Chapter 153

Pardofelis: "Haha, who is it? Maybe just a stray cat passing by."

Kiana: "Still trying to deny it, Pardo! You're the real culprit!"

The Himeko somehow found some glasses and struck a pose like a famous detective.

Raiden Mei: "Pardo, you're really something..."

Pardofelis: "Ahem, I just felt so sorry for those children being locked up in the sanatorium, so I played with them for a bit."

To make the story of the Dusk Street elves believable to children, she added a touch of realism, giving them a wonderful childhood—something she should do.

The children don't need to thank her too much.

[In the scene, while Apponia is telling stories to the children, an uninvited guest, the Little Sprite of Dusk Street, arrives at the sanatorium.]

Pardofelis leaped off the wall.

"Phew, finally it's taken down! I'm exhausted."

An iron gate, clothes, and Apponia's storybook—that was Pardofelis's haul for the day.

"Haha, thank me, little ones! This school can't hold you back anymore."

"You will soon discover that being able to go wherever you want and do whatever you want is the happiest thing in the world."

The children, freed from the iron gate, gained their freedom, while she gained the goods.

"Everyone is happy, everyone is happy."

Pardofelis, hands on hips, happily acquired two doors.

"But how are we going to move such a big door?"

"Perhaps you need a stroller."

"Yes, yes, that's it! Just what I needed... Ah... the one settling the score!"

Pardofelis had just nodded when she suddenly realized something was wrong and jumped in fright.

"Haha, um... the weather's nice today, are you here for a walk too?"

"Walk?"

Apponia crossed her arms.

"If I heard you correctly, you just said it was a living creature, right?"

"So you heard me. Um... how should I put it?"

Pardofelis scratched his head.

Now that I've heard it, there's really nothing I can do.

As someone who survived the harsh conditions of Dusk Street, he was able to trade with various merchants and even escape danger several times.

Pardofelis naturally has her own unique methods!

With a powerful thrust of her legs, she arched her body forward, charging ahead like a startled wild beast.

"I was wrong, I shouldn't have tried to do that. I know I was wrong this time, please forgive me!"

Pardofelis begged for mercy at lightning speed, revealing her pitiful big eyes, and knelt down in front of Apponia.

The sudden action startled Apponia for a second.

"You... begged for mercy so quickly."

"After all, my greatest strength is my ability to assess situations and act accordingly."

Pardofelis scratched her head, showing no remorse whatsoever for her actions.

Kiana: "Pfft~"

Theresa: "Hahaha, Pardo, you begged for mercy way too quickly, hahaha."

Is this a cat from France? It's so funny, Apponia hasn't even started interrogating her yet and she's already kneeling down.

Without the slightest hesitation, even a moment's delay would be disrespectful to one's life.

Pardofelis: "Well, after all, surviving in Dusk Street requires some necessary experience. There's a saying that goes, 'To admit one's mistakes and not correct them is the greatest virtue.'"

Fu Hua: "To know one's mistakes and correct them is the greatest virtue."

The Immortal Crimson Bird couldn't help but rub his forehead, feeling a headache over the lack of literacy among his colleagues.

However, considering that she didn't have much schooling, it's quite impressive that she was able to say the last four words correctly.

Apponia: "Although the Little Sprite of Dusk Street are mischievous, they are still an indispensable part of the children at the sanatorium."

Pardofelis: "Sister Nia, it's so good that you think that way. You've told this story eight hundred times, I'm sick of it. If it were me, I would have already climbed over the wall and run away."

Apponia: "I'm sorry, those children aren't as free as you are."

They were not students, but patients.

The patient lived in a high enclosure, isolated from the outside world, like a frog at the bottom of a well, watching with envy as birds flew across the sky.

Apponia: "However, perhaps in their short lives, freedom really is more important than many other things."

Pardofelis: "Huh? Sister Nia, don't try to reason with me, I won't listen to a word you say."

Pardo shook her head.

If you let her run away with the children, or if you want her to dismantle the iron gate, Pardofelis can handle it swiftly.

But all those grand principles and such gave her a headache.

In the scene, Pardofelis kneels before Apponia, her attitude sincere and eager to admit her mistakes.

"I understand that everyone on Dusk Street has their own hardships, but even so, they shouldn't..."

"Stop, stop, stop."

Pardofelis suddenly stood up.

"A scholar can be killed but not humiliated. I'd rather you beat me up than listen to your lectures. Those kids are the same; their ears must be calloused by now."

The thought filled Pardofelis with indignation, and she wanted to stand up for those children.

