The air froze.
Sabo's father Outlook III stumbled forward, his face pale as ash. Without warning, he lunged and kicked his son hard in the back. "You insolent brat! Who gave you the right to look at your elders like that?"
Sabo fell forward, landing at Ritter's feet. His blond hair was streaked with dirt, and his small hands clenched tightly around a handful of soil. He bit his lip, refusing to make a sound.
"Please forgive us, my lord!" Outlook III dropped to his knees, pressing his forehead to the ground. His voice trembled. "It's all this unfilial child's fault! He offended you, my lord. Our family has no such intention, I swear it it's truly… truly our misfortune to have such a son!"
As he spoke, he drew a leather belt from his waist, raising it high. "I'll teach this wretch a lesson right now !"
Crack!
A chain of congealed blood lashed out, striking him across the chest and hurling him backward.
"What did you just say? 'Teach him for me'? You think you're worthy of that?" Ritter's gaze was cold as steel. "This boy is your son?"
Outlook III shuddered violently, still kneeling. "M-my lord, spare me! I'll cast him out this instant! He's no longer part of my family! Whatever you wish to do please, do as you please!" He thought he had finally grasped Ritter's mood, mistaking cruelty for favor.
Ritter's lips curved faintly as he turned toward the boy. "Tell me, kid are all nobles like this? Pathetic dogs?"
Sabo froze for a moment, silent.
Ritter studied him a while longer, then sighed. "Forget it. His father's already humiliated himself enough. Not worth it."
When Ritter had asked that question, he had offered the boy a chance an opening to show strength or defiance. Any child with a shred of courage would've caught his attention. But Sabo… let it slip.
Still, it fit Ritter's view of nobles perfectly.
He crouched down, meeting the boy's eyes. "Kid, what's your name?"
Sabo lifted his head. In his blue eyes burned a faint, trembling fire. "Outloo no… Sabo. Just Sabo. No family name."
"Good." Ritter smiled faintly. "Remember the way you looked just now."
He straightened. Blood mist rippled outward in a sudden wave.
Outlook III was flung to the ground once more, his body twisting. Terror filled his eyes as he stared at his own hand the one that had held the belt. The skin shriveled, cracking like dry bark before his horrified gaze.
"M-my lord!"
"I hate two kinds of people," Ritter said coldly. "The first those who bully children." His eyes flicked to the cowering noble. "The second idiots who think they're clever."
The blood mist withdrew, and the man's hand returned to normal, though his pants were now soaked through.
From behind Ritter, Ace popped his head out. "Hey, you! You're getting pushed around by those jerks too, huh? Wanna come with us?"
Ann silently handed Sabo a handkerchief.
He stared blankly at the three of them the crimson haze catching sunlight around their silhouettes, turning them into figures of gold.
Ritter reached out and ruffled the boy's tangled blond hair. "Come on. You can't stay here anymore. Let's head into town."
Sabo stood frozen for a moment, then watched Ritter take Ace and Ann by the hand as they walked away. After a few steps, Ann turned and made a little gesture follow us.
Ace glanced back and shouted, "Hey! Blondie! Wanna help us pick some weapons?"
Sabo looked once at his kneeling father, then at the three figures ahead. The choice wasn't hard. He ran after them.
"Wait for me!"
Outlook III twitched, ready to shout this was his chance at power! If Sabo could be connected to this mysterious man, their family could rise again, maybe even surpass the king himself
But the moment he tried to move, invisible pressure slammed him to the ground. A wave of killing intent paralyzed him where he knelt. He knew one more step, and he would die.
Ritter waved a hand casually, not even turning around. "Outlook the Second, right? I don't like people who wet themselves. Stay where you are."
Sabo followed close behind as they entered the high streets of the city. He held the hem of his dusty shirt tightly, his mind replaying the image of his father bowing in the dirt.
The polished shoes of nobles clicked sharply on the cobblestones nearby a sound that, today, grated like knives against his ears.
"Hey, Blondie!" Ace nudged him with his elbow. "Why the long face? You were awesome back there!"
Ann silently offered a piece of candy.
Sabo took it but didn't eat it. He looked up at Ritter. "Mister…"
"Uncle," Ritter corrected without turning.
"…Ritter Uncle," Sabo said softly. "Are all nobles… are all people like that?"
Ritter stopped walking. Blood mist swirled in his palm, forming three tiny dragons. The miniature creatures rubbed their faces affectionately against the kids' cheeks.
"See these little guys?" Ritter asked. "They can turn into swords… or toys."
Ace grabbed one midair. "Can they turn into roast meat?"
The dragon blinked. (?o?o)?
Bonk!
"Idiot! That's my blood mist!" Ritter knocked Ace on the head, then turned back to Sabo. "People are like that too. Your father chose to live as a dog that licks boots "
"But he's not my father anymore." Sabo's voice cut through his words. "Not since he said, 'Do whatever you want with him.'"
At the end of the street, the setting sun stretched their shadows long across the stones. Sabo quickened his pace until he was walking beside Ace.
"Hey, Ace."
"What?"
"When you said we'd pick weapons… were you serious?"
Ritter laughed and slung all three of them up with one arm. "Of course I was! We're going now!"
Then he looked at them, his crimson eyes gleaming with amusement. "But remember this, Sabo your seat decides your vision. Power decides your future. When you're strong enough, you can live however you want luxury like those nobles, or free like the wind. Only then will your words mean something, and your ideals might come true."
Sabo hesitated, brow furrowed. He wanted to ask more, but he didn't know how. He was only eight, after all still a child trying to make sense of a broken world.
"You think the world's sick, don't you?" Ritter asked.
Sabo nodded.
"Ann here used to think the same," Ritter said, glancing at her. "And that idiot Ace found his own answer. Maybe one day, I'll have him send you a copy of his notes."
He looked at all three of them in turn. "So, what do you kids dream of becoming?"
"Someone greater than any noble! Greater than you, Uncle!" Ace declared proudly.
Ann raised a tiny fist. "I'll become an Empress of the Sea!"
Sabo smiled faintly at the two of them. "You'll both make it, I'm sure. As for me… I don't know yet."
"That's fine," Ritter said with a laugh. "You've got time. I spent over ten years figuring it out myself. No need to rush you planning to save the world or something?"
He turned toward the bustling market. "We're low on vegetables anyway. Let's grab some on the way. After that let's pick out our weapons. Sabo, lead the way."
"Let's go!" the three children shouted in unison.
Their voices echoed down the sunlit street, bright and full of life four silhouettes stretching long under the crimson sky.