Lire — wearing a black suit — briskly walked across the long hallway while wiping away his sweat-soaked forehead. Every ten or so steps, he'd check the time on his phone, curse at it, then briefly dash forward before returning to his previous pace.

'Oh no, oh no, oh no... I'm fucking late!'

The powers given to him only worked under certain conditions, so if he missed his chance, he'd never be able to complete his task!

'It's all that damned Rifujin na Magonote's fault! Who the hell told him to make such an interesting book!?'

He had only intended to read for a few minutes, but time flew by as he remained immersed in the story...

Before he knew it, Lire had already finished the entire volume!

In a panic, he finally took his weekly shower and came here — to the Planar Archives — in order to complete his duties as one of Akasha's writers.

But he was still quite late.

Since this was the case, there was only one thing he could do.

'I'm gonna be so broke after this...'

Lire bit his lip in frustration as he pulled out a purple fountain pen and stabbed his palm with it. He winced from the pain but continued to force the pen's pointy end into his flesh, twisting it around for good measure.

'This should be enough...'

Once he was satisfied, he raised the pen — now soaked with ink-like blood the color of tar — then wrote incomprehensible words in the air in front of him. The letters left behind by the pen's movements remained hanging in the void, as if an invisible piece of paper was suspended there.

Soon, the indecipherable characters he'd written burst with an audible pop, spraying blue embers all over the place. After a few moments, the scattered embers gathered into a single spot, forming a humanoid silhouette.

'It'll do for something I'll use for less than an hour.'

Content, Lire bit his own tongue before spitting out a cloud of crimson mist, which was quickly absorbed by the silhouette. A flash of light followed, and before anyone knew it, there was another Lire right in front of him.

"What is my purpose, master?" it asked, its expression blank. Eyes, like those of a dead fish, stared back at him.

"Your purpose is to act and think like me, as you interview Helen Mercer. While you're alive, you will also share my memories. Then you shall perish after an hour, transferring all your new experiences to me," Lire recited in monotone as the sound of his foot tapping on the floor echoed across the quiet hallway. "also, your name is C'Lire. It means Clone-Lire."

"Sure." C'Lire grinned as he gave Lire a thumbs up. "It sounds like a pain in the ass, but I'll do it."

"Good." Lire nodded in satisfaction as he started walking away. "I'll go with 107. You use reception room number..."

He looked down at his phone, checking which ones were available. Unfortunately, there weren't a whole lot of them. With no other choice, he just went with the closest one.

"303. You'll have room number 303. It's the nearest available one."

His other self looked visibly irritated at this.

"Wait, can't I get room 107? Climbing up two more floors sounds like a drag..."

"That's why you're assigned there. And don't forget to properly write a report about the interview."

Not paying any more attention to his annoying clone, Lire walked toward a nearby door, threw it open, and walked in.

"Stupid fucking prick..." C'Lire cursed under his breath as he watched the door slam behind his original self. He didn't really understand why he detested that guy so much, but if he wasn't the clone here, he would've definitely clocked that bastard in the gonads.

'You're gonna get so swamped with work. Good riddance!'

Of course, seeing as his existence was going to cease in an hour or so, the more unfortunate of the two was clear. However, this Lire didn't give a rat's ass about that. He was just happy that that bastard would suffer in his stead!

In any case, he had quite a bit of work to do. Though it was mainly just walking to the third floor.

'Sunova bitch... This is where beings who literally make worlds meet with each other, but why is there no elevator?'

Regardless of the place's lack of convenience, he wasn't going to arrive at his destination if he didn't get a move on.

"Work work work~ even when I'm gonna die later ~ I gotta work~! I'm gonna die~!"

While singing a very depressing song about depressing things, C'Lire jogged down the hallway. The sound of his loafers colliding with the floor echoed against the walls together with his horrible singing.

"Haah... haaah..." C'Lire panted as he finished climbing up the stairs. He'd finally arrived at the aforementioned third floor. While he wiped off a bead of sweat on his forehead, his phone vibrated. "Hm?"

After fishing it out of his pocket, he found out that it was actually a message from himself. Or rather, from his original self.

'The fuck does he want...? Is he gonna push even more work on me?'

A grimace crossed his face at the idea of more things to do. He was going to vanish in an hour, so why the hell was he fated to be that bastard's lackey for his entire existence...?

'Well, I was technically made for this task, but still...'

Feeling a bit dejected, C'Lire's head hung low as he checked his phone.

