Chapter 61 I feel uncomfortable and don’t want to work! * …
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It is snowing outside the window.
It has been snowing for two days. Except for those who cannot survive, basically no one in the slums will go out at this time. For the poor, low temperatures are as deadly as diseases. They have no money to buy thick clothes.
“Crack.”
The shabby wooden door opened from the outside, letting in a gust of cold wind.
The young blond boy hurried into the house and closed the door before more snow and wind came in. Although the temperature inside and outside the house was not much different, it was more like a spiritual comfort. He quickly started a fire, and the remaining firewood brought warmth to the room and melted the snow in the boy's clothes.
"elder brother?
Suddenly a voice sounded, and the boy turned around hurriedly: "Sorry, did I wake you up, Mia?"
He took the food out of his arms and brought it to the bedside. The girl lying on the bed kept coughing, and her sunken cheeks were flushed with sickly red.
"I heard my brother's voice. Brother, I'm in so much pain... Brother, are you there?"
"I'm here. We have a piece of black bread today. You can eat more. I'll go and cook some porridge for you. Tell me what you want to eat and I'll buy it for you."
The young man reached out to test the temperature of the other's forehead, with a hint of worry in his eyes: "Your fever hasn't subsided yet, I have to find a doctor or some medicine for you."
"If there is a priest, it is said that all you need is a spell and your illness will disappear. The money Mr. Leo gave is too little, not enough for us to hire a priest."
"But don't worry, I'm looking for a new job. I heard that the dock is short of people recently, and I can earn 30 copper coins a day..."
He chattered on and on for a long time until the girl's breathing gradually calmed down. Then the boy carefully tucked in the quilt for her, quietly stood up, took out the broken rice can, filled half of it with snow and put it on the fire.
The snow quickly melted into water, and the little rice that was left floated on top, so thin that it couldn't even be considered soup.
This won't work. His sister's frail body won't be able to survive the cold snowy weather. He has to find a doctor for her - or at least some medicine.
The boy made up his mind. He just stood up and walked to the door when he heard a faint voice behind him.
"Brother, don't go out. It's too cold outside. Your wages today are not enough to buy medicine. Ahem... I'm fine. If you are caught by the drugstore clerks again, they will beat you to death."
"…Sorry, Mia, I'll be back soon."
The boy froze for a moment, and a trace of shame flashed across his blue eyes hidden in the darkness. He did not directly answer the other party's question. He whispered, "You should take a nap first, and we can have dinner together when you come back."
Without waiting for his sister to say anything else, he left the house.
The strong wind blew his cheeks and snow fell on his shoulders. The boy exhaled and looked worried. The money was still not enough. It was too difficult to cure his sister's illness.
The snow-covered road was difficult to walk on, with one step deep and one step shallow. The young man's mind was distracted. Suddenly, a hand reached out from the depths of the alley and covered his mouth and nose.
The young man didn't react at all until the other party tried to drag him into the darkness. Then he suddenly struggled and kicked the other party's calf.
"Hiss—little beast!"
The attacker cursed: "How dare you hit me? I'm going to teach you a lesson today! You have to give me 70 copper coins, no, 100 copper coins! Otherwise, even that sickly guy will die with you!"
"Are you crazy? Don't touch Mia. She's your daughter!"
Just by hearing this hoarse and ambiguous voice, the boy immediately understood the other party's identity. His face collided with the ground with a heavy sound, which almost broke his nose.
The abuser laughed and crushed his head. The bleak light shone on his red nose and cheeks, and his cloudy blue eyes were full of malice.
"That guy is a little girl, just like your mother. And you - my good son, you should be lucky that you can make money for me, otherwise I would have sold you to those bad old men long ago!"
The man was as big as a bear, and he greedily searched the man's body for everything, even inside his boots.
"113 copper coins, you are indeed my good son. Aren't you very rich?"
"Please give me back the money, it's for my sister to buy medicine!"
The boy wanted to take the money back, but the man punched him in the stomach. He immediately vomited and couldn't get up.
The man sneered, "That sickly guy will die sooner or later. You might as well use the money to honor your father. When I get lucky, I will become a millionaire. Then you will be my son. If you want sisters, I will buy you ten more."
He pulled out a bottle of wine with only the bottom of the bottle left from his arms, tilted his head back and took a sip.
When he got the money, he had it all figured out. He would use 10 copper coins to buy wine, 50 to buy new chips, and the rest to pay off his debts. Although it was not much, even though it could not pay off his debts, it was still a reason for the other party to forgive him and wait for him to get money from this brat next time.
