29 Run

It seems the cleanliness of Aliku’s hair is not a fixed state.

"Cough, cough!"

As a cloud of dust erupted around them, Cen Jiu couldn't help but stop patting his head and cough a few times.

Once the dust settled—as if a spell had reached its end, brushing away that initial layer of protective, grime-like camouflage—the black hair beneath appeared sleek and clean.

Aliku seemed finally satisfied; he shook his hair, bringing this rather unrefined soothing session to a close.

He looked up, revealing his wiped-clean face, eyes wide as he gazed silently up at the adventurer. The crimson corners of his eyes, left behind by his earlier crying, were strikingly visible, but the underlying emotion in his gaze was undoubtedly joy.

"Thank you..."

"...It was no trouble at all!" Though she had absolutely no idea if the character was thanking her for the new clothes or for the clean hair, Cen Jiu accepted his gratitude without hesitation.

Besides, now that the kid’s face was clean, it was clear his character model was quite decent—not unlike the faces of some old-world dolls. At a glance, he was actually rather cute.

He was just too thin. She would have to feed him more to see if he could put on some weight.

On a whim, Cen Jiu reached out, slid her hands under Aliku’s armpits, and lifted him up, testing his weight like a cat.

"...?!"

Aliku twisted his body in bewilderment, unaccustomed to this sudden interaction.

However, the atmosphere and aura he sensed from her were warm and harmless. He struggled symbolically for a moment, but seeing that Cen Jiu’s iron grip remained unmoved, he quietly let his arms hang limp and allowed her to fuss over him.

Aliku discovered, with a sense of helpless vulnerability, that he didn't actually hate this gesture. He offered a smile to the adventurer who had so easily hoisted him into the air.

The adventurer was very strong. Even being held high gave him a sense of security, like resting by a fire on a rainy night in his lair.

"Hey!" He smiled, and Cen Jiu smiled back.

There shouldn't be any more trouble with him running away the next time they met.

She weighed him in her hands; he was light as a feather.

"Much lighter than Raphael."

Cen Jiu spun him around effortlessly, gave her assessment, and then lowered him gently.

The exhilarating spin made Aliku feel dizzy. By the time he managed to steady himself and the vertigo faded, Cen Jiu had already shouldered her bamboo basket, ready to leave.

Certain now that Cen Jiu had no intention of harming him, he reached out and quickly tugged at her sleeve.

"Hm?" Cen Jiu paused and looked down at him, waiting patiently for him to speak.

It seemed this event wasn't over yet.

"Matter... found!" Aliku blurted out two words in a rush. His pronunciation was quite blurred; if not for the subtitles, she wouldn't have been able to make them out.

Though, she was slowly beginning to understand some of their dialogue without relying on the subtitles.

"No rush, speak slowly?" Cen Jiu leaned down and patted his head again.

Her gesture gave Aliku plenty of courage. He took a deep breath, gathered his thoughts, and spoke the words he had prepared in one fluent go: "The person who ran away that day had the scent of death."

It was an out-of-the-blue statement, but Cen Jiu understood instantly.

The only people who had fled around the time she met Aliku were those pirates, weren't they?

And what was this "scent of death"? Was it a literal description or a figurative feeling?

Were those people already dead? Or did they only have that scent after she had killed them?

Cen Jiu pointed at herself and asked, "The scent of death—did I have it then? What about now?"

Aliku hesitated, leaned in slowly, and performed a sniffing motion, then shook his head repeatedly—

Not before, and not now.

"Have you smelled this scent on anyone else before?" Cen Jiu guided him, step by step.

Aliku nodded; this time, his answer was both certain and swift.

"Who? Someone in town? At the manor?"

Aliku seemed as if a "pause" button had been pressed on him; he fell into a daze.

Then, as if accelerating through a frozen moment, he nodded, nodded, and nodded again...

He began to mutter something, but the subtitles provided no translation. It sounded like a string of names, or perhaps meaningless gibberish.

Finally, it coalesced into one word: "Dead... all dead..."

"Thump!"

