A family restaurant called The Old Oak was bustling with customers, and the restaurant owner was pleased with this unusual crowd. "Could it be because they're using their Everafter?" the owner wondered, puzzled by the sudden bustle at his restaurant.
A slow-moving man with ginger hair walked past but replied, "If so, I'd definitely turn it off right now," he said before leaving to serve another customer—the owner was surprised that employing just four people had allowed him to make such a huge profit.
"If you guys work even harder, I'll raise your pay!" the owner shouted, but that didn't actually boost our morale because the pay Mother gave us was sometimes the same or even higher than what the restaurant owner would pay. "If you need anything, I'm in my office," he said before turning around and walking away, leaving the chaos behind.
Amid the commotion, there was a girl who was watching one of the waiters' every move intently, as if she wouldn't let him make even the slightest mistake—even though, in reality, she simply didn't want Romeo, her boyfriend, to be flirted with or to flirt with other girls.
"Hey, come sit down and relax with us," teased one of the customers, but Romeo immediately took a step back to avoid their touch.
"Sorry, but I'm already taken," Robin replied, which drew a chorus of disappointed murmurs from the customers; they protested that a handsome guy like him must already be taken—though it's only natural, right?
The jingling of the doorbell rang out as another customer walked in. Robin sighed wearily, resigned to the fact that another strange customer was on their way, but when he glanced up, he saw a man and a girl—with orange hair and green eyes—scanning the room for an empty seat. "They're finally here," Robin muttered before running off, leaving behind the women who idolized him.
Robin walked into the kitchen and saw me busy cooking. His hand patted my shoulder, making me almost jump in surprise at the sudden touch. "Robin! Are you planning to splatter my face with meat seasoning?!" I protested, but the man's expression looked very serious—there could only be one reason he'd be that serious. "Are they here already?" My question was immediately answered by a nod from him.
I turned toward the girl with ash-blonde hair, who flinched at the news. "Snowie! Please evacuate all the staff out through the back door," I ordered. She nodded, and just as the weight of the situation was about to crush me with stress, Robin suddenly shared a detail she'd missed.
"I just remembered, Ciel, Felix, and Juliet are here—" Hearing that made me turn off the stove and rush outside as fast as I could—our plan was to poison Hansel and Gretel; if they ran into each other, our entire plan would fail instantly.
But as if fate were against me, what I feared most came true—the moment we stepped outside, we saw Ciel and Felix pointing their guns at the younger sibling and older sibling. I clicked my tongue before glancing at the customers being watched over by Romeo and Juliet. "At least no innocent people got hurt."
"Alice!" Romeo called out the moment he saw me, and all attention immediately turned to me—even though I'd wanted to launch a surprise attack but Romeo decided to make this situation even worse.
Gretel's green eyes scanned me from head to toe; her expression turned annoyed when she recognized who I was. "I figured it! You're not a new member of The Seven Sins!" she shouted. From behind Snow—who had already evacuated the employees and the owner—she finally revealed herself.
"Seven people against two teenagers? Isn't that totally unfair?" said Hansel before grabbing one of the plates and eating everything on it—including the plate itself. His green eyes glanced toward Juliet, who was trembling as she glared at her former teammate. "Oh? Look who's there—the girl and her beloved sweetheart."
"Of course, because they're meant to be together—it's impossible for them to be apart, isn't it?" Juliet retorted sarcastically, and that actually didn't offend Romeo in the slightest—quite the opposite of his girlfriend, who was clearly showing that she was struggling to hold back her anger.
Felix lowered his sword and tried to look inoffensive before gently making a suggestion. "How about we settle this outside, okay? You guys don't want this restaurant that serves such good food to get destroyed, do you?" Hearing his suggestion, the two of them whispered to each other—who knows what they were planning—but after whispering, they smiled slyly.
I had a bad feeling about this, but before I could bring it up, the two of them were already staring at us with defiant gazes. "Alright, let's go outside," said Gretel without putting up a fight; she walked out of the restaurant, and Ciel shot me a glance.
I caught that glance—how could I not? He was staring at me so intently, as if harboring a massive grudge, and I knew exactly why. "Oh? Ciel! You look fresh and lively today," I greeted him with a friendly smile, acting as if I hadn't trapped him in a room filled with thick smoke a few days ago.
"You have no right to speak!" Ciel shouted angrily. He took a deep breath before letting it out—it turned out he'd gotten good at controlling his emotions now. "Felix, let's go," he said before grabbing the hand of the man who looked completely confused by the situation unfolding before him.
I couldn't help but smile, and from the side, Robin whispered to me. "What have you done to her?" he asked, but I didn't get a chance to answer because Juliet suddenly yanked Romeo's hand roughly while ranting and stormed out of the restaurant.
One of the female customers sighed in disappointment and grumbled. "Well, one of the waiters is gone… But there's still—!" As the customer glanced over where Robin was standing, she saw that the poor waiter had already been dragged away by a rope, just like a cow. "A-Ah… They've all been taken…" the customer lamented.
I yanked Robin along because I didn't want to be held responsible and wanted to resolve this as quickly as possible. "Wait for me!" Snow shouted as she ran after the two of us to confront Hansel and Gretel.
We kept walking until we reached an open space—neither on the side of the road nor in any narrow area—creating plenty of room for us to move. Along the way, Ciel kept wanting to launch a surprise attack, but I always held him back; my plan was already chaotic enough, and I didn't want to make it any more chaotic.
"All right, let's stop right here," Hansel declared firmly and turned to look at all of us—I patted Robin on the shoulder; he wasn't tied up anymore—giving him a signal. "Hm?" He was curious about what we were trying to do. Along the way, I'd already whispered our plan to surround the two of them—blocking every possible escape route they might use to run away.
"Oh? Trying to surround us?" Gretel muttered, looking around at us—all of our hands were already poised to raise our weapons against them.
Hansel added, picking his teeth. "That's not exactly a wise plan, is it, Gretel?" They seemed oddly relaxed, and that made me wonder what they were up to.
Gretel let out a soft chuckle, which slowly grew louder and more booming until everyone could hear her laughter—even though there was absolutely nothing funny about it. "Aren't you all sick of this boring world?" she asked, looking at each of us in turn.
Hansel took a breath before adding, "A world where life feels disgusting just by opening your eyes—haven't you ever thought about living somewhere where you could enjoy infinite happiness?" I was even more confused about where all this was going, but one thing was certain—I could feel a strange energy surrounding us.
They all fell silent, and at the same time—broad smiles appeared on their faces, and in that instant I finally realized what they were trying to do. Before I could warn them—"Once upon a time." The spell was cast, and immediately an orange energy formed beneath us, taking the shape of an open book with its pages turning.
"What the hell is this?!" Ciel shouted in shock. I tried to find a way out, but it was all in vain because there was an invisible barrier trapping us here like a bird forced to live in a cage. "Felix!" he shouted, but no matter how hard the man tried, it was to no avail.
"Two unfortunate souls who had lost their way were deceived by a fleeting moment of happiness, trapping them inside a house that promised to fill their empty stomachs."
"A world where everything tastes as sweet as candy, a world that will make you never want to set foot in this harsh world again—a world full of happiness."
"Home Lies Beyond My Reach"
The moment those words came out of both their mouths, the magical energy that formed the book closed in on us and trapped all of us standing around it—trapping us all in a place we didn't recognize. As far as I could tell, I could catch the sweet scent of sugar all around me.