Emerich and Chris

In the blink of an eye, the two Bone Gang underlings had their throats twisted apart.

Unless they encountered a regular army head-on, an A-class Psyker was practically a "Daemon" to ordinary people!

Of course, before making his move, he hadn't forgotten to destroy the surveillance cameras.

"You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit."

Alvin sneered and searched the two pieces of trash, finding dozens of crowns.

After stuffing the dozens of crowns into his pocket and taking back the Nutrient Solution, he walked straight into the South District, the territory controlled by the Bone Gang.

The Underhive's districts were basically all the same. The filthy streets and alleys were filled with running sewage and radioactive exhaust. Corpses that had starved to death could be seen everywhere, along with scavengers who had lost all hope, reduced to skin and bones. Their movements were slow and stiff, like zombies.

Alvin knew that the reason for this was to conserve as much energy as possible and avoid unnecessary exertion.

In his predecessor's memories, ever since his mother had fallen ill and died, he had often done the same, struggling to survive on a diet of three days without food and nine meals skipped.

After changing his appearance again, Alvin found a filthy alley with almost no one around. "I shouldn't be discovered here. I'll hide for a few days and wait for Tucker."

He tightened his ill-fitting, oversized robe and lowered his head as he entered the alley.

The siblings were huddled together in the filthy alley. At the sudden appearance of an "outsider," the slightly older boy abruptly raised his head.

His grimy face revealed a trace of nervousness.

His eyes were filled with ferocity and vigilance, like a beast defending its territory as he glared at the intruding Alvin.

"I mean no harm."

He lowered his voice and spoke hoarsely. "I won't disturb you, and I won't come over."

With that, Alvin stopped explaining and curled up in the corner of the alley. The oversized robe completely concealed his figure.

Although he was still several meters away from the siblings, the vigilance in the boy's eyes did not relax.

Alvin knew perfectly well why the boy was so wary.

In the eyes of many Underhive pieces of trash, the category of food encompassed a very broad range!

Especially for a boy like this, merely staying alive had already taken everything he had. And on top of that, he had to care for a girl?

One had to understand that, in the eyes of some Underhive scum, this kind of combination was equivalent to... emergency rations!

In Alvin's memories, he himself had nearly starved to death several times as a child, and had even almost been eaten by some pieces of trash.

The Underhive had never been a greenhouse. It was a place more brutal than any forest!

And the laughable thing was that, in such a brutal environment, the million planets under the rule of the Imperium of Man across the entire Warhammer Universe were already considered relatively good.

If Hell existed, then congratulations. This was it!

Using his hood as cover, Alvin observed the siblings. They had clearly been hungry for a long time.

Both of them were practically skin and bones, without a shred of extra muscle. The girl, held in the boy's arms, had gone so long without food that her breathing was faint and weak.

After hesitating for half a second, Alvin finally threw the Nutrient Solution in his arms over.

He consoled himself that it could count as "rent" for temporarily staying there. Besides, the thing was no longer worth that much to him now.

He couldn't just watch two people starve to death without lifting a finger, could he?

He was indeed a scumbag, but within the limits of what he could do, and as long as it did not harm his own interests, he could still help these siblings a little.

The boy stared at the Nutrient Solution that had been thrown over, a hesitant expression appearing on his face.

He was extremely hungry, and his eyes were bloodshot. Yet, as he looked at the Nutrient Solution within arm's reach, he restrained his urge and warily watched Alvin.

In the harsh environment of the Underhive, kindness rarely came without a reason.

"Eat."

Alvin admired the child's composure. In his hoarse voice, he said, "That girl is about to starve to death."

"Th-thank you."

After confirming several times that the strange man in the corner meant no harm, the boy cautiously picked up the Nutrient Solution.

He twisted open the tube's cap and stared at the milky Nutrient Paste, unable to stop himself from swallowing. Although he was already starving, he still gently brought the Nutrient Solution to the girl's lips.

Carefully and gently, he squeezed the milky Nutrient Paste into the girl's mouth.

