Chapter 129

The Children of the Orphanage
Good morning. It’s me, Alicetia. Now, where am I this time?

A building I don’t recognize. I was lying in a basket woven from wood, cushioned with cloth. Someone must have taken me in... Though, if I had been in serious danger, Mr. Coote would have sensed it and come to help, and Shadow Wolf hiding in my shadow was a fortunate safeguard.

The room had many beds—perhaps a children's room? But there were more than ten beds, indicating a very large household.

Yet, there was no one in the room.

First, let’s check my condition. My feet are slightly dirty, but they’ve been cleaned and bandaged with a handkerchief to stop the bleeding. It hurts but not so much that I can’t move.

"Ah~ Ah~... My voice works. The effect will probably wear off by tomorrow morning."

The transformation potion I used was experimental, and its effect should last only one day. Since I can speak, it must be nighttime now.

Oh no, I’m spending the night outside without permission. I’m definitely getting a scolding for this. Let’s make a scapegoat out of one of my duplicates.

"......"

As I tried to explore the room, I heard shouting from a slightly ajar door, accompanied by the sound of something being struck.

Did I get taken to a dangerous place? Concerned, I peeked into the next room through the door.

"I told you, this isn’t enough! Why don’t we sell a few of them already?"

"P-please... At least spare these children..."

"Then go pickpocket or something! Even someone as useless as you can manage that much!"

"Stop it! I’ve been collecting extra already. Don’t push it any further!"

"It’s still not enough! This won’t even cover the booze! These brats are utterly useless."

Several adults were bullying children. A girl about my age and a slightly older boy shielded the younger kids behind them as they endured the adults' blows.

What kind of place is this? Is this the daily reality of a slum? This is unbearable.

Just then, the girl's eyes met mine. I was half-closing my eyes to conceal my distinctive markings, so they wouldn’t recognize me. The girl gestured for me to hide further, so I stepped back into the shadows.

"Bring 20 copper coins tomorrow. If you don’t, you’re all done for. Maybe I’ll sell you off to a slave trader."

"Sounds good, boss. I’m all for it. These brats could fetch at least a small price."

"I-I understand. I’ll make sure to bring it tomorrow."

"H-hey!"

"Here. Eat this and try harder tomorrow."

What despicable people. They’ve already done enough today to warrant arrest. Forcing crimes upon children, the future of this kingdom... Unforgivable.

Arland plans to establish schools for commoners in the future, but with people like this, the road ahead looks grim.

Back in the room, I guessed that one of the returning children must have been the one who helped me. Naturally, I would repay the favor. After all, I am royalty. Accepting such kindness without gratitude would be unthinkable.

"You’re awake. Keep quiet. If those people find you, they’ll sell you. Or do you… want some food?"

The child offered me a piece of black bread. I’d never seen it before—it’s known for being hard. For now, I accepted it.

Biting into it was tough; it was not only hard but also stale. Still, I couldn’t waste food I’d been given. It took me about 20 minutes to eat the quarter of the bread I’d received.

"I told you, keeping a cat is impossible. What if it meows and they hear it?"

"But it’s such a pretty cat. Maybe it belongs to a good family. People might get angry if you eat it."

"They wouldn’t come looking for a cat here."

Hey! I’m not food! I’m not edible! I’m a human, not just a cat right now!

"Please don’t eat me."

"””It talked!””"

"Shut up, you brats!"

The angry shout from the next room silenced everyone immediately.

After a moment of quiet, the children formed a circle around me to speak in hushed tones.

"How can a cat talk?"

"Because I’m not a cat."

"But you look like one... Are you some kind of magic beast? Or a monster?"

Neither. The younger kids hiding behind the older ones weren’t scared, though—they seemed more curious. Stop pulling my whiskers. Don’t touch my tail. Don’t massage my sides!

After a while of enduring the kids’ antics, the two who seemed to be in charge rescued me. Now the children were watching me like hunters eyeing their prey. How cheeky.

"So, why can you talk?"

