Chapter 2

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The protagonist, Damian, had a truly tragic life.

Damian’s father, Duke Cleyder, was a man who owned the most prosperous trading company in the empire.

The goods produced by his company were supplied not only throughout the empire but also to other countries.

While the royal family was at the center of the empire, the commercial center was Cleyder.

It was said that the center of the empire was not the royal family but the Cleyder family.

In the end, the emperor decided to eliminate Cleyder, who was like a thorn in his side.

Since all the operations of the trading company were the responsibility of Duke Cleyder, the emperor thought that killing him would cause everything to collapse.

The emperor’s plan was put into action on the day Duke Cleyder, his wife, and his newborn son went out.

It was to meet his close friend, Duke Schuetz.

The Schuetz family was another ducal family.

Although they could have been rivals as the only two ducal families in the empire, the two families were close friends.

The difference was that while Duke Cleyder was gentle, Duke Schuetz did not have deep interactions with other families.

He was a demon of the battlefield, with his territory in the steep northern region where many monsters roamed.

No one dared to approach him lightly. Therefore, the only person Duke Schuetz trusted was Cleyder, who had fought alongside him in war.

However, before he could meet his close friend, Duke Cleyder suddenly died.

It was a carriage accident orchestrated by the emperor.

Duke Schuetz’s residence was on a high cliff, and the servants testified that the coachman was in poor condition that day.

It was a truly futile death.

Falling from a cliff, especially one where monsters roamed, there was no way he could have survived.

However, Duke Schuetz mobilized all his resources to search the north thoroughly and found the bodies of the duke and his wife, as well as what appeared to be the clothes of their child.

After the death of the empire’s most prominent trader, the collateral relatives and nobles with vested interests reached out to the Cleyder trading company.

However, Duke Cleyder’s will was discovered.

It was as if he had foreseen such an accident.

It read:

'All the family’s assets are to be entrusted to my only friend, Erhardt.'

Thus, Duke Schuetz took over the Cleyder trading company in place of his friend.

He also searched for Duke Cleyder’s child, hoping against hope.

The known characteristic of the child was one.

Black hair and pale eyes, just like Cleyder.

But that was all. The child had fallen into a forest teeming with monsters. There was no way he could have survived.

However, like the protagonists in novels, the child survived.

'And now, he’s right in front of me.'

I stared intently at Damian, who stood next to the headmaster.

Since the moment I realized I was in the book, I had occasionally imagined Damian’s face.

His childhood was briefly described.

[Duke Schuetz took Damian in before he lived as a slave, a life no different from that of an animal.]

'...But I didn’t expect it to be this bad.'

His unkempt hair covered more than half of his face, and his gaunt body, which didn’t look like that of an 11-year-old, gave off a dark feeling.

Frankly, he didn’t have a likable appearance.

"Already there are too many children, and now they bring in another one."

At that moment, someone sneered.

It was Carsen, the oldest in our orphanage.

Carsen wanted to be adopted more than anyone, but not a single noble wanted him.

Unable to overcome his inferiority complex, Carsen tormented the other children.

He was 13, the age limit for being chosen by a noble.

In other words, it meant that Carsen’s bullying was at its peak.

"He looks so scrawny."

"He’ll just be another mouth to feed, reducing our share of the food."

"I don’t like that kid."

"Should we teach him a lesson?"

The others chimed in with Carsen.

'You’ll regret this.'

This isn’t just any child; it’s Damian.

Although he is an orphan here now, he is the child Duke Schuetz is desperately searching for.

After searching the entire empire, Duke Schuetz found this orphanage and realized the mistreatment Damian had endured.

The duke held the headmaster accountable, and Carsen and his gang, who had contributed to Damian’s torment, were expelled from the orphanage.

"Ellie, you’ll join us, right?"

And I was part of that gang.

At 13, the same age as Carsen, I kept watch while he and his gang stole food from the headmaster or money from the teachers.

Since the headmaster used us, I had no guilt.

Moreover, helping Carsen and his gang meant I could sometimes get food.

'Ellie' became part of Carsen’s gang and poured all her efforts into tormenting the children.

-That was the story in the original novel.

The current 'Ellie' didn’t want to torment the children.

Most of the children in this orphanage had lost their parents in the war.

