Chapter 25: The Origin of Scarlet Night

“Mm…”

Morning light filtered through the curtains, a gray-white glow spilling onto the blanket crumpled on the floor. The girl lay sprawled across the pristine white bed, and beside her a small loli clung to her tightly like an overly affectionate koala, letting out soft, sweet murmurs in her sleep.

The girl’s lashes fluttered as she groggily opened her eyes.

So hot…

Pelleti even had the strange thought that she felt like a loaf of bread lying inside an oven, about to be baked through.

She had clearly kicked the blanket onto the floor last night—so why was it still this hot?!

Was this what they called regional differences? The temperature gap between cities in the east and west was actually this big? Back in Black City, at this hour she would’ve wrapped herself tightly in the blanket, not daring to let even a hint of wind in. How could it be like this, where she practically wanted to throw off the last bit of clothing she had on?

And yet, she felt a strange resistance toward doing that.

Weird. She hadn’t been like this before.

Her clothes were soaked through with sweat, and the outfit she’d been wearing wasn’t even suitable for this place to begin with.

She still had some gold coins left—while looking for work, she could also see if there were any suitable clothes. Lighter ones shouldn’t be too expensive.

The damp white strands of hair stuck to her temples, making her uncomfortable. Pelleti raised her hand to brush them aside, only to find she couldn’t lift it.

She was so used to sleeping alone that she’d forgotten there was still a little loli lying on her arm.

Turning her head, she looked at the child beside her. The little girl was sleeping soundly, her small face flushed pink. Even when Pelleti had used force just now to lift her head, it hadn’t affected her sleep at all—in fact, she’d only hugged her tighter, unwilling to let go.

Pelleti stood up from the bed, Scarlet Night still clinging to her like a sloth.

That alone showed just how good her sleep quality was.

To be able to sleep like this, it was probably because she hadn’t slept well for a very long time.

Come to think of it, Pelleti was the same.

Since drinking that glass of sleep-inducing orange juice, this was the first truly good sleep she’d had.

She looked up and found the clock on the spotless white wall. The hour hand was inching closer and closer to the top.

She’d slept a bit too long.

With time pressing, Pelleti hopped off the bed, stepped on the blanket, and staggered toward the bathroom. At the same time, she tossed her last piece of clothing onto the floor, paying no attention to Scarlet Night—after all, the child hadn’t been wearing anything anyway.

She filled the tub with cool water and lay down in it together with Scarlet Night to cool off.

If she’d known, she wouldn’t have taken a hot bath last night. Now she had to wash again.

What a hassle.

…By the way, had she always been this obsessed with cleanliness?

Suddenly wrapped in coolness, Scarlet Night slowly opened her sleepy eyes and rubbed her face drowsily against her sister’s waist. “Mm? Sister’s awake?”

“Then what, do you think I’m sleepwalking?” Pelleti snapped back irritably, though the comfort brought by the cool water calmed her a little.

“This damn place is unbearably hot. What kind of city is this? It’s not fit for humans at all.” Feeling her body temperature drop enough, she quickly wrapped herself in a bath towel and walked out of the bathroom, grabbed another towel, and vigorously rubbed her wet white hair before tossing it into the laundry basket.

Scarlet Night, having just woken up, still looked dazed. She sat blankly by the edge of the tub for quite a while before coming back to her senses.

Knock, knock, knock…

The sudden knocking at the door made Pelleti frown, a hint of confusion flashing through her mind. She had clearly paid for two full days—what would the staff want at this hour?

Without thinking too much, she assumed it was hotel staff. Tightening the towel around herself, she pulled the door open.

Their eyes met—

Elien clearly hadn’t expected to see such a scene: a girl standing behind the door wrapped only in a bath towel, damp hair tips dripping with water, fair skin tinged with pink in the morning light—like a lotus freshly risen from the water.

A wave of heat instantly spread from Elien’s ears across her entire face. She instinctively turned her gaze away, yet couldn’t help sneaking another look, her eyes filled with panic and barely concealed curiosity.

“Pe—Pelleti, why did you come out wearing just a towel?”

