TCL 17

chapter 17

He must have been impressed by how I clapped back at Jeff earlier.

└ [That line was literally just two guys fighting over the heroine LOL]
└ [If he’d just admit he likes her, things would get so much juicier]

The comment fairies evaluated Edin’s behavior—how the male lead should give a warning, how Galbalnok would never say something like that.

As for my evaluation…

“Edin, you should exercise harder.”

“Okay!”

He’s still a kid, so he still has room to grow. That seemed like the faster fix for Edin.

Anyway, the fact that Jeff was going around like that meant the teacher had once again dumped childcare duties on Jeff and gone off to spend time alone.

Isn’t he going out way too often these days?

└ [Please stop smoking, sir]
└ [Orphanage fire risk ×16! Still gonna light that cigarette?]

Yeah. I was worried about fire hazards, so every time he went outside the building, I watched carefully.

└ [Isn’t it about time the fire incident happens?]

The comment fairies, always bored by the slice-of-life parts, ominously insisted something needed to explode around now.

But lately, the teacher wasn’t just resting in the storage room—he was leaving the orphanage entirely much more often.

He’s definitely doing something behind the scenes.
Something the director can’t find out about.

└ [Job hunting?]
└ [Calling in sick to go to an interview—realistic LOL]
└ [I’m scared we’ll get a villain as the new teacher]

According to the fairies, it was normal for a protagonist’s life to be anything but peaceful.

So I stayed alert, waiting for the unknown event that would supposedly come.

* * *

“That’s strange…”

“What is, sis?”

“Did anyone come into the kitchen last night?”

The kitchen staff lived nearby—they cooked dinner for the kids, went home, then returned in the morning.
This morning, while organizing ingredients, the kitchen sister asked me what happened overnight.

“No one entered the kitchen before I went to sleep.”

I knew that much because I kept checking on the brazier to make sure it wasn’t a fire hazard.

She tilted her head in confusion at my answer.

“Really? Weird. Where’d the cocoa go?”

“Huh? Cocoa…?”

└ [Huh? The embezzler?]
└ [The FL drank it LOLLLLL]

…Me?

Am I the orphanage embezzler the comment fairies kept talking about?!

My second crime after attempted poisoning is… cocoa embezzlement?!

Sure, sugar and cocoa are expensive ingredients, and since nobles donate them, the quality is good—selling stolen cocoa would get you a couple meals’ worth of money.

But I only drank two cups with Leon! The amount missing wouldn’t even be noticeable in powder form!

“Maybe the bag absorbed moisture because it rained recently…?”

“It’s not that. The whole bag is gone.”

Oh. So it wasn’t me.

└ [Then who embezzled it?]

Exactly.

I go to sleep later than the other kids because I have a lot on my mind. If I didn’t see anyone, then no kids entered the kitchen at night—kids who wake up at night go to the bathroom, not the kitchen.

A thief wouldn’t risk sneaking in just to steal cocoa from the pantry.

Besides the kids, the only ones in the orphanage at night are the director and the teacher…

└ [The teacher finally embezzled something]

And he keeps going out in secret… so maybe?

└ [What if the director sold it though?]

…That’s also plausible.

No, wait. The director is stingy with others, but also stingy with herself.

If something goes missing, she’s the one who has to buy it again.

She could swap expensive goods with cheaper ones and pocket the difference, but she’s not the type to waste energy like that.

If she were going to embezzle, she’d just pocket the donation money instead.

“Anyway, can you keep this a secret from the director? She’ll yell at me before she even looks for the culprit.”

“Yes.”

The director is strict about finances, so she’d likely scold the person who lost the item rather than track down who stole it.

Understanding the kitchen sister’s worries, I nodded.

* * *

“A large donation is coming in?”

“That’s right. So I’m thinking of expanding the orphanage. Got any ideas?”

The director of Gelton Orphanage had summoned the teacher to her office and said this.

Normally, when a boss says something like that, the employee has to swallow the words: “Maybe hire more staff before expanding the facility…”

“Is the donation in cash, not goods?”

The teacher showed interest.

The director, who loved talking about money, boasted proudly without a hint of suspicion.

“Count Mateo introduced us to a very important patron. Since it’s the first donation, they’re giving us a huge amount all at once. What can we do? We’ll accept it gratefully.”

It was enough money to more than cover the children they currently had, so the director talked about expanding to get even more government subsidies.

But the teacher didn’t care about her grand plans at all.

This is the chance.

He had long been pocketing small portions of donated goods when he “organized” the inventory.

After all, the nobles donated these things to help the needy. He labored for the children—didn’t he deserve some benefits too?

Lately the orphanage had become popular among nobles, so donations had increased dramatically.

So I can take a bit more, right?

With money right before his eyes, his greed grew.
And since the director never seemed to notice missing items, he grew bolder.

Those who earn dirty money spend it dirty too.

He ended up gambling, and soon he had almost nothing left.

—How long are you gonna scrape by with petty theft? Time for a big score.

People he met at the gambling den egged him on.

Quit before you get caught.
Since you’re quitting anyway, go out with one big job.

And so he planned a staged “intruder attack” on the orphanage.

—It’s an orphanage. They’ll prioritize finding the missing kid over missing money.

A fake intruder would steal the large donation and kidnap a child.
The teacher would pretend to fight him and get injured.
Then he’d quit due to “injury and guilt.”

While the orphanage focused on finding the missing child, he’d disappear with the stolen funds.

—And the kidnapped kid…?

—Kids can be sold anywhere. Plenty of places buy them. You’re not getting soft because you work here, right?

—“…No.”

The teacher replied without a shred of guilt.

—I already have the perfect kid in mind.

There was one in the orphanage.
A child who was obedient, pretty, and convenient.

* * *

└ [Someone previously said he was doing embezzlement, gambling, child abuse, AND human trafficking—holy…]
└ [We didn’t order this deluxe crime package]
└ [Oh no, Rose is getting kidnapped]

“…Huh?”

The comment fairies, who had wandered off earlier because the slice-of-life part was boring, suddenly flocked back and started shouting nonsense.

Kidnapping? Who’s getting kidnapped?

Is Count Torto showing up or something?

Although in my past life he adopted me, not kidnapped me.

These same comment fairies had once located Duke Valent out of nowhere.

Wondering if they had spotted another noble’s whereabouts, I grew nervous—when suddenly a voice called me from behind.

“Rose. The director isn’t back yet, right?”

“Oh! No, sir.”

└ [There he is—the kidnapper]
└ [That embezzling bastard ♩♪]

The moment the teacher walked in, the comment fairies erupted into furious chants.

I understood the embezzlement part, but kidnapping?

His behavior looks completely normal though?

Just in case, I stayed alert, but he simply confirmed the director’s absence and walked past me.

└ [AAAAH report him!!]

I had been quietly collecting evidence of his shady behavior too—I couldn’t just let a chain-smoker with suspicious habits stay around the kids.

I didn’t have decisive proof, but enough to raise doubts.

But the director has to be the one to report it…
Kids’ statements often get dismissed as lies or exaggerations.

And the fairies said that once he gets fired, someone even worse might replace him, so I was holding back for now.

└ [Wait, but doesn’t she have to get kidnapped so her future dad can save her?]
└ [True]
└ [Don’t report him]

Excuse me??