Waiting for a Crisis II

After sharing the rewards, Carolyn told Lety the passcodes she gave each child and left soon after. Although the family told her that she didn't need to worry about it, Carolyn still intended on helping out at the Wild Boar Inn until Margaret was better.

Time passed quickly and peacefully after that day. While she was off work, Carolyn would help out at the church in the morning and at the inn in the afternoon. Knowing she would have to return to work the following week, Carolyn started teaching the children who were willing to learn how to cook. She still planned on dropping in during her lunch break and once work was over, but she didn't want them to starve waiting on her.

On the day before she was due to return to work, Carolyn was able to teach four children, including Derrick, how to make a simple soup. She asked Benedict to let them use the kitchen with his supervision until he believed that they could handle the cooking without any need for his presence. She also suggested letting them take over the daily meal for him, which he agreed to as well. They were still prone to error, but on average the children Carolyn taught could make soup better than Benedict. Carolyn envisioned the children one day pooling in their money and buying enough ingredients to give themselves three meals a day, but there were still many hurdles to overcome before then.

Once Carolyn started working again, her time spent helping the inn and the church was naturally reduced. Rome had offered to let her rest a little longer, but there was no need for that since Margaret fully returned to her position on the second day of that workweek. With Kanna also on the floor, there was no reason for Carolyn to step in, so she entered the tavern as a mere customer once again. She wondered if it was alright for her to stay like this, but she convinced herself to maintain the status quo until they managed to catch Henry and put a stop to his drug trafficking.

Speaking of Henry, the weekly meetings of Lavender, Benedict, and Carolyn continued with little progress. There were more sightings of people suspected to be Henry along with a rapid increase in addicts wandering around the slums, but Henry was still managing to elude them. Both Benedict and Lavender revealed that even some of the contacts they had on the lookout for him had been turned into addicts through nefarious means. In some cases, they were ambushed and forced to take the drug by other addicts. In other cases, their food was spiked with the drug without their knowledge. Regardless of how it happened, the victims were unable to fight against the powerful withdrawal symptoms and eventually became addicts themselves.

The three also experienced ambushes, but they all had keen senses for danger, so they were able to escape unharmed. Nevertheless, that didn't put a smile on any of their faces.

"When you told us that he was wanted throughout the kingdom, I knew this would be difficult, but he sure has us by our tails."

Lavender was so frustrated that she didn't even use her usual flirtatious tone. As a result of investigating Henry, Benedict discovered that he was likely a well-known drug trafficker and pharmacist who had once caused an entire village to commit group suicide from depression. There was an official bounty of 100 gold on his head, but even when he occasionally got captured, he always managed to escape. This was a type of person that even the guards might not be able to stop.

Lavender had worked the hardest trying to catch Henry, but he was as elusive as a shadow. No matter how quickly she followed up on a sighting of him, he was always gone by the time she arrived, and she couldn't let anyone else pin him down because he usually appeared with desperate addicts who would risk their lives to ensure that he and his products stayed safe.

Carolyn wasn't searching as hard as Lavender or Benedict, but she wasn't that well mentally either. She wasn't native to the slums or the city, so even if she tried her best to blend in, she would inevitably reveal a flaw, making her ill-suited for this task. She was training in silencing her presence in the city, but she still had a way to go before it would be of use.

Every time she visited the slums to go to the church, there were more corpses and people with lifeless eyes lining the streets. She hadn't seen any children, but one time she found the body of a pregnant mother and hadn't been able to get any pleasant sleep since. She hadn't told anyone about it and tried to keep a smile, but every time she closed her eyes, that woman's corpse surfaced from memory.

Benedict looked at the two frustrated women and continued drinking a cup of tea.

"Settle your nerves, you two. We won't be able to catch him without clear minds. Since he never reveals himself long enough for us to catch him, we instead have to predict where he'll show up."

"You make it sound easy, Priest. Can you even predict the actions of a lunatic like him?"

"No, but as long as his motive remains the same, there will be patterns to his movements. We just need to work on finding them."

Having accepted Benedict's reasoning, Lavender nodded but sighed in frustration.

"Mr. Benedict, are you close to figuring out his pattern?" Carolyn asked.

"I should be. I'll inform you and Ms. Lavender once I've confirmed it.

"I'll hope for good news then. If there's nothing else, let's end our meeting here."

"Very well."

Lavender was the first to leave as usual. Carolyn didn't completely lose her tension since they still had to catch Henry, but she became slightly more relaxed.

"Mr. Benedict. Do you think we'll be able to catch that man soon?"

"As long as there aren't any sudden changes. I imagine he's almost ready to expand his reach to the rest of the city, so we need to find him soon, or it'll be too late."

"As I thought. Are you sure there's nothing I can do to help?"

"Just stick to your usual routine. He's not a target you can catch without proper experience."

"I see..."

"You should keep your head up. How will you be of any use with your eyes attached to the ground?"

"You're right. I'll try."

Still feeling frustrated by her incompetence, Carolyn also left the room. This was the end of their fourth meeting, but they didn't appear to be any closer to a conclusion while the slums grew quieter. As long as she didn't show any white powdery substances, Carolyn could enter and leave the slums without being hassled, but it was hard to be glad about this. She wished she could do more to help with the search and put a stop to Henry, but like Benedict said, she was an amateur. As a hunter she could expertly track down her prey by using the clues it left behind, but Henry was even craftier than a fox, and what seemed like a clue could be a trap.

There was a time she thought she found him and chased after his image, but she was almost surrounded by his drug-addicted helpers. Carolyn was well aware that searching for him was dangerous and troublesome, but she didn't know how else to suppress the guilt in her heart. Although she had never seen her before and wasn't sure if she had taken the drug, Carolyn felt like the deceased mother and child in her memory were blaming her for her inaction. She knew she didn't need to feel guilty, but her heart wasn't so easily convinced.

While Carolyn was at work, busying herself so that her mind didn't wander, a little boy was wandering near the edge of the slums. This was the same little boy who had helped Carolyn carry ingredients to the church. Thanks to Carolyn's efforts, they were able to eat twice on most days, so the little boy wasn't desperate enough to steal. He was looking for old or injured folk with heavy bags to carry so that he could sell his services. He had tried with healthy people, but they were more likely to scorn him for his dirty attire. The slum children were able to wipe off their skin with water once a day, but clothes weren't cheap.

He also had hope that he would encounter Carol on her way to the church, but it was just a tiny wish. Although she made frequent visits to the church, she still seemed like someone from a different world, so it was hard for him to approach her. He didn't think she still remembered him, but he would be glad if she did.

While walking around, the little boy noticed an old man struggling to carry a suitcase. The old man's clothes were worn at the edges, but they were clean compared to most adults in the slums. Judging that he had met a customer, the little boy carefully approached the old man.

"Excuse me, sir. Do you need help?"

"Help? Are you trying to rob me?" the old man asked grumpily.

This was the normal reaction that he faced, so it made the little boy feel more at ease.

"No. I was just gonna carry it for you. Look at how scrawny I am. There's no way I can run while lugging around something like this."

The old man narrowed his eyes and looked up and down at the little boy. Seemingly satisfied with his explanation, the old man nodded.

"Alright. If you can carry it for me, I'll give you a treat."

"Okay!"

It was always better for the other side to bring up a reward, so the little boy happily grabbed the suitcase.