Chapter 84: Music always touches people’s hearts

[The priest was on his way home saw you walking alone and confused on the road. He came forward enthusiastically to help you.]

　　[When facing him, you feel an inexplicable disgust for some reason and even have the thought of killing him... But in the end, you hold back.]

　　[Because you need food to fill your stomach, warm clothes, and a place to rest, and he happens to have all these things.]

　　[So, you temporarily followed him and went to the church which was a welfare home... Here, the children greeted you happily and wanted to play with you.]

　　[But as you glance around, you feel that their faces look familiar... as if you have seen them several times before.]

　　[Especially when your eyes fall on a child hiding in the distance, looking a little timid, you always feel like you know him... You ask the children around you, but you get to know that he is a "bad boy" named "Light", and the children also ask you not to talk to him.]

　　[You vaguely sensed that something was wrong inside, so you secretly raised your vigilance... On the second day, the priest took you to the police station as promised to help you find your relatives. The moment you stepped into the police station, you always felt a little nauseous... as if you were very resistant to this place.]

　　[It's really strange. In your impression, the police station should be a good place, a place that can help people. How can you hate this place?]

　　[Although it is very strange, you do not resist this kind of judgment that seems like "intuition", so you start to look around, looking around like a curious child, and then while the priest and the police officer are talking, you run around in the police station like a playful child.]

[Although you acted very playful, your politeness and cuteness made the police officers not pay attention. They just smiled and warned you not to run around... Some police officers even joked with you, and some just played with you directly.]

[The priest beside you saw this, but he didn't stop you. He even laughed happily when he saw you playing with the police officers as if he was pleased that you were a cheerful and lively child.]

[I don't know if it's because the police officers have too few entertainment activities, or if it's simply because you're so cute, but everyone's interest is getting higher and higher. In the end, someone jokingly plays a song and pulls you to play along with the song.]

[The cheerful tune makes people feel happy, and you can't help but hum along with the beat... You are surprisingly good at rhythm and tune, and many police officers jokingly told the priest that you will become a good singer in the future.]

[The priest gladly accepted their blessing, and there was a hint of satisfaction in his eyes as he looked at you... Faintly, you seemed to feel that there was a hint of... aggression in the priest's eyes as he looked at you, which made you particularly disgusted.]

['I want to kill him' this thought pops up in your mind from time to time]

[Not now, there is a better way - but soon, you will think so again, suppressing the previous idea of ​​brutally killing the priest]

['Yes, that's right, there will be a better way, just wait a little bit' - you warned yourself in your heart]

[Soon, probably because you guys were making too much noise, the songs, singing, and cheering were too loud, the director who was working in his office came out and shouted at you to stop.]

[Almost instantly, the entire police station fell silent. You looked around and found that although the surrounding police officers did not speak, they all looked at the chief with a hint of displeasure and impatience... and the priest was even more straightforward. There was obvious disgust and irritation on his face, but it disappeared in an instant, and his face returned to its original friendly appearance.]

[You tilted your head, thought about it, and then took the initiative to step forward and apologize to the chief. After all, the commotion here was caused by you, and you also asked the chief not to blame the other police officers... Maybe they were just too happy, after all, you were so cute]

[Honestly speaking... when a child says "I'm cute" in all seriousness, it's really funny, especially when the child is really cute and polite. Then... even if the child is not cute, he becomes cute at this moment.]

[Perhaps because you were serious and naively made a little joke, the chief's attitude softened. He first criticized the police officers for making a fuss during working hours, and then asked them to return to their respective positions, and then he did not pursue the matter further.]

[The director then squatted down and rubbed your head, and briefly asked about your condition. He then came to the priest and exchanged some information about you, and then said nothing more.]

[It's just that… maybe because of your actions just now, the chief left a good impression on him. The chief specifically asked the police officer for a copy of your information and said that he would help find your relatives. At the same time, he asked the priest to take good care of you. After all, you are a good child.]

[For some reason, the priest seemed a little unhappy when he heard the director's instructions, but then he smiled and nodded and agreed.]

[After a brief greeting with the director, the priest took you away, and the director watched you go away, his eyes lingering on your and the priest's backs for a long time... But you did notice his gaze, turned around and waved to him politely, and the director was also stunned for a moment, then smiled and waved back, as a response to you]

[But after you left, the director fell into deep thought again, frowning, as if he was troubled by something.]

[But that has nothing to do with you for now... After being taken back to the church by the priest, you began your daily life without any changes.]

