaps only the Church’s miracles and divine arts could achieve that.”
The Church...
Leticia gave a wry smile. “Lady, that’s not realistic at all.”
“True, true~”
Yemi Ai nodded, smiling. “But I was talking about ordinary people. Do you think you’re still an ordinary, little wedding dress?”