Chapter 162
‘Should I head back now?’
It seemed she had reached the end of the main road running through the village.
Houses had grown sparse, and there wasn’t a single person around.
She had left from an inn located in the middle of a bustling street, but perhaps because the village was larger than expected, she could feel how long had passed by the time she reached its edge.
Just as she was about to turn back, she spotted a child crouched in a corner of the road.
“…”
She couldn’t tell what he’s so focused on, but their back is turned, and their head lowered toward the ground.
The child’s thin back caught her eye.
Looking closely, it seemed they were picking something up from the ground.
She almost walked past him but ended up approaching quietly.
Standing a single step behind, she finally saw what the child was doing.
An involuntary, small groan escaped her.
The child must have heard it, because he flinched and jerked his head up.
Their eyes met.
“…Are you hungry?”
Lynette asked carefully.
The child, so terribly thin that she couldn’t guess his exact age, had been picking something up from the ground and eating it.
It was clearly something someone had dropped or thrown away.
The child stared blankly at her with vacant eyes.
He didn’t say he was hungry, but judging from the pitiful body visible through his clothes and the fact that they had been picking food off the ground, made it obvious they were starving.
‘An orphan?’
Children like him weren’t extremely common, but they weren’t rare either.
In better-off villages, the villagers would pool their strength to raise them. But in poorer places, such children usually had to beg or take on harsh labor at a young age.
Of course, even if they worked, a child with no adult to protect them rarely received proper payment.
The boy blinked with hollow, lifeless eyes.
Lynette parted her lips.
She had quite a bit of money in her pouch, and even if she gave all of it away, Sillian would definitely not scold her.
But she also wondered whether that would truly help him.
Some people would force children to beg, then they would steal everything they brought back. And if a child who had never owned a single coin suddenly appeared with enough money to buy things, they could easily be accused of stealing and be beaten senseless.
“Should I buy you some bread?”
Instead of emptying her pouch for the child, Lynette asked that instead.
Perhaps imagining the taste of bread, the child swallowed hard.
With a bitter smile, she held out her hand.
The small hand that reached hers is so thin the bones stuck out.
She felt like it would break if she squeezed too hard.
The boy staggered as she helped him up and obediently followed her.
Lynette retraced her steps.
She wanted to ask whether the child had parents, what their name was, why they were picking food off the ground, whether they lived here… but she kept her mouth shut.
He looked exhausted, as if he needed food in his stomach before he’d have the strength to answer anything.
Without going far, she entered the nearest restaurant.
Ordering soup, bread, and a few dishes like stew with minced meat, Lynette quietly watched the child sitting across from her.
‘Seems like people don’t know this child.’
If he had been lingering around here for a while, the owner would have acknowledged him in some way. But after giving the child just a single glance, the owner walked away.
When the food arrived not long after, the child only fidgeted with both hands and stared at the dishes on the table.
The way he swallowed made it obvious how desperately he wanted to eat.
Tilting her head, Lynette belatedly spoke.
“Eat. It’s alright.”
At her words, the child began stuffing food into their mouth frantically.
Watching the boy barely chew before swallowing made her worry he would end up choking or getting sick.
Instead of scooping the soup, they lifted the bowl and drank it, then he stuffed the bread into his mouth in one big bite.
“Eat slowly.”
Lynette handed him some water and ordered more soup.
She wasn’t sure how much time had passed.
Eventually the child seemed full, their pace noticeably slowing down.
After seeing him gulp down the water, she asked her first question.
“What’s your name?”
The child’s eyes darted around nervously.
He seemed unsure whether he should tell her, but since she had filled his stomach, he must have decided she was trustworthy.
Hesitating, he finally answered in a small voice.
“Edwin…”
“Do you have parents?”
At that, Edwin’s expression darkened a little.
‘Should I not have asked that?’
He really could be an orphan.
Lynette slightly regretted not choosing another question.
“I have a mom.”
At that, she felt a bit relieved.
“Where is your mother?”
“At home…”
“I’ll order some food to take with us so she can eat too.”
Hearing that, Edwin lowered his head without a word.
She knew very well that giving him food wasn’t really a solution. And she wasn’t going to stay here anyway.
She would be nothing more than someone who fed him well for a few meals.
But she couldn’t just walk past after seeing him eat scraps off the ground.
When the packaged food came out, Lynette handed it to the child.
“Here, take this.”
Edwin stared at it blankly, then parted his lips and spoke slowly.
“I don’t want to go home…”
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