"It's one thing to force them to listen to your rambling, but to keep them trapped here, with everything they're supposed to do and when they're supposed to do it clearly laid out, is another."

"This isn't a school, it's a prison!"

Pardofelis pointed to the door she had dismantled.

She wasn't there to buy goods; that was just a facade. She was there to restore freedom to the children and to be a righteous messenger against unscrupulous schools.

"So that's what you think..."

Apponia sighed.

"So, do you know that this is a sanatorium, not a school?"

"A sanatorium?"

Pardofelis was taken aback.

The children gathered here, so lively and energetic, didn't look like they belonged in a sanatorium at all.

"That's right, the children here are all plagued by illnesses, and their lives could be in danger at any moment. To protect them, I have no choice but to keep them confined in this small sanatorium."

"Oh, I see."

Pardofelis lowered her head, realizing she had made a mistake.

No wonder she felt something was off when she interacted with those children; they seemed healthy enough, but there was always an inexplicable sense of oppression about them.

Chapter 252 What did Chakravartin do to make Apponia angry?

Seeing Pardofelis's expression, Apponia sighed and stopped pursuing the matter of her removing the iron gate.

"Since you meant no harm, I won't pursue the matter further. However, I hope you can understand that not everyone is as free as you."

"Some people can only survive under constraints."

"Um..."

Pardofelis frowned, crossed his arms, and closed his eyes to think.

"While I find it hard to agree with your point of view, I reluctantly agree that what you're doing is indeed protecting them, and I don't intend to be some kind of righteous thief liberating tortured students."

"Real?"

"Of course, I always keep my word."

Pardofelis patted his chest and solemnly assured them.

"Don't worry, the children here won't see any more of the Little Sprite of Dusk Street."

"So you heard that story too?"

Apponia extended her hand. "In that case, next time you tell a story, you don't have to hide in the shadows. Come and listen with the children."

"No way, they're all weird and strange stories."

Pardofelis turned her head away.

"What kind of nightingale would run headfirst into a golden birdcage? Why won't you even spare a single bird? What good does it do you to make everyone cry?"

"And what about Kalpa, who loves to laugh out loud? Hahahaha, cough cough cough! Won't kids have nightmares after hearing this?"

Anyway, save your stories for those little ones. Goodbye... no, better yet, never again.

Pardofelis vanished from the sanatorium entrance in a flash.

Her escape speed was almost as fast as when she begged for mercy.

"Didn't you hear every single story without missing one?"

Apponia smiled, a rare occurrence, and turned to repair the iron gate that Pardofelis had removed.

The video ends here.

Theresa: "A nightingale crashing into a birdcage? A little boy laughing out loud? Apponia, don't you have any normal fairy tales in your storybooks?"

Especially that nightingale.

It's obviously something tragic to hear. Are you really okay telling this to children?

Himeko Murata: "The theme of fairy tales is joy, but it would be best to also give children some enlightenment."

Seele: "Yes, just like the stories I heard with Sister Bronya back in the orphanage."

Bronya: "Andersen's Fairy Tales, Bronya still remembers them."

Raven: "Is it something kids would like? I'll go buy a copy too."

Thinking back, almost everything the Raven taught their chicks in Nagazora City was a survival skill.

At that time, Nagazora City was in Honkai, and danger was always imminent. Finding supplies in the broken ruins was the top priority.

But things are different now.

The children live on her private island, and with the wealth Raven has accumulated over the years, they can live a life free from want.

Survival skills became secondary.

But Raven has no experience in taking care of children, and she doesn't have Mei's talent for cooking, so now she's a bit clueless about how to take care of children.

Kiana: "So, Raven, are you already living a life of leisure on a villa island, eating and drinking to death, telling stories to children every day on the beach at sunset?"

Raven: "What's wrong with it? On the contrary, this is the life I've always wanted. If the Herrscher of the Void hadn't blown up my island, I wouldn't have gone back to World Serpent to serve."

Kiana: "... I'm really sorry."

The Himeko felt a pang of guilt; she had single-handedly forced someone who could have lived an ideal life back to the World Serpent as a cadre.

Raven: "Never mind, I won't argue with a child. I'm going to buy storybooks."

Standing on the beach, with the cool sea breeze blowing, the Raven made a sincere and earnest wish.

Raven: "By the way, Apponia, do you need me to buy you a copy of Andersen's Fairy Tales? Hmm... I can't send Death Space over, but I can tell you the story."

She wouldn't let go of any opportunity to build a relationship with the Flame-Chasers.

When the island faces a crisis, she'll be able to justify her request to Kevin for help from the World Serpent.