Chapter 9 Yes, I like children

Two hours had passed on their journey, and Hayna had not felt the slightest fatigue.

As they left the Red-White Queen District at the center of the capital "Glass Island", the number of smoke-belching factories and speeding trains gradually increased.

The choking fog mixed with the fishy smell of seafood, the whistle of steam mingled with the hawker's shouts.

The scent of baking bread from the street-side bakery wafted over as people in thick overcoats and top hats walked by.

A destitute painter wearing a beret sat at the street's edge, sketching the dark high-rise buildings across the street, along with the serpentine metal pipes coiling around the exteriors of the factories; Meanwhile, an inspector clad in silvery white armor soared past on the back of a grand and majestic white Gryphon, two meters tall, high above.

A red-haired newsboy around eleven or twelve, carrying two bundles of newspapers, shouted at the street corner:

"Glass Staircase Daily headlines today! Bishop Mathers of the Red Queen Diocese was recently appointed as Clergy Councilor by Her Majesty the Queen! The number of clergy councilors from the church has now increased to six!"

"The Minister of Finance plans to tax matches and kerosene lamps next year! The Star Antimony Kingdom expels three Knights of Avalon for charges of murder, espionage, and interference in internal affairs, Her Majesty the Queen expresses strong condemnation!"

Most copies of the Glass Staircase Daily had been sold, with only a few remaining. The ropes had to be tightened again and again to prevent them from slipping off the shoulder.

As for the other bundle of newspapers behind the newsboy, less than a quarter had been sold.

He yelled with his somewhat cracked lips: "Lohar Union Weekly, only five Red Coins a copy—The day of execution is drawing near, the list of convicts sentenced to death in November has been confirmed! Thirty-eight people will be executed this month, it's the second highest in the past three years, with a definitive list of the condemned!

"The third apprentice recruitment round for Nikast's Plaster Factory in the Port District lowers the age requirement to fourteen!"

"A painter in Green Flute Street committed suicide at home last week! Lohar Harbor Bank was robbed yesterday, and all the thieves have been arrested! Come and take a look! Only five Red Coins a copy—"

"Senior Sister."

Aiwass suddenly spoke, "Buy me two newspapers."

"Hmm?"

Hayna paused, "Shouldn't someone from your house deliver the Glass Staircase Daily to you? Do you want to buy a Lohar Union Weekly?"

"No, buy one of each," Aiwass insisted.

"…Oh, I see."

It took Hayna a moment to realize. Aiwass was looking at the newsboy busily selling papers and wanted to help him sell out sooner.

"It's almost noon, no one will buy them. And this is the Lohar District, it's mostly sailors, fishermen, and laborers here, they don't have that much money to spend on newspapers," she whispered, "Should I buy them all?"

"No, just one of each is fine."

Aiwass shook his head, "The child is working, not begging."

"…I understand."

Hayna nodded earnestly with respect.

She spoke seriously, "I'll go buy the newspapers, you be careful."

Aiwass opened his eyes, nodding silently.

Hayna had only just left when a girl stealthily approached Aiwass.

She was somewhat dirty, thinly dressed, and scrawny.

Seeing Aiwass in a hood, the girl hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to address him.

"…Mister, would you like to buy a bouquet of flowers?" she asked softly.

She had evidently noticed that Aiwass was sitting in a wheelchair—although she could tell from the pattern on the wheelchair that Aiwass must be wealthy and likely a kind person, having eavesdropped on their conversation earlier.

But because Aiwass seemed to be a disabled person, her sales pitch wasn't as confident.

Aiwass reached out and touched her head.

As he extended his hand, the girl flinched as if shocked, her body tensing up in fear, as though bracing for a blow.

However, since Aiwass's hand was slow and the one extending from his sleeve was young enough, she soon realized that she might have called him the wrong title.

"—It's 'Brother'," Aiwass said softly.

His fingertips touched the girl's hair but only felt dust and grime. She clearly hadn't bathed in days.

The girl, aware of this, retreated half a step in panic when Aiwass touched her hair, and immediately apologized to him, "I'm sorry, my hair is dirty… I'll leave now…"

"Let's make it a deal for a bouquet of flowers," Aiwass said, chuckling.

As he spoke, his right hand opened, revealing a suddenly appeared one Red Coin in his previously empty palm.

This wasn't an act of extraordinary abilities but just a simple magic trick, yet it amazed the girl.

She looked at the Red Coin, then back at Aiwass. She clearly thought Aiwass was a Transcendent, hesitated, and was too scared to accept his money.

But the corners of Aiwass's mouth, hidden under his hood, curled upward.

With dexterous fingers, he clenched the Red Coin and slowly drew back his hand.

Just then, he suddenly exclaimed lightly and reached towards the girl's neck, "Hey, what's this?"

While speaking, he deftly pulled a brand-new Red Coin from behind the girl's neck.

Looking at the girl's surprised and puzzled wide eyes, she clearly had no idea how it had gotten there.

Without waiting for the girl to refuse, Aiwass deftly folded the Red Coin in half with three fingers and placed it into the large money pocket hanging on her chest.

