"There's a monster under my bed… that's why I can't sleep."
Captain Stefan couldn't help but laugh. He then sat down beside the blond kid and asked,
"Alright then, what's the name of this child who's scared of a monster?"
"Aiden," the boy answered quietly.
"Well, Aiden… do you come up here a lot when you're scared of monsters?"
Aiden nodded, then tilted his head.
"Are you here because there's a monster under your bed too?"
Stefan chuckled.
"No, no. Around this time the lights start turning off, and the whole city turns calm.
The moon takes over the sky, the families go to sleep, and the noise fades… only the wind stays behind.
Total peace. Something I've wanted for a long time…"
Aiden blinked.
"Why did you want peace, mister?"
Stefan looked up at the night sky for a moment.
"…Because I never really had anything like that growing up."
Aiden hesitated, then asked,
"If you don't mind… I want to hear your story. But tell it like a bedtime story. Please?"
Stefan sighed softly.
"Fine…"
Before he could begin, Aiden scooted closer.
"Can I lie on your lap? I don't wanna go back to my bed… the monster might still be there."
The captain nodded.
"Alright. I'll protect you from any monster lurking around."
Aiden rested his head on Stefan's legs. The captain placed a hand over the boy's hair, gently massaging until Aiden relaxed. Then he began speaking.
"Once… there was an innocent child named Stefan who was in search of a place to call home…"
And so the night passed as he recited the long, heavy story of his past.
Several hours have passed and the sun is beginning to rise. Axel's group was already awake, gathered around a table for breakfast inside the inn.
The final day of the festival had begun, and the city buzzed with anticipation.
"There are a lot of activities and workshops today," Sol said between bites.
"Are you coming with us to help the orphanage, Axel?"
Axel shook his head.
"We need to go to the city hall. The mission comes before anything else."
"Come on," Noor groaned. "It'll be fun with the kids."
Axel leaned back in his chair.
"We're not here for fun."
Achie snorted.
"That lieutenant probably isn't even there anyway. It's the last day of the festival."
"Did you already check if he was present today?" Axel asked.
Achie answered with a confused face,
"…We literally just woke up. How would I have done that?"
"Exactly. So I'm going to the city hall."
Sol rolled his eyes.
"Don't be so boring, Axel. Enjoy life a bit."
Noor joined in instantly.
"Yeah! You're coming with us. No other option."
Axel refused again, shaking his head.
Both Sol and Noor leaned in at the same time.
"Pleaaase?"
He sighed.
"…Fine. I'll check the city hall first. Then I'll join you if he isn't present."
Both cheered loudly.
Achie stood from the table.
"Let's get going then. We still need to pick up the kids from the slums before heading to the orphanage."
Sol grabbed his plate, opened his mouth wide, and shoved all his breakfast in at once. Smacked the now empty plate on the table again and yelled,
"Done."
The other three stared at him in pure shock as he walked away like nothing happened.
Noor and Achie slowly followed after him, but Axel stopped them with a question.
"Wait. Have either of you seen a blond kid at the orphanage? Blue eyes, glasses?"
Both shook their heads.
"I haven't. " Noor said.
"But the orphanage is a huge building, so we didn't see all the children."
"Alright. Thanks."
They left and Axel remained at the table, staring at his empty plate.
…Who is Aiden? he wondered.
Meanwhile on the city walls, Captain Stefan ended his childhood story.
"…And that's how Stefan became a captain of the Empire of Belmon."
Stefan exhaled. The sun had finally climbed over the horizon.
"I'm exhausted…" he muttered to himself.
"I spent the whole night telling a kid my life story…"
He looked down at his lap and then flinched.
Aiden was staring up at him, wide awake.
"You didn't fall asleep at all, did you?" Stefan asked.
Aiden shook his head, tears streaming silently down his cheeks.
"There are tears in your eyes kid… Are you crying for me?"
"Uh-huh…" Aiden sniffed.
"You had a sad past, mister. But… the orphanage you wanted to go to wasn't a solution for a home either."
Stefan frowned.
"What do you mean, kid?"
Aiden wiped his face.
"I lived in that orphanage. When I think back… the place was really strange. They taught us languages, fighting, history, and… There was no playtime. But I don't remember everything clearly anymore."
