Fox spoke these words with such certainty that there was no room for negotiation.
The little beggar's expression remained unchanged; since Fox made such a definite statement, it meant he was prepared to face death.
But would someone really prefer to be hanged rather than lose money?
The little beggar lifted his foot from the door, ready to step back. He looked toward the path leading to the mayor's residence and took a step in that direction…
Fox's bluff was met with the beggar's decisive action. His ease vanished again, and he jumped up from the sofa, shouting as Idiot began to rush toward the door.
"Are you sure?"
Suddenly, the beggar's foot hooked the door again. His cold expression seemed to have predicted the fight's outcome.
Now, the old fox was sure that the little beggar was serious. This kid was someone who would abandon others without hesitation to survive, even using them. Even if he had developed some affection for the baby girl, he would probably hand her over to the mayor's residence without hesitation for the gold.
"Okay, I got it! I've lost! Completely lost!"
Fox raised his hands, gasping for breath, his face devoid of earlier arrogance.
"Well, then, two hundred gold coins."
The little beggar repeated the price. But unlike before, he didn't take the baby girl out from the warmth of his embrace but held her tighter, sharing his warmth with her…
As if he didn't really want to hand her over. But it didn't matter. Now, the 200 gold coins had become the price Fox was paying for his own life, as a seriously ill child was actually worthy little.
"This… Actually... I couldn't do that."
Fox's face showed helplessness: "Kid, two hundred gold coins is not a small sum, and as I said before, I do not do business at a loss. I absolutely won't buy the girl. But… hey! Don't rush off! Wait, let me finish talking! I really don't have so many gold coins now."
"… Here's the thing. Kid, since you've got the skills to kidnap someone's baby to sell. Are you interested in working for me? I just have a job for you here. That's a long-term business. The pay… fifteen gold coins for once."
Fox glanced at the baby girl pressed against the little beggar's chest and secretly sneered.
"Fifteen gold coins could be enough for the baby girl's treatment."
The little beggar, who had been expressionless until now, trembled for excitement. He lowered his head to see the baby girl in his arms, asleep with a fever, hot and red cheek, breathing rapidly and weakly…
"What job?"
For the first time, the little beggar responded so quickly. Under the blanket, his grip on the baby girl tightened.
The cunning old Fox noticed the beggar's expression and sighed to himself, glad he had won the bet once. It turned out the kid had no intention of giving up the baby girl but just wanted money for her treatment. He was almost extorted for 200 gold coins.
"You know, kid."
Fox settled back onto the sofa and lit another cigarette.
"A big part of the business at 'Pink Ladies' comes from the brothel. We've just got a big deal - an old guy who's afraid of his wife wants to have fun with women. But this old man only wants girls in their teens. I don't see what's so fun about underdeveloped girls, really poor taste."
The little beggar stood waiting for him to finish words.
"But where can I find so young girls around here? Most of our ladies are over twenty, the best overall on this street, but I bet they won't catch that old man's eye. Seeing such a deal slipping away isn't it a pity?"
"…You want me to kidnap young girls?"
Fox excitedly smiled, "Smart boy. Normally, my guys would handle this. But with what happened yesterday, the catching is severe. If any of my fellows go out, they'd probably get captured before catching anyone and may drag me into trouble."
"But, with some babies gone missing yesterday, another teen girl missing today won't draw attention, right? And, our respected mayor is likely to attribute all the missing children to the same kidnappers. "
"You're still a kid; no one will notice you. With your calm and 'handsome' looks, you could easily lure a young girl, haha, right? After the old man has had his fun, I'll clear the girl, so no accidents will happen. How about this deal?"
After thinking for a moment, the little beggar slowly nodded in silence.
"Great!" Fox clapped, cigarette in mouth, and walked inside. Three minutes later, he came out with a pile of ragged children's clothes, throwing them in front of the little beggar.