Cen Jiu gave his head a light tap with her fist and shook him by the shoulders: "Alright, alright! Don't think about it anymore."

This was, in a way, a sort of in-game physics debugging procedure.

The loop of muttering stopped.

Aliku held his forehead where he had been tapped, eyes welling up with tears, looking at her with aggrieved vulnerability.

Cen Jiu pried his hands away to check his forehead; it was a little red.

"...I'm sorry." Cen Jiu only had experience coaxing the fat cat back home; she hadn't coaxed a child before.

She hoped this character wouldn't start crying again.

She mimicked what her mother used to do when she was young, bent down, and blew a gentle breath onto Aliku’s reddened forehead.

"Does that feel better?"

Aliku nodded blankly: "...Yes."

"Forget about it if you can't remember. Don't let your mind wander."

Cen Jiu didn't continue to press him about the number of people. Perhaps, in his settings, the child had some trauma regarding death.

It was difficult enough to get a slurring, reclusive child to clear up interpersonal relationships.

Regardless, this information had alerted Cen Jiu to pay attention to details she had previously overlooked, such as the situation of the survivors after they reached the shore.

"Have you been to the church?" Cen Jiu asked him.

Upon hearing this, Aliku’s pupils dilated, and he jumped back a step away from her, a nervous, reflexive reaction.

He realized a moment later that he was safe, and quickly pressed against Cen Jiu’s back, as if finding a secure shield.

Cen Jiu felt the friction of him shaking his head against her back; it seemed the answer was no.

And he was very afraid.

But wasn't that the safe point provided by the system?

Cen Jiu turned around, bent down to look him in the eye, and patted his back with controlled force to comfort him: "It's alright. Aside from me, there's only one newcomer there. Do you know him? A man with silver hair."

Raphael was also a newcomer; there was a chance he hadn't seen him.

The comfort from the powerful adventurer made him less afraid. He shook his head, providing a negative answer.

Cen Jiu continued to entice him: "He is my friend and has helped me a lot. Why don't you go take a look? You can change into some proper clothes while you're at it. I'll stay with you."

She took his bony, thin hand and beamed: "—Okay?"

Aliku nodded as if possessed.

...

In a daze, Aliku followed her all the way to the foot of the church.

Perhaps having a powerful reliance by his side gave him the sudden courage to approach the building that made him so uneasy.

Aliku held Cen Jiu’s hand tightly, clinging to her like a fledgling bird to its parent, staying close by her side.

Cen Jiu could feel that the closer they got to the church, the more frequently the character trembled. He seemed terrified of seeing strangers.

Cen Jiu rubbed his hair to encourage him, then stepped into the church.

The timing was unfortunate; Raphael was not in front of the altar.

"He doesn't seem to be here. We'll have to go further inside to find him." Cen Jiu looked toward the passage beside the altar, which led to the living quarters in the backyard.

Aliku looked as if he had seen something horrifying; he let go of her hand and hid in the gap between her cloak and her body, clutching the belt at her waist.

This place was filled with the scent that made him feel secure.

Cen Jiu was speechless; she felt like a mother hen taking care of a chick.

But they were already here, and the quest had reached this point. Cen Jiu chose to continue playing the role of a supportive, close friend, comforting him: "...That's fine too. Once you meet him, you'll see he's a good person."

Cen Jiu and Aliku adapted quickly to this state; within a few steps, they had mastered each other's walking rhythm, avoiding stepping on or bumping into one another.

The kitchen utensils had already been cleaned, and Raphael was not there either.

After putting down the basket, Cen Jiu headed straight for the library. Sure enough, he was inside, looking up information.

Cen Jiu gave the open door a light tap, making a crisp sound.

Raphael looked up from the mountain of documents and turned toward her.

The priest frowned, his voice tinged with coldness: "...A-Jiu?"

He stood up, moved past the stacks of books on the table, and looked at Cen Jiu standing at the doorway, his expression icy.

The priest’s displeasure seemed to affect the ambient temperature. Cen Jiu felt Aliku, hidden behind her, tremble even more violently. She reached behind her back and patted him through her cloak.

