"Lady Serena!"
Conroy couldn't believe what he's just heard. The woman whom he's sworn to serve, the woman that saved him from a life of treachery was slaughtered.
At first, he wanted to deny the revelation made by the guards and rush over to Regrah this instant.
But seeing the dead bodies of Cain, Vidal and Ruth helped him come to terms with reality.
He plops to the ground and slams his hands hard on the floor.
"She's gone, she's really gone... Rada Khan has won..."
He continuously slams his hands and tears gushed down from his eyes, his hands bruised and bloodied but all he could really think about was Serena...
Regrah District, twelve years ago...
The beautiful and wealthy city filled with life and joy was once a disheveled and eerie place for criminals of different types and was then deemed a lawless land.
The luster of the full moon shone upon a large man riding a carriage filled with children.
These children came from a different land with similar conditions to this one and were sold by their parents for niggling silver coins.
Fifty silver coins won't be enough to last a household of two for a week, but they figured they might as well get rid of some of the dead weight.
"Ahoy lads, we have arrived at ye new home hehe."
The man stopped at the front of a shaggy old building that looked like it could fall apart at any moment.
One by one, the children got off the carriage, they had their hands tied and their eyes covered with blindfolds.
The kids were shaking down to their spine, sobbing and whimpering as there was no one to save them from their current predicament.
Just a week ago, they were all living together with their parents, some of them single parents.
That was until the man appeared and whisked them away.
The only food they received was a single piece of bread once every day for the entire trip.
"Four...Five...Six... wait, where's the other lad!?"
He ripped off the blindfolds of the children so they could see his terrifying gaze.
Seven-foot tall, bald head, tattoos all over his body, and a scarred left eye. He looked at them like a monster ready to devour them.
One of them couldn't help but pee in his pants as they all bawled the loudest their weakened and famished body would allow them.
The man made his way to the carriage after hearing the sound of a whimper from the inside.
"Ah, there you are. You think you get to play smart with Haggis eh?"
He grabbed the child by his neck and threw him outside.
"What's ye name lad?" He asked the boy.
The boy sobbed uncontrollably, frightened to his bones as he grabs his knee which got injured from the impact upon crashing to the ground.
"C-Conroy."
The man named Haggis slapped the boy bursting up his nose and spilling some of his blood in the process which in turn frightened the other children.
"Now listen here kiddos. The name's Haggis and ye shall be serving me from now on. Do ye job well and ye get to eat, slack around and ye will spend an entire day in the pound."
The hopeless children nod their heads as he leads them into their new home.
"If ye do any good, who knows a wealthy family might buy some of ye off as servants hehe."
Months later...
Only Conroy remained as the other children were sold to wealthy families to serve as their servants.
Haggis treated all the children poorly but none were treated as badly as Conroy was.
One hour every day, he would drag Conroy by his head amidst all his pleading and sobbing and lock him up in a small cage big enough for the boy to fit in.
Conroy would sit quietly while hugging his knees and sob himself to sleep. This went on for months until one day...
News spread that Regrah was getting a District commander and that they would be arriving later in the day.
So the decent citizens of the District decided to hold a banquet later in the day to welcome the new District commander. They expressed their happiness towards the fact that the law might finally be upheld in this godforsaken land.
"Hehe, banquet means lots of wealthy people, and wealthy people means tons of things to steal."
That day, Conroy was not shoved into the cage. But on the contrary, he was offered a meal, not like any he has eaten since he was sold off by his parents.
"I know a way that we can both be happy, lad. Now listen up."
Conroy munched at the food as if he hadn't eaten in weeks. The truth could be said to that as the only thing he gets is a single piece of stale bread every day, he has forgotten the taste of well-made food.
Haggis looked at the boy with a smug expression thinking that he has fully grasped the boy's attention and he would do just as he planned.
"Ye and I are going to this here banquet later tonight to welcome the new boss of the town and ye will go around stealin' some wealthy items from the rich."
He was telling an eight-year-old boy to steal from others. what's worse was that Conroy very well knows that if he doesn't comply, he would just receive a beating or might not even get any food for the week.
He had no choice but to comply with his wicked caretaker's demands.
"If ye pull this off right, I will give you fifty gold coins and set ye free."
Conroy already planned on doing what he asked, but the last part boosted his determination. He will finally be free from the tyranny of Haggis and could eat and play however he wants.
A look of firm determination crossed his face as he gulps down the glass of water handed to him by Haggis.
"I'll do it."