u/Font_Argalion

You really don't want your clingy kouhai to keep following you around like a lost puppy, so you try to get rid of him by making false promises and excuses, unintentionally dismissing his feelings for you. Now, you're about to find out the consequences of your lies...

Your clingy boyfriend sneaks into your apartment and surprises you with a visit while you're asleep! It's been months since you've seen each other, and now he wants cuddles, even if you chose to go back to sleep. In turn, you appreciate he's there, even if he's a little too obsessive with you...

This day just started out beautifully!

If you can’t read my sarcasm, that means, I just wrecked my work desk, put today’s paperwork on the back burner, and now I’m in the infirmary and picking out splinters sticking out from my right hand.

“Ow, ow, OW!” I exclaimed as I pulled a sliver of wood that got an inch deep in my flesh. “Oh crap, this one got stuck deeply!”

On cue, blood gushed out in drops of the holes left behind, leaving my right hand numb. Being a southpaw has its small blessings, I guess. Thank the goddess for that.

*“*Cure…” I begrudgingly whispered, as a green light began to glow from my left hand, the Rejuvenative Spell closing my wounds. They were starting to mend, but the pain would linger for an hour or so afterward.

How did it come to this?

Oh, right. An infuriating report just came in from Fontaine Ethan Argalion, my contact from the Grand Arcostan Archives. It says that the Arcostan Research Commission rendered my findings for the recent commission they posted about an anomaly in the Cierra Madriga mountains as invalid.

Someone must’ve beat me to it. There’s been a huge number of mercenary groups and individuals chasing leads about strange sightings due to the winter season getting quite bizarre. As for the source of the seasonal unrest, there are far too many conspiracies to follow that I can’t even choose what to believe in.

Not that it matters, though. I’m more concerned about how my efforts to risk my life for a great lead turned up for nothing. All that effort to travel inside a cramped cargo wagon, my ass squeezed between crates going to nothing!

I wasn’t finished reading the report when I took out my frustrations on the table with my right hand… and here we are.  Wrecking a table that I can’t afford to replace. Add to that my rent being due in a couple days and leaving that debt standing would mean fending off the homeless in Elevation Zero.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not because I can’t take them in a fight, but because I don’t feel like stepping on the downtrodden. These folks are already suffering enough, and if I get added to the mix and asked to fight for what little scraps there are? Hoo boy.

“What the hell do I do now?” I asked myself, letting out a loud sigh before I began to flip through my notebook, blowing off the wood chips wedged between the pages and read through the newspaper clippings I pasted under my other job leads.

“Mercenaries needed for a week-long excursion… no. Lost cats run amok? No way. Star in a nightclub? The hell do I even have this with me? Pay’s good, though… Meh, I’ll save that for when I'm really desperate.”

As if I'm not already desperate enough right now, I told myself.

I turned to the next page, to the last piece of paper left, neatly folded in half.

“Hey, I remember this,” I thought aloud as I unfolded the note. This was a letter Fontaine sent me a few weeks ago. It read:

 

Lucille,

If you can spare the time, would you be so kind as to investigate this location for me? Rumor has it that there are activities occurring that would make Elevation Zero look legitimate in comparison. Heard it through the grapevine thanks to some knights visiting the archives, but I'm still curious. I'll pay for this commission personally, so long as you provide me with a compelling story~.

 

The description of the place and the story behind the rumors were written in odd details reconstructed from what Fontaine heard from the knights. Despite the convoluted information, I had a feeling about the place he referenced.

 

Half an hour of prep work passed, and I left my rundown office. I found myself in the slums of Elevation Zero. No matter what season it was, the place was never a pretty sight. I could say winter and summer were the worst seasons to be here as there is little protection from the heat and cold. Lucky are the folks who managed to find or seize land and housing for themselves, while the majority of the Arcostans and foreigners fight tooth and nail to stay alive every day down here.

The snow today was thick, around three to four inches deep. I never had many issues with the cold, but the moist seeping through my leggings made me squeamish. Ignoring my discomfort, I made my way towards a train platform and took a train heading towards the Northeast Gate of Elevation Zero.

“Excuse me,” I asked the clerk. “Is there space in the cargo cars to squeeze into?”

The clerk gave me a weird look. “You sure?”

I gave a solemn nod, and he shrugged. “Fine. Just don’t complain once you’re onboard.”

