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As the snow that had been falling all day stopped, the once quiet slums came to life. While the adults grabbed shovels and brooms, the children grabbed sleds and snowballs.

Grace sat on the steps in front of her house and shared cheap coffee with the ladies who lived on the same alley.

"Where did you buy it?"

The middle-aged woman sitting behind her poked Grace's shoulder and asked in a muffled voice.

"yes?"

"Uh... last year?"

"Oh, where did you live?"

The woman nodded.

"It's a long way from here."

Grace looked down the slope, stammering words and chatting with her neighbors, whose language she could not quite understand.

On the dock below the road, workers were constantly moving sacks, while a flock of seagulls flew over the dark blue sea beyond.

This was the immigrant district of the port city where she had previously lived with Ellie. Grace brought Ellie back here as soon as the new year began. It was a choice she made because she thought that having familiar faces around her might help the child find stability.

And fortunately, it was an excellent choice.

A child who was playing among the neighborhood kids, who were about a foot taller than me, and chattering in Norwegian, ran towards Grace.

"mama."

"mom."

"Ellie, please."

"This is coffee."

Grace brought a cup of tea from the house on the second floor. The child gulped down the tea, which had quickly cooled down due to the cold weather, and then stopped her from running away. She must have been so absorbed in playing that she didn't even notice her runny nose.

"Ellie East Drane!"

As soon as she wiped his nose with a handkerchief, the child ran toward the children, shouting something Grace didn't know. The child who was about to get on the sled stopped and gave up his seat for Ellie, perhaps because it was his turn. Grace laughed.

Ellie instantly turned back into her old self.

A month and a half had passed since that day. These days, Ellie no longer caused any trouble at night or insisted on being tied up with her mother.

The younger you are, the faster your emotional wounds heal.

"Ellie had a dream. It was a really, really good dream, but then it turned into a bad dream."

Has the wound healed or is it just covered up?

But I was afraid so I didn't bother to look into it.

It wasn't just that day that the child believed it was a dream.

"In my dream, the prince was Ellie's father."

Even my father believed it was a dream.

But these days, she hasn't even talked about her dreams. Maybe she's completely forgotten. Come to think of it, Grace also has no memories of when she was three years old.

I heard that the man woke up dramatically. He was discharged from the hospital at the end of last month. But Grace did not return.

When he woke up, Ellie had already forgotten about her father. Grace had been through hell with the child until then. She didn't want to relive the shock of that day for the child who had finally found stability.

Regardless of whether that man was there or not, the two's goal was to leave this continent. They just had to endure this hell until April, when the first ship would set sail.

Grace gazed out at the horizon, listening to the sound of the ship's horn.

"Winston."

The moment Grace called, the man sitting at the iron table in the torture chamber, tilting a bottle of alcohol, turned his eyes to her and raised one eyebrow askew.

"I have a question."

"You are free to ask, but remember that freedom comes with responsibility."

The man laughed, sounding like a boring teacher. He was already drunk. So he decided to ask this stupid question that had always puzzled him.

"Why did you name the dog you raised as a child Bella?"

"Because it was a dog whose name suited the meaning well."

Bella meant beautiful. It was the most ordinary answer, which made Grace even more confused.

"But you call me that?"

The man chuckled, put down the bottle of alcohol, and picked up a cigar.

"Bella, Countess Trixie, Dolly. Whatever it was, I loved that dog."

I thought he was beating around the bush, but he wasn't.

Daisy, Sally, Grace. Whatever you are, I love you.

As those words translated into her head, Grace realized why she had always put off asking such a silly question.

"I wonder what happened to Bella?"

"no."

I refused with an ominous feeling, but the merciless man smiled with his mouth twisted while smoking a cigar.

"That stupid dog ran away from home when I was eight. He escaped through the open servants' gate and was hit by a passing carriage and killed."

Leon Winston was a monster who did not know how to cherish or respect life. I expected him to laugh when I told him he was dead, but instead his face hardened. I almost had the illusion that he was feeling a sense of loss.

"I swore that day that I would never love to be alive again. Never again."

"... ... ."

"Well, it failed after a few years."

He laughed again. Staring at Grace. Bitterly.

You are free to ask, but remember that freedom comes with responsibility.

Before asking this silly but dangerous question, the man gave her a bitter kiss as she thought back on what he had said, then looked into her eyes and said.

"Bella, don't run away this time."

There was clearly madness in his eyes at that moment, and his words were an order.

But in my dream tonight, the sadness I saw for the last time was there, and it was a plea.

As soon as I opened my eyes, my anger rose to the top of my head.

You're horrible. You're really horrible. Every time I decide to leave, you do this. You've been on my mind for three years, stirring things up as you please, and you're still doing this.

Grace rubbed her eyes with her sleeve and lifted her head from the wet pillow. She sneaked out to the front door while Ellie was still asleep, put on her coat, stuffed a few coins and a pistol into her pockets, and then went out.

