CHAPTER 46: CHAPTER 46 - ALICE ISN’T IN WONDERLAND

"Mom, I’m home!" Alice called out as she stepped inside. The house was nothing remarkable—worn with age, its walls sagging under the weight of time. Dust rose with each step she took accompanied by the creaking noise the floor made as her weight pressed down on it.

It was a small home, with only two bedrooms, a living room, and a kitchen which also acted as a dining room and one bathroom. It wasn’t the best of places, but she and her family made it feel like home.

"Alice! You’re back!"

"Alice!"

"Woah, there! Slow down! Hahah!" Running into her arms were two kids. A boy around the age of 11 and a girl around the age of 9. They were both her younger siblings who she loved and adored.

"Welcome back, honey" A strained voice called out to greet her.

"Mom? What are you doing? You shouldn’t be standing!" Alice rushed to her mother and helped her sit down on a nearby chair.

A pained expression washed over Alice’s face as she saw the state her mother was in. She was thin, too thin for her age, and was malnourished. She could barely stand and even getting up caused her pain.

"I’m sorry for being a useless mother." She cried

Alice’s heart throbbed "Mom! Don’t say that! You’re not useless, you’re the best mother I could have asked for."

"Yeah! Don’t worry Mom, when I grow up, I’ll get all the money in the world and make you better again!" Gregory, Alice’s brother proclaimed as he held his hands up high showing how much money he would have in the future.

"You’re the best mommy ever! So don’t cry" Tiana, Alice’s little sister gently sat on her mother’s lap, hugging and comforting her.

"Here you guys go, I made sure to get extra food from the cafeteria at school today." She pulled out a basket of food containing fruits, vegetables, bread, meat, and a few meals. "Eat up, you need to grow up big, strong, and healthy."

"Yay! More bread! I love bread!"

"Big sis is the best!"

"Thank you, honey, if not for you..."

"It’s okay Mom, don’t worry about anything. Dad is gone and you’re sick. It’s my duty to take care of you all so I’m going to do it. Don’t feel bad or ashamed. I’ll never feel burdened to help my family." She held her mother’s hand and gave it a kiss.

"Are you going to your job?" Audrey, the mother asked

"Yeah, we’re already late with our payments so I need to work overtime to earn more coin. Don’t worry though, I’ll bring back some dessert." Alice smiled and left for her job.

’I should have never accepted that money!’ Audrey thought to herself in anger

Audrey knew her daughter meant well, but she hated relying on her. She and her husband lived in a village outside of the Royal Capital and he worked as a hunter. He earned good money and because of his occupation, there was always food on the table.

Audrey herself worked as a herbalist and could make remedies, and potions, and could even bake goods. But everything changed when her husband never made it back home one night.

She later found out that he was killed by a noble for killing his pet wolf. Her husband apologized, offering to give compensation and goods in return, but the noble wasn’t having it and killed him.

But if that wasn’t enough, the noble took his anger out on the entire village, burning it to the ground, and killing many people. Audrey had no choice but to flee. She found herself arriving at the Royal Capital and started working to provide for herself and her children and save up money for their education, but soon, she found out she was diagnosed with an unknown illness.

The person who she was working for at the time was a noble and he caught wind of her situation. He offered to pay for her children’s school which she readily agreed. She worked her but off to pay back what she was given as a sign of thanks, however, maybe it was because she worked too hard, but one day, she collapsed and wasn’t able to work again.

She pleaded with the noble and asked for him to be understanding but he wasn’t having it. He told he that if she wasn’t able to pay back Alice’s tuition, he would sell their entire family into slavery.

Alice decided to take responsibility and worked jobs to pay off their debt while also taking care of her siblings, finding medicine for her mother, and going to school at the same time. Currently, it’s been three years since Alice has been working to pay off their debt, and each time she goes to work, Audrey cries on the inside.

’I’m sorry for being a horrible mother my child. I hope you hate me for my actions.’ Audrey watched over her young children as they ate, filling their bellies with the food Alice brought back for them.

---

"That’s all for today. Thank you for your hard work!"

Alice breathed a sigh of relief as her shift was complete. She worked at a cafe where she earned good money, or at least good enough.

"Thanks for today Alice, here’s your pay." A woman in her late 50s gave Alice a bag of coins.

"I’m always happy to work here. Have a good night Ma’am." Alice said her goodbyes and headed back home.

"Okay, let’s see. two silver coins and fifty copper coins. If I work for a month, I should have 60 silver coins saved up, nice."

As she arrived home, she saw a man she recognized all too well, the debt collector.

’What is he doing here? He shouldn’t be back for another two months!’ Alice looked at her mom who was shivering with fear, not even able to look the man in the eyes.

"What’s going on?" She asked

"My Lord asked me to collect the money you owe us." The man spoke, his voice a low, grating rumble. A jagged gash marred his face, and his bald head gleamed under the dim light. He stood tall and imposing, his muscular frame radiating menace.

"But I’m supposed to have another two months!"

"Things change. He told me that you need to pay 300 silver coins within a month or else."

"What?! That’s impossible! That is equivalent to three gold coins! I can’t make that much in a month! You guys promised 50 silver coins a month!"

"Is there a problem?" The man asked, a violent aura leaking from his body as he showed his dominance.

Alice could barely stand as she felt the overwhelming presence crush her body. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists in anger. She hated feeling powerless, she hated working for these people, she hated seeing her family in this state, but she couldn’t do anything about it.

"Tsk, you have a month to get the money. If you’re even a minute late, say goodbye to your family." The man stood up and left the house.

Alice, still on the ground started crying. Everything was too overwhelming. Being weak, having to take care of her family, almost being kidnapped, being extorted, having to keep her family safe, and working odd jobs to get money was too much for her to handle.

She just broke down and didn’t bother to get up. Her mother, as weak as she was, used the little strength she had to comfort her, telling her everything would be okay. She knew it wasn’t, but it didn’t matter anymore. She just held her mother and hoped this was a bad dream she would wake up from.