https://ncode.syosetu.com/n5562hc/46/
Orphanage
Our babysitting job wasn’t over yet. Once we were finished eating, the oldest wanted to play again.
“Onee-chan, I want to visit Don.”
“D-Don?”
“You don’t know? He has a scary face, but he’s really nice.”
I don’t know any of the details, but isn’t that the name of Andy’s boss? I’d hate to run into him, so I am reluctant.
When I shared a look with Dahlia, she sighed, knelt down, and started talking to the little girl.
“Don is a scary person. It isn’t his face that is scary though. He hurts people. You shouldn’t go there.”
“That’s not true! He always gives me sweets, and my friends live with him!”
“Do you usually go over to his place to play?”
Dahlia was looking more and more worried as she talked to the girl.
“Yeah! It’s okay! So let’s go!”
The girl jumped out of her chair and grabbed my arm. I guess she figured out I would be easier to convince than Dahlia. Well I know nothing about the guy other than his name. How does Dahlia know him?
“So um, what kind of person is this Don?”
Dahlia seemed hesitant to talk since we were in front of the kids, but after she realized I might end up taking the girl there myself, she frowned and started to explain.
“Don Sabaragamuwa1. Long story short, he’s the king of evil. Rumor is that he runs the gambling and loan rackets, and he is responsible for everything from murder to human trafficking. But, I also hear he runs an orphanage, so it’s hard to tell what kind of guy he really is.”
In other words, he isn’t the type of guy you want a kid to get involved with. It’d be one thing if it’s the parent’s personal decision, but us temporary babysitters shouldn’t be making those kinds of choices.
“You can go there next time…. Huh!? No!?”
At some point without me realizing, the person tugging on my arm had changed from a sweet five-year-old girl to some uncle with a creepy smile. I forced on my own smile while fighting the urge to kick him.
“U-Um…. do you know where the girl who was just here went?”
“She went that way. More importantly, how about you and me….”
“I’m busy, and any physical contact past shaking hands is not allowed. Sorry, but please excuse me”
I could already tell I was in store for another stupid invitation, so I cut him off and ran in the direct he had pointed. Our destination was clear.
“Don’s orphanage right? Does anyone know where it is?”
Dahlia raised her hand, so she took the lead with me and Melia following closely behind.
We didn’t have to go far. After leaving the market, we headed down a narrow alley and came across a building surrounded by a large wall. It’s old and as big as one of those mansions high nobles would live in, but I can hear the sound of young children playing from inside.
The iron-barred gate in the front was wide open as if to welcome anyone in. We passed through and were immediately greeted by the sight of those kids we could hear on the other side of the wall. There were dozens of them, all running around and playing in a garden, and it was hard to believe we were still in the royal capital where all the buildings are so tightly packed together.
Each one of the kids were wearing a carefree smile, and I found the eldest daughter we were supposed to be watching already playing in the middle of them.
After hearing about Don and that he ran an orphanage, I immediately pictured a cramped place where all the kids are treated like slaves while wearing old, holey clothing.
But, this place looks like a paradise. It doesn’t matter if you provide someone with food, clothing, and shelter while also guaranteeing their safety. You aren’t going to be able to see smiles like these. I can tell there was love here.
“Everyone looks like they’re having fun.”
Melia looked the most nervous out of all of us, but she even she was smiling now.
“Best not to be deceived by appearances. Come on, grab her.”
Dahlia pushed my back, so I stepped through the throng of kids to pick up the eldest daughter.
“Hey, we’re going home.”
I tried pulling on the girl’s hand, but she did what I figured she’d do and shook me off.
“I don’t wanna! Onee-chan, you should play with us too. I know! Onee-chan is good at dancing right? You should show us.”
Most of the times when someone asks me to dance, it’s for a vulgar reason. That’s why being asked by such a carefree smile really makes me want to respond.
“Oh…. we’re going home when I’m done, okay?”
“Okay! Hey everyone! Onee-chan is going to show us a dance!”
I thought all the kids were going to get together for a dance, but I guess they’re all just going to watch me do it on my own.
You don’t even need to tell me what a terrible idea it’d be to show off the twerk, so I decided to keep things simple and show them the commoner’s dance.
The children formed a circle around me. When they started cheering on to raise the mood, my body naturally began to dance on its own. For some reason, I was so starved for the opportunity to dance in front of other people that every time I moved my arms or legs, my heart moved with them.
Before long, some of the children had come forward and started dancing with me, imitating what they saw. Melia and Dahlia never joined in, probably because they felt way too embarrassed, but the eldest daughter looked satisfied that everyone was having fun.
All the kids gathered at the gate to see us off when we were finished.
“Dancer Onee-chan! Come dance again!”
“I will. Be sure to keep practicing.”
“You’re stricter than Don is~”
I’ve never met Don before, but it seems he is at least kind to children. I’m being called strict just for assigning them a little homework. If Lily had come along, they’d all probably end up crying.
