“Well, I suppose I’ll wander around town for a bit now.”
Deciding to wear something inconspicuous, I put on a long navy-blue skirt that would be easy to walk in and an ivory blouse, then left my hotel room.
“Have a nice day,” the person at the front desk called out after me cheerfully.
I exited the hotel and headed downtown where the shops were.
The capital of Ashbury was roughly divided into north, south, east, and west quarters with a castle at its center. My hotel was in the southern quarter, and the neighborhood was bustling with many shops, markets, and offices. According to my research, this area had the largest immigrant population.
The restaurants and food stalls here sold dishes from many countries. All sorts of delicious smells wafted from here and there as I walked down the street. Even though I’d eaten a late and filling breakfast, I felt my stomach growl a little. I bought a fresh pastry from a bakery and munched on it as I looked around town.
“Hmm?”
Just then, I spotted a little girl who looked quite upset sitting on a bench in the plaza. I wondered if she was waiting for someone, so I watched her from afar for a while, but it didn’t seem like anyone was coming for her.
What if some bad guy tries to kidnap her?
She wasn’t crying—just sitting there, staring off into space. Something didn’t feel right about this. I couldn’t simply gawk and do nothing, so I walked over to her.
“What’s wrong? Are you lost?”
“I’m not lost.”
“What’s your name?”
“Nonna.”
“Where is your family, Nonna?”
“Mom told me to wait right here.”
“Do you know how long ago that was?”
“Right before the bell chimed ten times.”
It was now past two in the afternoon. If the little girl had been waiting here for her mother for more than four hours, I wondered if she’d been abandoned. Her hair was a bit unkempt, and her skin and dress were slightly dirty.
“Are you hungry? I can buy you something to eat. Then I’ll wait for your mother with you.”
The girl nodded, so I took her hand and pulled her up, then we both walked over to the food stalls. Nonna seemed very thirsty, so I bought her some water infused with orange juice called “fruit water,” and she drank it all in one gulp.
I bought her another one, then got us two sandwiches stuffed with grilled meat and cucumbers. We walked back over to the bench.
Just as Nonna opened her mouth to dig in, her eyes widened, as though she was remembering something. “Thank you,” she said, before she began devouring her food.
I wonder what happened.
Her mother hadn’t shown up yet. Nonna seemed rather polite, so she must’ve been raised with some level of care. Maybe her mother went broke or got a new boyfriend who didn’t want anything to do with Nonna.
I asked about Nonna’s father, but she didn’t seem to have one.
“Try to eat a little slower so you don’t choke, okay?”
“Okay.”
“I have another bottle of water for you. Drink that while you eat.”
“Okay.”
“How old are you, Nonna?”
“Six.”
I had only been eight years old when my father’s business went bankrupt. I’d been about to be sent to work as a live-in servant when Lancome found me and took me in.
Though, I suppose it would be more accurate to say that my parents had sold me off to him. But they’d had no other choice, so I never held it against them. In fact, I was glad that I’d been of some help to my family.
Once Nonna was finished eating her sandwich, she began nodding off.
“Poor thing. You’ve been waiting here for a long time.”
She was fast asleep with her head in my lap. Although a bit dirty, she was clearly a very pretty little girl, with blond hair and blue-gray eyes. Precisely the kind of girl someone with nefarious intentions wouldn’t hesitate to abduct.
I was so glad I’d found her first.
We stayed there until dusk, but her mother never showed up.
She really has been abandoned.
She was still fast asleep, so I carried her on my back while I searched for a guard post. They would probably send Nonna to an orphanage, where she would have to wait for her mother. As those thoughts went through my mind, I saw a young man running toward me at full speed.
He seems dangerous… I need to steer clear of him.
He was clutching a bag that clearly belonged to a woman. That meant he was a pickpocket. I was carrying Nonna on my back, but I had no other choice. If I were still a spy, I’d avoid him. But now I was just an ordinary citizen with good intentions. Maybe I’d gotten carried away on my first day of freedom and decided to just react without giving it much thought.
I braced myself, and the moment the man passed me, I stuck out my leg, tripping him. He fell with a spectacular thud!
“Oww!”
A muscular, silver-haired man who’d been chasing after him caught up with the pickpocket in no time.
“Give it up!” he shouted.
For some reason, the large man was holding a thin rope, which he used to expertly bind the pickpocket’s hands. Then he turned to me.
“Thanks for your help, miss.”
“Of course. Excuse me, but are you going to hand that man over to the guards? Would I be able to come with you?”
“Hmm? Why?”
“Well, I think this girl might have been abandoned.”
The silver-haired man’s gaze shifted to Nonna behind me. “Sure, I can take you there.”
He didn’t say anything else about it. An elderly woman who looked like an aristocrat ran up to him, catching her breath, and he handed the bag back to her. The snowy-haired woman gracefully bowed several times before departing.
The silver-haired man pulled along the pickpocket as he showed me the way to the guard post. He told me his name was Jeffrey Asher. He appeared to be in his early thirties and was in top physical shape, judging by his toned muscles. He was around one hundred and ninety centimeters tall and weighed about eighty kilograms. His clothing looked fairly expensive, and he seemed well-to-do. He had deep-blue eyes, handsome features, and a very nice voice. I had a feeling he was quite popular with the ladies.
The guard post was a two-story building situated in the center of the downtown area. Two guards armed with swords stood at the entrance and immediately straightened their posture when they spotted Mr. Asher.