Seaside

Trailing at the end of the crowd, Tom could smell the stench from afar. In these turbulent times, where would so many kind people come from? They were just here to pick out 'children' they fancied.

"Amy... let's sneak away. That gentleman doesn't look very approachable..."

Tom's ears twitched at the sound. He was a bit surprised there were still clever ones. He glanced sideways at the person in front of him, Dennis Pipshaw, a boy who had only been here a few years and often caused him trouble, and Amy Benson, a girl with a very strong sense of jealousy.

"Are you sure? That gentleman looks very rich..." Amy hesitated. She knew what Dennis meant, of course. This sort of thing was common in the orphanage, but she was truly tired of feeling hungry. Her gaze fell on Tom, and Amy's eyes lit up. Perhaps she could play the role of a kind person for once.

"Alright~ Dennis, let's hurry. And you..." Amy smiled at Tom, hiding the disgust in her eyes, and tugged at his sleeve. "Come with us quickly. This is the seaside, and Mrs. Cole doesn't have the energy to watch all the children. She won't notice if three of us are gone."

"Okay." A demure smile appeared on his face. Tom knew very well what she was trying to do, but what did it matter to him? It wasn't a bad thing to be able to see through these people's thoughts completely, was it...

The three slowly moved aside. When Mrs. Cole wasn't paying attention, they turned and ran. It was a pity, though, that they wouldn't get to eat that delicious food. Perhaps this was for the best. Who knew what kind of seasonings were in it?

Amy stepped onto the beach, the soft, fine sand making her squint comfortably. She looked around and spotted a cave not far away. Turning, she waved to the two behind her. "How about we go take a look there?"

He looked in the direction she pointed, Tom's eyes flickered. Since someone wanted to play a game, as a little gentleman, how could he refuse a lady's request? "Sure... let's go in together then..."

The three quickly ran to the top of the cave. Dennis, a little timid, took a few steps back, grabbing the unusually excited Amy. "This is too dangerous! If we slip, we'll definitely fall to our deaths!"

"What are you afraid of! Tom will go first, right?" Amy laughed happily, her eyes fixed on Tom's. She wanted to see if this guy was really a demon...

"Heh..." Tom let out a cold laugh, dropping the fake smile from his face. A sinister hiss came from his mouth. From the cracks in the rocks, several black and white sea snakes slithered out. The seaside is wonderful, isn't it?

"Sea snakes! Hurry, Amy! If we get bitten, we'll really die from poison!" Dennis was going crazy. Where did all these venomous snakes come from? This was it, they were done for today...

"Let's go in. Didn't you want to see the cave? If you don't run, these little guys will climb all over you~"

The relaxed tone and calm voice snapped the stunned Amy back to reality. She turned to look at the sea snakes blocking their escape route, their mouths open, fangs bared. Her small face turned pale, and she tried to scream, but not a sound came out.

This guy really is a demon. He must have brought these venomous snakes!