"What do we do next?"
After exchanging their core information, the three of them reached the same frustrating conclusion, there was nothing they could actively do right now.
Escape was a last resort, and they weren't prepared for it. Staying at the orphanage meant pretending nothing had happened and continuing their daily lives. Any other move wasn't impossible… but it was unwise.
A Demon had just been killed. That alone guaranteed attention. Acting recklessly now would be like stepping into a spotlight and daring the world to notice.
"What choice do we have?" Arthur muttered. "We stay at the orphanage. That's it."
"This dungeon could last up to a year. We can't spend all that time running blindly." He exhaled. "As long as we aren't exposed, we're safe—at least until we're 'adopted.'"
On the way back, Liza kept the conversation going, but with no new intelligence to exchange, the discussion drifted into neutral territory.
Then she casually asked, "You saved Nina. Where is she now?"
Arthur tilted his head toward the woods behind them. "We can't bring her back. Mom would just send her out again."
"Yako found a hollow tree near the fence. It's hidden well enough for now. We left her there."
Yako's voice carried worry. "She'll have to manage the night on her own. At least it doesn't look like it'll rain."
Arthur nodded after a moment's thought. "Tomorrow during free time, bring her some clothes and food. She's just a kid… tonight must've terrified her."
"Got it," Yako replied quietly.
Arthur glanced up at the sky. The stars had thinned, and the moon no longer shone as brightly as before.
Ahead of him, Liza briefly looked back. The moonlight behind her cast a faint shadow over her face. "Let's hope that when we wake up tomorrow, everything looks exactly the same."
Back at the dormitory, Liza unlocked the door, stepped inside, then casually tossed the key near the roadside before securing it again from within.
When Arthur entered their shared room, he noticed Isabella already lying under her blanket. At the faint sound of the door, the figure beneath the quilt stiffened slightly.
He knew she wouldn't sleep easily tonight.
But this wasn't the time for explanations.
Without saying anything, Arthur lay down after Liza settled into her own bed. For many of them, sleep never truly came.
The next morning, Isabella's wake-up call sounded a little less cheerful than usual... but otherwise, everything appeared normal.
Mom was in the kitchen, preparing breakfast for more than twenty children as she always did. Arthur knew she had returned around three in the morning. She'd even spent several minutes outside searching for her missing key before finding it by the roadside and unlocking the door.
It had been a disastrous night for her as well. The shock alone had left her too shaken to question when she had dropped the key, or why her pocket watch was missing.
She had been ordered back to the orphanage to confirm whether any remaining "cargo" had been taken. Fortunately, aside from Nina, no other children were unaccounted for.
For now, she retained her position.
From the way the scene was handled, it seemed the higher authorities had concluded that the incident was nothing more than a wild Demon snatching food on impulse.
After all, Demons possessed overwhelming physical superiority over humans. The idea that one of them could be killed without resistance didn't align with their assumptions—unless, perhaps, firearms had been involved.
However, judging from the corpse, the Demon had been cleanly decapitated. That kind of raw force was something only another Demon should be capable of.
As for the sharp blade wound itself, it wasn't entirely abnormal. Demons weren't all the same. Some relied purely on overwhelming strength, while others, especially the weaker ones, used tools and weapons to compensate. From that perspective, a wild Demon hunting with a blade wasn't impossible.
What truly enraged the higher-ups wasn't the method of death. It was the fact that such an important Farm had been infiltrated without detection.
Since the scheduled "ceremony" couldn't be postponed due to the loss of goods, a lower-quality product from another Farm was hastily selected and delivered instead.
After all, at this particular Farm, one child had just been adopted. Selecting another immediately might raise suspicion or disrupt the carefully maintained atmosphere. If the children's mental state were affected, years of meticulous cultivation could collapse overnight.
One had to admit, the staggered delivery schedule between Farms was a carefully designed system.
Back in the dining hall, Mother wore her usual warm smile as she tended to the children. Watching her move about so naturally, Isabella felt her chest tighten with conflicting emotions.
"Mother… has Nina arrived at her new home?"
Isabella didn't know the full truth. She didn't understand Mother's true relationship with the monsters. Part of her still wanted to believe.
But Nina was missing. That much was undeniable.
So how could Mother smile so gently this morning, as if nothing had happened?
Or… was that smile nothing more than a mask?
"Mm."
Mother crouched down, her fingers brushing tenderly against Isabella's cheek as she met her eyes. "Nina has already gone to her new mommy and daddy. But she'll always be part of our family. Don't worry."
Isabella's carefully composed expression nearly shattered.
"Yes… I hope she'll be happy."
She realized her earlier question had already been slightly out of place. Wanting to avoid suspicion, she tried to end the conversation. "Mother, I'll go have breakfast now…"
"By the way, Isabella."
Mother's hand didn't withdraw. Instead, it slid subtly lower, brushing near her neck and behind her ear, as though checking for something. Her voice softened. "Last night, you—"
"Mother, Coco isn't feeling well again."
The sudden interruption from the corridor broke the tension instantly.
Mother glanced toward Eren standing at the entrance and felt her unease ease slightly. Perhaps she had simply been overthinking.
"Mm. I'll go right away."