This House Has A Delicious Restaurant - Chapter 19.5 - A Flower on the Parched Land (Past) - Part 5

Liffree must have implanted the gemstone in Terisier instinctively for self-defense.

I hadn’t expected that the gemstone planted for future escape would be used this way, but it turned out to be the reason. A wry smile escaped my lips.

Zerdan, seemingly either indifferent or unwilling to care about Terisier’s injury, turned his head away.

Perhaps Zerdan hadn’t known about it because he was turning away.

It was disheartening. Should I praise Liffree or not?

“Liffree is a natural villain.”

“Liffree?”

“Yes, be careful with him. Of course, you’ll probably forget this and stick with him, but still.”

“What are you talking about?”

Zerdan frowned, not understanding, but I just laughed.

I had grasped some clues, but now how to proceed? There was no news from Khan…

I looked down at the ring in my hand. It was a gift from Liffree, who had given it to me, saying it would bring good luck someday.

Even though the necklace he gave me was a trick, for some reason, I didn’t feel any strange resistance to the ring and wore it all the time. To think it had been with me even in the past.

If it’s supposed to bring luck, it might as well show some results.

I rubbed the ring and grumbled.

Liffree had healed Terisier, proving the value of his ability and earning somewhat better treatment from the woman. However, the fact that they were still experimental subjects hadn’t changed.

Liffree wasn’t confined somewhere, so he often came near Zerdan, complaining and talking.

“Do you think there will ever be a day when we get out of here? I’ve been making wishes on the gemstone, hoping for some help, but it’s not working. The best gemstone was replaced by that guy’s eye.”

“Still, you saved his life because of it.”

“That was the intention, but… It would be nice if there was someone with teleportation ability.”

Liffree and Zerdan were around the same age and had similar situations, so they opened up to each other.

If it weren’t for Liffree’s greed, he might have become a good friend to Zerdan in the future.

I stared at Liffree and then spoke.

“How about trying to charm Terisier?”

“What, what are you talking about?! I thought you couldn’t talk all this time, so I assumed you were like the others who couldn’t speak…”

Zerdan looked at Liffree as if he were a fool. I sighed and looked at Liffree as well.

He’s the same whether he’s young or old.

“Liffree, keep it quiet so you don’t get caught.”

“Liffree? You’re not calling me some girly name, are you?”

“If not you, who else would I talk to?”

Liffree shut his mouth at my calm response.

He must have thought he couldn’t win with mere words, so he frowned and brought up another topic.

“What do you mean by charming Terisier?”

“Terisier is the most useful ability user here. If you can charm him, you might be able to rescue everyone here and erase the woman’s memory too. Of course, from Terisier’s perspective, he might not see the need to do that since he’s loved, and he’s not mature enough to understand this reality yet, so it might be a long shot.”

“…Well, with such an unrealistic ability, there’s a possibility. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that.”

Liffree mumbled as if he was shocked, then nodded. He looked like he had made a decision, and I smiled at the anxious Zerdan.

Attempts like this wouldn’t be bad, regardless of the outcome.

Thus began the great operation to charm Terisier.

Suddenly, Liffree, pretending to be friendly, made Terisier uncomfortable and tried to run away.

Terisier tried to avoid Liffree by sticking to me or Zerdan, but despite his attitude, Liffree didn’t give up. He seemed convinced that Terisier was the only hope for salvation.

At first, Liffree tried to entice him with gems or food, but these efforts were ineffective against Terisier, who was monopolizing the woman’s affection.

When trying to befriend him also failed, Liffree decided to switch tactics and started to threaten him.

That was bound to backfire.

Every time Liffree whispered something, Terisier’s face changed from a crying expression to one of shock, showing various reactions.

Eventually, the last thing Liffree whispered made Terisier turn pale and look at me. It seemed like he had said something about me.

Since Terisier had a strange attachment to me, he probably threatened him regarding me.

Liffree, who was happily oblivious to this, had overlooked one crucial point.

Terisier’s ability was still unstable, and it was far too powerful for a child to control.

As had happened before, Terisier began to lose control. The ground shook violently, and the surrounding children screamed silently, startled.

Debris from the building fell, and some children who couldn’t escape were crushed and killed.

Liffree, frozen in shock, looked terrified, while Zerdan suddenly called out to me.

“Ding!!”

It seemed like the effects of the ability were pouring over me as well.

This was the second time already.

The glass walls shattered, and a nearby pillar collapsed weakly over me.

Amidst the fading consciousness, I heard Terisier’s voice. He was crying and asking Zerdan why I wasn’t getting up.

Is this how I’m going to die?

“Make her move. She was playing with me just a moment ago.”

Terisier, still not fully understanding the concept of death, cried out to Zerdan. After that, his voice ceased to come through.

I must have lost consciousness.

I only felt a bit of regret for the original owner of this body.

* * *

When I briefly lost consciousness and opened my eyes, I had returned to my original body—Moa Ablon, an adult woman with silver hair.

But I wasn’t back where I originally was; everything around me was dark.

In the midst of it, I could see a shimmering ring and a shadow flickering at my feet.

Is Khan trying to take me somewhere?

The ring sparkled. I was slightly worried that Liffree had given me another useless item, but fortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case.

The shadow of Khan flickered, trying to take me back to where I originally belonged. However, the ability didn’t seem to be working properly, and instead, I was being briefly dropped into an unfamiliar place.

I saw a young boy with brilliant golden hair sitting alone at a table, eating. He looked like Obella.

His mother wasn’t at home, managing the experimental subjects, and his father seemed too occupied with taking care of the unfamiliar child, Terisier, to pay him any attention.

It seemed like he was hiding a different kind of pain from Zerdan.

I briefly saw Obella’s gaze shift toward my direction, but at that moment, I was once again pulled into the shadow and concealed.

The next place I was moved to was near an unfamiliar building. It was dark, but the place seemed strangely familiar, and I frowned. In the distance, someone was walking toward me.

It was Anise, dressed in pajamas with just a cardigan over her.

Now that I thought about it, it was familiar because this was the orphanage that Anise frequently visited. However, it had lost its appearance due to the fire caused by Zerdan.

Before going to the past, I had seen Anise in critical condition, with her abdomen pierced by Terisier’s attack.

Seeing a perfectly intact building and a healthy-looking Anise made it clear that this was also a part of the past.

Anise’s gaze turned toward me. She had a somewhat frightened expression as she spoke.

“Is someone there?”

It seemed like the shadows of the building prevented her from seeing me.

Even if she did recognize me in the past, it wouldn’t make a difference.

Feeling the shadow trying to pull me again, I kept silent and decided to offer a piece of advice.

She was a grateful woman who had shown me trust and followed me.

“Anise. Try to keep your ability hidden as much as possible. Your ability can affect objects, and people with ill intentions might notice and misuse them.”

“What?”

“…I’m saying this for your sake.”

If I returned to the future, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to genuinely give my affection and open up to her.

Anise would be a good friend for me in this game-like world where I had to live.

As she approached, I was once again concealed by the shadow. Anise looked around the building, bewildered by the emptiness.

The sensation of being moved through shadows was peculiar. I could see myself, but the surroundings felt invisible.

The ring on my hand sparkled. Soon, a small gem shattered weakly, as if it had used up all its power.

The fragments of the broken gem sparkled and surrounded the area, and light entered my field of vision.

When I opened my eyes, I found myself looking at an older, more familiar version of Zerdan, frowning as he looked down at me.

It was the same worried expression he used to make when he was a child, and I smiled. It seemed that the lucky ring Liffree had given me had served its purpose well.

The future that followed the past was the reality I needed to be in.