Side Story – First Experience (2)

body {
font-family: Georgia, serif;
line-height: 1.6;
max-width: 800px;
margin: 0 auto;
padding: 20px;
}
h1 {
color: #333;
border-bottom: 2px solid #ddd;
padding-bottom: 10px;
}
p {
margin-bottom: 1em;
text-align: justify;
}

The numerous races of the continent had been in fierce competition for their own interests.

However, there was something that united them.

It was the Demon invasion.

Faced with the crisis of annihilation, humans and other races joined forces and succeeded in stopping the Demons.

A victory that was nothing short of a miracle.

But.

The war with the Demons had already claimed the lives of countless people, and those who had left could not return.

The countless children who lost their parents were naturally driven into the streets.

Most of the regular facilities for accommodating children had collapsed, so one of the places they turned to was criminal organizations.

“…No one’s coming out.”

Theo, the boy hiding in the alleyway, was one of those children with a similar story.

Having lost his parents, he joined a back-alley organization and committed crimes to survive.

Theo’s target was the belongings of drunkards coming out of the bar.

Drunk people were good prey. They often didn’t notice anything missing because they were drunk.

Even if they did notice, people who could barely stand couldn’t catch Theo running away into the back alleys in the middle of the night.

“Ha… I need to get something.”

Theo glanced at the entrance of the bar and fidgeted.

Today was a really unlucky day.

He had barely succeeded in any pickpocketing all day.

The wallets he managed to steal only contained a small amount of change. It wasn’t nearly enough to meet his quota.

He went to the bar to seize one last opportunity, but no customers were coming or going.

‘Should I just give up today?’

If he didn’t meet his quota, he would have to go hungry. Those who managed children like Theo had no mercy.

‘Please, just one person…’

Clinging to his last hope, Theo desperately prayed for someone to come out of the bar for a few more minutes.

And as if the Goddess had heard his wish,

-Creak.

The bar door finally opened, and a woman walked out.

She was staggering and moving slowly, as if she was very drunk.

“That person is…”

Theo recognized the woman’s face. He remembered seeing her occasionally when he was waiting at the bar.

A drunk woman.

Normally, she would be one of the best targets, but Theo had never tried to pickpocket her before.

The reason was simple.

‘…There’s something about her.’

Theo’s intuition was screaming.

‘Don’t mess with that person.’

Theo had always faithfully followed that unfounded intuition. He had rarely lost out by following his intuition so far.

But today was different.

To meet his quota, he had to rob that woman, regardless of his intuition.

“I have no choice.”

She’s just a woman who’s completely drunk anyway.

Theo suppressed the anxiety in his heart and began to prepare.

“Ugh…”

The moment the woman approached the place where Theo was hiding, groaning.

Theo jumped out of the alleyway.

And he ran towards Lena and bumped into her as if by accident.

“Ugh…?”

-Thud!

“Argh!”

Theo, who had fallen on his butt, rubbed his buttocks with his hands and groaned in pain.

“Ouch…”

His reaction was half genuine.

‘Damn it. Something’s wrong. Is she not a normal person after all?’

The impact felt like hitting a solid rock.

“Um… I’m sorry. Are you hurt?”

The woman, with a surprised expression, quickly apologized and reached out her hand to Theo.

“I, I’m sorry. I was running in a hurry and made a mistake.”

“No, I didn’t see where I was going either.”

“I’ll be careful next time.”

Theo, who got up, bowed politely and apologized.

‘I succeeded in taking it for now.’

He had already swiped the target he saw in her pocket the moment they collided.

‘Please, let there be a lot of money in it.’

Theo wished in his heart and tried to quickly pass the woman.

But Lena’s hand grabbed Theo’s shoulder.

-Grab.

“Wait a minute.”

“Is there a problem…?”

“You have to return my things.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m talking about my wallet that you took.”

He was caught.

The moment he realized that, Theo’s judgment was very quick.

He started running away without looking back.

-Thump, thump, thump!

“Huh?”