Just as he was thinking, he suddenly felt a weak gravity at his feet. The man looked over impatiently. The dirty blond boy grabbed his trouser legs, his eyes full of pleading: "Please. My sister hasn't taken medicine for half a month. If she continues like this, she will die."
The other person kicked him away and said, "What does that have to do with me? Your mother, a female child, doesn't even know whose child she gave birth to. It's already great that I recognized you. At least I didn't let you starve to death or drown in urine and feces in your mother's womb. How dare you come to me for money!?"
"Please, I will give you money, no matter how much it is, you must at least leave me 20 copper coins so that I can buy medicine for Mia..."
"Don't test my patience, little bastard. I've already been grateful enough for letting you live."
The man kicked the other man in the stomach, listened to his wailing, sneered, drank the last sip of wine, and threw the empty bottle on the ground.
He retracted his foot and walked towards the alley entrance, not intending to waste any more time here. The lead-gray wine bottle rolled around and touched his limp hand.
The child curled up on the ground, staring at the empty bottle. The snow fell on him and into his blue eyes.
A ray of golden light spread out, and he stared at the wine bottle intently. The thin light was concentrated and refracted until the dazzling golden light swallowed up the blue.
[He] laughed.
The man heard footsteps and just turned around to be faced with the wine bottle.
"Bang!"
The bottle shattered with a sound. The opponent's movements were as fast as a spider, and the corners of his mouth were stretched into an exaggerated arc. The man subconsciously punched him, but was dodged. At the same time, the second punch hit his chest.
"You little bastard!"
The broken thorns pierced into his flesh, and the man screamed in pain and kicked the other person away.
The boy flipped in the air and slid to the ground. His hands were bleeding from the friction of the ground. But he seemed to have no idea how to write pain. He grabbed the bottle and rushed up at a faster speed. He stabbed the man stubbornly and accurately.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine...
Chest, shoulders, head, waist and abdomen...
From wailing to resistance to escape, followed by the sound of wailing and heavy objects hitting the ground.
Blood flowed out from under the corpse, staining a large area of snow red.
The boy squatted down and looked at the pool of blood in fascination, the golden color in his eyes gradually faded. The hurried footsteps on the other side were approaching, not the footsteps of people in the slums. The latter's footsteps would not be so heavy, serious and firm, but like a group of whispering mice, always trying to hide their existence as much as possible, afraid of attracting other people's attention.
So the boy did not run away. He picked up a handful of snow to wipe the dirt off his hair, then picked up the wine bottle and slashed his arm with it. He didn't let go of the bottle until blood gushed out. He covered his arm with his face pale. After doing all this, his eyes returned to a clear blue.
“What’s going on!?”
The knights appeared in the boy's field of vision. He was gasping for breath due to blood loss and was unable to answer immediately.
The boy was shaky from the strong dizziness and loss of strength. He vaguely recognized who they were. They were all official knights of the Church of Glory. They would come to the slums on the 15th of every month to distribute Holy Communion and talk about the faith of the Lord of Glory. Occasionally, they would leave later - like today.
"I…"
The boy's Adam's apple rolled and he uttered a dry sound. His lips, which were too pale due to blood loss, trembled slightly, and it was obvious that he was extremely scared.
"This man, this drunk tried to rob me. I, I didn't mean to. I just wanted to buy medicine for my sister..."
He was guilty of blurring out the other person's identity, and his instinct made him do so subconsciously. After he realized what was happening, the boy started to worry whether his lie would be exposed.
Fortunately, he was too thin. It was obvious who looked more like a gangster when comparing an adult to a skinny child. The knights' eyes softened. The shorter knight came in front of him, and the holy light in his palm lit up to heal the wound. The other one went to check the dead.
The boy couldn't help swallowing, he knew that he was the one who killed the other person, but perhaps because he was too excited, the memory seemed vague.
His faith was pounding. He couldn't be caught, otherwise who would protect Mia?
The tall knight squatted down and lifted the clothes of the dead man. He looked at the body and then looked at the boy: "Did you do this?"
The child panicked, but nodded, pretending to ignore it. The short knight frowned: "How did you kill him?"
"He kicked me... and when I couldn't get up, he took the money I had on me and hit me with a bottle. I hit him with the bottle too. Sir Knight, I won't be arrested, will I? I just wanted to buy medicine for my sister. She's still waiting for me at home."
The young man looked up at the other man with a pale face. His wet blond hair stuck to his cheeks, and his deep blue eyes were filled with anxiety and fear, which made the short knight feel very soft-hearted.