"Raphael, sorry to disturb your work." Cen Jiu wore a smile of feigned apology, though she felt no actual remorse inside.

So, Raphael didn't like being disturbed while reading? It turned out that even his usually distant, polite face could show signs of disgust. She would have to try bothering him again sometime.

Learning a bit more about the character's preferences—that was great.

Raphael seemed quite angry; he stood there for a long time, staring coldly at Cen Jiu in the doorway without saying a word.

He looked truly furious, but she hadn't done anything that excessive, had she?

"Hm—?" Cen Jiu blinked innocently.

The awkward silence dragged on a bit too long. If this continued, she was going to be the one getting angry.

Raphael sighed softly. He was the first to compromise, averting his gaze: "...A-Jiu, come in first. Is there something important?"

"I brought that child. Could you help him?"

Cen Jiu lifted her cloak, revealing Aliku, who was clinging tightly to her back.

The moment he was exposed to the light, Aliku shut his eyes tight, burying his face in the adventurer's back, trembling.

"Aliku...?" From his angle, Raphael could only see half of the child’s body, which wasn't completely obscured.

Cen Jiu looked over her shoulder at the nervous Aliku. He seemed to sense her gaze, weakly lifting his head to meet her encouraging eyes.

Cen Jiu silently mouthed to Aliku: "Don't worry!" She turned to Raphael and smiled wryly: "Yes, do you have any spare clothes or fabric here? He needs to change out of what he's wearing."

"I understand." Raphael replied, pondered for a moment, and walked silently toward Cen Jiu.

He didn't look down at Aliku behind her, but instead met her eyes and said softly: "The existing garments won't fit his frame well; they require simple tailoring. Could I trouble you to go to that room and fetch the leather measuring tape?"

"Is it the room at the end? I'll go right now!"

Hearing this, Cen Jiu reached back and patted Aliku, who was hiding behind her, and leaned down to stroke his hair: "Raphael is a good person; he won't hurt you. Don't be afraid. Just stay here and wait for me to come back, okay?"

After she finished, she looked up at Raphael with a wry smile: "Aliku is a bit afraid of strangers."

In unfamiliar territory, Aliku treated the only familiar adventurer like a mother beast. Even though he was fearful, he obediently followed her instructions.

"...Waiting for you. Be quick." Aliku reluctantly let go and stepped aside to make way.

"A-Jiu." Raphael called out to Cen Jiu just as she was about to leave.

He took a step forward and reached toward her face. The distance was extremely close, and the warm, rich scent of incense instantly enveloped them both.

With precision, he used two fingers to pluck a fallen leaf from the folds of the adventurer's green-toned cloak, saying softly: "There."

What was with this unnecessary little detail interaction?!

Cen Jiu was startled by Raphael’s sudden proximity and mentally grumbled about the resource allocation of *Seven-Colored Strings*.

"Then I'll head off. Please watch over Aliku for me; I'll be back soon!" Cen Jiu said this and ran off to fetch the quest item.

As soon as she left, the previously normal atmosphere turned frigid.

"..."

"..."

Hostility flowed between the priest and the wanderer; a silent standoff surfaced.

The wanderer's intellect was not as mature as the priest's; he let out a warning growl, breaking the stalemate first.

"Heretic..." the priest judged in a low, cold tone, "No, a child of heresy waiting for an opportunity."

Invisible hands silently suppressed the wanderer’s limbs, rendering him unable to move.

Aliku’s body was lifted into the air, invisible hands gripping his throat and pulling him off the ground.

If not for his extremely light weight, he might not have lasted three seconds before suffocating and losing consciousness.

His hands clawed incessantly at his neck, but he touched nothing.

"...Ugh! Jiu—!"

Before losing consciousness, he used all his strength to call the adventurer's name for the first time.

It was the name Aliku had heard others use.

Without warning, the invisible hands dissipated. The wanderer fell to the floor, gasping for air as he survived the ordeal.

"You should be grateful for her mercy. There will not be a next time." The gaze the priest fixed upon him carried not a shred of warmth.

"Run, heretic. You have defiled this holy ground."