The girl lifted me as she asked. I wriggled free and jumped to the floor—I don’t like being held.

"I have my reasons. Let’s just say it’s due to a failed potion."

That wasn’t entirely false. I’d mistakenly taken the wrong experimental potion and ended up as a cat. By tomorrow, I’d return to normal, but being a cat for now was unexpectedly interesting. This potion might have other uses—I should continue researching it.

"Are you a magician?"

"Yeah, I’m a Great Mage (in the making)."

"By the way, who helped me? I’d like to repay the favor."

"It was me."

So, it was the girl in front of me.

"What’s your name?"

"Mari."

Mari, huh? She seemed to be the same age as me—seven years old (though my birthday was still a bit away).

But... She’s a girl, right? Her hair was messy, and her clothes were in tatters.

"As a token of thanks, I’ll grant you a few wishes. As long as they’re not absurd, I’ll make them come true."

"Really!?"

Well, considering this lifestyle, I can already guess what kind of wishes they might have. But gratitude is important.

"Then... I want these kids to eat something delicious. They haven’t had a proper meal in a long time."

"..."

I was surprised. Normally, people would ask for money or something for themselves. After all, they helped, so it would be natural to make a request for their own benefit. Even the boy beside her looked a little surprised.

I stared intently at Mari. There was no lie in her words. I can discern that much.

She had a good look in her eyes. She seemed trustworthy. Alright, I’ll use her to initiate reforms in the slums. What’s needed are the residents of the slums. Since I’ll be leading, it doesn’t matter who becomes the figurehead.

"Is that... not okay?"

"It’s fine. But is that really what you want? Food lasts for just one meal. What about the next day? And the day after that?"

"I couldn’t possibly ask for that much."

"If it’s up to me, I could easily feed everyone here. But things you can’t obtain on your own don’t hold much value. So, what do you really want? What is your wish? If it’s within my power, I’ll grant it as much as possible."

Mari pondered for a moment before voicing her wish.

"I... I want to live a normal life. But I don’t have a family, so I might not be able to have a normal life. That’s why I want to work and live happily. I don’t want this kind of life anymore."

Of course. A life with no foreseeable future is something even I wouldn’t want. The future should shine brightly. Alright, I’ll grant that wish.

"Alright. I’ll hire you. You’re lucky. The future Grand Mage, Alicetia von Arland, guarantees your livelihood."

"Wait, are you the princess?"

"Indeed. I came to the slums for an inspection. Everyone was against it, so I made a transformation potion. Well, the potion was a failure, but I got to meet you because of it. You don’t have to live here anymore."

"That won’t do. This place is important; it was left to us by the priest."

"Then you can stay here if you want. But what about those adults? Who are they? They don’t look like priests."

Mari didn’t seem to fully trust me yet. The boy beside her was the same. But proof will come first.

From their story, I learned that the priest here passed away from a plague a year ago, and these men arrived afterward. They claimed the priest owed them money and demanded repayment.

Apparently, they have documents, but since everyone here is mostly illiterate, and Mari and the boy can only manage simple reading and writing, the authenticity is unclear.

This is highly suspicious. I decided to check the documents myself. Normally, these kids wouldn’t be obligated to repay the debt.

I asked Mari and the others to wait as I had the door to the room slightly opened. In the adjacent room, the adults were sprawled out drunk at the table. There were five of them.

"For now, ‘Come in.’"

"Woof."

From my shadow—well, there’s no shadow at night—a beast-like figure darted toward the feet of the sleeping adults. The children beside me gasped.

"That’s just a pet, so don’t worry. It’s just a precaution. Now, shall we eat? If it’s meat, I have some Innocent Buffalo. Let’s grill it."

"Where would you even get such a luxury item?"

"From here. Open, door to the Treasury."

I always carry the key to the Treasury. Its mysterious design allows even a cat to hold it, which is a baffling feature. Even I can’t analyze it.

The luxurious door appeared, opening on its own to reveal columns and floors of a stone more beautiful than marble, scattered with magic artifacts. There’s more than last time.

