The Villainess Builds a Department Store - Chapter 20

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Villainess Establishes a Department Store

Chapter 20

“Anyone watching would think I’m offering you poisoned food. I bought these at the market over there. They’re sour but delicious.”

When I, tired of urging him, picked one up and ate it, only then did Bastian reluctantly put a wild strawberry in his mouth with a sour expression.

“…Ugh, sour.”

Hehe. Still such a child. You find this wild strawberry sour? To me it tastes like it’s been preserved in sugar… Ptui.

“Uuugh… my tongue is tingling!”

Of all things, I must have picked one that was particularly unripe.

Bastian and I writhed in place like earthworms hit with salt.

He must have been quite hungry, as Bastian went from eating one or two at first to eventually grabbing handfuls.

“By the way, what were you doing here?”

“Can’t you tell by looking? I was looking for work, why.”

Bastian, whose fingertips and lips were stained red, spat out bluntly.

However, his wariness that had bordered on hostility was now considerably softened.

“Looking for work? You… how old are you?”

“What does age matter? As long as my arms and legs work fine.”

When he put it that way, I had nothing to say…

But Bastian, who said such things, looked like ‘only’ his limbs were fine.

Bastian was about half a head shorter than me. If he wanted to grow tall, he’d need to eat well starting now.

Small, skinny, with dark circles under his eyes, and a foul mouth and personality.

It didn’t seem like anyone would hire him except as a chimney sweep or a street pickpocket.

“You’re not planning to join some bad organization like a pickpocket gang…”

“I’m considering that too. You better watch your wallet.”

“Huh?”

Bastian replied cheekily while wiping his hands and mouth with a handkerchief.

Unlike his clothes, the handkerchief was pristinely white without a single wrinkle and decorated with lace around the edges – it looked very familiar.

Wait a minute.

That’s my handkerchief! When did he take it?

Bastian giggled as he watched me frantically search my pockets in belated panic.

“Sigh… I hope you live honestly.”

“What?”

“I hope you receive fair compensation for your efforts.”

“…”

Bastian fell silent again.

“You’re capable enough. No, you’re someone who deserves such treatment.”

So live honestly. It would be troublesome for me if you ended up in prison or something.

I brought the last remaining wild strawberry to Bastian’s lips.

Bastian unconsciously accepted it, then startled and jumped back.

“You… you’re really a strange kid!”

Then he turned around and ran away down the street as if fleeing.

“Ah, my handkerchief.”

I was about to wipe my hands when I realized.

I belatedly turned my gaze toward the direction he had disappeared, but that didn’t bring my handkerchief back.

‘Strange kid.’

Bastian thought as he fingered the embroidery on the edge of the handkerchief.

Live honestly – in his not-so-long life, no one had ever said such words to him.

No, he couldn’t survive by being honest in the first place.

To avoid having things stolen by his trashy parents, he had to hide them secretly.

To avoid being beaten by the big dumb thugs in the organization, he had to make up lies he didn’t mean.

To avoid being hurt by people who looked at him like he was a bug, he had to hate and despise them first.

‘As if I do it because I want to…’

What do you know?

Adelaide, was it?

Such a grand, noble-sounding name.

She must have grown up receiving nothing but love from those around her.

Looking like she’d never been touched by a single drop of rain, with eyes like a silver mirror that had never reflected any of the world’s filth.

She should have just thrown some pitying coins and left – so why did she have such an earnest expression?

Bastian rubbed his chapped lips with the back of his hand for no reason.

He kept remembering those iris-like eyes that had looked straight at him.

He felt like the taste of that sour wild strawberry she had fed him still lingered on his tongue.

“Hey! Sep! Got any money? Your big brother here is feeling a bit peckish…”

“…Brother Jacques.”

At the appearance of the thug known for his fists in the alley, Bastian hurriedly shoved the handkerchief behind his back.

His body remembered violence, automatically tensing his muscles and lowering his stance.

“What’s that?”

“What’s what?”

“Tch! Hurry up and hand it over!”

Jacques raised his arm as if about to strike. Bastian squeezed his eyes shut.

But the thick hand went not to Bastian’s cheek but down his spine to pull out the handkerchief.

“Found it.”

“…!”

“Well, what’s this? A handkerchief? Silk too? Sniff sniff… even smells nice… Sep, you little brat, quite something for a kid, aren’t you?”

“Give it back!”

Bastian’s expression hardened as he tried to snatch the handkerchief.

Jacques waved the handkerchief teasingly above Bastian’s head.

“Give it back!”

Thud!

Bastian kicked Jacques’ shin with all his might.

“Ugh! You crazy bastard!”

And while Jacques screamed and let his guard down, Bastian snatched the handkerchief back.

“How dare you defy your elder?”

Thud, thwack!

The price for retrieving the handkerchief was harsh.

One-sided violence and beating poured down mercilessly.

To reduce the pain and ensure the handkerchief wouldn’t be stolen again, Bastian curled up like a pill bug and lay flat on the ground.

How much time had passed?

When Bastian refused to give in to the end, Jacques finally panted and grumbled as if fed up.

“Fine, keep it! What’s so special about a scrap of cloth anyway.”

Hawk, ptui.

His head felt damp. It seemed warm too. He couldn’t tell if what was slowly trickling down was blood or spit.

“Haha…”

Coughing mixed with his hollow laughter. Every breath felt like his lungs were crushed and painful.

Brother Jacques was right. What’s so special about this scrap of cloth? What’s so important about it?

He had gripped it so tightly that the once wrinkle-free handkerchief was now crumpled like a wilted flower.

‘I hope you live honestly.’

“…That’s impossible…”

‘I hope you receive fair compensation for your efforts.’

So this violence is that compensation?

Bastian forced himself to stand up on trembling legs.

‘You’re capable enough. No, you’re someone who deserves such treatment.’

Strange kid.

Bastian muttered to himself as he pushed the tattered silk handkerchief deep into his pocket.

Though it was crumpled and dirty, the handkerchief was still soft.

Just like the words she had said to him.

* * *

Before returning home, I purchased several necessary materials from Workshop Street.

And as soon as I got back, I rushed straight to the kitchen and began making preserves.

“Miss? What brings you to the kitchen…? If you’re hungry, just let me know! I’ll make you a sandwich right away.”

“Mmm, not that. There’s something I want to make. Could you help me if you’re not busy?”

“Miss… cooking…?”

The kitchen staff looked bewildered but gladly helped me.

They couldn’t very well leave a young child to handle fire and knives alone.

“First, I need boiling water. I have to sterilize the glass jars. Do we have any dried fruit at home?”

“There should be some apricots left. If you need them chopped, I’ll chop them for you.”

“No. I’m going to simmer them whole in sugar water.”

I filled the glass jars with apricots simmered in sugar syrup, then heated the entire jars again to prevent bacterial growth.

Finally, I sealed the opening tightly with a cork stopper and sealed around it with candle wax.

“It’s complete!”

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