The unconscious girl instinctively gulped it down. She quickly finished the entire tube of Nutrient Solution, and her pale complexion improved slightly, gaining a hint of color.

Only after his sister had finished did it become the boy's turn.

He slowly rolled the tube up from the bottom, refusing to waste even the tiniest bit of Nutrient Paste, and desperately licked up the small amount of milky liquid left behind.

Watching the boy's actions, Alvin felt as though a stone had lodged in his chest. It weighed heavily on him, leaving him speechless.

"What are your names?"

He asked the question almost as if possessed.

"Emerich."

Perhaps because of the Nutrient Solution, the boy's vigilance had eased somewhat. He spoke softly. "My name is Emerich. She's my little sister. Her name is Chris."

"Oh."

Alvin fell silent. His mind was in turmoil, and he had no idea how to continue.

"Thank you, sir. If not for you, my sister might have starved to death." The boy lowered his head and gazed pityingly at his unconscious sister in his arms, sincerely thanking him once again.

"Aren't you hungry?"

Alvin opened his mouth, only to find that this was the one pointless question he could ask.

How could he not be hungry?

Under normal rationing, a tube of Nutrient Solution like that could indeed sustain an adult for seven days.

But, in the end, it could only fill one person's stomach.

"It's fine. I'm healthy and don't get sick easily!"

A smile rose on Emerich's dirty face.

Yes, he was healthy and didn't get sick easily, so... he could endure hunger better, couldn't he?

Alvin grew inexplicably irritated. Reason told him that there were too many situations like this. Even if he wanted to help, how many people could he actually save?

Besides, he wasn't even safe himself. What right did he have to help others?

Yet the emotional side of him—or perhaps the faint sense of morality left over from his previous life—made it impossible for him to turn a blind eye.

The clash between emotion and reason was like two little people arguing inside his mind!

"You can help them for a while, but can you help them for the rest of their lives?"

"But you clearly have the ability to help them!"

"Hypocrite! False! Who do you think you are? The savior?"

"No, I'm just an ordinary person!"

The confrontation ended. Alvin couldn't bring himself to watch Emerich and Chris, who shared experiences similar to his own but had it even harder, starve to death.

Forget it. He would consider it repayment to the scavenger who had once saved him.

Back when he had nearly starved to death, a kind, crippled scavenger had given him his last portion of food, only to starve to death himself afterward.

Because he had once received help, Alvin chose to help these poor siblings.

He sighed, took out thirty crowns, and tossed them over. "Use these to buy three portions of Nutrient Paste. They should be enough to keep you going for a while."

Thirty crowns was already a considerable sum in the eyes of many Underhive scavengers.

Emerich's eyes widened in disbelief. Stammering, he said, "Y-you're really giving them all to me?"

"Don't misunderstand. It's inconvenient for me to go outside."

Alvin found himself an excuse and said, "The three portions of Nutrient Paste include my share as well. Understand?"

"I-I understand. Thank you!"

Emerich picked up the three coins and nervously looked at him. "I-I'll never tell anyone that you're here!"

"Mm."

Alvin replied softly.

In truth, he didn't care whether Emerich would reveal his whereabouts.

There were too many people hiding in the Underhive. Even if Emerich told someone, the Bone Gang wouldn't suspect him immediately.

Besides, he had been wearing a robe in the surveillance footage, with his face hidden beneath his hood. That sort of outfit was far too common in the Underhive to count as a distinguishing feature.

"P-please, help me look after my sister."

Emerich gritted his teeth. After hesitating, he gently placed his sister in his arms down in the alley.

This kid... was unexpectedly clever!

Alvin was somewhat surprised. How could he not see that the boy was leaving his sister behind as a "guarantee" that he would not reveal Alvin's whereabouts?

Moreover, a child using crowns to buy Nutrient Solution would inevitably risk attracting unwanted attention.

Leaving his sister behind both demonstrated his "resolve" and helped him avoid danger—a perfect way to kill two birds with one stone!