Hey, you fucktard. : Me

Watch out for when you summon Helen. : Me

I just did it to Vianna, and she showed up naked. : Me

His eyes widened. 'Oh, shit. Really...?'

Glimpse of Eternity would have had to go through craploads of bashing if it depicted a nude underage girl, even accidentally. One of the sites the novel was posted on was filled with perverts, so it may have gotten off with a slap on the wrist there, but as for the other site? The novel was already getting bombed with one-stars and two-stars every few days. It definitely didn't need more hate at this point.

"Pffft."

Still, C'Lire couldn't help but find the situation funny as he replied back to himself.

LOOOOOL : Me

I wish I coulda seen that. : Me

I got it. : Me

As soon as he sent the last message though, his shoulders twitched upon realizing something.

'Naked...? Huh?'

It was mentioned in the message loud and clear, but C'Lire ended up focusing on the part where Helen might appear naked. But then he realized that his original self had seen Vianna — that super-ultra-sexy mommy-wolf MILF — naked.

'What the fuck!'

While he was out here, soaked with sweat from climbing a bunch of stairs, his original self was having his eyes blessed by some S-grade eye candy?

'Goddammiiiiiiit!'

His exhaustion was completely blown away by his feelings of injustice as he stomped off to reception room #103. The door slammed open when he practically kicked it down.

"I'm gonna get this job over with and then die!" C'Lire let out an indignant roar, venting his feelings of injustice. "And I'm not even gonna write the report about it! You do it, you bastard!"

Despite himself, he couldn't help but smirk at the thought. That motherfucker would have to write two special chapters, and then the actual chapter for this week! He'd be utterly swamped with work!

'Eat shit, asshole!'

Feeling a bit better now, C'Lire looked around as he checked all the things he'd need for the interview with Helen Mercer.

'Recording crystal is turned on... check. Sofas...check. A pitcher that never runs out of apple juice and a few cups... check. A magic jar that never runs out of candy... check.'

Seeing as Helen wasn't going to be as difficult as Vianna, C'Lire's supplies weren't anything special. A steak from a cooking anime, or anything from an anime, would cost a lot of resources after all.

Resources that he didn't have.

'If only I had more readers... I could've prepared some really nice treats for my characters.'

C'Lire wallowed in sorrow for as he moved to plop his ass down on one of the sofas, but he quickly bounced back. He was still but a four-month-old author. His journey had just begun!

Slap!

After slapping his cheeks to hype himself up, C'Lire took out a small round orb. The room's light reflected off of its glassy surface, which was a strange mixture of purple and green. C'Lire pulled out his pen once again, stabbing it into his thigh. His ink prepared, he started writing words on the orb, then threw it into the air once he was done.

The orb shined with iridescent light as it flew across the room, but by the time it landed on the opposite sofa, the orb was no more. Instead, there was an adorable little girl with black hair. She wore a white summer dress as she snoozed away without a care in the world.

Seeing her, C'Lire nodded in satisfaction.

'Cute.'

He wasn't someone who got off on children or anything. It was just that Helen's cuteness drew out the protective instincts he didn't know he had. Adding the fact that Helen was literally a character of his creation, C'Lire felt like a father at the moment.

'Anyone who wants to marry her will have to go through me!' he inwardly joked.

In any case, there was work to be done. He took the magic jar into his hands and tried to open it. However, as is the case with a lot of jars, it just wouldn't budge.

'Fucking hell...'

"UGGHHH!" C'Lire groaned loudly as he exerted used every ounce of strength he could muster to free the accursed container from its lid. His fingers and his arms screamed for him to stop, but he was determined to do his duty. It'd be too much of an embarrassment if he couldn't fulfill his existential purpose just because of a tightly closed jar.

'Oh wait, I just saw the perfect life hack for this.'

While he was procrastinating a few days ago, Lire discovered a short documentary on youtube. It was about the effects of cursing.

Apparently, swearing helped people endure pain, amongst a slew of other beneficial effects. The video was oddly convincing, and Lire was just looking out for the opportunity to put it to use.

And now he — C'Lire, the more handsome of the two — would put that knowledge to good use.

"FUCK! SHIT! MOTHERFUCKER! FATHERFUCKER! SON OF A BITCH! DAUGHTER OF A BITCH! N-WORDDDDD—!"

Pak!

'Eureka!'

