Chương 14: No tea

"Sorry, I can't serve you any tea. As you can see, I don't have many amenities here."

"At least you have these stools, if I can call them that." The stools Filki had asked us to drag over were just a bunch of files stacked on top of each other. I sat on one pile while Pyiari and Lania shared the other. Pyiari was gleaming again, while Lania still had a bit of that gloominess left. Filki gave a small smile as she watched them passively fight for a bit more space on the pile.

"So, what have you two been doing these days?"

"Same as always," Pyiari answered.

"Going to classes, getting treated."

"And sneaking out at night?"

"I never did." There wasn't even a hint of hesitation as she lied. Filki gave her a knowing smile before turning to Lania.

"And you?"

"Me... umm, after what I did, they detained me for a month." Someone else wouldn't talk about what had happened to them. Even if they did, they would try to hide the whipping marks on their body. They felt shame. Lania did no such thing. She felt pride. She felt righteous. She had killed the kid who bullied her and felt she hadn't done anything wrong. While I think every bully deserves to get fucked ten times over, killing them is something I can't agree with.

"After that, no one played with me." This time, she felt embarrassment because what she had done had driven her only friend away.

"I see." Filki nodded before looking at me.

"And you? How are you liking your work here?"

"Me? Haha... it's nice. The seniors are really helpful." She was smirking. She knew I didn't work here, but asked me that question for the love of the game.

"Good, good. So, were you showing Mr. Clark around?"

"Yup," Pyiari answered.

"But I thought the staff gave the new joinees a tour of the facility. Since when did they let the kids handle it? I might just have to ask them." The old hag was doing it just to tease us. Does every person here love teasing?

"Ehh... um..." Pyiari was lost. She was someone who needed a plan before doing something. The first time she had acted smart was when she instantly used her superpower to put Orand to sleep. Later she told me she had done that before. The next time was when she made me hide inside the locker when we encountered Bochi. That too must have been something she'd done before because she always sneaked out at night. Every time she had been unprepared, she had frozen.

Lania had told her to lie about me being a new joinee, but she hadn't told her what to say if someone asked why a bunch of kids were giving me the tour.

"He was already shown around by his seniors," Lania answered smoothly.

"We're just showing him things from our point of view. Where we like to go. Besides, we didn't have anything to do, so we're basically dragging him around. And he hadn't met you yet, did he? So we're doing our job." She lied without a single break. It flowed out like water in a stream. Do they have a How to Lie course here?

"Ah, I see." The old hag gave me a side-eye.

"What made you remember this old hag anyway?" Filki asked. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Why had she started referring to herself as "old hag" the moment I started calling her that in my mind?

"We didn't know the way to the sewage, so we came to ask," Pyiari blurted out. She didn't even try to disguise it or fish the information out indirectly. She saw no problem with simply asking.

"Why do you want to go there?"

"We... um..."

"I was tasked with checking whether that area was secured," I interrupted, "but looks like they forgot to tell me where it was. That's why I'm taking these girls' help."

"I see, I see." She slowly stood up, her chair screeching against the floor.

"That area has been locked for quite some time. I don't remember where it is myself, but it should be somewhere in the facility's old maps." She picked up her cane and looked at me.

"Why don't you follow me, Mr. Clark? It's on a higher shelf. I'll need your help reaching it." Pyiari and Lania immediately stood up as well, only to be disappointed.

"You two stay here. That area is quite cramped. All of us won't be able to stand there."

"Ehhh?" They said it together.

"Don't 'ehh' me. Come on, follow me, Mr. Clark." Is she going to get rid of me after separating me from the kids? I followed her. We left the clearing and entered the forest of shelves again. The corridors grew narrower and narrower until we had to start moving sideways. Throughout all of it, Filki didn't say a word. Neither did I. I was scared. The old lady might not be able to get rid of me herself, but what if she was leading me into a trap? She suddenly stopped. Did I reach my end? Is this where I die?

"It's up there," Filki said, pointing toward the top shelf in front of me.

"Huh? What's up there?"

"What you came looking for. Maps. What else?"

"Oh. Right." Was I overthinking it? Had the master detective grown rusty with age?

"What are you waiting for? Get up."

"Ah, right, right. How am I supposed to reach it?"

"Climb."

"Climb?" The shelf was more than twice my height. There wasn't a ladder or anything. I'd have to use the racks themselves as footholds.

"Yes. Now hurry up. My old lungs can't survive in a place this cramped."

"Will it fall?"

"It won't. Now hurry up." She nudged me with her cane.

"Alright, alright." I planted one foot on the lowest rack, grabbed the next with my hands, and repeated the process until I reached the top. Something sharp poked my gooch. I looked down. Filki stood beneath me. Her cane had been unsheathed, revealing the sword hidden inside. This is what she was planning. Now that i can't do anything she plans on ending it.

"So," she said calmly, "what do you want from the girls?"

"Nothing." She pressed the blade a little harder.

"Really. I want nothing. I just don't want them to stay here anymore." I cried out. Literally.

"What do you get out of it?"

"Nothing. I just want to help." Silence. She didn't ask another question, but I could still feel the coldness of the blade through my jeans.

"Who sent you?"

"No one."

"How did you enter then?"

"Through a rift. I'm actually from another world. I entered a rift and ended up here."

"You don't sound very convincing."

"I know it's hard to believe, but you have to believe me." Silence again. The cold steel remained where it was. I looked down at Filki. She was deep in thought, analyzing every word I'd said. A full minute passed before she finally withdrew the blade.

"Bring that folder down."

"Yes, ma'am." I grabbed the folder she pointed at, tucked it against my chest, and carefully climbed back down.

"This has the old maps in it. You'll find the path to the sewage there, though it's been sealed. You'll have to figure out the rest yourself."

"Thanks?"

"You're welcome. Now move. I'm suffocating here."

"Y-yes." I started dragging my feet sideways through the narrow corridor.

"So... you believe me."

"I do."

"Why?" I continued squeezing through the shelves without looking back at her.

"Clark, do you know what they do here?"

"Yeah. They're researching an immortality drug."

"And how do they do it?"

"I don't know. But it definitely has something to do with the kids."

"Yes." Her voice stayed calm.

"It's even government-approved, though the world doesn't know about it. They tell the kids they're here to be treated and can leave once they're healed." She paused.

"But the only ones who have ever left this facility are dead kids."

"I won't let that happen to Pyiari or Lania." We squeezed past another shelf.

"Nor to any other kid here."

"That's why I trust you?"

"That doesn't say anything in a way that should make you believe me."

"You know I am a master detective." Yes, i knew because the Akashic system told me her story.

"I can see the subtle shift in a human, which they themselves don't know they are doing while lying. I found none of it."

"But, you were looking at my ass not my face." That took out a chuckle out of her.

"There's another reason."

"That is?"

"My mother was the only person to ever escape from this place and she was helped by a man just like you." I stopped walking.

"What was her name?" She tilted her head.

"Your mother's name."

"Cici." Cici. Cici was the protagonist of j. m. k67's story.