Chapter 10
In order to avoid people, Winster arrived a little late as usual, but he still managed to eat the food while it was still warm.
Although he is young, he is naturally brave and the thunder outside does not scare him.
But it is bound to rain soon, Winster thought. The place where he slept these days is not as big as this cave, so his clothes will be soaked easily by the rain. The road is slippery on rainy days, and no one wants to go into the forest. It should be safe for him to stay here tonight.
The child was eating. The sound of the wind blowing through the trees covered up the sound of his footsteps. When the vines hanging from the cave entrance were pulled aside, he was so startled that he instantly clenched the fork in his hand.
It was a little dark in the cave, but it was still possible to see clearly. When Elphis saw the little figure, he breathed a sigh of relief, "I'm glad you're here."
The little figure stared at him motionlessly. A flash of lightning illuminated the child's expressionless face and dark eyes. To be honest, it looked a little weird.
Elphis walked in and sat on a rock near the cave entrance to rest. He spoke to the child in a gentle and soft voice, "The meal has been delivered for a while. Why are you eating it now? Is it still hot?"
In Winster's memory, he had never stayed in the same space with anyone so peacefully. The child tensed his body, as if the person in front of him was not a gentle and handsome brother, but a poisonous snake.
Elphis didn't know what the child had experienced in the past, but it was understandable that he was wandering alone at such a young age, had some psychological problems, and didn't like to communicate with others.
He didn't mind Winster's silence, and said to himself: "You continue to eat, I just came to see if you are there, nothing else. The weather is bad, don't walk around, it's dangerous."
“…”
"Are you afraid of thunder?"
At this moment, Winster's mind was tense and his body was ready to escape at any time. These were stress reactions. If the other party got closer, he would have to step back several steps.
Hearing the question, the child paused and shook his head slightly, not caring whether the other person could see it or not.
Alphis saw it and chuckled, "You are so brave."
Children need praise.
When Elpheus came, he brought a small basket with him. He took out the lamp from the basket, poured a little oil into the small clay bottle, and then took two long, hard white stones and rubbed them hard, and the stones caught fire.
After lighting the wick, Elphis blew out the fire on the stone - it must be said that the flint in this world is quite convenient to use.
The moment the dim light came on, Winster fastened the hood of his cloak again, covering his short black hair.
Seeing the child burying his face in his knees, unwilling to see the light, Elphis sighed, "Don't hide. It's not like I haven't seen what you look like. Come and eat."
Winster raised his head slightly, staring at the other person with his eyes.
His tied silver hair was a little messy due to the strong wind, but he didn't look messy. He was the most handsome person Winster had ever seen, with an appearance that everyone would like, completely different from himself.
He looked at herself, his brows were gentle, the corners of his mouth were smiling, and his childish face did not look threatening at all.
When Winster continued to eat, Elphis could see the child's appearance clearly.
When we first met, I only took a quick glance at each other, my attention focused on the color of her hair and eyes, so I couldn't really see what she looked like.
The child has a good face shape, with slightly slanted eyebrows that make him look sharp and unapproachable, narrow eyes, thick and long eyelashes, dark and deep pupils, a small and tall nose, and thin light red lips. He looks cool and handsome at a young age, but he is too thin, otherwise he would look better.
Elphis thought he was feeding a stray cat, but when he noticed the calmness and alertness in the child's eyes, he realized that it was actually a wolf cub.
Winster could feel the other man's eyes on him. The child looked over and saw the man with one leg bent, his arm on his knee, his head supported by one hand, looking at him.
Elphis met the wolf cub's eyes, smiled slightly, and teased him: "You look pretty good, second only to me in this town. Eat well, and you will grow into a handsome young man in the future."
“…”
The child was stunned for a moment, ignored him, and continued eating with his face buried in the bowl.
"My name is Elphis. You can call me Brother El like other kids. What's your name?"
Winster's lips moved, but he couldn't utter a word.