He stepped out of the booth and ushered me to where the cargo cars docked into the platform. Not long afterwards, the train finally arrived. The usher slid the car door open, and I thank the Goddess I hadn’t eaten anything heavy as a horribly putrid stench wafted out.

“What in the world is in there!?” I asked, retching.

“Animals, both dead and alive. So, are you hopping in or not?”

“...I’d like to buy a ticket please.”

“That’ll be four piras.”

I forked over the money in exchange for a ticket. My wallet may be lighter, but I think this is one of the moments where I think I deserve to splurge on the luxury of comfort.

That is, if your standard of comfort is creaky, rusted seats and shattered glass panes for windows. The trains running on Elevation Zero are in serious disrepair, but I guess it can’t be helped.

From what I know, they’re all being personally maintained by an old machinist named Lucca Dietrich out of his own pocket, without assistance from the government.  Given those circumstances, even someone like me couldn’t be a choosy beggar.

 

After some time, I finally hopped off the train and walked a few more blocks before finally getting to where I needed to be: just a few minutes away from the Northeast Gate where the annual Arcostan Selection Tournament (AKA the method of how the higher elevations cull the population) was being held. I think it just ended a few days ago, with only a handful of survivors escaping.

“Yep, this is the one.”

I found myself in front of the location of interest: an orphanage.

Despite the harsh living conditions in Arcostes, there are still some kind folks that try to do good by their fellows in their everyday struggle for survival.  You’ll have an easier time finding diamonds in a coal mine than finding these salt-of-the-earth types here.

Pulling out and reexamining Fontaine’s letter, I read his details: some knights who were stationed to conduct the tournament were entranced by the wonderful scent of food from the orphanage. Thinking it was strange for such a rundown place to have such good food, the knights paid the place a visit and were greeted by a kind, middle-aged man who oversaw the welfare of the children.

There were quite a handful of little ones alongside a few workers. They all looked healthy and cheerful, stoked at the sight of knights from higher elevations that came to visit them.

The knights asked if they could have a meal after inquiring about the scent, promising to be compensated for their sudden intrusion, and the orphanage owner obliged. They ate heartily and even asked for seconds, to which the owner happily obliged.

After having their meal, they left and immediately noted that something wasn’t right about the orphanage.

The letter closed with:

 

How could that place have so much food? Please find out, I'm curious to know, and so are the other knights. We don't want to seize their operations personally.

Good luck!

 

-Fontaine Ethan Argalion,
Record Keeper, Arcostes Grand Archives

 

Sly dogs, hiring someone else to do their dirty work, I thought. As dumb as his reasons sounded, he did promise compensation that would be more than enough to get by for a month.

Walking up to the front door, I knocked. Sure enough, a kind middle-aged man answered the door and greeted me with a smile. “Hello there, young lady! How may I help you?”

“Um,” I stammered. Crap, I don't know how to explain my presence here. “I was hoping maybe you would have an open position for a helper or an assistant? I know I'm going out on a whim here, but I took my chances to see if there's a job available at the orphanage.”

“A job for you? Well, certainly! We could always use some extra hands to help out, but I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to offer a satisfactory rate for someone looking quite accomplished such as yourself.”

Me? Accomplished? Wow, what a compliment.

“No worries about the pay! I'd think of it as merely a bonus for rendering my services to children in need.”

“That's great! When and for how long would you like to work?”

“Would starting today for a week’s time be alright? It'd give you a nice window to assess my services without having to worry about paying me as much.”

“Perfect! Thank you for your suggestion~.”

Well, that turned out easier than I thought.

Within the next hour, I was given an introduction to the children and to the other staff members, which consisted of only two people: twins that grew up in the orphanage, named Harumi and Miharu.

Everyone seemed to receive me very well that it was almost uncanny to see people this blissful on Elevation Zero. Not only that, but all of the children are unlike any of the ones you see outside. They all look so cheerful and always so full of energy.

Pushing my thoughts aside, my job for the week was to teach the children in batches and keep an eye out for them when they go play in the courtyard. I was designated to teach two classes; an hour each twice in the morning, then lunch period and nap time takes place. Afterwards, the children are free to play in the courtyard until nightfall, where they’re all instructed to go inside for dinner and get ready for bed.

They offered me lodging for the week, and I obliged despite not having any luggage with me at that moment. It didn’t matter, since I was used to sleeping with the same clothes every other day.

