Let’s Make Saving a Habit - Chapter 16

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 16
I gathered the children and led them out, then quickly set about tidying the exterior.
The outside was just as much of a mess as the interior of the Auction House.
It couldn’t be helped—I’d brought monsters all the way to the Village, so one could only imagine how shocked the residents living nearby must have been.
Of course, I’d been careful not to cause any damage to the buildings as I brought them here, but from their perspective, it must have felt like a bolt from the blue.
As evidence of this, the people who had been in the area had already fled far away, leaving the surroundings eerily silent.
“Raspi, let’s send the monsters back first. And our Krung too.”
“Understood.”
The fortunate thing was that the Empire frequently experienced monster outbreaks.
Because of this, no one would suspect that someone had deliberately brought the monsters here.
Only after Raspi had collected the monsters and sent them back to the Forest did the twin siblings finally embrace each other and share the joy of their reunion.
“Waaah! I thought I’d never see you again!”
“Thank goodness you’re not hurt, Mari.”
“I… I really thought I was going to die from fear…”
“I’m sorry I was late.”
“No. Why would you apologize?”
Watching the two of them finally cry like children, a strange emotion welled up inside me.
I could use my ability right now to jump to a future point in time.
But in that future point, Raspi was executed as an Empire-wide criminal.
It was certainly a future point, but not the future of the present.
I could see hope.
Hope that I could protect Aiden and create a completely different future from the last timeline.
“Sniff. Thank you for coming to rescue me even though it was such a dangerous place.”
“Actually, you should thank Tania more than me. If she hadn’t been here, I wouldn’t have even known where you’d been taken.”
The twins’ gazes fixed on me simultaneously.
Lost in thought as I looked at them, I asked with a playful expression.
“Are you done crying?”
“Yes!”
“…I wasn’t crying.”
A lie.
“Your eyes are completely red. I bet you’d cry again if I poked you right now.”
At my teasing, he rubbed his eyes vigorously with his sleeve and pretended nothing was wrong.
He tried to act mature, but he was still just a child after all.
Raspi pressed down on Rosemary’s head, and the two of them bowed their heads to me together.
“Thank you. We will never forget this kindness.”
“That’s right. I hope you grow up to be wonderful people and repay this debt many times over.”
It pricked my conscience to exploit even children, but no matter how I thought about it, talents like Raspi and Rosemary were too valuable to pass up.
He seemed to think it was a joke, as he smiled faintly at my words and continued.
“If I may ask, what is your relationship with the old man who rescued me earlier?”
“…He’s someone I don’t know?”
“Ah, if you’d rather not say, that’s perfectly fine.”
“I’m serious. We only met briefly in the Underground Prison and talked for a moment.”
“But it seemed as though you knew the Old Gentleman quite well, Tania.”
“I don’t know him well, but I have my suspicions about who he is.”
“I see. I understand.”
Raspi nodded without pressing further, accepting my answer.
He possessed genuine ability and knew exactly where to draw the line—it felt wasteful to simply part ways with him like this.
I was genuinely concerned about their future.
“Do you two have a home to return to?”
“There are quite a few abandoned houses scattered throughout the Shantytown.”
In other words, they were living hand-to-mouth on the streets without a proper home.
I’d suspected as much, but these siblings truly had tragic circumstances.
“Why don’t you two skip the Shantytown and enroll in the Talent Cultivation Institute instead?”
At my suggestion, the siblings shook their heads despondently, as if the idea were absurd.
“If we could have passed the entrance exam and gotten into the Talent Cultivation Institute, we would have done so long ago.”
“…Besides, my brother might have a chance, but I’m not an Abiliter.”
I understood how difficult it was to meet the Papiope Talent Cultivation Institute’s standards and gain admission.
But if it were truly impossible, I wouldn’t have brought it up.
“Who said you need to take the exam based solely on your abilities? You don’t hate the idea of getting in, right?”
“…No, we don’t.”
