The emergency quest was limited to providing assistance to the on-site Adventurers as reinforcements; pursuit and apprehension of the bandits were outside the scope of the job. Additionally, George and the two Hunters had done everything they could. Once the Knights arrived and were briefed on the situation, the Adventurers returned to the guild, their footsteps heavy with the weight of unfulfilled purpose.

  Having filed his report and received his quest compensation, George spotted a group of children returning from the hallway through the parking lot, and he noticed the boy from Urie among them.

  "So, one of the quest takers made it in time," George quietly thought to himself, "Well done."

  "What should we do about that boy?" George began to think, asking Leslie in his mind.

  "The king's spies are watching you. Maybe it's better to just keep a watchful eye, for the sake of the orphanage." Leslie's voice whispered in George's mind. "I dread the thought of the Inquisition Knights cleansing the orphanage. You see, if they find a demon among the children..."

  "I know," George replied, his voice trailing off. "The 'just in case' protocol..."

  Two hours later, having finished drafting the picture book with his companions, Raymond departed on his own and headed to the guild's cafeteria.

  George offered a warm wave and greeted Raymond with a gentle "Hello."

  "Mister?" Raymond asked George, "Why are you here?"

  "I saw you coming back earlier," George replied, "You were attacked by bandits today, weren't you?"

  "Right." Raymond nodded warily, his eyes narrowing at the stranger who seemed to be stalking him.

  George smiled and offered, "Let me buy you dinner again tonight."

  "No, absolutely not," Raymond said, his hand shooting up in a polite yet firm gesture, as he declined, "You've already treated me last night, and besides, I have a free meal ticket tonight."

  The two had first met the night before.

  The previous night, Raymond had planned to have only a single cup of juice for dinner. He was new to the orphanage. Although he had been researching the botanical price list and going through books in the library, the list shifted with the changing seasons and he struggled with work. Unable to catch up with his botanical study, his income plummeted and he had been skipping meals and opting for juice instead.

  Raymond addressed the cashier with a hesitant tone, "Just one orange juice, please."

  "You need to eat more; otherwise, you won't grow up." A tall, muscular man lining up behind Raymond said.

  "Mind your own business," Raymond said, his gaze shooting up to meet the man's, who towered over him. Cautious about the stranger, he refused and said. "One orange juice only."

  George interjected, ordering, "Two dinner set number twos, one for myself and one for the boy, please." As he spoke, he handed the cashier a paper bill.

  The cashier slid a ticket across the counter toward Raymond, saying, "One ticket for an orange juice."

  Then, the cashier handed George two tickets, saying, "Two dinner set number twos, here you go. Now, please, sort this out among yourselves, don't block the line, folks."

  Raymond snatched his ticket and hastily walked away.

  "Hey, wait up!" George swiftly stepped in front of Raymond, holding the extra ticket above the trash can, poised to drop it. "If you don't take it," he said, "it's going in the trash."

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  For several days, Raymond had subsisted on orange juice for dinner, often skipping lunch altogether. He was starving. The savory aromas wafting from the meal collection counters gradually wafted into his nostrils, prompting his stomach to growl and his mouth to water in response. Following a brief moment of hesitation, his hunger got the better of him, and with a tinge of resignation, Raymond conceded, "Fine, just this once..."

  George's face broke into a warm, encouraging smile as he handed the meal ticket to Raymond.

  Back to the night after the bandit attack, Raymond rejected George's offer to treat him to dinner. However, when Raymond was about to leave, George said, "Of course, the dinner isn't for free. In exchange, I'd like to hear about what happened during the bandit attack."

  "You see, I almost got kidnapped," Raymond's gaze dropped as he muttered, "I'd rather not talk about it."

  George pulled out a hundred-silver bill and handed it to Raymond before saying, "Would this change your mind?"

  Raymond's eyes sparkled with delight as he accepted the money, replying, "Let us get dinner first, then we can talk," but his tone remained indifferent.

