At that moment Laylaâs hand patted my head, a white and small hand. However, it was cold because she was out for too long.
âYou must become very happy. Since it would be another tragedy for you, who was born from thousands of tragedies, to be unhappy.â
Was this a blessing or a curse? Layla smiled, leaving a vague remark about how I should be happy or unhappy. She gave me a white, winter-like smile.
âSomeoneâs coming. Iâll leave now.â
I sighed heavily when I looked at Laylaâs back gently walking away. Soon, as Layla said, Elene appeared from where I had walked.
How could she know when someone was getting closer? Sheâs a scary woman.
âWhy are you here, Princess?â
âLetâs go back.â
Even though I already knew that didnât mean I wouldnât feel shocked. A part of me was saying that what happened was already in the past, but I could not deny that my mind had been heavier than before. Because my reason, my values, and my belief, said that what Caitel did was not acceptable.
Still, I guessed I had some expectations in my mind that he was not the mad monster heâs always known for since we kept seeing each other constantly.
âPlease come, princess. I made some scones for you.â
âWhat about pudding?â
âHere you go!â
I felt a little better now. It really was a tough time for me.
I was lost in thought while I was eating pudding. Well, maybe Caitel wasnât that crazy from the beginning, or was he? Usually, a villain was not a villain from the beginning. Itâs true that heâs insane, but maybe thereâs a reason why heâs like that. Whatever the reason might be, it wouldnât justify his actionsâ¦
However, I wanted to take his side.
I wanted to tell him to ask for forgiveness, apologize, repent, and stop doing those things again. Was I wrong for thinking this way?
âIs everything all right, Princess?â
âHuh? Ah.â
Serira looked at me with a serious expression as if she realized how unusually low I was feeling at the moment. She was surely a mother, a mother indeed!
âNo. Iâm fine.â
Still, I couldnât say what I was thinking out loud, so I muttered grimly. Elene and Serira were also feeling a little depressed because I was depressed.
âWhen will be my father come back?â
âWell, we cannot guarantee.â
How could they answer so insincerely?
I was not sure. Maybe I would know the answer when I saw him in person. Oh, I didnât know. My head hurts. It was a story with an answer I couldnât come up with anyway. In the first place, only in fictional cartoon movies would villains actually pay for what they had done. The reality was really rather dirty. Itâs always filled with strokes of bad luck, but I hoped Caitel would start to become a better man.
âDo you miss him?â
âNo.â
I replied in my âWhat are you asking?â face, but Serira just smiled. Why was she smiling? Oh, so was Elene. I was at a loss as to why they were laughing.
Did I make a funny face?