With that, I began my first class with the first batch of children. There were about forty orphans present, so I gathered the first twenty orphans into a classroom that had seen better days. Nevertheless, I was still able to teach them some elementary-level language and math. An hour later, the first batch cleared out for the next batch of kids to come in and sit down for my lessons.

All of them were eager to participate, and I admit, their energy was infectious. Teaching them gave me a good feeling, that I’m able to help out, even a little, despite the reason why I'm actually here.

Just as I was wrapping up class for the second batch of orphans, a wonderful smell filled the halls. The children's faces lit up, and they cheered in unison. “Lunch time! Finally!!”

They all scrambled to the door, pushing and shoving around in their haste to leave the classroom. I tried to restore order, but they were too excited that their clamor drowned out my voice. I let it slide; I'm not going to stress myself with the added burden of disciplining children.

I reached the dining room, the enticing smell of food wafting into my nostrils. Harumi and Miharu were already serving portions of food to the children, while I excitedly thought of the day’s menu.

However, when I walked towards a vacant spot on the table, I stopped short, realizing I made a rookie mistake: I forgot to bring my wand with me. I made a quick dash back to the classroom to look for it, not willing to risk anyone here to pick it up and start slinging spells willy-nilly, especially the children here.

“Not here,” I whispered to myself as I retraced my steps. “Did I leave it somewhere else?”

I hastily went over where I had been, made it to the room assigned to me, and found it where I stored it. Kicking myself for my carelessness, I returned to the dining hall.

“...Huh!?”

My eyebrows rose when I saw no more food left.

“Oh, teacher!” Miharu spotted me and bowed, just as I was about to metaphorically kick myself for the second time.

“I'm so sorry, the kids ate up all the food! I don't think we'll be able to prepare a new set of meals until dinner…”

“Ah, hah, is that so?” I asked, pasting a forced smile on my face. “No worries, the children should have more to eat so they can grow. I'll take care of my own food.”

After one last bow, Miharu returned to her duties. Of course, I’d be dismayed about being unable to have a hot meal today, but… these things happen. Thankfully, I had some bread I brought along for emergencies like this. It wasn’t much, but it would have to do.

The afternoon went by quickly as I watched the kids tire themselves out playing in the courtyard. I could feel the telltale signs of motion sickness come over me as I observed them play tag and other games that involved running, pushing, and tackling; they were all fast kids, and that’s not just because I talk like an old geezer.

As I said before, these kids were unlike the average child you would see strewn all over the streets of the dismal Elevation Zero.

I pulled out my notebook and a pen to write down my observations. As I was about to wrap up one page, two things happened in quick succession: I saw a ball passing by my feet, and the next moment, half my face was in the snow.

“Hup! Oops!” The child said, picking himself up. “Sorry, Teacher Lucille.”

“Ugh…” I grunted; that tackle was disorienting. I underestimated the kind of momentum a small child could generate, and this was one of the smaller ones.

“Teacher? Oh no!” The child exclaimed as he began to panic, shaking my arm and even getting drool all over my clothing. “I think I killed the teacher!”

“No, no…” I replied, hauling myself up and brushing off the cold snow off my skirt. “I’m fine, little fella. No need to worry.”

“Whew! I’m sorry, teacher Lucille! I didn’t mean to!”

“It’s okay, I know it was an accident. Go on, back to your game.”

“O-Okay!”

I kicked the ball back to the snowy courtyard, with the kid following suit as the children resumed their game.

I looked at the sleeves of my robe and winced. It was drenched with saliva. Just lovely.

I couldn’t wash it off as I don’t want my robe soaked with freezing water, so I left it as is and tried not to mind it, waiting for the time to pass until I was called to help out to prepare for dinner time.

The other twin, Harumi, was there wheeling in the various pots that contained tonight’s dinner. She looked clammy and tired. I couldn’t blame her, cooking every day for more than forty people was a daunting task; I couldn’t even be bothered to cook for myself.

Seeing the sorry state she was in, I decided to offer assistance, to which she happily obliged.

“Thank you, teacher,” She heaved a tired breath. “These past few days have been tough.”

“You speak as if you have something daunting in your mind. May I ask why?”

“It’s just… The suppliers arrive late around midnight, and now they’re looking to make a profit out of us.”

“Suppliers?” I raised a brow, curious at her implications.

“Oh, um…” She twiddled her fingers, looked around her surroundings, then came up close to me and whispered. “Suppliers for cheap ingredients that we use to feed the children.”