“Then let me help you. Just do as I say.”
The Papiope Talent Cultivation Institute evaluates candidates on three criteria.
First, Ability.
Second, Crisis Management.
Third, Written Examination.
The first criterion—Ability—checks whether candidates have awakened their powers and grades them based on an on-the-spot demonstration.
Raspi had already awakened his ability, and given that he’d eventually face the entire Empire alone, this part shouldn’t be a problem.
The issue was that Rosemary hadn’t awakened yet…
But honestly, that could be compensated for by scoring well in other areas.
The Talent Cultivation Institute doesn’t only recruit Abiters, after all.
Fortunately, I could adequately cover the evaluation criteria beyond Ability.
There was one thing I needed to address first, though.
I opened my mouth carefully, trying to avoid hurting the children’s feelings.
“Can you two read?”
“…We cannot.”
“N-no, we can’t.”
Embarrassed by their illiteracy, they averted their eyes and hung their heads low, unsure what to do.
Their ears flushed with shame, mirroring their inner turmoil.
“Don’t be ashamed. You can learn from now on. You simply haven’t had the chance to learn yet.”
It was only natural that they didn’t know.
How could children who lost their parents and lived on the streets possibly learn to read?
Even I only managed to learn after meeting the Old Gentleman in my previous timeline.
“Then you can at least read numbers?”
“…Yes, we can read numbers.”
“I-I can too!”
I painted a confident smile across my lips.
“That’s enough then. It’ll do.”
As a bus driver, I’ll show you what a comfortable ride feels like.

✦ ✦ ✦
Eventually, I arrived at the Papiope Talent Cultivation Institute with the children in tow.
The Papiope Talent Cultivation Institute had high standards for passing, but its doors were always open for entry.
It meant the siblings, who had nowhere to sleep tonight, were a perfect fit.
I gazed at the magnificent institute with an impressed expression.
The fact that they placed such a prestigious institute not in the surrounding regions but right in the expensive Capital spoke volumes about the wealth of the family behind it.
Of course, I was pleased that I wouldn’t need to travel far.
I stared distantly at the building, which was clearly laden with money, before opening my mouth.
“Shall we go in then?”
However, unlike Rosemary, who appeared brimming with excitement, Raspi still hadn’t relaxed his rigid expression.
“…I’m not sure how we, who cannot even read, could possibly solve the problems and pass the exam.”
“Hmm.”
I didn’t bother adding that even if you could read, you wouldn’t have been able to solve them.
This was a place where the Empire’s most brilliant geniuses gathered.
There was no way easy problems would appear. Without differentiation through scores, the exam itself would be meaningless.
“Kids, can you wait for me until I take the exam and come back out?”
“…Are you also enrolling together with us, Tania?”
I spoke in a light tone, as if I were simply going for a stroll.
“I was planning to enter eventually anyway, so while I’m here, I might as well get my passing certificate. Joining the Papiope Institute is my ultimate goal, after all.”
My plan was to first receive a passing certificate, then show it to the Old Gentleman when he returned home to get his permission before enrolling in the institute.
“…Wouldn’t it be better if we took the exam together since you’re going to take it anyway?”
Raspi acted as though I would abandon them and leave without a second thought.
I rolled my eyes.
If he was already developing separation anxiety, that would be troublesome.
“If we take the exam at the same time, I can’t be your guide. I need to gather information first.”
In truth, there was no real need to convince him.
Having decided to go quickly, I activated my ability.
[Overlaying the current point in time onto Checkpoint 1.]
“Then, I’ll be back soon.”
I turned away from the siblings’ anxious gazes and entered the institute.
And thus began an ordeal of extreme difficulty.
[Overwriting the current point in time with Viewpoint 2.]
[Loading Viewpoint 2.]
[Loading Viewpoint 2.]
[Loading Viewpoint 2….]
[Viewpoint 2….]
[….]
“Damn, this is incredibly difficult!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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