"Robbery is a felony anywhere. You are only acting in self-defense, which is a very brave thing to do. You don't have to worry about it. Even if there is a punishment, we will plead for you."
The tall knight interrupted, "Your attacks are very accurate. Although you are not as strong as him, you always hit the vital points. Plus with this appearance, you may have the talent to be a knight."
This sentence made the young man stunned for a moment. He never expected the other party to say that.
The other knight had no choice but to stop him: "Hey, hey, stop talking nonsense. We are still on duty."
The tall knight raised an eyebrow. "I'm not kidding. Have you used your quota this year?"
“…I used it.”
"Mine is still there. Didn't you see his face? Letting him stay here any longer will only bring him trouble. Since you said that it was understandable for him to go out to buy medicine for his sister, and he had the courage to murder a villain who was more powerful than himself. So what's wrong with giving him a chance? It's better than giving all the recommendation spots to the heirs of the nobles."
“…”
The first person who spoke was silent for a while, then looked up at the boy carefully. After a while, he said, "You and your sister are the only ones left at home, right?"
The boy nodded subconsciously, realizing that the situation was no longer under his control. The short knight smiled at him gently: "Would you mind taking us to your home? If your sister is sick, perhaps we can help."
"…Then I'll trouble you two adults."
The young man hesitated for a moment, then nodded and agreed. This was the best offer, and he had no reason to refuse.
The two knights observed the environment along the way, and they were stunned when they saw the dilapidated hut. It was more like a shack with a door than a hut. They squeezed themselves in with some effort. This made the short knight agree with some of his companions' ideas.
Compared with those who eat white bread and drink goat milk every day, the children living here undoubtedly need this recommendation more. For the former, it is just gilding, but for the latter, it is life-saving.
He placed his hand on the girl's forehead and whispered, "May the light protect you."
The golden light spread, and the girl's complexion improved at a speed visible to the naked eye, but before the spell was over, she suddenly coughed up blood.
Another knight was startled: "Is this healing magic or curse magic?"
Veins popped out of the short knight's forehead. "I'm warning you not to underestimate me. I was the top student in the healing class. If you hadn't insisted on becoming a knight, I would have come here to accompany you. I would definitely be the top student among the current priests."
The tall knight said expressionlessly, without even breathing: "Oh, I'm really sorry for the priest I ruined. Please get back to work."
Short knight: “…”
He tried two different types of healing magic, but none of them worked. This was too strange, the knight frowned, thought for a moment, then turned to explain to the boy: "I'm sorry, your sister doesn't look like an ordinary illness, she needs to go to the church for treatment. If you have made up your mind, bring your sister to the church to find us."
"You can go now."
The young man answered without hesitation. His decisiveness made the short knight stunned for a moment: "Don't you want to reconsider it? Even if you are taken away by us, you may not become a knight. It will be difficult for you to come back then."
He knew very well how the poor were treated in the church. These children had not received any training since childhood. Those without talent were fine, but those with talent would be targeted to death by noble knights like the two of them. They looked glamorous, but in fact, they would die if they were not careful.
"There is nothing to consider. I trust the two Knights."
Luck will not always wait for you. If you don’t seize the opportunity when it comes, you will become an abandoned child of fate. This is the most important knowledge the boy learned in the slums.
The tall knight found him more pleasing to the eye: "Then pack up your things and come with us. By the way, what's your name?"
Just as the boy was about to speak, a strange feeling came over him again.
He won't come back here again.
In this case, let’s cut off everything from the past.
“…Lemire.”
He said seriously: "My name is Remiel."
God's mercy.
But he didn't know that the name had another meaning.
【Mentor of the Betrayer】
*
"Sir, the Holy Son?"
The Knight Commander's call woke me up, and I met his puzzled eyes.
I placed my hand on his palm and used the force to jump out of the car: "Nothing. Is the Holy City ahead?"
He did not doubt it: "Yes, the Knights are waiting for you."
The sun shone on his golden hair, and his clear eyes smiled at me. The six wings behind him were not retracted until they were close to the Holy City. Even so, the remaining holy light still enveloped his eyebrows and eyes. To anyone, he was an excellent and upright knight.
Her five fingers were long, dry, and covered with thin calluses from sword practice, and they supported me gently.
I looked at the hand that was supporting me with complicated feelings. I couldn't imagine it grabbing the broken wine bottle and stabbing it into my father's chest.
Remiel, you really can't judge a person by his appearance.
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