“I see…”

I don’t understand why Harumi had to whisper that detail, but before I could even process the thought, she immediately followed up.

“Um, teacher, if you don’t mind… Will you please accompany my sister and I when the suppliers arrive? I know it’s out of your way and you must be tired from watching over the children the whole day, but please, we’d feel safer if you were there!”

“Erm, me? I’m not exactly a fighter myself,” I lied, as naturally as I breathed.

“There won’t be any fights, I promise!” Harumi insisted, but I could see the fear clear on her face. “I hope, at least…”

A hole opened up in my stomach: a pit filled with curiosity that might be the death of me.

“Okay, I’ll do it.” I replied.

“Really? Oh, thank you!” She gave me a light hug before awkwardly pulling away.

“Um, anyway, we must begin setting the table. Dinner tonight… Haaaah…”

“Hm? What’s wrong with our food tonight?”

“It’s vegetable soup. The kids wouldn’t like it.”

I let out a chuckle. “Well, of course. Kids do hate their veggies.”

“...Yeah, you could say that.”

Harumi proceeded to scoop spoonfuls of soup into the bowls I laid out on the table. The smell was really nice. I couldn’t imagine children hating something this tantalizing.

And yet, when it was dinnertime…

“Blech! Veggies!”

“Big sis, do we have no meat tonight?”

“No meat? Booooo!”

The kids rioted and threw a tantrum at us, complaining at how they wanted meat for dinner. The poor twins were overwhelmed at trying to calm the children down, so I had to step up and help maintain order.

“Hey, now!” I barked with a commanding tone. “Is that attitude proper to treat your big sisters that always take care of you?”

“But Teacher—!”

“No buts! You’ve all been very rude tonight! They made this with love and care for all of you, and you’re all acting horribly to them! Is that how you should act to these big sisters that love you!?”

They all shut up, but instead of remorse, their faces were traced with scowls. I could feel a crackle in the air, and it dispersed as the doors of the dining hall swung wide.

“Now, now!” The owner walked in, carrying a huge box. “Harumi, Miharu, Teacher Lucille, please leave the children to my care.”

He walked to the middle and plopped the box down. In it were packed meals.

“Meat! Finally!”

“We love you, uncle!”

“Yaaay! Hooray, uncle!”

The children cheered as they grabbed the packed meals for themselves and ate hastily. My eyes were either playing tricks on me, or did they just finish the entire meal between two to three minutes?

“Ah, children and their metabolism!” The owner chuckled, then they turned to us. “I’m sorry, I could only afford food for the children. We’ll have to settle for the vegetable soup.”

There were no complaints from the three of us. How could I? The soup was fantastic! I admit I may have pigged out a little bit, but I guess it made the twins happy that I enjoyed their cooking.

With bellies filled, all the children went to their quarters to settle for the night. On the other hand, the twins and I awaited the suppliers that were to arrive at the orphanage.

It was around half past ten in the night when a carriage pulled up in front of the orphanage. There were three men with faces covered in bandanas present for the exchange. They hopped off their carriage and hauled sacks into the orphanage with Miharu’s guidance on where to bring them.

So… this is where they get their meat, huh?

I’d call it unsanitary, but this was yet another reminder of where we were: Elevation Zero.

All of us stepped inside the pantry, the putrid smell of the raw meat in the sacks stirring something in my stomach.

“Now, about our payment…” One of the masked men began, turning to Harumi.

“B-But didn’t the owner negotiate about—!”

“I don’t care what that old geezer said. You don’t know what we went through to get the stuff you need! You’re not the one risking your lives and going through the mud. Start paying up, or things will get ugly!”

One of the men grabbed Harumi by the wrist. I instinctively reached for my wand, but she put up a good fight and even came out on top over their struggle.

“Let go of me!” Harumi yelped, breaking free from the man’s grip, sending him tumbling over the sacks of meat they carried. He tripped over, and the sacks spilled their contents.

“No! Our food!” Miharu cried.

I too felt like crying… because what the hell was I looking at!?

“Urp…!”

The vegetable soup I had earlier was threatening to come back up as I saw what their ingredients were.

Out of the sacks tumbled a dismembered head, followed by multiple body parts, all crudely cut up. The horrid stench of rotting corpses filled the small pantry, and my stomach made good on its promise, as the soup I had for dinner forcefully came back up.

“Teacher Lucille!” Harumi came to my side and pulled me away. “You must leave, now!”

“But… But Miharu—!”

