Chapter Text
Chapter 1
After the wonderful lunch, Cale and Alberu started their walk to Sector 2. Alberu's eyes flicked to right and left, still looking at the peaceful Endable Kingdom. It was truly amazing seeing the dark races just out in the open and not worrying about a thing. Everyone seemed happy and normal. This was the kind of kingdom that Alberu wanted to make Roan Kingdom.
Cale, disguised as Naru, stops suddenly as he turned towards an alleyway. Alberu followed his gaze to see a young teen just a couple of years older than Onn digging through a trash can. The boy was about 150 cm tall with white hair. His clothing was torn and dirty. Even from the street Alberu could see the boy was too thin.
"So even Endable has their poor," said Alberu. Cale's small face frowned as he looked over at him and then at the kid. Alberu nodded, already guessing that his friend was about to get another kid. Cale took a few steps toward the kid, asking softly,
"Hey, are you hungry?" The boy froze, red eyes turning to look at the two of them. The boy started edging back but tripped over a rock. He hit the ground as he flinched. His eyes flicked to look down at the ground, as he tried to make himself smaller. Alberu felt like that child must have had a hard life. Cale walked over, and frowned down at the boy. He held his hand out to the boy but the boy didn't take it.
"Can you move?" The boy looked up quickly, and nodded his head. Then the boy said impolitely,
"I am hungry."
"Looks like you are fine."
Cale let his hand drop then he started digging through his pockets. He finally pulled out a white napkin, bundled around something. Alberu watched in disbelief and with just a small amount of jealousy as Cale unwrapped the cookie. White Star's cookies were good enough for Cale to be carrying one around it seems. Cale held out the cookie to the boy, the boy hesitating before he finally reached up and took it. Before he took a bite though, he looked at Cale,
"Is it free? People don't do nice things for free." Cale froze suddenly and then leaned back. His own red eyes looked back towards the teen. A bitter smile formed as Cale shook his head.
"No." Alberu frowned slightly. That almost felt out of character for Cale. Cale would literally cough up blood for strangers. He would have thought that Cale would just give the cookie away. After a second, Alberu changed his mind. Cale always takes every reward he could.
"I have no money."
“Is that so? How disappointing," Cale said, holding his hand out to the teen again. The conversation seemed to calm the teen down. The teen stuffed the cookie into his mouth and swallowed it whole. After he was done, he reached up and took Cale's hand.
"So what is your name?"
"My name is Sui Khan," said Sui Khan, as he stood up. His red eyes flicked uncertainly towards Alberu. Cale tilted his head as he studied the kid.
"Do you have a place to stay?" Alberu asked, making Cale turn his head swiftly to look at his friend. It was almost like Cale had forgotten that Alberu was there. Suddenly, Alberu felt like he ruined the moment. Sui Khan shook his head, and bit his lip.
"I cannot go home. I... I think my family would hurt me more if I do. I..."
"Can you walk?" asked Cale, after the boy stopped talking.
"Yes, kid. I think I can."
Cale smiled at Sui Khan, then turned around.
"Follow me. I will take you somewhere safe. Bob, we need to make a detour before we continue to Sector 2." Alberu nodded his head, a smile trying not to break. This is how Cale has ended up with so many kids. He has up to 16 kids now, including Locke and Choi Han.
"That is okay. We aren't that much in a hurry, Master Naru."
"So your name is Bob and the kid is Naru?" asked Sui Khan, following the two of them.
"Yes. Will your family look for you?"
"Maybe? They might not. They don't like having a cursed child around." Sui Khan's voice was flat, almost not caring. There is another flicker in Cale's face. He shook his head, trying not to say anything out loud. Alberu studied the teen more, and looked down at Sui Khan's hands. Even from where he was standing, he could see the scars and callouses of a swordsman.
"Curse? What kind of curse could a child have?" scoffed Cale.
"My soul leaves my body and I become dumb. Like right now," said Sui Khan, his voice trembled softly. Cale stopped turning, his eyes were ablaze.
"You are not dumb. You are looking for food and you are letting someone help. That is not dumb. You might look feeble, but we can fatten you up easily. We can continue our talk after we get to my home. I'm going to have to leave you there so I can continue my tour for Bob, but I will make sure they will treat you well. After all, I'm Duke Fredo's son."
Sui Khan looked bright eyed, as a small smile flickered onto his face as Cale spoke.
"You... You are a good kid, aren't you?"
"I'm just doing what is right. Anyway, I will leave you with the butler so you can relax. He can get you a different set of clothing and feed you. I will most likely be back before you are done."
"How can I repay you for this? Naru, you said this was not free. So what is the cost?" Cale turned away from the kid and walked away. Both Alberu and Sui Khan followed the small form.
"The cost is painful. You just have to stay alive. Staying alive is the best."