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Chapter 66 Part 6 – A little happiness and the prelude to the tragedy.

Ronny wiped his tears with his arm and raised his head.

There was no time to cry.
Of all three siblings, he was the only one who could move normally.
His older sister, Rona, and brother, Teddy, had always covered for him, even though he had always been slow and stupid.
Now it was his turn.
Rona must not have gone far.
If he hurries, he can bring her back.

「…… Hey!! Where’s the money!! Where’s the booze!!」

His father’s angry shout made him shudder, but it seems that he was just talking in his sleep and immediately went back to his drunken slumber.
However, if he finds out about the money Rona had left behind, he would definitely take it away from the disabled Teddy.

Ronny took the money from Teddy and grabbed him by the shoulders.

「…… I’ll definitely bring sister Rona back. Then the three of us will leave this house and use this money to live together. Just like sister Rona always said, we will become happy together. So …… please lend me the power of your speedy legs that were faster than anyone else’s. I’m a dunce, but I want to be able to wind my way through the streets like you did.」

「Ronny ……」

Hearing his request, Teddy stopped crying.
He laid his hand above Ronny’s hand and smiled brightly and encouragingly, though with red, swollen eyelids.
He smiled like the old Teddy.

「Take all the strength in my legs. I entrust our sister to you.」

「Got it!! Leave it to me!!」

Teddy watched Ronny’s back as he ran off.
And that was the last time Ronny saw Teddy’s smile.

Their hearts of mutual love and support were driving them to an irreversible tragedy.

…… Ronny rushed to the bridge where Rona tried to throw herself off.

Sister Rona often spoke fondly of their memories of going to that bridge together with their mother.
With his sister’s personality, he thought that for her last moments she would go to that place and throw herself off the bridge.

But Ronny spotted a man sitting on the side of the road.
It was the same man who had been showing off his bizarre tool.
He was stretching his hands to the skies and mumbling something to himself.
His eyes were vacant and had no light in it.
The passersby around him were also looking at him with a weird look on their faces as they walked by.

Ronny’s head went into a rage and he had to desperately try to stop himself from punching that man.
Teddy told him that Rona left after saying that she had a way to earn money.
It was probably a sad lie on Rona’s part, but if by any chance it’s true, then this man might know where Rona is.

「…… Do you know where sister Rona went?」

After hearing Ronny’s question, the man’s eyes became focused.

「Rona …… Rona …… Rona ……!! Ohh, you’re talking about that girl that was possessed by a demon ……!!」

Emotions returned to the small man’s befuddled expression.
But it was madness.
Suddenly, he started shouting like a speaker that had been turned on with the volume turned up high.

「That’s right!! I saw it!! That girl gave birth to a demon!!」

The man’s maniacal behavior with drool spraying out of his mouth drew a crowd of onlookers that were curious about what was going on.

A carriage passed by after taking a wide detour to avoid the crowd.
Inside the carriage was Wendell and the others that were carrying the unconscious Rona as they hurried to go to Marielle’s house.
They had no time to worry about what the onlookers were looking at as they were in a race against time.

And the onlookers became like a blindfold that caused Ronny to not realize that Rona was inside that carriage. The sound of the carriage’s wheels and horse’s hooves scraping the road surface quickly faded away.

At least, it was a mercy of fate that Rona never found out about this missed opportunity until the end.
If she had known, she would never forgive herself.

「Hahahahaha!! She’s a witch!! That’s right!! She is a dirty witch that gave birth to a demon!! You should be grateful to me!! I drove the demon out of her body.」

Hearing the grating sound of his loud laughter, Ronny flew into a rage and grabbed the small man by the collar.

「Shut up!! Sister Rona is not dirty!! She’s not a witch!!」

Ronny felt like his chest would be crushed when he thought about how Rona felt when she surrendered herself to such a madman.

However, the small man’s insults did not stop.
He ridiculed Rona and called her a whore that had succumbed to the demon’s temptations.
It was as if it was his holy mission to insult Rona.

Ronny’s cries did not reach the mind of a man wandering between drugs and delusion.
His eyes, which seemed to be covered with a thin film, were eyes that were only interested in his own world.
He doesn’t care whether other people get hurt or die.

The image of his father who, in a drunken stupor, had beaten Teddy so badly that he could no longer walk overlapped with him.

「Don’t you dare ridicule sister Rona!!」

Ronny was so angry that he tried to slap the cheeks of the sneering man.

「…… Ohh, a witch. Well, well, well. I just came to this town and I’m already off to a good start.」

With a delightful tone in his voice, someone grabbed Ronny’s wrists.
By the time he noticed and was horrified, it was too late.
A powerful force twisted Ronny’s arm behind his back.
There was a muffled thud and Ronny screamed out in pain.
His arm had been dislodged.

A man wearing a bowler hat and a jet-black cloak looked down at Ronny as he rolled around on the ground.
Stroking his mustache, he spoke in a disappointed tone.

「Well, I guess that kind of pain is too much for you to take. I wish you would endure a little like the hostess of the inn in the neighboring town. After all, you are a family member of my long-standing enemies, the witches. …… You said 「sister Rona」. You must be the witch’s younger brother. First of all, let me ask you this ……」

「Sister Rona is not a witch ……!!」

The man’s brow furrowed in displeasure as Ronny fought back the pain and squeezed out the words.

「…… Hey, you should properly listen to what others have to say. It’s disrespectful to interrupt others, even if you are an uneducated poor person. Oh, god. Bless this poor lamb.」

Ronny got mercilessly kicked in the side with a pointed boot and he fainted in agony without being able to make a sound.

「…… Well, never mind. I have plenty of time to educate him. Brace yourself, my torture is a bit more severe.」

Then the corners of the man’s mouth twisted horrifyingly.

「Oops, I forgot to introduce myself. Excuse me. My name is Matthew Glaus. You can forget it for now. I am a tolerant person. In a couple of hours, you’ll have memorized my name, even if you don’t want to. You will be desperately calling my name continuously and begging me to kill you quickly.」

Having found a new sacrifice, the Inquisitor official licked his thin lips with his tongue like a snake.

Then Matthew crouched down beside Ronny.
It was like a crow pecking at dead flesh.
In a small voice that only Ronny could hear, Matthew whispered.

「…… You know, sheep are useful creatures for human beings, both for their wool and meat. God has given us something that is hard to obtain. I will put you to good use just like a sheep. Your blood, flesh, pride, and even affection for your family. Look forward to it.」