[The experience in the police station that day gave you some inspiration. You often hum some tunes in the church. The brisk rhythm and beautiful melody make the children like to gather around you to listen to you humming and play with you, even the "bad kids" in other people's mouths.]

['I see… music always touches people's hearts' you have some understanding]

[You begin to hum different tunes according to your thoughts, but generally, they are cheerful because you hope that the children around you can be happy... plus the joy and friendliness conveyed to you by the children around you, you are also happy to do so]

[You start to make friends with the children, whether they are good kids or "bad kids", you are willing to take the initiative to talk to them... Although you hate the priests here, and even the nuns who take care of you, you like these children very much.]

[And those children are willing to communicate with you, even those "bad kids". Although they are very resistant to communicating with you at the beginning, their attitudes gradually soften. They will secretly find some time when other children are not around you to chat with you, and the rest of the time they will hide away from you and other children and listen to you humming quietly.]

[As you communicate, you also find that the so-called "bad kids" are not really bad. They are also very kind, and even more well-behaved than ordinary children, but they are still labeled as "bad kids"... Do you think there must be some special reason for this?]

[Well, it's all because of the priest... Although you don't have direct evidence, but... you hate him, so it must be his fault anyway! ]

[Since they are children, it is okay for them to be a little willful, right? — You find reasons for your inexplicable judgment in your mind, and then you find it funny that you are "judging" yourself.]

[However, you don't care too much about these things. In comparison, you want the good kids and the "bad kids" to reconcile… We are all good kids, so why should we be separated? ]

[You begin to try to use your singing as a glue to attract children from both sides to do activities together, and teach them some skills you have figured out yourself]

[Under the guidance of you, the "little teacher", the children slowly began to communicate with each other. Although the "bad kids" were very repulsive at first and the good kids were also very resistant, they gradually began to talk and eventually chatted with each other, and then... soon, the children forgot their previous barriers and chatted and played together.]

[Although everyone still separated clearly during the night rest period, the distance between the two sides had unknowingly narrowed a little... Come to think of it, this distance and estrangement was artificial, created by taking advantage of the children's simple concept of good and evil. Although it was difficult to completely destroy it, it was not difficult to build a bridge of communication.]

[The priest saw all of this. You could feel several times that the priest's eyes were full of resentment when he looked at you and soon turned into an extremely aggressive look, but when you looked back, the priest's expression was so kind and amiable.]

['What a hypocritical person... a bit disgusting' you can't help but think so]

[However, even though the priest hated your actions, he did not stop you... It's simple because he couldn't do it.]

[Your singing has become a regular "entertainment program" for the children in the church. Everyone likes to gather around you and listen to you humming tunes. Although you have not received professional training, the cheerful tunes you hum with a natural sense of rhythm are very popular with children. They are even willing to temporarily put aside the distinction and barriers between good children and "bad children"]

[And the priest can't risk ruining his image in the hearts of all the children to stop your behavior... Besides, the priest can still tolerate this point. After all, the barrier he has created for so long is not something you can break directly.]

[What really upset the priest was that... because of your positive actions at the police station last time, the chief of the police station seemed to be particularly fond of you, a good kid... plus the chief had said he would help you find your relatives, so the chief came to the church not long after.]

[He even said that he came to see you and the children... He also emphasized that he came as a private person, not as the director... This made the priest very unhappy.]

[More importantly, the priest was worried that the director would find out something and then use his stubborn personality to hold him accountable...]

[If things develop like that, the church will be in danger. The people above will probably abandon him in order to avoid being exposed, or even use him as an "abandoned child" in exchange for resources... This is something the priest absolutely cannot accept, as he still has many "bad kids" who need to be "disciplined"]

[For this reason...the priest had to take action]

[The priest used his connections a little bit... to get the director to be busy with other cases and temporarily unable to get away. During this time, the priest will... make good arrangements for you.]

[Of course, he won't attack you directly, that's not in line with his own way of doing things, and it will also damage his image in the children's hearts... It doesn't seem to work to directly discredit and accuse you, because the children will speak up for you, after all, they like listening to you sing]

　　[…It's really annoying. When you come to the church, all the original arrangements start to become chaotic, which makes the priest very unhappy. Therefore…he decides to be a little tougher, which is rare.]

　　[Soon, you will find that the number of children around you has decreased. After almost two days, the children no longer gather around you, and even move away from you in fear... They are unwilling to sit next to you even when eating, and are unwilling to talk to you even when resting.]

