Blame v2c24

When he arrived in front of the dining room, he saw the chef and cooks having a serious conversation.

“How are we supposed to store all this?”

“Wait. The butler will ask and let us know.”

“Even if we buy more freezers, they won’t arrive until tomorrow evening. Are the ice boxes not here yet?”

“Half are still on the road. Don’t worry too much. It’s cold, so it won’t spoil quickly.”

“But really, what are we going to do with all this? If it just doesn’t spoil, even if everyone in the residence eats one a day, we’d be eating them for a year.”

The cooks sighed. Cheche followed the fruit smell and went outside.

As soon as he opened the door, the sweet smell pricked his nose. The garden in front of the residence alone was the size of three soccer fields (the back of the residence was even larger), but now it was full of trucks loaded with Sunhu. The sweet smell spread everywhere, to the extent it was amazing that only that much reached inside the residence. If it hadn’t been a custom-made residence for Evil, the interior would already be full of the sweet smell too.

In one corner of the garden, the head of security, the garden manager, and three nutritionists were gathered with troubled faces, voicing complaints.

“What does that guy James think we should do, just leaving this and going….”

“That guy never cares about residence matters.”

“I heard half was also taken to the Center.”

“The Center has an incomparable number of people compared to here. It’ll be easier to process.”

The Sunhu sent by Armal was three hundred ten-ton trucks worth. James sent two hundred of them to the Center and one hundred to the residence. By now, at the Center too, all the chefs would be gathered having a serious discussion. However, at the Center they could distribute one box each to employees or spread them to partner companies, so it was easier to handle than here.

The nutritionist brought her palm to her mouth and asked quietly.

“But what wind suddenly blew that the Director accepted a gift?”

“The butler said it’s because Cheche likes this fruit.”

“What kind of refugee likes such expensive fruit?”

“I think he’s doing it to torment Cheche. He’s going to feed him his fill and make him sick of it.”

“That makes sense. If it’s the Director, he’ll feed him even spoiled ones saying ‘you like this, don’t you?'”

“No, but even so, how are we really going to process all this?”

“It would be good to donate it.”

“Donate? That’s nonsense.”

The garden manager was snorting when he discovered Cheche and hiccupped.

Three pairs of flustered gazes turned toward Cheche, who had approached right up close without even the sound of footsteps.

Since when had he been listening?

He didn’t know if Cheche had heard the talk about refugees just now, but Cheche’s expression was the same expressionless face as usual.

“I think donating would work. To places that need it.”

At the absurd words, the three people looked at each other.

Of course, there would be no place that wouldn’t be happy if you gave expensive foreign specialty products to orphanages, school lunches, elderly people living alone, etc. However, the premise itself was wrong.

The nutritionist had usually spoken informally to Cheche, but since there were other people, she used respectful language.

“Cheche-ssi, are you saying that with permission?”

“Permission?”

When Cheche tilted his head, the nutritionist crossed her arms and looked down.

“I’m asking if you got permission from our young master. He’s lived twenty years of his life without ever sharing even half a bean with anyone, what donation?”

“The Sunhu that came to the house was given to me by the Director, so I don’t need the Director’s permission.”

Then the nutritionist laughed loudly. She laughed so much, doubling over, that tears even hung small at the corners of her eyes.

“This isn’t some concubine who became arrogant after receiving the emperor’s favor.”

“……”

“Well, yeah. Our young master doesn’t eat this kind of thing, so it’s true he gave it all to Cheche-ssi to eat. That’s why I don’t think you can donate it elsewhere. How upset would he be if you gave what he gave you to other people? Get permission and come back, get permission.”

The nutritionist reached out her hand to Cheche. Cheche’s gaze followed that hand. That hand lightly tapped Cheche’s crown a couple of times and withdrew, as an adult would treat a child who doesn’t know much about the world.

“……”

At that moment, Cheche felt an extremely unfamiliar emotion within his expressionless face.

