CHAPTER~28
“Ouch!”
As Mela stepped on the rope, the bucket hanging above the door tipped over, drenching her in water.
“Ahhh!”
At the same time, a strange creature popped out of the bucket and landed on Evlyen’s head.
What clung to Mela’s face was a frog with red eyes.
It was a frog known to live along the northern riverbanks, extremely large and fierce-looking.
The twin brothers watching the frog slide across Mela’s face snickered quietly.
“She’ll scream within three seconds, that foolish girl.”
“Brother…! But something’s weird. She’s not even wet from the water!”
Unlike Lazar, who was sure she would scream, Morris was terrified at something he saw.
“What nonsense are you talking about, Morris? I told you not to say weird things.”
“B-but… I swear…! Eek, and it’s staring right at us! Brother, what if it notices us?”
Lazar disliked how timid and cowardly his younger brother was.
He had clearly heard the water splash. He dismissed it as nonsense and clicked his tongue at Morris’s weakness.
“If you’re this scared, even things that should stay hidden will get exposed. Don’t worry, that girl will scream soon enough…”
Why isn’t she screaming?
When no sound came from Mela, whom he expected to scream immediately, Lazar snapped his head around.
“Ahhh!”
At that moment, something flew through the air and slapped against his face.
“What, what is this! Morris! Get it off, hurry!”
Lazar waved his arms frantically, shouting for someone to remove it.
“Brother! A big frog is on your face. I can’t get it off, it’s scary! It’s gross!”
But Morris was too scared, stamping his feet at the sight of the frog.
Fortunately, the frog detached on its own after all the commotion, leaving Lazar’s face flushed red.
He charged forward in anger.
“Brother!”
He headed straight for Mela, who was sitting on the floor.
Furious, Lazar grabbed Mela by the collar and shouted, alarming the other children nearby.
“Hey! You wretched girl, you threw this frog at me, didn’t you?”
Mela blinked innocently, tears welling up as if she might cry.
“W-what are you talking about? I don’t have the strength to throw something that disgusting…”
“Then who else could have done it? It was on your face!”
Lazar pouted, frustrated that he couldn’t find evidence proving he had been tricked.
The frog was different from ordinary frogs.
Weighing a whopping 4 kg, it was too heavy for a small, fragile girl to hold and throw.
Lazar had often bullied children this way, regardless of gender, and this method was the most effective.
Boys trembled when they were targeted, and girls cried, begging for the frog to be removed.
Lazar assumed Mela, being small and delicate with no apparent strength, would cry immediately. But she didn’t.
She neither cried nor shivered from embarrassment; she simply seemed puzzled. Strange.
And yet, the frog couldn’t fly.
Damn, other kids would’ve screamed immediately in this situation!
Realizing his usual intimidation wouldn’t work, Lazar gritted his teeth.
Just as he was thinking of what to do next, Mela smiled brightly while still held by the collar—a pure, innocent smile that twisted his nerves.
“Um… I’m hurt. Could you let go? The tutor will be here soon. If they see this, won’t they be upset?”
“Who do you think you are…!”
Before he could shout in anger, he heard footsteps approaching.
As Mela said, the tutor had indeed arrived. Lazar tried to release his grip desperately.
“What, why won’t it come off?”
For some reason, his hand didn’t obey. Lazar clenched his teeth, but his face only turned redder.
“What is a girl the size of a pebble trying to pull on me for…!”
Just as he raised his other hand in frustration, the door opened, and the tutor arrived.
“Children, what is all this? Lazar, what are you doing! Mela, are you alright? Lazar, really… harassing such a small girl, shame on you!”
“I-it’s not like that!”
Lazar’s face turned pale from the unexpected situation. He tried to release his grip before getting scolded further.
“Let go immediately! Or I’ll report this properly!”
Lazar felt unjust. No matter how hard he tried, his hand wouldn’t release, his face contorted with frustration.
“Even if I want to let go, my hand won’t obey… ah, ahhh!”
Suddenly, his strength left him, and he toppled backward.
“Ahhh!”
Lazar flailed to regain balance but slipped on the wet floor and fell comically.
Splash! His body soaked in water. Morris, who had been in the corner, finally rushed to help his brother.
“Pfft!”
“He fell!”
The other children watching burst into laughter, and Lazar, unable to scream in front of the tutor, gritted his teeth.
“Tutor.”
Mela carefully held the tutor’s sleeve, speaking in a clear, gentle voice.
“Please don’t tell the adults. Lazar didn’t mean to hurt me! So, please.”
“Are you sure that’s alright?”
“Of course!”
Ignoring the worried tutor, Mela stood in front of the fallen Lazar.
“Children should solve their own problems!”
Mela smiled brighter than ever, offering her hand to Lazar.
…Who is this girl?
Seeing such a pure smile, Lazar finally realized he had been bested.
“So, let’s get along from now on, alright?”
And he sensed it—this girl was no ordinary child.
* * *
Lazar had always ruled the study room as the top child. Most children educated here were likely the children of servants, like him, or not nobility.
Among them, the nanny, who had the elders’ full trust, was his mother. Who could defy her? But Mela was different.
“I won’t let that girl be! Her eyes are unnaturally big, always seeming to see right through me. Annoying, irritating!”
“Brother, calm down… if you get caught bullying her again, what then?”
“Shut up! You’re useless! You should’ve helped me then!”
“B-but I was scared too…”
Lazar, who ended up being outsmarted rather than tormenting Mela, was furious the entire time in the room.
Yet his face still reflected confusion.
“Um… brother.”
At that moment, Morris, who had been cowering, timidly spoke.
“Mela, when that girl fell… there was something strange around her. It was really brief, so I’m not sure… a transparent membrane seemed to repel the bucket! And something seemed to be on brother’s ankle too…”
“Stop saying nonsense, Morris.”
“Hic, no! It was real…!”
What Morris saw was a very thin, transparent membrane.
In that brief moment, he saw the bucket bounce off the protective membrane around the child’s body.
Even witnessing it, he couldn’t find words to describe the bizarre phenomenon and could only keep his mouth shut.
“It, it’s real…”
Being timid and fearful, he thought he might have imagined it. As expected, his brother dismissed his words.
“Hmph! Ridiculous! You’re saying that insignificant girl can use magic?”
Morris blinked, not fully understanding the word “magic.” Lazar gave up hope, seeing his brother’s blank expression.
“I must be a fool to believe you. Anyway, say something like that one more time, and then you’ll…!”
Just as he was about to scold his brother firmly, a kind voice called from the door.
“Mela, that girl uses magic?”
A long shadow fell over the brothers. Startled, they jumped up to greet their mother, their previous stiffness now apparent.
“M-mother.”
Grimora smiled brightly and continued.
“Won’t you tell me what happened today?”