　　[The good kids looked at you with a little fear in their eyes. Sometimes they would show a desire to get closer to you, but they would quickly shrink their necks and look away, not daring to look at you.]

　　[The "bad kids" wanted to speak several times, wanting to remind you of something. Some of the "bad kids" who were on good terms with you even wanted to come forward and talk to you, but were eventually stopped by other "bad kids"... From time to time, they would touch your arms covered by long sleeves, or your body covered by clothes, with a look of pain on their faces, and then they would look away, not wanting to look at you.]

　　[Obviously, the priest did something to make the children isolate you and then... do something to you]

　　[But you don't mind it, and you're not nervous... Instead, you hum the tune softly, as if nothing has changed.]

　　[The priest seemed a little annoyed because he didn't see your embarrassment...]

　　[…He's about to attack you directly—you can feel it]

　　[But none of this happened in the end, because...someone from the church came]

　　————————

　　Tick-tock——

　　It's the sound of raindrops falling.

　　"Hmm~ Hmmm~ Hmmm~"

　　It was Nozomi's clear humming voice.

　　Ever since he learned how to use singing to make people happy, Nozomi has fallen in love with this kind of entertainment... Music not only brings joy to others, but he himself can also immerse in it and enjoy the fun... and since then, he has been working hard to practice and explore skills, as if he was born with a goal to become a child studying music and art.

　　Coincidentally, Nozomi didn't think there was anything wrong with this. Instead, he thought it was good... Whenever he saw other children smiling because of his singing, Nozomi himself felt very happy.

　　It's a pity... because of some special reasons, the children no longer gather around him.

　　But it doesn't matter ~ Nozomi won't complain about those children, because he knows that everything is because of the priest.

　　"Hmm~?"

　　Humming a slightly cheerful tune, Nozomi reached out to touch the raindrops falling from the eaves. The rain gathered in his hands, bringing a cool touch. The rain falling outside made the surroundings damp, but Nozomi did not feel uncomfortable. Instead, he felt comfortable.

　　————————

　　[Entry: Blessing of the Water/Ocean (Blue), has taken effect]

　　You become more fond of water-related places and weather

　　————————

　　Rain... It's so nice. he loves rainy days. The water is cool and very comfortable. 'Hmm... I heard that at the edge of the continent, there is a blue sea made up of countless waters... If I have the chance, I must go and see it!'

　　Nozomi smiled happily, and the tune he was humming did not stop, but gradually changed from "light" to "gentle"... just as gentle as a flowing stream.

　　If you look closely, you can find that his dark pupils have slightly changed... dots of gold appear in the depths of his pupils. The original dark color sets off the tiny gold, like the twinkling stars in the night sky, and around the pupils, there is a layer of light scarlet. If you don't pay close attention, you may not notice it.

　　Tick-tock——

　　The rain was still falling, but before you knew it, the light sound of the raindrops falling... seemed to be slowly becoming rhythmic, as if they were beating the beat, or making a melody, echoing Nozomi's unknown tune, but if you listen carefully, you can find that it was just an illusion.

　　"Hmm~?"

　　Nozomi seemed oblivious to all this. he just sat alone on the steps in the front yard of the church with his eyes slightly lowered, humming a tune he didn't even know. His head swayed gently to the rhythm, and he enjoyed this pleasure that belonged only to him along with the rain falling around him and the gentle breeze.

　　After an unknown amount of time, Nozomi seemed tired and slowly stopped humming. The sound of rain falling around him became noisy again, like the applause of the audience at the curtain call.

　　Ah, no...someone was clapping.

　　"Great sound."

　　A gentle voice sounded from the door of the church. Looking up, she found that it was a priest whom Nozomi did not know but who looked somewhat familiar.

　　He was walking slowly towards her, holding an umbrella.

　　"Ah, hello, Father... who are you?"

　　Nozomi stood up and asked softly in a very polite voice... he subconsciously felt that the priest in front of him was not comparable to the "priest" in the church and that the priest in front of him was someone he should respect.

　　"There is no need to use such respectful titles, children walking on the road..."

　　He walked forward, put away his umbrella, stood in front of Nozomi, and looked at him carefully, then spoke softly as if he was relieved.

　　"You can call me [Father Enrique]... I'm glad, kid, that I made it this time."

(TL: wait...)

　　Father Enrique said with a smile.

　　Nozomi could feel that the priest in front of him... was really happy."