The Black-Haired Boy
"If we had known this would happen, we should have asked him to lead the way." Fors listened carefully for a while and roughly figured out what had happened.
The black-haired boy has a seriously ill grandfather who needs a lot of money for his daily medication, but he is still young and has little earning capacity.
Therefore, he can only do odd jobs to barely make ends meet for medical treatment.
However, this income was extremely unstable, and he often had to pay on credit. Once or twice was fine, but after a while, nearby clinics avoided him like the plague.
She looked up at Lorry, her eyes gleaming with a restless light.
I want to help him.
"If you want to do it, do you think I'd stop you?" Lorry chuckled softly.
Fors a soft "hmm" with an upward inflection, then murmured, "Let me think about how I can help... Would it be a bad idea to just go and give them the money directly?"
"Protecting the little boy's self-esteem is one aspect."
"On the other hand, there are many people coming and going here. If others notice and it gets out, it might cause him unnecessary trouble."
As she was talking, she suddenly squeezed Lorry's hand.
"What?" Lorry asked. Fors glanced around and lowered his voice, "Since you can take money out of other people's pockets, you should be able to quietly put it back, right?"
Lorry nodded, both amused and exasperated.
How much do you want to give?
After thinking for a moment, Fors said, "One Louis d'Or is worth almost a pound. Ten Louis d'Or would definitely be enough to buy medicine and supplements."
She had worked as a doctor at a well-known clinic in Backlund, and upon hearing the names of the medications mentioned by the two people nearby, she immediately made a judgment about the patient's condition.
The patient's illness was actually quite common.
If treatment had been started earlier, not even a single Louis d'Or would have been necessary.
However, he was too old and in poor health, and the intermittent medication he took caused his condition to worsen, leading to its current state.
"Okay." Lorry readily agreed.
The two then linked arms and walked towards the clinic ahead.
At this moment, the black-haired boy was already hurrying back with his head down, his face full of worry, wondering how to solve today's dinner and medicine problem.
Suddenly, he stumbled and was bumped into by a pedestrian walking towards him. "Sorry, I was thinking... uh." The black-haired boy started to say, but then realized that the person hadn't stopped and was already walking forward without looking back.
He let out a soft breath and turned to go home.
However, at that moment, he heard a clanging sound of metal coming from his pocket. Slightly taken aback, he quickly reached inside.
money?
I haven't made a single sale today, so where would I get the money?
Did that person accidentally drop their money into my pocket when they bumped into me? Is there really such a coincidence?
Thinking of this, the black-haired boy subconsciously took out one of the coins to examine it.
Under the glow of the Gas Streetlamp, Louis d'Or reflected a blinding light that made him squint involuntarily, almost thinking it was his imagination.
I've never seen this before. It's heavier than a regular coin. Could it be gold?
Is this Louis d'Or?!
The thought flashed through his mind, and the black-haired boy was shaken to his core.
He quickly clenched his fist, gripping the coin, which resembled Louis d'Or, tightly in his palm. He cautiously glanced around, checking if anyone was watching him. No one was looking this way... The black-haired boy secretly breathed a sigh of relief, pretending to yawn while covering his mouth, and quietly bit the coin.
"Crack!"
A slight sound echoed in his mouth.
"I can't bite it... It must be true!" the black-haired boy thought with a mixture of surprise and delight, quickly glancing down at the other coins in his pocket under the streetlight.
That one glance almost made him jump up on the spot with excitement.
Louis d'Or!
They're all Louis d'Or!
Ten in total!
Grandpa's illness can be cured! Not only that, but the extra money can even be used to buy him some nourishing supplements, as the doctor suggested!
In an instant, such a thought flashed through the black-haired boy's mind.
The corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.
But quickly, his eyes dimmed, and his lips drooped. This wasn't my money, and it wasn't a small sum... If that person was also desperately needing money to save their life, they would be extremely anxious if they discovered their money was missing...
Also, did he even see my face clearly?
If he comes back looking for me, or calls the police, will he find me? Will he implicate Grandpa...? A look of conflict crossed the black-haired boy's blue eyes.
Beneath this entanglement lurked a deep sense of worry and fear.
Should I chase after him and see...? If he's in a hurry, I'll return the money to him... He'll definitely show some appreciation for getting such a large sum of Verl D'Or as a reward, enough for Grandpa's medicine for a few days. I can't stay without making any money... If he doesn't seem to be short of money, I'll consider swallowing it... One thought after another surfaced in my mind. The black-haired boy gritted his teeth, turned around, and chased after him.
A few minutes later.
He stopped at the intersection, panting, looking around blankly.
From the crowd not far away, Lorry looked away and glanced at Fors with surprise. "I didn't expect him to actually intend to return the money."
Fors was equally surprised, a pleased smile curving her lips, "That's good, it makes me feel like I didn't help the wrong person."
As she spoke, she tilted her head back:
"Let's go find a hotel, I'm a little tired."
"If he can't find you, he should take the money and leave in a little while." Lorry gave a soft "hmm" without objecting, glanced back at the black-haired boy again, and led her to a Hired Carriage for passengers by the roadside.
10 PM, hotel suite, Terrace.
The two sat comfortably in the evening breeze on Easy Chair placed side by side.
Taking a sip of the blood-red wine, Fors placed the goblet on the small Tea Table beside her and turned her head to look at Lorry:
"It's too early, I can't fall asleep."
"Should we go out and find a place later to help me Record my abilities?"
She did not do this while in Trier.
On the one hand, there are so many customs here that she can Record, and the sheer volume of writing each day has already consumed almost all of her energy.
On the other hand, this is the capital of Intis, and the power of the the Two Churches and the government should not be underestimated. They do not want to cause trouble for themselves unnecessarily.
Lorry smiled and looked back:
"The Record ability is fine, but you don't need to go outside." Don't need to go outside? Fors paused slightly, frowning. "Wouldn't any ability with a slightly larger range break through the Wall of Spirituality?"
"And it might also damage hotel property."
"That's not necessarily true..." Lorry slowly took a sip of red wine.
Upon hearing this, Fors rolled her eyes and said irritably:
Stop keeping me in suspense and tell me already.
"What do you want me to say?" Lorry retorted with a chuckle. "Haven't you realized we're not even in the hotel?"
Not at the hotel?! Fors suddenly sat up straight and looked around.
Only then did she belatedly realize that she, who should have been enjoying the breeze on the rooftop suite's Terrace, was actually standing on an endless expanse of land.