Aiwass slightly lifted the corner of his hood, revealing his youthful face and a smile from the bottom of his heart to the girl.

"Shh..."

He reached out his hand, held it in front of his mouth, and made a gesture for silence.

Then, he put his hood back on and extended his pale, slender right hand: "Miss, where is my flower?"

"Ah, here you go!"

It was only then that the girl reacted, her cheeks slightly red as she handed Aiwass a withered wild rose.

"Are you buying flowers, Aiwass?"

Just then, Hayna returned, confused and carrying a newspaper.

The girl, seeing this, was startled and almost fell to the ground. Looking at Hayna, dressed like an inspector, her face turned pale, and she trembled uncontrollably.

But even so scared, she didn't immediately run away. Instead, she mustered up the courage, stammering softly, "Wait, wait a second, sir! I still need to give you your change...!"

With stubborn hands trembling, she carefully counted out nine crumpled copper coins from a paper wrapper hidden inside her chest and handed them respectfully to Aiwass. Then, she carefully folded the new Red Coin with a value of 1 that Aiwass had given her, put it inside the paper wrapper, and tucked it away inside her chest. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.

She did all this under Hayna's watchful gaze and left with legs that were almost too weak with fear.

"I'm not that scary, am I?"

In the past, when people feared her, Hayna didn't care.

But now, perhaps because she had talked with Aiwass about some things, or maybe because the girl looked so young and innocent, being feared by her was somewhat demoralizing for Hayna.

After watching the girl walk away, Hayna whispered, "Do you want me to throw away the flower for you?"

This dirty wildflower was truly out of place with Aiwass's attire.

"No need,"

Aiwass replied: "After all, it's the thought of a child."

"You seem to like children, don't you?"

Hayna, as if realizing something, pondered. Compared to his attitude towards herself, Aiwass's demeanor towards the two children was clearly much friendlier.

"Yes, I like innocent children,"

Aiwass nodded and surprisingly, without lying, spoke a truth that came from his heart: "Just like liking cats and dogs, being with them relaxes my mind. There are many things I like, I just don't particularly like people."

"...That sounds almost like an insult,"

Hayna joked in response to his words, "You can't treat children like pets."

"It just sounds like it,"

Aiwass's lips slightly curving, offered no further explanation.

He indeed was complaining about people—except he was talking about adults.

To him, adults with their filthy minds, greed, and duplicitous natures, were worse than cats and dogs... and that included himself.

As they chatted, following Aiwass's directions, they finally arrived at the Pelican Bar.

But calling it a bar was somewhat misleading; it seemed more like a house or a warehouse. Its front door was whitewashed and extravagantly painted with a cartoon-like pelican with its mouth wide open. Various fishes stuffed into its enormous mouth, floated in the beer foam, as if the pelican were stewing fish in beer.

Next to it hung a wooden board with a long string of words spelt out in capital letters, imitating the sound of a drunkard's belch.

—That was precisely the bar's sign.

Strictly speaking, this "Pelican Bar" ought to be pronounced as "[(hic) Bar]."

It was nearing noon, but the doors weren't shut, and there were quite a few customers inside.

Clearly, it operated as a restaurant at noon as well.

The moment Hayna, pushing Aiwass's wheelchair, slowly entered,

Her steps suddenly faltered.

She widened her eyes, shocked.

Because the bartender leisurely cleaning the wooden cups at the front wasn't human—it was a rare Wild Elf!

Elves, with lifespans four to five times longer than humans and generally taller, had females usually over 1.8 meters tall, occasionally reaching 2 meters, and male elves even taller, some reaching 2.45 meters.

This meant that if an elf had poor upbringing, they could easily become hunchbacked during their teenage years by frequently interacting with shorter humans. And if they were well-raised—or rather, cared for by parents—elves generally did not hunch.

Therefore, hunchbacked elves were referred to as Wild Elves. Wild Elves were even less in number compared to regular elves.

Elves valued honor, family, and lineage greatly, thus they had a substantial disdain for Wild Elves and their parents, considering them a stain on the elf race. If an elf's parents died for matters of honor, they would usually entrust their children to relatives or friends' care.

Unless they died of shame... for example, if they were executed, they would not entrust their children to others; or if the children were abandoned by their parents or were rebellious youngsters who ran away from home, for these reasons they would grow up as Wild Elves.

Wild Elves lacked the grace and dignity of elves but shared their lifespan, intellect, and extraordinary abilities, hence they were often regarded as unstable elements.

They were usually active in rural areas and their professions were often scammers, assassins, or mercenaries. Within the Royal Capital "Glass Island," all Wild Elves were theoretically registered. If there was trouble, they could be easily traced, so those who valued freedom typically disdained living in the Royal Capital.

However, for some reason, the Wild Elf bartender showed no reaction to seeing Hayna, even giving her only a disdainful glance.

On the other hand, when the bartender saw Aiwass, he paused noticeably, his hands stopping for a moment.

Even covered by the cloak, the bartender easily recognized his identity.

—As if he had never imagined Aiwass would come here today.

...Why is that, Mr. Bartender?

Do you think I... should be dead by now?

Aiwass narrowed his eyes, his deep blue pupils profound as the abyss.