Stefan leaned closer.
"Were they training you to be a soldier? Or maybe some kind of spy?"
Aiden shrugged.
"I don't know. But the things they taught us… they helped me. The hardest thing to learn… was how to smile."
He forced a grin.
"Because we mostly cried back then… at least, in the memories that aren't blank."
Stefan sat silently as Aiden continued.
"Everything changed when someone there gave me a name."
But then Aiden stood up and dusted off his pants.
"Alright mister, thank you for keeping me company. But I need to go now and prepare myself. Since I'm in the finals of the cooking competition tonight, on the main stage."
"Aah, ah… Alright" Stefan replied, confused by the sudden switch in energy level from Aiden.
"Good luck then kid, I'll root for you tonight."
Aiden smiled softly.
"Thank you mister."
He began walking away when Stefan called out,
"Hold on, kid. Shouldn't you at least sleep for a bit?"
Aiden looked back over his shoulder.
"I can't sleep, mister."
He lifted a finger, pointing downward.
"The monster is still under my bed."
Sol, Noor and Achie had gathered the children from the slums. Now they were escorting a group of fifty kids through the crowded streets, towards the orphanage.
The children stayed close together, as they were tense. Because they didn't know what the day would bring.
When the group finally stepped onto the orphanage grounds, they immediately noticed another large cluster of children already gathered outside.
Standing among them was a caretaker woman, firmly organizing everyone into pairs.
"Two by two, hold hands." she instructed, guiding them into neat lines.
It was strict, but it kept the chaos away. Because with this many children, chaos was always waiting.
Sol looked behind him at their group… and laughed.
They had simply said, "Follow us, kids!" and the children obeyed like a stampede. No structure, no hand-holding, nothing.
Well, at least Achie was walking behind the whole group as a safety measure. Kind of…
The caretaker then noticed them, and walked over with a warm smile.
"Welcome! We'll make sure today becomes a wonderful outing for all of you kids."
Noor raised an eyebrow as she compared the two groups of children.
"We… basically brought the same amount as you have in the orphanage, huh?"
The caretaker nodded.
"With your fifty, we're almost doubling our numbers."
Noor nodded slowly, as Sol glanced around.
"Where are the other caretakers?" Sol aksed.
The caretaker pointed with her thumb.
"One of my colleagues, Lisa, is bringing the last two kids from inside.
And the male caretaker, Mister Walder, went early this morning to the city hall to get advance funds from them that the captain promised."
"Walder is the guy I met yesterday, right?" Achie asked.
"Yes," She nodded toward Achie. "without that money, we couldn't afford taking such a large group of kids to the festival."
Right at that moment, the second female caretaker Lisa, stepped outside with a little girl holding her hand.
She introduced herself to Sol, Noor, Achie and while everyone was greeting each other, Achie scanned the crowd of children.
He frowned.
"…I don't see that kid Eliot from yesterday. Did he go with that Walder guy?"
The caretaker shook her head immediately.
"We have been searching everywhere for him today, but we couldn't find him. Still… if we lock the door behind us, he'll stay inside. So nothing dangerous can happen."
Achie stared at her in disbelief.
"It's a festival today. Everyone gets to enjoy it. Being blind and getting lost inside that huge orphanage, doesn't mean that he should be left behind."
The caretakers exchanged uneasy looks.
"We agree," the caretaker said carefully, "but—"
"No 'but'," Achie cut her off.
He held out his hand.
"Give me the building key. I'll search for him. Once I find him, I'll lock the place up and bring him with us. I promise!"
Sol and Noor backed him up instantly, nodding firmly beside him.
The caretakers glanced at one another and then broke into wide smiles. It was rare to meet people who cared this much for kids that they don't know.
"Alright," the woman said and placed the key in Achie's hand.
"You have five minutes. If you're not back, we'll have to start walking."
"Got it!" Achie said confidently and rushed into the building.
Inside, he didn't waste a single second. He sprinted up the stairs toward the highest floor.
If he's in there…
If that man did something…
He already had a strong suspicion where Eliot had gone.
The only room without a glass door…
The one that belonged to that creepy caretaker, Mister Walder!