Gawain, clutching 30 crowns, wound through several turns before arriving at a bar.
Yes, even in the lower hive, there were recreational establishments like bars, though most were closely linked to gangs.
The boy, given his status, naturally wouldn't enter through the front door.
In the backyard, bodies that had been played with until they were unrecognizable were piled high; they were mostly girls, generally very young.
"Oh, isn't this Gawain?"
A gang member in the backyard, with crossed Bones tattooed on his arm, grinned when he saw the boy enter and said, "It's not work time yet. Don't tell me you've come to your senses?"
"No, it's not that, My Lord Barry." Gawain humbly lowered his head, avoiding looking at the bodies.
He had a job: every so often, he would come to this bar, controlled by the Bone gang, to transport the bodies of girls who had been played to death by important figures, delivering them to the Body Guild.
The pay for this job wasn't high, only enough for half a meal's worth of supplies for one person.
"I've always said, if you just sell your sister to my lord Luke, you wouldn't have to work so hard." Barry squeezed out a lewd smile, patted the boy's thin shoulder, and lectured him in the tone of someone who'd been through it all: "Then, I'll put in a good word for you, and maybe you can even become a full member of the Bone."
Gawain didn't say a word, only lowered his head further, the fire of anger burning in his eyes.
"How boring, always like a dead man."
Barry scoffed, used to the guy, and unenthusiastically said, "Let's see how long you can keep this up, hmph."
"My Lord Barry, I, I came to buy nutrient paste." Seeing that the other party didn't continue the topic, Gawain breathed a sigh of relief and quickly stated his purpose.
"Hmm? Buy nutrient paste?" Barry was a little surprised, scrutinizing Gawain suspiciously from head to toe: "Where did you get the money, kid? Do you know how many crowns nutrient solutions cost?"
"I, I have money, lord Barry." Gawain took out three coins, each with a denomination of 10 crowns.
Barry squinted, took the 30 crowns from the boy's hand, and pretended to sternly ask, "Where did you get this money? Tell me honestly!"
"My Lord, I picked it up from a dead scavenger." Gawain had prepared an excuse before coming.
Finding money on a dead scavenger wasn't anything rare, just a bit of good luck at most.
"Hmm."
Barry, as expected, didn't suspect anything. His eyes darted around, and he grinned, saying, "Kid, you've got good luck, huh? Where did you find it? Next time, take me to get rich too?"
Gawain scratched his head with a naive expression: "Alright, lord Barry, but I don't know if we'll meet again, hehehe."
"Wait here."
Barry dropped a sentence and turned to enter the bar.
Soon after, he reappeared and tossed two tubes of nutrient solution over: "Here, the nutrient paste you wanted, take them."
"Two, two tubes?" Gawain's eyes widened, and he said somewhat anxiously, "My lord Barry, it should be three, three tubes!"
"Three tubes? That was before."
Barry sneered, putting on a helpless expression: "The price here is 15 crowns per tube now, take it or leave it."
"Then, then give me back my money, I'll buy it somewhere else!" Gawain mustered his courage and pleaded in a humble, soft voice: "Can I do that, lord Barry?"
"Get lost, you stuttering brat!"
Unexpectedly, Barry's eyebrows shot up, and he suddenly exploded in rage, punching Gawain directly in the face.
Gawain was knocked to the ground by the punch, his head dazed, but Barry rushed forward again, kicking him hard in the abdomen, repeatedly stomping on him and cursing: "You take me for a fool? You dare ask me for money? It's two tubes, take it or leave it, damn it!"
It seemed he was used to being beaten all the time; Gawain immediately curled up, protecting his internal organs and head, silently enduring Barry's brutal assault.
After a moment, Barry seemed tired of hitting him. He looked disdainfully at the cowering, trembling Gawain, spat a mouthful of phlegm, and said, "Scram, I'm in a good mood today, so I won't bother with you."
Gawain silently hunched his body, leaning against the wall, and slowly left the bar's backyard.
He knew very well that there was no price increase.
It was simply Barry, greedy for money, who had secretly deducted 10 crowns.
The fire in the boy's eyes burned even brighter, but he gritted his teeth, not making a sound!
He didn't dare offend Barry, because the other party was a full member of the Bone, and to survive in this area, he had to obey him.
Unless, in the future, he could become a high-ranking member of the Bone, only then would he have a chance for revenge!
Gawain carefully wiped his hands clean and respectfully held out the two tubes of nutrient solution to Emrys.
The boy was very nervous, his eyes filled with self-reproach, and he stammered, "I, I'm sorry, they said the price went up, 30 crowns can only get two tubes of nutrient solution."
Emrys stared at the boy's face, which had a bruise on it, clearly from a beating.
He wasn't unfamiliar with similar situations; after a little thought, he roughly guessed the reason, and silently sighed in his heart.
Damn gangs, they're the same everywhere. It would be great if they could all just die out!
Gawain thought he didn't believe him, and stammered, somewhat anxiously: "I, I didn't lie to you, it's true."
"I know." Emrys lowered his gaze slightly and pushed the two tubes of nutrient solution back: "They're for you, you don't need to give them to me."
"Then, then how can I?" Gawain seemed to stutter when he got anxious: "You, you, you've helped us so much, Via and I can't—"
"Take them when I tell you to, stop wasting words."
Emrys interrupted the boy, his tone quite firm and cold: "I don't lack nutrient solutions, understand?"
"Tha, thank you!"
Despite his rude attitude, Gawain knew that the other person was a good man.
"You're welcome."
Emrys coldly turned his head away.
He had helped as much as he could; for the rest, he was powerless and they had to rely on themselves.
The atmosphere in the alley fell silent again.
Gawain curled up in the corner again, occasionally glancing at Emrys, looking as if he wanted to speak but hesitated.
After his five senses were amplified by psionics, allowing him to clearly feel that he was being watched, Emrys was truly a bit helpless: "What else do you want?"
"I, I want to ask, your name." Gawain said very softly: "I, I don't mean any harm, really."
"Why do you want to know my name?"
Emrys didn't think the boy had any malicious intent.
"Because you saved my sister and me, you are a good man!"
Gawain mustered his courage, his eyes full of innocence and simplicity: "When I grow up, I want to repay your kindness."
After a long silence, Emrys slowly said, "Emrys, my name is Emrys."
"What's your last name?" Gawain tilted his head, curious: "Mr. Emrys, do you not have a last name?"
"Emrys is my last name. Your question actually makes it feel a bit awkward to me."
Emrys rubbed his brow, his thoughts drifting back to the word his mother repeated to him before she died.
"Sorry, Mr. Emrys, I didn't mean to."
Gawain waved his hand in a panic, guessing that he had touched on the other person's painful memories: "Actually, many people don't have more than one name, do they?"
Yes, many people in the lower hive haven't had a 'name' since they were born.
"No, I just remembered something."
Emrys smiled and shook his head, his eyes shifting slightly as he murmured, "My name is Merlin Emrys."
Merlin was his other name.
Of course, he had never seen that cheap father who's given him the name since the day he was born, and he probably died in some trash heap in the lower hive.