  Once the two collected their dinner from the food counters, they sat down at a table.

  "Go ahead, dig in," George said with a faint smile as Raymond looked at his dinner with anticipation. "We can talk after."

  Exhausted from the escape and not having eaten for more than seven hours, Raymond was very hungry.

  George thoughtfully slid more than half of his dinner into an extra bowl, gently placing it onto Raymond's tray, and said, "Here you go. I can't possibly finish all this. Help yourself."

  After devouring one and a half portions of dinner, Raymond gulped down his cup of orange juice in satisfaction and released a hearty sigh, "Ahh..."

  "See? I told you," George said with a teasing glint in his eyes, "you need to eat more to grow up, kiddo."

  "Stop talking like you're my dad," Raymond said irritably. "Now, what do you want to know?"

  George's expression turned serious, and he replied in a matter-of-fact tone, "Everything."

  Then, Raymond narrated the story of their escape to George, including the broken wheel, their run, and the Adamantium-Ranked Adventurer. Since Raymond was hiding far from Hawk, the boy could not hear what Hawk said to the Nathan siblings, but he could still see Hawk fighting off the bandits and gesturing for Raymond to come out of hiding.

  After Raymond finished, George inquired, "When you walked out from the parking lot, there was another boy, about your age, who had black hair and Emerald eyes. Was he the one Hawk was interacting with? Can you tell me more about him?"

  "Yeah, his name is Nathan," Raymond began, "and I'm pretty sure he's not an orphan."

  Assuming that George was curious because Hawk paid Nathan extra attention, Raymond said, "He was the one blowing the whistle, which was probably why Hawk went straight for him. As for why he chose to stay behind, I believe he did it for his sisters," Raymond added, his brows furrowed in irritation, "who ran back to him like idiots, completely wasting his sacrifice."

  George's eyes narrowed slightly as he quietly made a mental note, "Oh?" before he dropped a question in a causal tone, "How do you know those two are his sisters?"

  Raymond's eyes immediately swayed away from George, as he said, "Well," before his gaze fell upon George again, "it's just a hunch, but the way they clung to Nathan makes me think they're his sisters."

  "In the end, life as an orphan is tough, isn't it?" George's gaze drifted off for a moment before he refocused on Raymond. "You know, I used to be an orphan too. So, what are your dreams for the future?"

  Upon hearing that George was an orphan, Raymond felt a sense of belonging. "I want to become a Knight," Raymond said with determination, "and not just any knights who go to work with eyes like dead fish and always arrive too late." Raymond's eyes shone with idealism as he continued, "I want to be the kind of heroic Knight who consistently rides to the rescue when people need help most."

  "Always arrive too late, huh?" George's chest tightened as if a hammer had struck into it. A muscle in his cheek twitched as his brow furrowed.

  "What a…" George meant to say, "What a wonderful dream!" However, the words got stuck on his tongue. As Raymond's innocent glared upon the former Knight of Darkness, the boy's silhouette overlapped with Leslie's, who had the same eyes and dream. Memories of Leslie's passing flooded George's mind. Sorrow and pain swirled in his chest, spreading throughout his body, as the haunting screams of his victims echoed in his mind.

  George's turned toward the cashier as he abruptly stood up, his voice a little strained, "What... can I get for you for dessert?" hiding his face expression from Raymond.

  Raymond's eyes sparkled as he enthusiastically listed, "Crème brulee, tiramisu, lapis legit, and I'll also have a slice of New York cheesecake."

  George raised an eyebrow, questioning, "Sure, can you finish all that?" The boy's ravenous order distracted him from the sorrow.

  Raymond's face broke into a confident grin as he replied firmly, "Of course, let me show you." George then proceeded to order the dessert and brought them to Raymond, whose eyes shone with anticipation.

  After taking his first bite of the crème brulee, Raymond asked with curiosity, "What did you do for a living, Mister?"

  "Um…" George took a moment to contemplate before answering, "I used to work as a cleaner."

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