"Open the door to the sweets pantry."

"I’m making parts for the H2A rocket, so I can’t."

"Just open it. There’s no way I can do it as a cat."

"Fine, fine."

A clone, busy working on the rocket nearby, unsealed the sweets pantry. Since golems were banned for security, it’s enclosed in concrete and sealed. With fingerprint authentication and mana locks, taking items out of the vault is currently impossible. After all, I’m a cat.

That said, later I realized I could use Quick Draw to retrieve items even if sealed within the vault. Of course, the restriction is that it’s limited to what I can carry, but perhaps a limitation to prevent overeating might be necessary.

Noting it down as an improvement point, I donned a wizardly pointed hat and guided the children.

"Here are the cakes. The room on the right has cookies, and the left has pies. Take a plate and help yourselves. Also, the freezer contains meat, but there are no seasonings. Feel free to start a campfire around here."

"Hold on. Fires might spread depending on the location. Do it over here. Also, smoke would be a problem. Let me build a kitchen real quick."

A clone went out with the boys from the sweets pantry. The boys seemed more interested in meat. Of course, they took some cakes on plates too.

Hmm, I can’t cook, so I don’t have a kitchen. At best, I can pour milk over cereal. By the way, my tea-making skills... well, it’s not bad, I think. Not that anyone ever drinks it.

Since it’s outside my snack time, I didn’t eat, but the children devoured the food with amazing speed. Is the stock running low? I should save more, or my mental balance might crumble. My family discovered my hoarding habit, so I’ll stock up to my heart’s content. It can serve as emergency food if needed.

Also, the meat is backup feed for the pet.

"I’ve never eaten anything this delicious before."

"From now on, you’ll eat normally."

"Why are you doing all this for us?"

Mari, her mouth full of cream, asked me. I handed her a nearby handkerchief.

"Because I’m royalty, and you’re my citizens. I have my pride, you see.

It’s only natural to protect citizens. My family says so too. But my father and brother are too busy and have too many political enemies to intervene in the slums. That’s why I’m stepping in as a free agent.

Besides, the kingdom doesn’t have much money. I don’t like being poor."

Under normal circumstances, they would’ve taken action immediately, but everyone’s busy. However, being busy isn’t an excuse.

Money is limited, and so are the things that can be done. What Father and Big brother can’t do, I’ll handle. In return, they can take care of politics. Don’t expect any political acumen from me. Though I do use it as an excuse to avoid social events. Dancing is a hassle. There’s no point in attending when I can’t freely eat the sweets on the table.

"I don’t really get it."

"You’ll understand eventually. From now on, you’ll work for me and pay taxes to the kingdom in return. In exchange, your livelihood will be secured."

Lowering unemployment rates leads to increased tax revenue. No need for harsh tax hikes. Furthermore, improved economic power promotes higher birth rates, among other benefits.

While mature economies sometimes see declining birth rates, that’s not a problem for the kingdom right now. There’s still plenty of room for growth.

Of course, the taxes they pay will be negligible. I don’t know much about the tax system, but it’s customary for working people to pay taxes, so they will too. Rest assured, I’ll elevate them to the middle class.

First, I’ll establish a workshop for them as workers. The magic artifact that produces magic tools is already complete. The workload isn’t heavy; in fact, it’s as simple as reheating food in a microwave.

I’ll sell the magic tools through a trading company to generate profits. Magic tools are in demand, and storage bags, in particular, sell well, so the profits will be significant.

What’s needed is a company to supply the magic tools. The Ponpoko Trading Company should suffice. Ponpoko is a trustworthy merchant. Nothing bad will happen. Though I did once destabilize the company for future profits, it’s stable now, selling sugar steadily.

"After eating, let’s sleep for the day. Tomorrow will be busy."

First comes convincing my family, but it shouldn’t be an issue. If we generate profits for the kingdom, complaints will be minimal. With the airship already turning a profit, even Marza’s estate has reached a level where other noble territories are envious. The kingdom will profit too.

So, I won’t let anyone interfere.