Things change around the 11-year-old orphans from Grace Field as they approach their twelfth year of life.
✦ Will these four eldest children, who have placed so much faith in their sole guardian, Isabella, be able to betray that trust after learnin...
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Chapter Nine | Lies
[Narrator]
Ninelie found herself face to face with the enigmatic Sister Krone. The door behind her, a heavy reminder of the confines of this place, and Krone prancing about like an obnoxious puppeteer.
"What is it that you wanted to tell me, Sister Krone?" Ninelie finally broke the silence, trying to maintain her composure in the face of the woman's unsettling presence.
Krone nonchalantly plopped herself onto the bed, crossing her legs as she gazed at the young girl, her amusement evident in a frightening smile. "Well, you see—I've been observing you for a while, and I can really tell that you are troubled, with something."
"Sister," Ninelie couldn't help but smile, not out of amusement but to shield herself from Krone's prying. "Why would I tell you, when it's clearly none of your business?"
With a sinister grin, Krone stood up and moved closer, her hands resting on Ninelie's shoulders, and her face dangerously close to hers. "Oh, please! Don't be so hard on yourself. From the day that I got here, I already became a part of the Grace Field House's family. Whenever some of the children are bothered about something, it is also my responsibility to help them out and be there for them."
Ninelie couldn't deny that Krone had an uncanny way of worming her way into everyone's affairs. "Please do not worry, Sister. Nothing's bothering me," she insisted, trying to put an end to the conversation.
But Krone was relentless, not willing to let go of her prey so easily. She had a twisted belief that she would always win, and in her eyes, Ninelie was just a mere eleven-year-old, susceptible to her manipulations.
"If you'll be honest with me, I can find a cure for your illness," Krone cajoled, her voice dripping with deceit. "That phantom illness that you have, it may seem like it doesn't have a cure, but I assure you that it does."
"I'm fine, Sister Krone." Ninelie maintained.
"...I see. Well, then–" Krone smirked.
Undeterred, Krone decided to up the ante. She pulled out a pair of jingle bells tied together with a black thread, an item Ninelie had thought she had lost. The sight of it made Ninelie's eyes widen in surprise.
"I get it~!" Krone taunted, enjoying the sense of power she held over the young girl. "You are totally adamant, and I am completely aware that this is not enough for you to open that damn little mouth of yours..."
Gripping Ninelie's hand, she placed the bells onto her palm, continuing her twisted game. "But I just wanted to let you know that you can depend on me. I have experienced a lot of things throughout my life, and I just don't want you or any of the children to go through the same thing I did when I was your young age."