His potty mouthing must have worked, since the glass jar was finally liberated of its cover. The sweet smell of sugary goodness billowed out from the container's mouth, filling the room with a pleasant fragrance.

'I freaking knew I had it in me!'

Incredibly proud of himself, C'Lire's lips curled into a wide smile. Now all he had to do was wake his cute little pseudo-daughter up. He looked up to gaze upon her adorable form only to be met by a surprise.

"..." Helen — already awake — was standing right in front of him, her eyes glued to the item in his arms. Her gaping mouth had a bit of drool threatening to drip onto the ground. She had her hands held out in front of her, palms facing the sky while her feet fidgeted in anticipation.

"Oh my god!" he couldn't help but exclaim, loosening his grip on the jar and letting it drop to the floor.

"Hup." Luckily, Helen's reflexes allowed her to catch it just in time. A bundle of treasures in her hands, the girl looked at it intently for a moment before returning it to C'Lire.

"O-oh..." he spluttered, still a bit dazed at the horror movie-like encounter. C'Lire took the item back into his arms and then smiled warmly. "Thanks, Helen."

"Mm." she nodded, seemingly thinking nothing of it.

'It's nice that she has some good manners...' he thought.

Even though Helen was designed to be a glutton character, she wasn't the type to go around eating everything in sight, even if it wasn't hers.

Turn that around though, and that would mean that she would eat anything she was allowed to eat.

Seeing the desire in the little girl's eyes, C'Lire took fished out a piece of candy from the jar. While waving from side to side, he asked, "Want some?"

"Mm mm." Helen nodded twice, her eyes following the golden-brown caramel as it moved left and right.

"Okay, here you go."

"Ah~."

C'Lire wanted to give the candy to her, but who would've known that Helen wouldn't stick her hands out and just open her mouth instead?

'Well, whatever.' he shrugged before shoving it through her lips.

"Mmmmm. Shank yoo."

"Don't talk while your mouth's full."

C'Lire took out a handkerchief and wiped off the bit of drool that got on his fingers. If it was Vianna's spit, he could've auctioned it off, but he didn't like the idea of selling anything of Helen's to some dirty old men on the internet. And he was quite sure that bastard was of the same mind.

"More?" Helen asked with her empty mouth open once again.

"Okay." He was all too happy to oblige. "But if you want more, you have to do something for me."

"I'll do it," she answered without hesitation before widening her mouth to urge him to get on with it.

'So easy!'

Of course, he was happy that he'd be able to complete his tasks without exerting himself too much, but it made him fret about this little girl's well-being. Didn't she trust people a bit too quickly? She didn't even know his name!

'I'm so worried....'

He would have to take special care of her in the main story. Otherwise, she might get led off and have horrible things happen to her. Things that usually happened to adorable lolis in hentai!

C'Lire's expression filled with resolve as he inwardly decided to protect this little cutie-patootie. Of course, since he was going to vanish into oblivion later, it was all he could do but hope that the bastard who made him would feel the same way.

"Haaah..." he sighed in anxiety while tossing a caramel into the air,

Helen's eyes sharpened as her body turned into a blur, easily devouring the sweet mid-air. Her prize obtained, Helen returned to her previous position, with her previous expression — which is to say she looked utterly expressionless.

While she was munching away, C'Lire decided to move things along.

"Well, first of all, my name is C'Lire. And I'm the one who brought you here."

Helen gulped before tilting her head. "Cool Liar?"

"No no no." he wagged a finger in the air as he said his name again, slower this time, so that she'd be able to see how he pronounced it. "C'Lire."

The little girl tilted her head to the other side, a brow raised in confusion. "Eclair?"

'Your eternal hunger is getting to you! Also, why is it getting farther away from the name!?'

C'Lire took a deep breath before exhaling. Perhaps it was because he was talking to one of his brainchildren, he felt his usually limited patience temporarily improve ten-fold.

"Cuh. Lire. C'Lire. Say it with me."

"Cull Lair?"

"C'Lire."

"Cool hair?"

"..."

"Cake?"

"That's food, dammit!" Cake slammed his fist on his lap, his patience used up faster than he'd initially thought. His head hung low as frustration consumed him.

Helen — her face still as blank as ever — put a hand on the man's shoulder. "Don't be sad."

'You're the reason I'm like this!'

He really wanted to retort to her, but he knew he'd never get anywhere even if he did. As such, he just decided to pull out his trump card... or rather, what one should do when they wanted to get Helen to do something.