Before I could protest, I could hear thundering footsteps echoing from the halls, as a handful of orphans barged into the pantry.

“Hey… It’s meat!”

My eyes went wide. Did one of them cheer?

“Finally! We have meat again!”

“Hooray! I love meat!”

The children greedily snatched up the body parts and quickly disappeared into the dark maze of hallways.

“Teacher Lucille, please chase after them!” Harumi pleaded. “They shouldn’t be allowed to eat it raw!”

I was filled with dread. I’ve seen a lot of things, but this was a whole new level of screwed up. Even in my nauseous state, I followed Harumi’s request and chased after the kids. They were easy to track as they left behind a faint smell of blood.

A haunting question crossed my mind as I ran. What did she mean by ‘not allowed to eat it raw’? I deduced something disturbing: this wasn’t the first time these children were fed remains.

I drew my wand at the ready should I need to defend myself. At last, I reached the hallway where there was a door slightly ajar.

I gently opened the door…

“...!”

art by @globining

In unison, all the children’s heads turned. Their smiles were wide, mouths filled with torn chunks of human flesh and sinew. These weren’t the cute and adorable children I once knew a few hours ago. All their facial features were slightly disfigured and horrifying, even as they ate.

“Teacher!” They all cried with a joyful tone. “Do you want some too?”

I took a step back, words stuck onto my throat as I felt another wave of nausea hit me hard. I slammed the door shut, turned around, and yelped as I came face to face with the orphanage owner.

“...Please let them feast,” The owner said solemnly. “I’m desperate to keep them fed… I couldn’t possibly let them wither and die in the cold. You wouldn’t either, would you?”

I still couldn’t reply. Fear, disgust, and insanity gripped me like a noose on my neck.

“Please leave while you can. Take the twins with you. It’s only evident that they’re getting harder to control, and I’m afraid they’d devour Harumi and Miharu as well, should an unfortunate time come.”

The owner slid past me and had his hand on the doorknob of the room filled with cannibal children.

I dared not figure out what he had in mind to do, and so I ran to my room, retrieved all my necessities, and went to find the twins in the kitchen.

“Harumi, Miharu!” I called out. “We have to leave, now—”

As I stumbled into the pantry in a panic, a gruesome sight awaited me.

Three pairs of clouded, lifeless eyes were staring at nothing, as I saw the men sent to “collect” from the orphanage hung over the pantry, freshly deceased. One of them had their neck hanging the wrong way, another pointed at the ceiling, and the third one was slung over a chair, a cleaver still embedded in his head.

Two shapes were hunched over the remains of one of them, the sounds of crunching, chewing and giggling echoing in the small room.

“It’s been so long… since I’ve tasted meat this good again…”

“Don’t I know it… this sweet sustenance…”

Two heads turned towards me and asked a question as one.

 

“Would you like to know, Teacher Lucille…?”

 

They smiled at me, and even in the dim light of the pantry, I could still see in sharp detail the bits of human entrails between their teeth.

They giggled again.

I broke.

The only thing I knew was that I could barely see where I was going through the tears in my eyes, but I managed to run to the entrance and out of the orphanage, not even bothering to look behind me, at least until I could see the dim lights of Elevation Zero’s streets.

Once I saw the streetlights, I fell onto the snow and lost what was left of the dinner I ate that night.

I felt horribly faint, but I willed myself to haul myself up from the cold snow and towards the train station, desperately willing the engine to go faster, because I wanted to get home.

 

“Ah… Finally.” I heaved with a content sigh, sitting down at a reclining chair and propped my feet up against my new desk.

A few days have passed since the orphanage incident. I’ve no more news about what happened afterwards, and I’ve filed my report to Fontaine.

What details did I include in the report? Everything. I had no concern whether they would take my word for it or not, but I did make sure I got all my ducks in a row.

All I could assume was Fontaine loved it so much, because he gave me extra compensation than he initially promised, probably as compensation for the trouble I’ve encountered.

And thus, here I am, sitting comfortably at a brand-new chair and a brand-new desk! I slammed my fist down towards the new desk as a stress test, and I ended up bruising my hand before I could even make a dent on it. Perfect!

I’ve also paid off my rent and bought necessities to hold me out for at least a month, and I still have around hundreds of piras with me, even after all the spending I did.

Oh, I also bought a new robe. I burned my old one; the one coated with saliva, I mean.

I don’t think I need to be reminded of that place ever again.