Except for a few, they were all kind and innocent. Why would I torment innocent children?

Our interests only aligned when we tormented the headmaster. Nothing more, nothing less.

"I don’t want to."

"Why do you refuse only at times like this?"

Firmly refusing, Carsen clicked his tongue in displeasure.

Whenever he spoke like that, something annoying always happened.

"Just because. He looks weak."

So I always said this to get by.

Then, our eyes met through his messy hair.

I could feel his pale eyes, hidden in the shadows, staring directly at me.

Did he hear what I said? I involuntarily shuddered.

However, the child staring at me showed no movement.

He just stood there like a doll.

Then, the headmaster clapped his hands a couple of times, breaking the tension.

"Then, it’s time to prepare for dinner. Go to your assigned places."

The children left the room as if they had been waiting for the headmaster’s words.

Some went to the kitchen, some to the dining hall, and some to the storage.

Even as the children dispersed, Damian continued to look at me.

"Ellie, aren’t you coming?"

"Huh? Oh... I’m coming. Let’s go."

I grabbed the hand of the child urging me and left the room.

For some reason, my chest felt pricked.

I couldn’t help but look back.

Among the children moving away, there was no sign of Carsen’s gang.

Carsen’s bullying would start today.

In the original story, I would have been there, but...

If I just pretended not to know and continued as usual, I could avoid a bad ending.

However, my eyes kept drifting to him. Was it because our eyes met earlier?

'Just... a feeling, I guess.'

I tried to ignore the image of Damian’s eyes that rose in my mind.

...How long had I made that decision?

I sighed deeply.

The closed door seemed like an insurmountable barrier today.

"I’ve seen countless people ruin themselves by meddling."

I muttered, glaring at the doorknob.

'Why did our eyes have to meet?'

I sighed again and knocked on the door loudly, on purpose.

When the door opened, Carsen looked at me with a surprised face.

Thinking it was the headmaster, his startled expression quickly returned to normal.

"What is it, Ellie? You scared me."

"What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean? I’m training the new kid."

Carsen said this while casually nodding his head.

When I moved my gaze, I saw Damian, whose cheek was swollen.

"..."

I involuntarily clenched my fists.

I had seen many children beaten, but I had never felt like this before.

"Want to see something fun?"

Perhaps reading my gaze, Carsen said with a laugh.

"I thought he was a girl, but he’s a boy."

"So what?"

"Isn’t it funny? A boy with such a pretty face?"

"I don’t know. It might be better than yours."

"What?"

"Just kidding, just kidding."

I laughed loudly, and Carsen, though annoyed, couldn’t argue.

"Hmph, what’s good about a girl’s face?"

I suppressed the urge to sneer.

Just hearing Carsen’s attitude made me want to explode, but Damian didn’t move an inch.

He was as still as a dead person.

"Why are you here? I was just about to have some fun."

Carsen asked, and I replied casually.

"The headmaster is looking for you."

"What? That old hag? Why?"

"I don’t know. She was looking around and asked where you were."

If she sees this, she’ll definitely be angry.

With a short click of his tongue, Carsen let go of Damian’s collar.

Carsen’s gang brushed past me.

After confirming they were gone, I closed the door and approached Damian.

"Hey."

"..."

"Are you okay?"

Without looking at me, Damian wiped the blood from his face with his sleeve.

His rough movements were not just rough but brutal.

"Hey, you’ll make it worse!"

I quickly took out the ointment I had hidden in my pocket.

It was something I had stolen from the headmaster’s room.

Made from expensive herbs, it had a higher recovery rate than regular ointments.

"Use this. It will hurt less."

At this, Damian, who had been roughly wiping his face, hesitated.

He slowly lowered his hand.

Damian, who had been staring at the ointment in my hand, moved his lips.

"I don’t need it."

"What?"

"I don’t need it."

Just as I was about to be moved by his firm refusal, a soft voice came from his blood-crusted lips.

"Anyway, I’ll be beaten again before I heal."

"..."

"Beaten again."

Damian’s voice was filled with resignation.

I was at a loss for words, and Damian continued without a hint of hesitation.

"So, this is unnecessary. Even if I heal, I’ll be beaten again."

The boy looked very calm as he said this.