The tavern across the street was deserted as it was nearing closing time. Grace went inside the public phone booth, pushing through the still thick cigarette smoke and the men's questioning stares, and closed the door.

Grace, do it. Do it now.

It was time to say something I had been putting off for so long: to cancel the travel ban and arrest warrant that had been placed on me and Ellie.

Blinded by anger, it seemed like she would never be able to make the call again. Grace picked up the receiver before her anger subsided. The number she gave the operator was the number for Winston's annex office.

Let it go. You give up. If you're truly sorry, let it go.

After thinking about what to say to the man, the call was connected. As expected, the man was there. Naturally, she wondered what he was doing in the annex. Grace hesitated for a moment at the ironic fact that the man was in the annex and had answered the phone.

The man on the other end of the line was silent. Only one sigh, like the sound of wind brushing past your ears on a rainy day, could be heard. In the end, Grace was the first to break the silence.

"hi."

Hi, honey.

I wonder if I had been expecting that shameless greeting without realizing it. The moment I heard that completely unexpected and shameless voice on the other end of the phone, Grace had to hold back the tears that were about to burst out of her with her hand.

Just like you practiced. Please say it just like you practiced.

Grace forcefully suppressed these ridiculous emotions and spewed out the words she had practiced.

"Revoke the travel ban. If you are truly sorry, let us go."

There was no word on the other end of the line. When it came to this man, even silence felt persistent.

"If you truly love Ellie, shouldn't you take her out of this pit of blood and revenge?"

Only then did the man break the silence. Instead of answering, he just muttered something else.

[Ellie... how are you?]

He spoke that short word with pauses. It was silently conveyed that he was holding back something in each syllable. Grace closed her eyes tightly, steeled herself, and uttered the one word that shook him.

"Ellie, like you, is starting to become obsessed with blood."

There was a brief pause in the breathing sound coming from the other end of the receiver, and then he asked in a trembling voice.

[Where are you now?]

"It's okay now. I'm back to the old Ellie. But... ."

[under....]

"Ellie forgot you."

The sigh of relief stopped as if cut by a knife.

"I know it was all a dream. So please don't make things difficult for the child who has finally found stability... ."

Her pleas were cut short as if by a knife as she heard the painful sobs coming from the other end of the receiver.

************************************************** ***

Distributed by Ajit Novel (formerly Ajitoon Novel).

Enjoy convenient real-time viewing on the web

http://novelagit.xyz

************************************************** **

As the snow that had been falling all day stopped, the once quiet slums came to life. While the adults grabbed shovels and brooms, the children grabbed sleds and snowballs.

Grace sat on the steps in front of her house and shared cheap coffee with the ladies who lived on the same alley.

"Where did you buy it?"

The middle-aged woman sitting behind her poked Grace's shoulder and asked in a muffled voice.

"yes?"

"Uh... last year?"

"Oh, where did you live?"

The woman nodded.

"It's a long way from here."

Grace looked down the slope, stammering words and chatting with her neighbors, whose language she could not quite understand.

On the dock below the road, workers were constantly moving sacks, while a flock of seagulls flew over the dark blue sea beyond.

This was the immigrant district of the port city where she had previously lived with Ellie. Grace brought Ellie back here as soon as the new year began. It was a choice she made because she thought that having familiar faces around her might help the child find stability.

And fortunately, it was an excellent choice.

A child who was playing among the neighborhood kids, who were about a foot taller than me, and chattering in Norwegian, ran towards Grace.

"mama."

"mom."

"Ellie, please."

"This is coffee."

Grace brought a cup of tea from the house on the second floor. The child gulped down the tea, which had quickly cooled down due to the cold weather, and then stopped her from running away. She must have been so absorbed in playing that she didn't even notice her runny nose.

"Ellie East Drane!"

As soon as she wiped his nose with a handkerchief, the child ran toward the children, shouting something Grace didn't know. The child who was about to get on the sled stopped and gave up his seat for Ellie, perhaps because it was his turn. Grace laughed.

Ellie instantly turned back into her old self.

A month and a half had passed since that day. These days, Ellie no longer caused any trouble at night or insisted on being tied up with her mother.

The younger you are, the faster your emotional wounds heal.

"Ellie had a dream. It was a really, really good dream, but then it turned into a bad dream."

Has the wound healed or is it just covered up?

But I was afraid so I didn't bother to look into it.

It wasn't just that day that the child believed it was a dream.

"In my dream, the prince was Ellie's father."

Even my father believed it was a dream.

But these days, she hasn't even talked about her dreams. Maybe she's completely forgotten. Come to think of it, Grace also has no memories of when she was three years old.

I heard that the man woke up dramatically. He was discharged from the hospital at the end of last month. But Grace did not return.

When he woke up, Ellie had already forgotten about her father. Grace had been through hell with the child until then. She didn't want to relive the shock of that day for the child who had finally found stability.