Elphis waited for a few seconds and coaxed the child: "It's just a name. It won't hurt you to tell me, right?"
It only took a few seconds for Elphis, but it took the child a long time to decide on an answer: "...Winster."
Saying a few words was like breaking through some kind of restraint. The voice was weak and hoarse, and it was obvious that the child had not spoken for a long time.
"Winster?" Elphis asked again uncertainly.
The child nodded.
Elphis laughed again: "Don't hide from me anymore. Put on the clothes I brought you. It's so cold. If you try to be brave, you will only suffer."
Winster didn't say anything, but turned his body to the side, and it was unclear whether he didn't want to be taught a lesson.
Elphis looked outside the cave and saw a little light. He stood up and brushed off the dust on his clothes. "I have to go back. If I don't leave now, I will lose sight of the road. I will come to see you tomorrow."
Not expecting any reply from the other party, he left after he finished speaking, but left the lamp behind.
Winster sat there, staring at the swaying light a few steps away. After a moment, the child stood up and walked over, putting his hands close to the bright yellow flame. It was warm and comfortable, but he felt a little uncomfortable in his heart.
It rained heavily that night, but fortunately it stopped before the town woke up, otherwise Elphis would have to deliver the meal in the rain.
The muddy road was a bit slippery, and if you stepped a little harder your trouser legs would be splashed with mud. Elphis walked slower and arrived at the cave later than usual, but Winster actually listened to him and didn't run around.
Elphis felt distressed when he saw that he always wore a hood and was always on guard against someone suddenly appearing and seeing him.
"It's a little colder today, and the food is getting cold quickly. Come and eat."
Winster walked forward hesitantly, took the basket, then stepped back a few steps and sat on the quilt. He concentrated on taking the things out and said "thank you" almost inaudibly.
Elphis curved his eyebrows and sat on the stone where he rested last night to look at him, "Do you like to drink milk?"
In fact, the child's answer was not important, so he did not wait for anyone to answer, "You have to drink it even if you don't like it. Drinking more milk will help you grow up faster."
Lately, my daily breakfast consists of milk, pastries, and an egg. I’ll change the taste for my children occasionally, but they still mainly eat these.
Considering that the little guy might get bored, Elphis said a few words to teach him not to be picky about food.
Winster swallowed a mouthful of bun, looked at him steadily, and then said in a hoarse voice: "What do you need me to do for you?"
After hearing what the other person said, Winster had only one thought in his mind: Why should he grow up quickly? Would he be more useful when he grows up?
This person looks clean, perhaps he doesn't want to dirty his hands, and needs someone to help him deal with some private matters.
At this time, the child's mind was full of Elphis trying to repay his kindness by asking him to help him do bad things such as murder, arson and robbery.
Elphis had no idea what was going on in the kid's mind. He just thought he wanted to repay his gratitude, so he chuckled, "Children just need to eat and be happy. It would be even better if they can study and learn to read. You don't need to do anything else. When you grow up and have the ability to protect yourself, you can stay here if you want to. You can leave if you want."
Winster stopped talking again and ate in silence. He would rather the man asked for something.
"How old are you?"
Winster thought for a moment and replied uncertainly, "Eight years old."
It must have been a year since he left the village when he was seven years old.
Elphis asked him again where he was from, and Winster said a place name he had never heard of and didn't know how far it was from here.
"How did you get to Lisai Town?" There were no villages nearby, and the nearest place of population was Rafi. Could this kid have walked for a few days from the city and happened to get here? No way, he would either freeze to death or starve to death.
"I hid in a carriage while hiding from people and was brought here."
Elphis twitched his lips. It turned out that he and Uncle Will were the ones who brought the people here.
Every time they unloaded the goods, they would no longer pay attention to the cart. Unexpectedly, after staying in Gray's tavern for half a day, a child sneaked into it.
Elphis thought that they should check the carriages next time. What if there was a greedy person hiding inside, who would appear from behind and slit their necks when the carriage was driven to a deserted place? That would be an unjust death.
