Chapter 89: Sneaky, Sneaky Emi
Chapter 89: Sneaky, Sneaky Emi
Darkness have filled the castle halls, with only the desperate dance of the candles that light the halls.
And there, Emi can be seen sneaking around. She stopped crawling when she reached upon a door.
With only the minute sound of her breath, she quietly turned the knob of the door.
Sneaky, sneaky Emi.
She then looked inside, to see if the occupants were asleep. And there they were, asleep as a pup. Gold and gray, and a silent whimper as they lay.
Tut tut tut, Emi prowled. Making sure her every step is as quiet as a cloud.
She then looked to the right, and then she looked to the left. Careful not to be seen by the light, because clearly, this was theft.
Bad, bad Emi.
She seeks for the bag of gold she deserves, as Viel only gave her the reserves.
Tut tut tut, once again she trots. This time faster, but still careful not to get caught.
And finally, after the Swift Cat have carefully searched the room, she finally saw the bag of gold which made her eyes zoom.
No one can escape Emi the Swift Cat, she thought. Tut tut tut, Emi walked on toes, she opened the bag, and the inside did glow.
Excited, excited Emi.
Her hand slowly slipped inside the bag, only to be laughed at like a gag.
""
"Wait what!?", Emi immediately turned around as soon as she heard someone chuckling from behind her. And there, she saw both Viel and Silbern looking at her, with Silbern covering his mouth as he tried his best to stop the laughter that was trying to burst from his lungs.
"Y-you two were awake!?", Emi quickly jumped to the side in shock. She did not even hear the two move out of their beds. She looked towards the direction of the two beds again, only to find them empty.
"See? I told you she would try to steal some coins. Sneaky, sneaky Emi", Viel shook his head as he spoke to Silbern. Silbern nodded his head repeatedly, while still trying his best not to laugh.
"What!? N-no, I was just trying to check if you guys were sleeping comfortably!", Emi stuttered as she looked to the side.
"See? I told you she would also lie and say that she was just checking on us. Bad, bad Emi", once again, Viel shook his head as he sighed.
"W-well, you two seem comfortable. I suppose I shall leave now", Emi said as she hastily walked towards the door. But before she could leave the room, Viel blocked her path, with his palm pointing towards her.
"W-what is it?", Emi gulped nervously.
"Miss Emi, I mean Swift Cat. You see, my Grandpa once told me that life is unfair", Viel said as he patted Emi's shoulders, "There are rich people like me and then there's", Viel stopped as he took a glance at Emi.
Staring at Emi from head to toe, Viel once again sighed.
"What do you mean by that!?", Emi shrugged off Viel's hand, her expression clearly mad.
But the only response she got from Viel was once again a sigh. Viel then grabbed the bag of gold, and proceeded to slip a gold coin straight into Emi's pocket.
He once again glanced at Emi. Staring at her somewhat revealing clothes from top to bottom, "Buy yourself some new clothes, Swift Cat. Yours is completely lacking", said Viel as he pushed Emi out of the room.
"This this is my adventurer outfit!"
"We gave her a gold coin, she should be happy now. Excited, excited Emi", was the last thing Emi heard as the door closed on her.
Emi's eyes twitch as she looked at the shut door in front of her.
"T-this", Emi's frustration was reaching its limits. She stared at the gold coin she was holding, her hand noticeably trembling. "You idiot!", she shouted as she threw the gold coin across the hall.
""
"No, come back!"
But after a few seconds of the gold coin rolling on the floor, she finally could not help but rush towards to chase it. She swiftly picked up the gold coin and wiped it clean.
She was about to return to her room, but she noticed that the door beside her still had its lights on. So, out of curiosity of who would still be awake at this time of the night, she took a peek.
There, she saw Karl surrounded by mountains of paper, towering him as the sound of his pen scratching on the paper he was writing filled the room.
There were candles on the side of him that no longer had any life on them, and the ones that still do, reflected in Karl's blue eyes.
For a second, Emi was truly mesmerized at the sight. To the point that she has forgotten that she was currently sneaking and snooping around the castle, causing her to accidentally open the door even further.
"O-oh no!", she watched in horror as the screeching of the door gradually reached Karl's ears, she tried to stop its advance, but sadly, she was too late. The screeching of the door were like the horns of war, fully getting the attention of the Lord Karl of Burgerstatter.
"W-what's up, Karl?", Emi awkwardly waved her hand.
But Karl only looked at her without an expression on his face. The only response Emi received was the candles swaying from the breeze that came from the opened door.
And then, as soon as the candles stopped dancing, Karl started working on his paper again, not acknowledging Emi's presence.
But after a few more seconds of Emi just standing outside, Karl finally spoke.
"What are you doing here, Emi? Go to sleep", said Karl without even glancing at Emi.
"Why? Can't I really visit my friend that I haven't seen in a long time?"
"We are not friends", Karl clicked his tongue, "Now you are interrupting my work", Karl waved the pen on his hand, signaling for Emi to leave.
Hearing this, Emi could not help but sigh.
Still, she proceeded to walk inside the room. It would seem that Karl did not really mind, as he continued writing on his paper, no longer bothering about Emi.
So, Emi continued her little adventure and walked to the side of the room, opening a book from one of the huge shelves on the wall.
"Remember when we were younger? You almost fell trying to get this exact same book", Emi chuckled, "Now I can easily reach it"
"One tends to grow taller when one grows old, Emi", replied Karl.
"You know, I think I can reach the topmost part of the shelf", Emi looked up.
"You would need a ladder for that"
"Bet you 1 gold I could reach it!", shouted Emi as she jumped, using one of the levels of the shelf as a foothold.
Unfortunately, the wood broke in half, causing her to lose balance, "Eek!".
She was about to spin her body so she can land gracefully, but to her surprise, she felt an arm embracing her tightly before she could even do so.
She opened her eyes, only to see pieces of paper scattered like birds in the air. Slowly descending to the ground as the wave back and forth.
The two stayed like this for a few seconds. With only the sound of the papers fluttering and their hearts echoing throughout the room could be heard. Their faces almost touching each other as their breaths become heavy.
"KarlI-"
"Get out!"
Before Emi could even speak, Karl pushed her away, "Get out of my office now!".
"Well, I'm-"
"Just leave, Emi. You should be good at that, or do you need my money for that as well?", Karl looked at Emi, his gaze cold and unrelenting.
Emi raised her hand, but in the end, she did not slap Karl. Instead, they just stood there in silence.
And with one of the candles burnt out, Emi finally turned her back, and Karl proceeded to pick up the pieces of paper that were scattered on the floor.
"I didn't accept the money", but before she could leave the room, Emi spoke in a quiet manner.
"What?"
"I left because your father said they were sending you away to a far place if I didn't. So, I left, but I did not take their money", said Emi as she left the room and complete shut the door behind her
Hearing Emi's solemn words, Karl was at a lost. The papers that was already in his hands were once again falling to the floor.
Karl closed his eyes as a sorrow cry was release with his breath. He remained like this, stagnant for the rest of the night, leaving the pieces of paper on the ground waiting
and his ankles hurting.
Yes, Karl injured his ankles from catching the falling Emi.
"I guess it would be too awkward to try and chase her right now"