DTBTHS Chapter 31

Scrounging through garbage bins to barely stay alive—that had been going on for a week now.

His starving stomach ached like it was being clawed by thorns.

The boy staggered toward the mercenary guild.

"I want to work."

The gatekeeper guarding the building entrance stared at the beggar-like boy who'd been showing up at the same time for days now, looking utterly exasperated.

"I told you to give up."

"I want to work."

"Nobody's gonna hire a beggar brat like you."

"At least give me a chance to prove my skills."

"If you were just three or four years older, I might've given you a chance. Even just for your guts."

"What does age have to do with skill?"

The gatekeeper drew his sword irritably. When he struck down without warning, Axel blocked it nimbly.

Screech. Beyond the clashing blades, the gatekeeper looked down at the boy coldly.

"Look here, kid."

The gatekeeper applied pressure to his grip.

The boy's knees buckled immediately.

The strength of a trained adult man felt like a mountain crushing down on a boy who hadn't even gone through puberty yet.

The gatekeeper glanced at the boy's trembling knees and sighed.

"A little kid like you going on about skills and whatnot doesn't mean anything."

"Ugh..."

"Look. You'd get overpowered even against the lowest-grade monsters, so what good is it no matter how well you handle a sword?"

He was merely pressing down with one hand, yet the boy's entire body shook.

"No matter how little we'd pay you, a kid like you is nothing but dead weight."

The gatekeeper gazed at the boy with eyes mixing irritation and slight pity.

"Even big guys who handle swords well die left and right doing mercenary work. Get it? If I take you along and end up seeing some kid's corpse, it'll just give me nightmares for no reason."

Axel gritted his teeth. He had no strength left from not eating.

Still, the boy held on desperately and glared up.

"Stubborn little..."

The gatekeeper clicked his tongue and put full force into his grip, intending to finally throw him off.

At that moment, Axel twisted his blade cleverly and deflected the gatekeeper's sword.

It happened in an instant.

The gatekeeper's sword slid along Axel's blade and lost its balance.

While he stepped forward to regain balance, Axel's sword reached the gatekeeper's throat.

The gatekeeper stopped breathing.

"Don't fear strength. Even a charging carriage can be overturned by a single stone."

The boy murmured quietly. The gatekeeper's sweat dripped and pooled on the rusted blade.

"...That's how I was taught."

Axel slowly withdrew his sword.

Only after the worn blade returned to its sheath did the gatekeeper release his held breath.

He clutched his throat and stared blankly at the boy.

"You... who taught you that?"

"My late father."

"Well now, there's not a single person wandering this city without a story, but..."

The gatekeeper wiped off his cold sweat while muttering something to himself, then scratched the back of his head and sighed.

"Kid."

"If you're really confident in your skills and want to make big money..."

The gatekeeper casually gestured toward one alley with his chin.

"Go to the back alley and you'll find a fabric shop with white and black cloth hanging side by side at the entrance. Go there and say you want to become a chess piece."

"Chess piece...?"

"People who sponsor promising kids gather there. You could become one of their chess pieces."

The gatekeeper shut his mouth as if he had nothing more to say.

Axel hesitated briefly, then headed toward the back alley.

After the boy disappeared completely, the gatekeeper rubbed his throat and spat.

"Unlucky little bastard. Go ahead and get yourself fooled. Roll around as the rich folks' toy and die."

Finding the fabric shop the gatekeeper mentioned wasn't difficult.

It was a shop on the verge of collapse, but only the cloths hanging at the entrance were strangely new.

Axel stepped inside past the white and black cloths hanging side by side.

Among smelly leather and coarse fabric sat an old woman like a still life.

When Axel approached, the old woman glanced at him. A blunt question popped out.

"What are you buying?"

"...I want to become a chess piece."

The old woman was silent for a moment, then pointed behind herself with the cane she was holding.

"Go on in."