"These are yours now. You can't avoid drawing attention for your current dress and being wrapped in that blanket outside. Remember, find a girl who's clean and pretty. That old man is picky and has quite peculiar tastes. He even left some clothes with me, and said it's best if the girl wears them. These clothes… well, we'll talk about it after you bring the girl. Also, carrying this little baby around must be inconvenient for you, right? How about leaving her here with me?"
The little beggar didn't respond, but he watched Fox with his reluctant eyes and held the baby a little more tightly. He cautiously picked up the clothes, then quickly left through the back door. Soon, there was a "bang".
By the time Fox hurried to the door to look, the little beggar was nowhere to be seen.
...
The blanket had turned into icicles. The nearly worn-out wool on it was like needles, painfully pricking the skin. In a dim alleyway, the little beggar boy took off the icy blanket and stood half-naked, sorting the clothes.
Chains still wrapped around his right arm, and it was unclear whether it was the cold or something else, but the skin that had been cut open yesterday seemed to have healed. Beneath the black chains, red scars crisscrossed his arm, creating a stark contrast with his pale face for coldness.
Although this was a windless alley, the boy's lack of enough clothing seemed insane to any passersby. He felt a bit terrible himself, yet he no longer felt the bone-chilling cold. It was still cold enough to shiver, but not enough to numb his body.
Underneath the chains, an evil red eye rolled around, watching as the little beggar picked out the warmest two pieces of a ragged cotton jacket from the pile, not for himself but to wrap up the baby girl. These worn-out jackets provided much better warmth for the infant than his own thin clothes.
Once the baby was wrapped up, he put on the remaining few clothes, all thin and holey, and dressed in the worn blanket. The cold air snuck in through the holes, still making him tremble.
"Brat, what are you thinking?"
Suddenly, the dark growl echoed in his mind. The blood pupil which hadn't opened for a long time now stared intently at the boy, never leaving him.
"You're quite good at hiding your emotions, which I admire. But I felt a flicker of emotion from you when that guy said he could pay for the medicine. You're actually thinking of earning the money for this little girl's treatment, aren't you?"
The beggar boy didn't answer. After silently dressing, he reached out to pick up the baby girl placed atop a trash bin…
"Damn, human kid. Answer me!"
The light from the blood pupil suddenly intensified, and the dagger within the chains pointed straight at the boy's nose, while the chains on his arm began to move again, their saw-like edges cutting into his flesh, bleeding.
Blood flowed into the blood pupil through the chain. The boy's expression twisted in pain, and his hand retracted for the pain when reaching for the baby.
"She… can be of use…"
"Then tell me, what use indeed!" The chains wrapped tightly around his arm, spinning and pulling tighter, swinging bits of flesh and blood into the air, falling to the ground and turning into bloody ice.
"I… with her… people lower their alert… no one… expects… a child… carrying a baby… to be capable of… some crimes…"
Hearing these words, the chains stopped spinning.
The little beggar's knees softened, and he knelt in the snow. As the snowflakes rose around him, the blood from his arm stopped flowing into the blood pupil, dripping instead onto the snowy ground beneath his knees.
The blood pupil was silent, staring at the boy, contemplating. But the boy didn't wait. After a heavy breath, he slowly got back on his feet, standing up. His bloodied arms reached out once more to the baby's swaddle…
"Hmph, interesting."
The blood pupil of the devil emperor's sword dimmed gradually.
"Kid, your excuses are really bad and obvious. But you do have aroused my interest anyway. Fine, I want to see just how far you'll go for this girl who has nothing to do with you, even if knowing that having her with you increases the chances of your own death. I also wonder to seeing how long you can protect her on your own. Hahaha, human kid, I'm watching. I'm expecting..."
The wounds sawed open by the chains healed quickly. Aside from the new red scars on the boy's body, everything seemed as if it had never happened.
Resting for a while against the trash bin to gather some energy, the boy finally successfully picked up the baby girl and then started walking out of the alley...
For his next hunting and prey.