The Perfect Plan for a Fairy-Tale Ending

Chapter 8

Nora helped me change into a plain, old dress as a disguise, and I loaded only two of my bags into the carriage—the smallest and the largest.

“Please take care of the rest as you see fit,” I told her. “And… Thank you for accommodating all of my demands up until now, Nora.”

She even helped me close the door herself. The final thought I heard from her was, “They say people change right before they die…”

Indeed, I was supposed to die, but that wasn’t for three years, and I was doing all I could to survive now. Well, I guess she isn’t totally off, I thought. I let out a hollow laugh.

The five other bags, stuffed to the brim with Marcia’s costly gowns, could either be sold for a tidy sum, or properly altered and sent back to the Blick residence to keep up the facade. I was leaving that up to Nora.

I rode in the carriage for some time until we reached the neighboring town, then switched to a different carriage. I switched a total of three more times until I finally alighted for good in a secluded spot away from any bustling town squares.

After the coachman drove away, I made sure that no one else was around before I opened the large bag. A glimmer of silver hair peeked out.

“Are you okay?” I asked. “It was uncomfortable, wasn’t it?”

I helped pull Larissa out of the bag. She appeared distressed and could barely move. She was surely stiff and achy after being slumped inside for so long. With my help, she was finally able to stretch her arms and legs, but she immediately covered her eyes. Her thin shoulders heaved in discomfort.

Ah… It must be too bright for her. Afraid of being noticed by passersby, I moved her and the bags to a shady spot hidden under the foliage of a large tree. It was a bit darker in the shade, and hopefully, her eyes would adjust to the light.

“It’s okay,” I said, trying to soothe her. “Let’s catch our breath. Take a big breath, and then exhale.” I took exaggerated breaths in and out, showing her how to do it. “This is a safe place. It’s a forest, and there’s no one around. See?” I said, taking small steps in place. “It feels soft under our feet. You can hear that crunching sound, right? We are standing on top of some old, dried leaves.”

Five minutes later, Larissa’s breathing noticeably calmed, and she cautiously slid her hands away from her eyes. She squinted, still unable to fully open them in the sun, but she seemed to have adjusted a bit.

She’d been crammed inside a bag for hours since the early morning, and she would still be aching from the beating Bilain had given her last night. But she didn’t complain once. I couldn’t hear anything from her mind, either. I could only hone in on negative thoughts, so right now, Larissa was neither anxious nor upset.

Ah… Maybe she’s too traumatized to be upset… I gazed at her with pity and scanned her clothes. She was wearing a dress that Marcia had worn when she was younger.

I’d thought that had been thrown away. Evidently, our father had no mind to waste his funds by buying new dresses for his youngest daughter. He chose to give her Marcia’s hand-me-downs instead, as it was a requirement that she be better dressed than commoners or the servants. Larissa was still a Blick, even if it was only in name.

The gown had been beautiful back when it was new, but now it was worn and tattered. It was also quite outdated, and the sleeves were too short, completely showing Larissa’s skinny wrists.

Perhaps it’s for the best… No one would suspect she’s a nobleman’s daughter in this dress. At this rate, no one would bat an eye at either of us.

I took off the bonnet I’d been wearing and put it on her head, but it was so large on her that it almost completely covered her face. The bonnet’s brim cast a large shadow over her eyes, which probably helped the glare. I wish I had some sunglasses.

Larissa kept her head down and stood as motionless as a doll, making no movements unless I told her what to do. I tied the bonnet beneath her chin and took out a scarf for myself, tying it around my hair to try and obscure my face. Finally, I dragged the large bag over and tossed it into the trees somewhere.

“Can you walk?” I asked. Larissa nodded, and I carefully took her hand.

***

After about an hour of walking, a bustling street came into view. It was a small city on a map I’d examined inside the carriage. We were now in the territory of the Laurents—at the very edge of it, at least. If we took one more carriage ride, we would be able to board a train that would take us in the direction of the Laurent Manor.

Trains were a new technology in this world. Railroads were starting to spread across the country, but train travel was still an unimaginable novelty in the rural area that the Blicks oversaw. A three-day carriage journey took a mere three hours by train, so my goal was for us to take one the rest of the way.