"If you say it properly, I'll give you three caramels."

"C'Lire," Helen voiced with perfect tone and diction before opening her mouth once again.

The grumpy man roughly shoved in the agreed-upon price as he leaned back on the sofa. He patted the spot to his right, urging the girl to sit.

Nom Nom Nom

Still chewing away, Helen moved to sit right next to the living candy dispenser without much thought, her legs dangling off the couch.

C'Lire cleared his throat while pushing down the desire to lecture her about not letting her guard down around strangers. He knew she'd forget about everything when she got back home anyway, so nagging at her wouldn't really accomplish anything.

"I'm gonna tell you a bunch o' things, so you gotta listen, okay?"

"Mm..." Helen nodded slowly, her brows furrowed in confusion.

"If you listen properly and answer my questions well, I'll give you more ca—"

"Mm!" Hellen nodded, vigorously this time, her eyes blazing with determination.

Seeing this, C'Lire couldn't help but sigh in exasperation while shaking his head.

"Anyway, as I said, I'm the one who brought you here."

"Mm."

"And the only way for you to go home is if I say you can."

'Or after about an hour...' he thought.

"Mm." Helen nodded attentively, her desire to ask questions about her strange circumstances was nonexistent.

"Okay then, let's begin." C'Lire took out a folded-up piece of paper from within his suit jacket and then spread it out so he could see the writing on it properly. "What's your favorite game?"

"Knights n' Thieves," she answered immediately. Expecting a reward, she opened her mouth again.

"Good." He nodded in satisfaction as he tossed a caramel into her gaping mouth. "Now, I'll go a bit faster. Just eat them later so you can answer them quickly, okay?"

"Mrrmmm..." Helen frowned, seemingly reluctant, but this only lasted until she heard C'Lire's next words.

"If you can't answer them quickly you don't get a reward."

"I'll do it." she bobbed her head, her eyes filled with determination.

"Good girl." C'Lire reached out to give the young glutton a pat on the head before taking one of the cups, filling it with apple juice, and placing it back on the table. He then grabbed a different, empty cup, and gave it to Helen. "Hold this. I'll put your rewards here."

"Okay." The little girl carefully grasped the glass cup as if her life depended on it.

"Right, let's begin the rapid-fire questioning..." He cleared his throat then looked down on his list, opting to start out with the easier questions. "What's your favorite color?"

"Black."

"Why?"

"Because Big Sis' hair is black. Hector's and my hair is black too."

Tink! Tink!

C'Lire nodded and placed two caramels into her cup, making a light clinking sound. The little girl's hands tremble from keeping herself under control, but she ultimately didn't pour the candies into her mouth.

"Favorite food?"

"Steak. And candy. Pancakes and cakes too..."

Tink!

"Make a silly face."

Helen blinked in confusion, thrown off by the question that wasn't really a question. But after a moment, she stuck her tiny tongue out while poking both sides of her soft cheeks using her forefingers. She then tilted her head, nonverbally asking if she was doing it right.

'Cute.'

The fact that she was doing this while her eyes were just as blank as usual made him chuckle. C'Lire took out five caramels and deposited them all into her cup.

"Wah!" Helen — in a rare turn of events — had a look of pure happiness on her face as her eyes widened like saucers. She looked at the man beside her with sparkling eyes, trying to confirm whether this was actually okay.

'Hehe. I got to see this side of her before my MC did!' C'Lire thought, feeling quite smug. He gave the very confused, but very excited girl another pat on the head to assure her that he wasn't scamming her.

"Eat them later. There's more where that came from."

"Okay!" Helen nodded while intently looking at him.

Not missing the impatience in her gaze, C'Lire chuckled before asking his next question. "What do you wanna be when you grow up?"

"I wanna be like Big Sis."

An instant answer once again.

While smirking at her answer, he dropped a caramel into her cup. "So you wanna be a queen?"

Helen tilted her head as her brows furrowed. "No? I wanna be strong."

"I see." C'Lire nodded in understanding. He already knew all her answers, but the people who'd be watching the recording sure as hell didn't. As such he had to squeeze answers out of her. "But isn't Vianna pretty strong too? Or Rolf, the Sword Star?"

"They are?" she tilted her head in the other direction.

"Yes. They're even stronger than your big sister, y'know?"

"Hm..." Helen's eyes narrowed in doubt, but then she shook her head and said, "I wanna be like Big Sis."