Leaving the woman’s hollow laughter behind, Theo ran madly into the back alleys of the city.

“Huff, huff…”

I should be able to shake her off at this point.

Theo breathed heavily and sat down on the floor.

The sound of footsteps following him had disappeared, so he was sure that she had missed him escaping.

‘I didn’t make a big mistake, did I?’

The fact that she noticed the pickpocketing even though she was drunk meant that she was likely skilled.

It would have been a big problem if he had been caught.

“Haa… Should I check the money first?”

Theo began to open the wallet with anticipation.

“Gasp?!”

Dozens of gold coins.

Theo felt like he was suffocating at the enormous amount.

“T, there’s this much money in it?”

It was enough money to run away on his own right now and buy a big house in the city.

Theo’s mind became complicated by the unimaginable jackpot.

“W, what should I do with this…?”

“Aren’t you going to run away anymore?”

“!!”

Theo was horrified and turned around.

“H, how…”

“Surprised?”

The woman, who he thought he had shaken off, was looking at Theo with a nonchalant expression.

“Damn it!”

Theo tried to run away once again, but—

“Let’s stop playing around here.”

-Bang!

“Ugh!”

The woman, who had approached in an instant, grabbed Theo’s head and slammed it into the floor.

“I was going to let you off if you just returned the wallet. But if you run away like this, I can’t forgive you.”

“Ugh…”

He should have trusted his intuition. He regretted it too late, but nothing changed.

In the end, Theo changed his attitude and began to beg for forgiveness.

“I, I’m sorry! I’ll return the wallet, so please…”

Once he was caught, he had to beg unconditionally to save his life. If he acted wrongly, he could have his hands cut off or die a dog’s death.

“I really hate criminals. They’re useless bastards who are of no help to the world. Like you.”

The woman grabbed Theo by the hair and lifted him up.

“Ouch…!”

“What should I do with this? It’s not just once or twice that I’ve almost had big problems because I let criminals off.”

The woman glared at Theo with her eyes wide open.

“Should I just kill you?”

“Ah, ah…”

Theo froze completely at the murderous gaze.

‘I, I’m going to die.’

Theo felt that the woman in front of him was seriously thinking of killing him.

“Would it be better to cut off your hands and feet…?”

“P, please save me. Sniff… I was going to die because I didn’t have any money. My parents are also dead…”

Theo, terrified, sobbed and pleaded with the woman.

Even though he had been thrown into the world early, he was still not an adult.

To Theo, the woman’s threat was a great fear.

“Please, sniff…”

“Just kidding.”

-Thud.

“…Huh?”

Theo, who had been released from the woman, was dumbfounded.

The woman’s face, which had been so scary, now had a smile on it.

“I just scared you a little because I was bored.”

“…”

“I’ll take this back for now.”

The woman calmly reached out and took the wallet that had fallen on the floor.

“I’ll let you off… but you know you did wrong, right?”

“…I’m really sorry.”

Theo quickly bowed.

It was too early to relax. He didn’t know if she was lying when she said she was kidding.

“I heard you lost your parents to the Demons. Is that true?”

“Yes? …Demons and Monsters attacked the village where I lived. My parents barely managed to get me out, and in the end…”

“So you joined a back-alley organization to survive.”

The woman closed her eyes for a moment and began to think deeply about something.

“What should I do with this? If I just let you go, you’ll go back to pickpocketing.”

“…”

From Theo’s point of view, he had no idea what she was thinking.

‘Please…’

He could only put his hands together and pray that he could save his life.

“Why don’t you just come with me?”

“Excuse me?”

“I’ll take care of you.”

“S, suddenly?”

Theo was flustered by the unexpected proposal.

The person who had just threatened to kill him was now saying that she would take care of him.

“Well, if I had to say, I was an orphan too. I feel like I’ll feel something if I take care of a pitiful child like you.”

“But following someone you don’t even know…”

“I should introduce myself first. My name is Lena. My job is a Hero… just think of me as a strong adventurer. Following me will be better than living as a pickpocket, at least, right?”

