Foliage of trees can be seen covering the expanse of land that the human vision can gaze upon.
The place was supposed to be filled with the vitality of life, yet the darkness of the sky above and the continuous dripping of rain took away such vivacity.
The current season of rain was a natural part of the land's tropical weather, and the storm from how strong it was looks like it would not be over even after days of downpour.
In an obscure part of the forest where bluesilver grasses abundantly grew, a quiet sobbing can be heard amidst the loud splashes of raindrops.
Wuu..wuu...
While the voice did sound immature, it clearly belongs to a boy due to the lower register of pitch that can be heard.
The source of the sound seems to be restraining the volume of his cries, which was obvious when overlapping sounds of footsteps arrived.
The land's terrain was muddy due to the mixture of rain and soil, leaving footprints with each of their steps.
"Did anyone of you useless bastards found that little kid?" A man with a thick beard and build, standing at a towering 1.7m called out.
"Captain, reporting! We haven't seen any signs of life within a hundred square meter perimeter, sir!" A young sergeant with a uniquely shaped brows announced.
Pak!
The man with the unique brows was slapped away by the gigantic man.
"Useless! A mere kid escaped through the surveillance of trained soldiers? Are you even worthy to be called soldiers?" The gigantic man fumed in fury.
The search continued for more time; eventually after nothing took result, the troops and the troop leader initiated the return to their posts—with the rain getting stronger, it was impossible to continue the search further.
Maybe the kid was already swept away by the flood...
"With an arrow lodged to his left rib, and a kid at that, I can't believe that the little bastard would still be alive sir!" A man with a slitted eyes flatteringly said.
"Hmph! I hope so, if that little shit got out of here alive, your lives would be paid to the Duke Mansion's madam in exchange!" The man unperturbed by the flattery replied.
The troop's steel boots marched towards the road where the Duke's Mansion is located, full of sticky mud.
One of the soldiers, the man with the unique brows glanced backwards.
"Little kid, it's all up to you..."
...
In where thick groups of bluesilver grasses can be seen, reddish liquid oozed out mixed with the brown soil.
Focusing inside, one can see a kid so skinny that it was even a wonder how it can live.
The boy's gaze was blank, looking at the arrow lodged in his chest.
The little kid was an illegitimate child born from the adultery of a duke and his personal maid, from then, the chaos started.
He was supposed to live a life, while not full of riches, would had enough food to fill his body everyday; but the departure of his father, the Duke, left them vulnerable from the suppression of the mansion's first lady.
Eventually, due to multiple harassment that left them with no food at the first place, occasional beatings of his mother, and intentional isolation, his mother succumbed to her death.
His mother while enduring all of these, took care of him with all her might.
When he reached the age of five, he also became one of the subject of physical abuse; combining with malnutrition, his growing body was stunted, thus resulting into having an irregular body growth.
He was already six by this year, yet he looked like a measly three-year-old, that was how abused he and his mother was.
Today marked the death anniversary of his mother.
It's been a year since his mother death, which prompted him to visit his mother's grave nearby the duke's mansion—yet he was forbaded by the mansion guards, resulting in the current scenario.
Those people injuring him with no regard, even plunging an arrow inside a child's body, a truly cruel act.
Currently, most of his blood have flown out from his small body; due to his already malnourished constitution, the blood it can produce wouldn't be that significant—he was currently in the verge of death.
He, an illegitimate child of the duke, was exiled from the mansion and was forced to live the life of a wandering beggar in the city's vicinity.
He survived by eating leftover scraps after fighting them from vicious rats.
...sometimes, even those rats hasn't been spared from being his meals.
He was almost a mindless beast; he didn't have a choice, it was for survival.
Staring at the sky above, tears flowed without stopping, why was the world so unfair for him?
He didn't want the world, he didn't request for eternal riches or life, yet the simple wish to be with his mother peacefully was disturbed; worst, his mother already was dead.
Looking at the arrow in his chest, the very reason for the pain he was currently was also the reason he was still alive as it sealed the wound he was experiencing.
Unfortunately, the internal injuries from the arrow's impact laid irreparable damages.
His life was currently ebbing away, yet he was indignant.
His vision was blurring away more, until finally, his breath was cut short.
He was dead, a child, not even reaching the world outside and the sorrows and happiness of living, currently lays without life in a forest filled with mud and puddles.
...