Elphis chatted with him for a few more sentences. Anyway, Winster's biggest secret had been seen, so there was nothing else that could not be said.
Elphis was very sensible. He just casually asked the child how he was doing after arriving in Lise Town. He didn't ask about his previous life or whether his parents were good to him. It would be very painful if he stepped on a landmine.
Winster finished his breakfast quickly, and when he faced Elphis again, the white beard on his mouth left by drinking milk was revealed. The precocious little handsome boy suddenly became uncool, which made Elphis laugh out loud.
Winster looked at him in confusion, with a rare bit of cuteness in his eyes. Elphis took out a piece of clean cloth from his arms and handed it to him, "Wipe your mouth."
He went back immediately. This morning when he went to buy breakfast, he met Uncle Will who was talking about his plan to open a store in Raphael City and wanted to discuss it with him.
Elphis was not the kind of person who was particularly compassionate and would spend all his time taking care of the poor little thing, so after the people finished eating, he put away the tableware and prepared to devote himself to his plan of making money.
He was just about to teach the child not to run around, but then he remembered that this was not a modern society where children needed to be carefully watched, and wouldn’t it be boring to sit in the cave, so he changed his words: "The muddy road is not easy to walk on, be careful not to slip when you go out. I have something to do in the morning, so I will take you to town to play in the afternoon."
The child didn't feel touched at all after hearing such heartwarming advice. He pursed his lips and looked at Elphis suspiciously. Now he was sure that this person didn't know what his hair and eye color meant, otherwise why would he say he would take him out to play.
Elphis didn't say much and prepared to give the child a surprise in the afternoon.
After spending most of the morning discussing with Uncle Will the location of the store, the purchase and pricing of goods, and the distribution of profits, he also discussed buying a few more horses to set up a caravan to protect property and lives. Then Elphis went home.
He will be quite busy later. In addition to making lunch, he also has to prepare a surprise for the children.
At noon, when Winster saw Elphis again, he stared with wide eyes at the other's soft black hair and familiar face. The confusion was in line with his appearance at his age.
This time, Elphis held a basin of dark hot water in both hands, with a basket of food hanging on his arm. He couldn't walk too fast to prevent the water from spilling out.
He was out of breath as he walked along, and when he reached the cave he hurriedly put down his things, they were so heavy!
"Eat quickly. After you finish eating, I will change the color of your hair."
Elphis was too lazy to spend time convincing the child to believe him. It was almost time for him to wash his hair anyway, so he dyed it skillfully, proving with facts that he could change the color of his hair.
Fortunately, the four-color flower blooms all year round. It looks a bit like baby's breath, and it looks very beautiful when it blooms in clusters. So Elphis had planted a circle around the chapel a long time ago. It was convenient for him to pick flowers and boil water to wash and dye his hair before going into the city.
After not much hesitation between dyeing the child's hair light yellow or amber, Elphis boiled a basin of amber water. He thought dark tones were suitable for the child.
If sight could kill, then Elphis's face would have been pierced through.
Since this person wants to help him change his hair color, it means that he knows what black hair and black eyes represent. Is he really not afraid?
The first time Winster took the initiative to approach Elphis, he just wanted to touch the hot water in the wooden tub - as long as he washed, he would not have to hide here and there? It was that simple?
Elphis urged him to eat, and after the child finished eating, he wanted to wash his hair.
Winster took off the hood that he habitually wore on his head, and Elphis saw the child's hair clearly for the first time - before that, he only saw the sideburns and knew that the hair was black, but he didn't see the terrible hairstyle.
The young boy's expression was indescribable, and he couldn't help but complain: "No matter how much you hate your hair, you can't cut it to look like it was chewed by a dog."
Such a pretty face can't support this ugly hairstyle!
Winster: “…”
For some reason, my toes suddenly touched the ground—I wanted to run away.
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