♠
After everyone in the orphanage saw us off, we delivered the three kids safely back home. The sun had already begun to set because of the time we spent on my dance, so we weren’t able to gain many points today.
After we left the client’s house, we decided to head to the market to appease Dahlia’s grumbling. It was Melia’s idea that some tasty food would soothe things over for the time being.
We assumed there’d be less people now than at noon, but we were wrong. Honestly it looks like there are more people here if anything.
“I knew Nerine-chan in person would be cute.”
“No, it’s the fact they’re a whole team all together. It is the perfect spectrum of beauty to cuteness.”
I overheard a couple of men talking as they left. So it’s Lily’s team’s fault that it is so crowded here. They managed to pull a lot of people to them, but that means this is a chance. If we can stand out here, we might score some votes.
I still remember what Lily said last night. I need to do what I can without giving a damn about appearances.
“Dahlia-san, Melia. We can’t lose. Let’s go!”
“I’ll go, but what are we going to do? Nobody will pay any attention to us.”
Melia’s concerns are valid. But after dancing at the orphanage, I’m more confident than I’ve ever been before.
“Let’s just push our way through and hug Lily and the others in the center of the crowd. Whoever stands out the most is the winner.”
“That sounds really stupid. But I guess that means I’ve gone stupid too. Let’s do it.”
Dahlia called me stupid for thinking up the plan, but she also jumped on board.
The three of us worked together to push past the wall-like crowd. We couldn’t see where we were going, so we just kept heading in the direction the people were facing. Gradually I managed to catch Lily’s voice from inside the crowd, so we must be on the right track.
Freedom from the crowd came suddenly as if I just jumped out of a long cave. It was stuffy and hot lumped up with all those people, so freedom felt like a cold breath of fresh air. I’ll take that as a sign that I’ve finally hit the center.
I hugged whoever was standing in front of me before bothering to see who it was. Melia and Dahlia came from behind and ended up hugging the same person I did. I’m one thing, but with three people’s weight on their shoulders, we all ended up collapsing on the ground.
“Ouch….that hurt. Please wait your turn!”
I guess it was Nerine I ended up hugging. Peony and Olive meanwhile had assumed we were a suspicious group and were almost already on top of us ready to make an arrest.
“O-Onee-chan!? What are you doing!?”
“Ahaha….we came to play Peony.”
“Everyone! We have some special guests! It’s the dancer and the saint!”
Ran is good at working the crowds, and she introduced us to the audience. We got a moderate reaction, but at least we were accepted. Either way, it’s something we’re going to try no matter how it might look.
After shaking hands with a couple people and dancing on the spot, the guards intervened because of how large the crowd was getting.
“The road is blocked, and carriages can’t get through, so…. please disperse….”
Even beyond just the total size of the crowd, the people who made up the crowd were getting a little too excited. Meanwhile the guards couldn’t say anything too direct since Lily is at the center of all this.
“Everyone! That will be all for today! We look forward to seeing you again tomorrow!”
Lily’s clear voice travelled through the crowd. However her words ended up having the opposite effect, getting the crowd even more riled up rather than making them leave. The people had managed to keep a consistent distance from us, but now they were slowly advancing and were about to crush us.
“I-I’ll dance to get their attention, so everybody run.”
It’s scary to think what I’ll do in front of an advancing crowd because I have no idea what they’ll end up doing to me. But if there is going to be a decoy, then the person ranked last overall will have the easiest time getting away in the end. It’s getting dark out, so if I keep my head low and stick to the darkness, I should be able to slip away from them.
“I’m sorry Liffy. Good luck”
Lily thanked me from behind.
“We’ll wait for you in front of the dorms.”
Ran slapped me on the back as she ran away. Good to see she’s still super quick to run.
“Everyone! We haven’t danced enough yet! Come on, let’s dance dance dance!”
Although I’m unpopular, rank doesn’t matter much in front of a crowd this worked up. And the more I provoked them, the more worked up they got. I stretched my arms out and swung them up and down to get everyone to dance along with me.
Just as I hoped, nobody was complaining just because I was the only hero candidate there. And once everyone else was long gone, I ended the dance.
“All right. That’s the end! See you later!”
“Huh? Lily-san is gone!”
“Nerine-chan and Peony-chan too! Wait, is the dancer the only one left? Did they already go home….?”
The siege was lifted with just a couple complaints about it being just me thrown around. I knew this was how it was going to end, but being treated like some unwanted child still dealt some mental damage.
After enduring the crowds cruel treatment, I was left with nobody else around me, and the area around the market had regained the quiet you would expect at night.
Sabaragamuwa is a province from Sri Lanka. Why did they use it for Don’s last name? I don’t know. Why are you asking me? I’m just a guy with Google Search
Experimental Translations 