“If I disappear, the organization won’t leave me alone.”

Lena scoffed at the word “organization.”

“That’s a useless worry. Those guys won’t care at all if one of you disappears anyway. Even if they come looking for you, do you think I’ll lose?”

“B, but…”

“Of course, it can’t be helped if you don’t want to. It’s just a thought that suddenly came to me.”

Lena turned around and began to walk away from Theo.

“Wait a minute!”

Lena stopped for a moment at Theo’s call. And she only turned her head slightly.

“Why? Are you going to come with me?”

“I’ll go with you… but can’t you save the other children too?”

“Huh. I gave you a good opportunity, and now you want me to do everything for you? But that’s too much.”

Lena shook her head.

“I don’t have any intention of taking care of the other children. I’m tired of being a pushover now. I was only considering you, especially.”

“Still, only me escaping is…”

“Okay. If that’s the case, let’s do this. I’ll train you.”

-Swoosh.

Lena drew her sword and twirled it lightly. That simple movement looked so cool to Theo.

“I’ll give you the power, so you can save the children yourself.”

“R, really?”

In this world, those without power are tormented by the strong.

That was why Theo was pickpocketing and living like a slave to the organization.

This was a great opportunity to escape from this cycle.

Lena put the sword she was holding back in its sheath and tapped the sheath with her finger.

“This older sister… no, this older sister is a pretty strong person. If you’re trained by me, you’ll never starve to death, at least.”

“…Then I’ll trust you and go with you.”

“Good. Don’t get lost and follow me closely.”

Theo began to follow Lena closely.

He still had some anxiety, but he didn’t stop walking.

Wherever he went, it would be better than living in the back alleys.

Of course, there was another reason.

‘…She’s a pretty older sister, so it’ll be okay.’

That’s how Theo ended up living with Lena.

**

I didn’t have any great intentions in taking in Theo.

My instincts naturally reacted to Theo’s unfortunate story of becoming an orphan and committing crimes to survive.

My pushover instincts, which always want to help people.

It also coincided with the fact that I didn’t know what to do.

‘Haa… I quit being a Hero and was going to stop doing this kind of thing.’

In the end, I even got a small house in Raven, the city where I was staying for a while, and started living with Theo.

After living together for a few months… it wasn’t bad at all.

It was actually good.

It was fun to take care of someone and watch them grow.

-While I’m out, can you clean the house, do the laundry, and prepare meals?

-Yes!

-Study all the Swordsmanship manual I made in advance.

-Yes!

He does the housework for me, listens to me well, and is quite handsome.

In addition, my serious loneliness and depression have been somewhat resolved.

It definitely made a big difference to be with someone.

‘Should I start an orphanage later?’

Thanks to him, I had naturally stopped self-harming and masturbating, which I used to do habitually.

Now, all I had to do was make Theo strong as promised and let him become independent.

But there was a small problem.

“Okay. Just 10 more.”

“Th, that’s enough…”

-Thud.

“Are you tired already?”

I kicked Theo, who was lying on the ground in the vacant lot, with my foot.

“Haa, haa… I’m sorry, Lena. I’m really at my limit now…”

“Hmm…”

This guy’s stamina is always the problem.

I scratched my head in frustration.

As a result of testing Theo, he had no talent for magic, but he had some talent for swordsmanship.

But his terrible stamina was holding him back.

‘I thought he was skinny when I brought him here…’

Because he had been so malnourished, it was taking too long for his stamina to improve.

In fact, I was thinking of taking him as a disciple if he had a little more talent… but unfortunately, Theo was not good enough to be a disciple.

“Theo, get up now.”

“Ugh…”

Theo reluctantly got up, showing that he didn’t want to.

Seeing this, his tenacity wasn’t bad.

“Are we going to start swordsmanship training right away?”

“No. We’re going to go to a real battle today.”

Now is the time to start building up training and experience together.

“R, real battle?”

“Just follow me for now.”

I led Theo out of the vacant lot and headed to the back alleys.