"Fine, fine." C'Lire chucked at her stubbornness while adding another drop to the little girl's pile of sweets.

'If you marry Reivan, then you really will be just like your big sister.' he inwardly mused.

"What annoys you the most?"

"Hm." Helen stared off into space for a few moments before responding. "Food is late. Or tastes bad."

Tink! Tink!

"Who do you like the most?"

"Hector."

Tink!

"Do you like it when the weather is hot? Or do you like it more when it's cold?"

"Cold."

Tink!

"What's your favorite candy?"

"This." She raised the cup which had amassed quite a number of sweets.

Tink!

"What's your favorite animal?"

"Dogs."

'How ironic.' C'Lire grinned as he added two caramels to her stock, just because he liked dogs too. The accumulated sweets in her cup had grown to the extent that dropping any more didn't make a sound at all.

"Remember to brush your teeth, okay?"

"Mm."

"Let's continue then... aside from your family, who's your favorite person?"

"The cook," Helen answered immediately.

"Pfft." C'Lire snickered, offering a prayer of pity toward his story's protagonist. "Have you ever seen the night sky? What do you think is above those stars?"

The young glutton tilted her head with furrowed brows. "More stars?"

"Ahaha! True enough!" he chuckled at the oddly logical answer.

'That would be the truth if her world was in the Alpha Realm...'

Little did she know that hers was just one of many halls, and their skies were but veils that the people he worked for put up to segregate the worlds.

But obviously, the girl didn't need to know that.

C'Lire was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of clinking.

After he'd stopped talking, Helen found it hard to resist the smell of the objects that were held so close to her face. Her eyes stared at them hungrily as drool spilled out of her lips.

'Hmmm... guess I should wrap this up.'

Although he still had quite a bit of time, and a plethora of questions to ask, C'Lire pitied the little girl, who would forget about everything that had transpired here. As such, he wanted to set aside some time for her to enjoy her rewards.

As such, he moved on to the question he'd saved for last. "Helen, this is the last question."

The young glutton's neck creaked as she peeled her gaze away from the contents of her cup, but she still eventually nodded to signal that she understood.

C'Lire put on a warm smile as he stroked Helen's head. He knew he'd be digging up some difficult memories for the girl, but he had to do it.

It was for the viewers(readers) after all.

"Why is it that you don't want to talk too much?"

Helen's lips pursed as her shoulders twitched. With a bit of hesitation, she shook her head, not wanting to answer.

"Can you tell me about it? Please?"

She shook her head again.

"Pretty please?

Again, the young glutton shook her head; only this time, with her eyes closed as she covered her ears.

"Hmmm..." C'Lire scratched his head at Helen's staunch refusal. But he couldn't not include it in the special chapter, otherwise, he would've only asked nonconsequential questions!

Character development! There had to be some character development even if it's a non-canon chapter!

As such, C'Lire resolved himself. Even though his original self would probably get pissed off, it didn't matter.

Because he'd be dead by that time, so that bastard won't be able to give him any flak!

C'Lire took a pen that looked exactly the same as the one his original self used earlier, then stabbed it into his thigh. Once the pen absorbed enough of his blood, C'Lire pulled it out and started writing something in the air. As a process identical to earlier started, the wound he'd made rapidly healed itself, his flesh sticking back together while a new layer of skin grew back.

The mysterious letters in the air — written with ink made from his darkened blood — exploded, spreading blue embers everywhere. The festival of light would've made for a wonderful sight, too back the only people in the room were unable to appreciate it; one of them saw it all the time, while the other couldn't see it at the moment, owing to her closed eyes.

Soon, the embers all gathered into a single spot, forming a weirdly shaped silhouette the size of a plate.

Unlike earlier, no clouds of blood mist needed to be absorbed into the strange outline before it flashed with blinding light.

'No hard feelings, you bastard! I had to do this to progress this special chapter's plot!'

When the brightness subsided, what was left in its wake was a plate with a fat and juicy steak. Steam rose from the sauce-laden meat —which was cooked well-done — as a tantalizing fragrance spread outwards.

Sniff Sniff

Even if her ears were covered as well as her eyes and mouth closed shut, Helen did not have anything to block off smells.

Gulp!

Unconsciously, Helen swallowed a large mouthful of saliva before her gaping mouth started watering. Her eyes snapped open as her hands fell to her sides, not knowing what to do with themselves.

'Yeah, you better like it!' C'Lire smugly grinned.