Elien turned her head shyly, but her hand clutched the doorframe tightly, and her eyes kept drifting back toward Pelleti of their own accord.

That gaze carried unmistakable scrutiny.

Pelleti hadn’t expected to run into Elien in a place like this either, but she quickly sensed something off from her expression.

“Elien! Close the door first—wait until I change clothes before opening it again!”

Pelleti remembered reading in a book that the best way to deal with shameless lechers was to grab the slippers at your feet and throw them straight at their face. Unfortunately, she had nothing on her feet right now—just a bath towel…

Seeing Elien’s gaze drift back again, she panicked and decisively yanked the towel off her head, flinging it straight at that suspiciously flushed face!

Had Pelleti just come out of the bathroom?

Back on the train, Elien had already thought Pelleti had a great figure—but that had only been by touch. Seeing it with her own eyes now was even more stunning.

Elien pulled her gaze away, then suddenly felt that she hadn’t seen clearly enough.

Just one more look—

When she turned her eyes back, all she saw was white. The warm towel landed over her head. Elien instinctively loosened her grip on the doorframe, and Pelleti seized the chance to slam the door shut with a loud metallic clatter, locking it from inside.

Elien fell onto the carpeted hallway. After finally pulling the towel—still carrying a milky scent—off her head, the blush that had just faded flared up even more intensely.

She clutched the soft fabric, forgetting to stand up for a moment.

Unconsciously, she caught a whiff of the faint milky fragrance lingering on the towel.

“Team leader…? Are you… okay?”

Not far away, Anna hesitated over whether she should interrupt Elien at a time like this. Beside her stood a uniformed female attendant, covering her mouth as she stifled a laugh.

After a while, the door opened again. Pelleti appeared in the doorway wearing her original plain, elegant long dress. Scarlet Night followed obediently at her side, draped in a slightly oversized coat.

Elien immediately noticed the little one beside Pelleti. She didn’t recall Pelleti bringing anyone with her before, which meant this must have happened after arriving here.

A vague suspicion formed in Elien’s mind.

“There were some incidents in the area last night. We need to investigate nearby residents and hope you’ll cooperate.”

“Incidents?”

“Mm, just a small accident. No need to worry.” As she spoke, she glanced at Scarlet Night. “Who is she?”

“She’s my younger sister. She came to find me after I arrived here.”

“Your sister? She’s here alone?” Elien eyed Scarlet Night suspiciously, disbelief written all over her face.

Although she had feelings for Pelleti—and had even taken advantage earlier—that didn’t mean she’d let personal bias affect her work. Official matters were official; that was a matter of principle.

If things were really as Pelleti said, that she’d come to find her sister, how could the child not even have a place to stay, ending up in a hotel instead?

There were far too many questionable points.

If there really was something wrong with this child, she could be used as leverage against Pelleti, making what came next much easier.

“Yeah. Don’t let her size fool you—she’s actually quite old,” Pelleti said as she walked over to the neatly made bed and sat down, holding the silent Scarlet Night in her arms.

When she’d shut the door earlier, she’d wondered why Elien had come looking for her. No matter how she thought about it, it could only be because of those two unlucky men from last night.

There was nothing she could do about it—they’d died without even ashes left behind.

She’d originally planned to hide Scarlet Night, but when closing the door she’d seen the same attendant from yesterday.

That woman had personally seen her bring Scarlet Night in. If Scarlet Night suddenly disappeared now, and the attendant said something extra, then even if the deaths of those two men had nothing to do with her, she’d still be dragged into trouble because of Scarlet Night’s disappearance.

After weighing it all, it seemed better to keep Scarlet Night by her side.

By telling Elien about Scarlet Night’s existence, it would also make things more convenient later while staying here with her.

“Quite old? How old could she possibly be?” Elien’s face was full of skepticism.

She clearly remembered Pelleti saying she had no parents. Even if she did have a sister, at most there’d only be this one.

How could a child this small be alone in Falisa?

Elien was certain there had to be someone taking care of her—but that made it even harder to explain why Pelleti would bring her to stay at a hotel. Who would have a home and not go back, choosing instead to spend money on a hotel—especially a commoner living in difficult circumstances?