Recently, the only person who had touched Cheche’s head was Evil. He didn’t mean when violence was wielded. Roughly messing up his hair or gently stroking it with fingers… sometimes touching his bangs for no reason while grinning. Even today, he lightly tapped his head just as the nutritionist had done.

It was the same action, but he felt very different from when Evil did it. Cheche had never felt an action differently depending on who performed it. He’d never made a distinction, but now Cheche recognized that his feelings were very different.

In Tar and here too… it was right that he didn’t feel good.

He should not feel good. Touches without someone’s permission were disgusting and something he wanted to shake off. Even suffering it dozens of times… hundreds of times, physical contact was unpleasant. It was just that he’d become so accustomed to it that he didn’t pay attention to it.

However, when that person touched him, it was okay. It was strange. It was definitely okay. Even when large hands messed up his hair, his mood didn’t worsen at all.

Once he became aware of that, he felt a very unfamiliar emotion.

Not knowing how to interpret his inability to say anything, the garden manager who had been looking at Cheche suddenly tapped the nutritionist’s shoulder.

“Stop it. It sounds like you’re being sarcastic.”

“Rather than sarcastic, I’m informing him. If he acts arrogantly thinking he’s receiving special treatment, big trouble will happen, really. Being this small, if the young master hits him once, he’ll fly away.”

“Anyway, stop. Cheche would have understood.”

The garden manager gestured to Cheche. Cheche collected the emotions that had rippled for a moment.

“Yes, I understood. Thank you for the warning.”

“I’m glad you understood.”

“I’ll go get permission from the Director.”

“What?”

The three people who didn’t understand for a moment belatedly grabbed onto Cheche.

“I didn’t really mean go get permission….”

“Right, that’s right. You don’t need to get permission.”

A cold voice cut off the three people’s words.

Cheche, who had turned around to return to the residence, stopped right there. Evil was standing right in front. Red eyes with a bleak aura looked over Cheche’s shoulder. For a moment, cold silence flowed as if all sound and color in this space had disappeared.

“The Sunhu.”

Evil walked neither slowly nor quickly and stood next to Cheche. Sharp gazes scanned the three people excluding Cheche. At the cold gaze reeking heavily of blood, the three felt their spines go cold.

“All of it is yours.”

“……”

“Ignore the bugs who can’t believe your words. I’ll properly exterminate pests who don’t even know who’s receiving special treatment.”

It was an atmosphere where even breathing was difficult. The words Evil uttered became sharply honed blades with each syllable, slicing up the three people. It was clear who the pests meant.

Evil Endem was angry now. Not angrily throwing a tantrum like usual, but darkly sinking down, quietly freezing his surroundings.

Just as the higher the temperature of a flame, the more it takes on a blue color, Evil’s eyes also had a blue tinge. Like an ice field where the only thing that moved was frost, they were pale blue flames.

That this terrible anger was directed at them was an extreme threat. They’d seen Evil get angry countless times while working at the residence, but they’d never felt a threat to their lives as much as now.

Watching the three staggering as their legs lost strength, Evil slowly approached.

One step.

Captured by the sharp gaze, all they could do was tremble while watching the approaching demon. Then a small body intervened. The person who blocked them protectively, showing their back to the three people at the midpoint between Evil and the three, was Cheche.

“Director….”

“Move.”

A pale blue energy leaked out around Evil’s body enough to feel the chill. He was someone who could kill everyone here with one finger. Unlike the ‘ordinary people’ who lost strength from their bodies and shed tears without even realizing it from instinctive fear, Cheche wasn’t afraid at all.

“Will you help me?”

Another step.

“I don’t know much about Alcity’s schools. I’d like the Director to help me.”

“……”

Just because he intervened didn’t mean his small body could hide the people behind him. However, the cold gaze that had been moving toward the back slowly turned to Cheche, as if only Cheche existed in his vision. When their eyes met, Evil stared quietly as if telling him to keep jabbering.