It cost an arm and a leg, but this steak was taken out of a certain cooking manga! A certain cooking manga where food could cause your clothes to get spontaneously explode into countless pieces!

With the bait now set in place, C'Lire moved in for the kill. He grabbed the young girl — who looked just about ready to devour the steak whole, plate and all — by the shoulder and whispered into her ears.

"You want my meat?"

Nod! Nod! Nod!

"Okay, okay..." He chuckled, stopping the girl's furious nodding from breaking her neck. "I can give it to you..."

She gulped.

"...if you give me what I want."

Helen bit her lips as her entire body started shaking. Her head rapidly switched from looking at the piping hot steak, then to him, then back to the steak.

Seeing her like this, C'Lire's mischievous side flared up, wanting to tease her a bit. "It seems you don't want the steak? Should I just eat it myself?"

"Wha..." Helen's turned toward him with a pitiful expression, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

'This is kinda fun... but I probably shouldn't do it.'

Still, he had a job to do. He faced her with a serious expression. "What'll it be?"

Helen's tiny hands clenched hard as she held her cup of sweets. But ultimately, it seemed her hunger won out.

"Okay..."

'Let's goooo!' C'Lire cheered in his heart, though he felt a bit guilty over forcing a ten-year-old girl to divulge stuff she didn't wanna reveal. 'I-it's okay, right? I mean, I already know what it's about! And she'll forget about everything anyway!

After rationalizing his uncouth acts, C'Lire shakily urged the little girl to fulfill her end of the bargain. "S-s-so, Helen...? Please tell me why you don't talk a lot more."

Helen's head hung low while her shoulders drooped. She spoke in a soft tone, barely a whisper, as she voiced her story.

"Sometimes, I say things that make other kids cry..."

"Mm." C'Lire nodded along.

"Big Sis always told me to speak my mind... but when I do, the other kids don't like it."

"Mm."

"That's why none of the other kids in the family plays with me... only Hector does."

"Yes. Your brother, Hector, who you mentioned was your favorite person." C'Lire brought up her answer to one of his previous questions.

Helen nodded. Her eyes were wet with tears as she continued, "But sometimes, I even make Hector cry..."

"That's rough..." C'Lire smiled warmly as he stroked the little girl's head. "But he still likes you a lot, right?"

"Mm." she bobbed her head. "That's why I like him the most."

"That's wonderful, Helen. I'm sure he likes you a lot too."

"He does." Helen's voice was clear. She was completely sure of her words. After setting aside the cup she was holding, Helen wiped her eyes even as she snuffled.

"So you don't like talking cuz it makes other people dislike you?" C'Lire asked as he stroked her fragile-looking back.

To most people's surprise, Helen shook her head. "Not it."

"Then why?" he asked, even when he already knew the answer.

The little girl balled her fists as she brought them to her heart. "Cuz it makes them hate Hector too..."

"Mm."

"Even though he's nice and everybody used to like him..." Her fists clenched even harder as her fingers dug into the flesh of her palms. "They hate him just because he has me as a sister..."

Sniff...

The grown-ass man shed a manly tear as he gave the teary-eyed girl all the head pats she could possibly want.

"Thanks for answering, Helen. That's enough. You can have the steak as a reward now." C'Lire gestured toward the table as he tapped the magic jar beside him. "And you can even have as much candy as you want until you have to go home."

Helen sniffled as she looked up at him. "Really...?"

"Of course!"

Getting the go-ahead, Helen slowly slinked off the sofa onto the floor, kneeling while she eyed the steak on the low table. She picked up the utensils beside the plate before she stiffened.

"Um." Helen looked back toward the man still sitting on the sofa. "Let's share."

"Oh?" C'Lire let out an amused chuckle at her generosity. "It's fine. I can eat that any time. You have it all."

"Are you sure...?"

He nodded while lying through his teeth. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Okay." Helen looked at him for a few more moments, making sure that he wouldn't change his mind. Once she was certain, she turned back to her meal and shoved it into her mouth without even cutting it into bite-sized pieces.

"Ah, why're you eating so fast? Eat slower. Nobody's gonna steal your food..." C'Lire fussed over the young glutton for the rest of the hour. He made sure that she didn't choke, topped up her glass with apple juice, and guaranteed that her mouth always had something in it.

Once the time came, however, the young girl suddenly vanished from the room, leaving only her white dress to fall to the floor.

And the man in the black suit disappeared soon after.