But before that, we should eat. Neither Larissa nor I had eaten anything since we had woken up. Larissa’s pallor, which was deathlike from the get-go, had steadily gotten worse the longer we walked. I knew how difficult it was for a child who had been trapped underground her whole life to be walking outside for an hour straight.

I looked around, eager to find a restaurant. We could also purchase food to eat inside the carriage, but I thought it would be better for us to have a proper meal at a table, as well as use the restroom in the establishment.

Out of three restaurants, I selected the one that was most out of the way, with a sign that was so shabby that it was easy to overlook as an eatery. Since we were runaways, it would be best if we ate somewhere inconspicuous. It doesn’t matter if the food tastes good or not. We just need to eat something.

I took the lead and pushed the door open. A small bell chimed above us. When I held the door open, Larissa hesitantly followed me inside.

“Come in!” a voice called out. “Please sit anywhere you’d like.” It was a woman who appeared to be in her mid-thirties. She wiped her hands on her apron as she greeted us.

The restaurant was small. There were only three tables for patrons, and only two of them were available. At the innermost table, two young men were sitting across from each other and having a meal.

I wish we were the only ones here, but oh well. I turned away quickly, making sure not to make eye contact with the other diners. Larissa and I sat at the other end of the room, leaving the middle table empty.

The wobbly table was covered with an old, shabby tablecloth that barely reached the floor. The fabric was a bit dirty and spotted with stains, but this was not exactly the time and place to complain about cleanliness.

“What would you like to eat?” I asked Larissa, sounding cheerful. There was hardly any point in asking, however, because there were only two items on the wooden menu board hanging on the wall. I just wanted to continue trying to talk to the little girl. After all, I was just the older sister she had never spoken to, despite us living in the same house for years—yet she had trusted me enough to run away with me.

She must be so nervous… Larissa hadn’t spoken a single word to me since our meeting, nor had she tried to express how she felt. It made me feel as if something was squeezing my heart. I was sure she knew how to speak, it was just that long years spent alone in a basement provided few conversation opportunities and would make her even more reluctant to open up.

Right now, she stared down at the table, holding herself rigidly. I wondered if she had even heard my question. She appeared more doll-like than ever, especially with her beautiful face just peeking out under the brim of the bonnet. If she were changed into a proper gown, she really would look like a fancy porcelain doll.

“Shall I order one of each?” I asked. “We can share. Is there anything you can’t eat?”

No response. Hmm… It was as if I was talking to myself. But it was a good sign that she wasn’t flinching every time I moved like she had the night before.

The owner of the restaurant went into the kitchen after I placed our order. The place was so small that I could see inside the kitchen. It appeared that she was the cook as well as the waitress.

So, a woman can have her own shop, greet guests, and cook the food herself… That’s not a bad living. I would also have to survive on my own once I’d delivered Larissa to the Laurents. If I sold my jewels and bought a small shop, then perhaps I could operate it on my own, just like this woman.

While one part of my mind whirred with plans for my future, I continued to prattle on. “Roast chicken and potatoes. Sounds yummy, right? I hope it comes with vegetables so we can get some vitamins. Do you like chicken?”

Again, she remained silent and motionless. However, based on the stillness of her thoughts, I figured she didn’t dislike chicken.

“We need to eat as much as we can, so try to finish your food even if you don’t like it. I like chicken, though,” I said, pointing to myself. “Fried chicken is the best. Don’t you think so?”

Would she even have tried fried chicken? The nanny had always brought Larissa her meals, and Marcia had never once been interested or thought to ask what her sister was eating. All I could remember was that there was a small, window-like hatch in the second set of basement doors, through which plates could be pushed in and out.

But she’s still a lady of the house. They must have fed her properly. That was what I wanted to believe, but Larissa was so small and frail that I doubted if she’d ever had even an entire slice of bread. I could feel myself tearing up.

“I know it might seem like I don’t know where we’re going, but that’s not the case,” I told her. “We’ve deliberately been changing directions to throw off anyone who might be tailing us. Our final destination is House Laurent.” Then, I lowered my voice to a whisper. “Someone there is going to rescue you.”