Regardless of whether that man was there or not, the two's goal was to leave this continent. They just had to endure this hell until April, when the first ship would set sail.

Grace gazed out at the horizon, listening to the sound of the ship's horn.

"Winston."

The moment Grace called, the man sitting at the iron table in the torture chamber, tilting a bottle of alcohol, turned his eyes to her and raised one eyebrow askew.

"I have a question."

"You are free to ask, but remember that freedom comes with responsibility."

The man laughed, sounding like a boring teacher. He was already drunk. So he decided to ask this stupid question that had always puzzled him.

"Why did you name the dog you raised as a child Bella?"

"Because it was a dog whose name suited the meaning well."

Bella meant beautiful. It was the most ordinary answer, which made Grace even more confused.

"But you call me that?"

The man chuckled, put down the bottle of alcohol, and picked up a cigar.

"Bella, Countess Trixie, Dolly. Whatever it was, I loved that dog."

I thought he was beating around the bush, but he wasn't.

Daisy, Sally, Grace. Whatever you are, I love you.

As those words translated into her head, Grace realized why she had always put off asking such a silly question.

"I wonder what happened to Bella?"

"no."

I refused with an ominous feeling, but the merciless man smiled with his mouth twisted while smoking a cigar.

"That stupid dog ran away from home when I was eight. He escaped through the open servants' gate and was hit by a passing carriage and killed."

Leon Winston was a monster who did not know how to cherish or respect life. I expected him to laugh when I told him he was dead, but instead his face hardened. I almost had the illusion that he was feeling a sense of loss.

"I swore that day that I would never love to be alive again. Never again."

"... ... ."

"Well, it failed after a few years."

He laughed again. Staring at Grace. Bitterly.

You are free to ask, but remember that freedom comes with responsibility.

Before asking this silly but dangerous question, the man gave her a bitter kiss as she thought back on what he had said, then looked into her eyes and said.

"Bella, don't run away this time."

There was clearly madness in his eyes at that moment, and his words were an order.

But in my dream tonight, the sadness I saw for the last time was there, and it was a plea.

As soon as I opened my eyes, my anger rose to the top of my head.

You're horrible. You're really horrible. Every time I decide to leave, you do this. You've been on my mind for three years, stirring things up as you please, and you're still doing this.

Grace rubbed her eyes with her sleeve and lifted her head from the wet pillow. She sneaked out to the front door while Ellie was still asleep, put on her coat, stuffed a few coins and a pistol into her pockets, and then went out.

The tavern across the street was deserted as it was nearing closing time. Grace went inside the public phone booth, pushing through the still thick cigarette smoke and the men's questioning stares, and closed the door.

Grace, do it. Do it now.

It was time to say something I had been putting off for so long: to cancel the travel ban and arrest warrant that had been placed on me and Ellie.

Blinded by anger, it seemed like she would never be able to make the call again. Grace picked up the receiver before her anger subsided. The number she gave the operator was the number for Winston's annex office.

Let it go. You give up. If you're truly sorry, let it go.

After thinking about what to say to the man, the call was connected. As expected, the man was there. Naturally, she wondered what he was doing in the annex. Grace hesitated for a moment at the ironic fact that the man was in the annex and had answered the phone.

The man on the other end of the line was silent. Only one sigh, like the sound of wind brushing past your ears on a rainy day, could be heard. In the end, Grace was the first to break the silence.

"hi."

Hi, honey.

I wonder if I had been expecting that shameless greeting without realizing it. The moment I heard that completely unexpected and shameless voice on the other end of the phone, Grace had to hold back the tears that were about to burst out of her with her hand.

Just like you practiced. Please say it just like you practiced.

Grace forcefully suppressed these ridiculous emotions and spewed out the words she had practiced.

"Revoke the travel ban. If you are truly sorry, let us go."

There was no word on the other end of the line. When it came to this man, even silence felt persistent.

"If you truly love Ellie, shouldn't you take her out of this pit of blood and revenge?"

Only then did the man break the silence. Instead of answering, he just muttered something else.

[Ellie... how are you?]

He spoke that short word with pauses. It was silently conveyed that he was holding back something in each syllable. Grace closed her eyes tightly, steeled herself, and uttered the one word that shook him.

"Ellie, like you, is starting to become obsessed with blood."

There was a brief pause in the breathing sound coming from the other end of the receiver, and then he asked in a trembling voice.

[Where are you now?]

"It's okay now. I'm back to the old Ellie. But... ."

[under....]

"Ellie forgot you."

The sigh of relief stopped as if cut by a knife.

"I know it was all a dream. So please don't make things difficult for the child who has finally found stability... ."

Her pleas were cut short as if by a knife as she heard the painful sobs coming from the other end of the receiver.

************************************************** ***

Distributed by Ajit Novel (formerly Ajitoon Novel).

Enjoy convenient real-time viewing on the web

http://novelagit.xyz

************************************************** **