(Jevan’s perspective)
"Wake up, you bastard!"
I opened my eyes to a voice as unpleasant as a slap to the ear, more like a whip lashing my miserable morning. I blinked twice before slowly raising my head. My eyes were swollen from lack of sleep, and my arm was numb under my pillow. I turned toward the source of the annoyance (as if I didn’t already know) and saw him standing by the door, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
Raven, that bastard. A tall man with slightly long black hair and brown eyes the color of tree bark. And unfortunately, my roommate.
How did I end up with him? Well, that’s a long story, but sadly, not an interesting one.
The lower district wasn’t as cheap as idiots might think. The rents were high compared to the miserable living standards here.
And since I wasn’t in the mood to waste my money on a lousy apartnt, I decided to share rent with soone else. Out of all the creatures I could have ended up with, I got stuck with this annoying one.
"Were you dreaming about princesses again?"
"No, I was dreaming of a world where the first face I see in the morning isn’t your ugly one."
"Nice. Now move, we have work."
I sighed, then sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing my face with my hands.
"The work isn’t going anywhere."
"No, but it won’t wait for you either, especially when you look like this." He gestured at with his chin, his arms still crossed.
I glanced at my reflection in the nearby mirror. ssy hair, half closed eyes, and exhaustion carved into my face. Fine, he wasn’t entirely wrong.
"You’re the worst roommate in history," I muttered as I dragged myself out of bed.
Raven ignored my words completely, as if I were just background noise, and walked out. I stood in place, staring at his arrogant back, wondering for the thousandth ti how I ended up with him.
But who knows? Maybe one day I’ll find a good reason for this stupid decision. Or maybe I’ll kill him in his sleep. Either option works.
...
It had been a week since I officially beca part of the Bloody Fang. And honestly, the na suggested sothing far more bloody than what I’d seen so far.
The gang, contrary to expectations, operated with surprising discipline. No yelling, no cursing in etings, and no one waving their sword in anyone’s face at least not in front of .
And so far? My job was boring. All I did was stand near Raven. This creature who shared my apartnt and, apparently, whom the universe decided to punish with in every corner of my life.
The big surprise? Turns out he wasn’t just an ordinary mber. He actually had a decent rank. Why? I had no idea. Maybe the gang was going through a staffing crisis. Who in their right mind would give him a high rank?
I was leaning against a stone wall, silently watching the target a simple rchant selling rusty tools and herbs that weren’t even fit to be used as fertilizer.
I said sarcastically while glancing at Raven:
"How in the creator’s na did you get a high rank? Is there so secret points system based on poor performance?"
Raven, sitting on the ground, didn’t even give a side glance. He just kept spinning a small knife between his fingers.
"Charm. So of us are born exceptional. And then there’s you."
"Do you think he’ll do sothing interesting soon?"
"If we’re counting picking his nose five tis a minute as interesting, then we’re currently at the peak of excitent."
The rchant hadn’t done anything suspicious for the past two days. If this was the "dangerous target" we’d been assigned to watch, I figured the Bloody Fang needed to reevaluate their priorities.
Honestly, I still didn’t understand why a gang this size would care about a rchant selling dried herbs and so junk. But I wasn’t here to understand. I was here to work or at least pretend to.
No complaints on my part, anyway. I’d asked for an easy job, and I got exactly that. Nothing complicated, no real danger, and no need for ntal effort. A good deal on the surface, at least.
But as always in this rotten city, quiet never lasted long.
A strange man entered the square, suspicious from the very first glance. Long coat, tense face, and eyes scanning the place. His clothes practically scread, "I’m suspicious, watch ."
He approached the rchant we’d been watching for two days without spotting anything unusual. They exchanged words I couldn’t hear, but their body language spoke volus. Unfortunately, I was not skilled in reading body language.
The rchant pointed toward the back storeroom, and the man nodded before following him. Raven moved without a word. He stood, brushed the dust off his trousers, then gave a quick look that was an unspoken order:
"Get up."
Normally, I would have ignored him, but fine, I wanted this boring mission to end. I sighed, stretched lazily, and muttered sarcastically:
"And here I thought my day would pass quietly. Foolish ."
...
We slipped into the storeroom, Raven first and right behind him. The mont we stepped in, a foul stench hit my nose. We hid behind a stack of large wooden crates. Raven signaled to stay low, then nodded toward the inside.
The tall stranger stood beside the rchant, but behind them was the real disaster. tal cages carelessly dumped to the side, stacked with filthy, torn blankets that reeked with a pungent stench unbearable even from this distance.
Under the blankets, I saw sothing move. Inside the cages were children. Pale faces, glazed half closed eyes, so huddled in a corner, others lying on the tal floor of the cage.
The rchant spoke, pointing at the cages:
"All under ten years old. Quiet, no noise. So don’t speak. As agreed, the shipnt is ready."
The stranger didn’t blink.
"My n will co tomorrow to collect the goods."
Then he pulled a small dark cloth pouch from his pocket and tossed it toward the rchant. The rchant caught it before it hit the ground. He didn’t look inside, just weighed it in his hand and nodded.
"Consider it a down paynt."
The rchant gave a faint, vile smile.
"It’s an honor to do business with you."
Then a weak, broken voice ca from one of the cages:
"I want... my mom..."
The rchant quickly turned, walked up to the cage, and kicked the iron door hard, making the whole cage rattle. The child inside cried out.
The rchant shouted in a hoarse, hate filled voice:
"Shut up, you little rat! Your mother sold you with her own hands! Don’t cry for her now she didn’t cry for you!"
The child stayed curled in the corner, whimpering softly.
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