Translator(s): s.h.i.+mizuA    Editor(s): Merp-Merp    Proofreader(s): Pirates

Finally back to normal schedule. From now on, I will try to post at weekend, except if got IRL stuff to do.

2 more chapters until the next arc!

And so a few days have pa.s.sed.

―― In the end, Ludmilla failed to persuade the girl.

Even so, calling it failed was an understatement. It was already a failure on the level of utter defeat.

"Why would you want to take my mother from me!? I want to be with my mother!"

In the third day of her deal with s.h.i.+zuru. The girl's light green gaze looked at Ludmilla with hostility.

"I don't care what's right or wrong! I don't wanna know!"

A logical and persuasive words from the proper-upbring Ludmilla. All of that had opposite effect.

"I'm fine as long as I could stay with my mother!"

As she was still childish, it was easy for her to have a narrow vision and ignore it. If one asked decent man, all 10 from 10 would find that Ludmilla's word was right.

It was insane to choose a killer as a parent. It's as wrong as going to the bottomless swamp by yourself.

Ludmilla's words were extremely correct. But, there was one problem ―― the girl never wanted to be right from the start.

"So …… Please don't take away my mother from me…… !!"

The girl hid behind s.h.i.+zuru, and grasped his trousers tightly until it gets wrinkled. It was an absurd obsession. In a few days, s.h.i.+zuru has eroded the girl's heart with kindness and affection.

Also Ludmilla was consciously aware that she was also obsessed with revenge and has fallen deep into the darkness. At this point, she understood that she couldn't convince the girl any further with her persuasion.

In the end she hung her head in surrender, and reluctantly recognizes the girl's admission.

"I see, I understand the gist of it."

Richelieu uninterestedly told him while burning the braille reports. A report for her was always decided to be presented in both of written and oral form. It was to prevent inconsistency in information arising from the report trivial omissions.

"I am sorry, Richelieu-san. The report came late."

"Why are you apologizing? As long as a human as Ludmilla exists, such dispute happened was a given. If it were conflicts coming from different ideas rather than disagreements between members, there is nothing we can do about it. Instead your judgement was correct, to agree with Ludmilla's demand for the time being. I'm also haven't set the deadline, so you don't have any reason to apologize."

Richelieu slowly stood from her chair while she said those words in order. She walked towards the girl who peeping behind s.h.i.+zuru with only her face showed, and then crouched to match her eye level. The girl widened her eyes to her gesture that made one wouldn't thought that she is blind.

"Anyways, is this girl the rumored slasher in the street? Isn't she quite adorable?"

Richelieu tried extended her hand to stroke her head. But the girl frightened and retreated.

" …… Oh, I'm being hated? It seems I have never been liked by children from long time ago. Only you get attached to me, s.h.i.+zu. Well, now you have become splendid adult."

Overly polite.(TN: 慇懃無禮. This one an idiom that roughly means 'superficially polite but rude in intent.’ I yo know a better equivalent idiom please tell me.) With Richelieu's polite sugar coating and always business like speech manner, certainly a child wouldn't get emotionally attached to her.

Richelieu drew back her hand since she wasn't particularly bothered with it. Then she spoke politely to the girl.

"Nice to meet you young lady. My name is Richelieu, known as the Manager of Black Maria."

" …… manager?"

"Basically I'm the boss of the organization where s.h.i.+zu is. There is some things I want to ask you, young lady." (TN: Actually here Richelieu call her with 貴女(Kijo) a very formal way to address a woman.)

Richelieu didn't even try to get the other party's consent, expecting there wasn't any objection in the first place, and continuing the talk. Despite being bewildered by her pace, the girl nodded after she was calmed down by s.h.i.+zuru stroking her head.

"First, How did you escape the guard/garrison pursuit for the past 2 months?"

" …… Before I start killing, I made a lot of hiding place in the back alleys…… Besides, I also know the ways in surrounding area……"

"I see. You have made preparation before doing the crime, how wonderful. It's also a plus that you could grasp the details of the complicated Eastern district."

s.h.i.+zuru understood it by spending a few days with the girl, contrary to her childish appearance and innocent tone, she was quite sharp-witted. Of course, he couldn't deny her lack of knowledge, but he could compensate for that by teaching her a lot from now on. In fact, in this few days, she had absorbing many things like a sponge.

"Then moving on, where do you mastering killing technique? According to s.h.i.+zu, you understand about human anatomy."

" …… Mother …… my previous mother, I remembered."

When the girl killed her mother, the corpse was scattered to the joints. It seems at that time she learned a soft place, an easy-to-p.r.i.c.k angle.

However, how much of those who could do it on living human opponents … just by learning how to handle them? Also the training partner, was her real mother. Richelieu understood just how unusual the talent and potential the girl had, as she nodded curiously.

"Hmm …… I understand, so this is the last one. You never realized that you were chased by s.h.i.+zu and the others, but in contrary you were tailing them. Is this true?"

" …… Mm. I'm always watching. Until a full Moon have come again. I'm waiting, for mother to be alone."

And this was the most surprising part. Ludmilla, Casca, even Lady was not distracted at all, and had covering the vicinity area for 1 week. A terrifying superior convert ability. If s.h.i.+zuru didn't met the unknown men who died on that day, it might be him who met his death. Even s.h.i.+zuru who had developed premonition from having near death many times, couldn't felt her existence.  

"I see. By the way, I have said that was the last but, why are you calling s.h.i.+zu 'Mother'?"

"Because we're family…… and my family, is mother……"

For the girl who didn't have any relative beside her mother, to her family is mother. Hence she called s.h.i.+zuru mother, but because of that a rumor that s.h.i.+zuru was a female appeared. When Roze shouted 'I don't have any problem with it either!' while she visited the clinic, obliviously he thought that something was wrong.  

"Is that so? I don't want talk about the details, but s.h.i.+zu is full-fledged man. I have known it by myself."

" …… Ahaha."

s.h.i.+zuru was pondering how to return her remarks that contain deep meaning depended on how one heard it, in the end he could only smiled wryly. Even more, he couldn't met the girl's pure eyes that looked at him for a while.

TN: And thus s.h.i.+zuru got mom-zoned.