Behind the old woman was a wooden door that looked like a storage entrance. It was a door so worn it seemed it would crumble at the slightest touch.

Axel grabbed the doorknob and looked back. The old woman didn't even turn around, seemingly uninterested.

The boy placed one hand on his sword hilt and opened the door.

Inside the door was a different world from outside.

The moment he entered, a sweet fragrance pierced his nose.

Magic lamps hanging from golden chains on the high ceiling cast a gentle glow. A large lion hide was spread on the floor.

The man sitting at the elegant wooden desk looked at Axel.

He frowned.

"Filthy. What is this?"

"I want to become a chess piece."

When the boy repeated what he'd said to the old woman and tried to step into the room, the man gestured with a shudder.

"Stand right there. Don't dirty the floor."

"What do you want to become?"

"A chess piece."

Axel gave a short answer and closed his mouth. The frowning man looked the boy over.

"Ha, you think that's something that happens just because you want it?"

"How did you find this place? What did you hear?"

"Not answering? You little..."

The man raising his voice suddenly stopped speaking.

He examined Axel again with widened eyes.

"You, lift your head properly."

Axel silently raised his chin and stared at the man. The light scattered by the magic lamps illuminated the boy's red eyes.

The man's mouth fell open.

"You, you have red eyes?"

The boy gripped the sword handle tighter and slowly nodded.

Red eyes.

People called those eyes by various names.

Eyes that summon fire, cursed eyes, eyes that start fires, burning eyes, unlucky eyeballs.

Children born with red eyes were extremely rare, and most died young.

The cause of their deaths was almost always the same.

Fire.

Fires broke out constantly near red eyes.

Even in places with no spark whatsoever, fires would occur if red eyes were present.

Such fires wouldn't go out easily either.

They said it happened because fire spirits liked red eyes and followed them around.

However, to celebrate being loved by spirits, the danger from fires was far too great.

Few would risk their own house burning down.

Red-eyed children were commonly abandoned at birth, and the majority died before reaching adulthood.

Axel guessed his birth parents had probably abandoned him for that reason too.

That's why he'd never asked his adoptive father about his birth parents. He'd never particularly wondered either.

Not until his father left his dying words right before his eyes.

The man clapped his hands.

"Excellent, excellent. With those eyes, you're worthy of being a chess piece."

It was the first time he'd seen a human applaud at the sight of red eyes.

Whether Axel stared at him like he was strange or not, the man became all smiles and stood up from his seat, spreading his arms.

"Welcome to the Chess Association, kid."

Axel was treated to a meal first. It was quality cooking with freshly baked bread and fresh meat.

After the long-starved boy finished the meal in an instant, a bath was prepared.

When he came out from bathing, there was a set of clean clothes. He was even given a decent bedroom, though small.

It was luxurious treatment. Thinking it was given because of his red eyes made everything suspicious.

However, the boy was too exhausted to remain entirely on guard.

It had been a year since he'd lain on a proper bed. He fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow.

After that, sleeping quarters and meals continued to be provided without incident.

When he said he wanted to train in swordsmanship, they even gave him a training ground.

The training ground was in the back yard. Axel went outside the building for the first time.

Only then did the boy realize the place he was staying was a large mansion, nearly nonexistent in the lawless city.

It seemed to be a mansion connected through the back door of the fabric shop.

The man he'd first met didn't appear for a while.

The servant who brought meals only repeated like a parrot to wait.

Then one day, the man appeared.

"Can you write?"

What he held out was a contract.

『 The master sponsors the chess piece.

The chess piece must respond to missions the master presents.

If the chess piece refuses a mission, sponsorship is cancelled. 』

The content wasn't particularly difficult or complicated. The man explained with a smile.

"I'm the master, and you're the chess piece. If you complete the missions I present, you continue receiving my sponsorship as a chess piece. Of course, if you don't think you can do it, you can quit anytime."

He held out a quill pen.

"Write your name below and stamp your fingerprint."