-You dragged the child from the devil knows where, and now you want us to take him to the village too! And then what, all the orphans of Sliestorp will come to us?!
Damian's sweet dream was interrupted by the loud, deep voice of a short man.
Opening his eyes, he saw that he was inside some small wooden house, the roof of which consisted of dried grass.
The interior was lit by candles, and the furniture included a table, six chairs, and the bed on which he now lay.
Six people were sitting at the table, actively discussing something.
The little boy drew attention to the man because of whom he woke up.
His face was notably odd, with a nose that looked like a potato, narrow eyes, and a beard half his height. His figure was relatively broad but extremely low.
Due to his appearance, he looked a bit like a dwarf. This image was supported even more by the tools on his belt. Damian could make out a blacksmith's hammer, pliers, and a couple of other tools unknown to him.
- Come on, Wilfred! As if any other child will once again appear in these godforsaken lands!
To the grumbling of a short man, whose name turned out to be Wilfred, answered a woman about the age of thirty, who, it must be said, looked quite attractive in front of the rest of the participants in this "round table".
She had a straight nose, a beautiful face shape, and the color of her eyes was completely extraordinary - purple.
Her figure and legs, in turn, did not stand out with anything remarkable.
-It's pretty irrational to expect any kind of danger from a small child, although personally, I wouldn't want to take care of him at all. But all in all, keeping him doesn't seem like a bad idea.
Next, a young man of a thin build, with ashen skin, a small nose, white eyes, and the same white hair, spoke. He, as you might have guessed, had albinism. His exotic appearance was emphasized by his rather slender figure and long legs.
- The question is not whether it is a good idea or not. The question is can we take care of him? Vivien, do we have enough food to feed him? Can you make clothes for him?
All the disputes ended with this calm feminine voice.
A short, aged woman spoke up.
Although she could not be called an old woman, she also did not look like a young woman.
She had a slightly crooked nose but surprisingly beautiful blue eyes.
Her figure was a little overweight, and her legs were slightly weak due to her lameness, so she had to use a special walking stick. She was talking to a girl with purple eyes, who was called Vivien.
-There won't be any problems with clothes, he's small, so I won't need a lot of fabric! Food might be a little tricky until the next harvest, but we'll just plant more, and everything will be fine!
Vivien enthusiastically responded.
- You realize that the food of the whole village lies on your shoulders, and it's stupid to exaggerate for the sake of a small child?
An older woman asked with an obvious hint.
- What are you saying, Astrid? Have I at least once lied to you?
Viviene built innocent eyes.
- If this brat just tries to touch my beer...
Wilfred grunted from the corner.
- This is not only your beer. I cook it for everyone!
-I need it more than anyone el...
-Silence!
Domineeringly, but at the same time, somehow calmly said the same blue-eyed woman named Astrid. Another male voice broke into the silence.
-I agree with Astrid. We need to think carefully about whether we can raise this child.
Sitting next to Astrid was a tall, black-haired, athletic man with long legs and a muscular frame that contrasted greatly with his age. He looked like he was in his fifties at least.
- Thanks, Gerard. Reuben, if we take him, sooner or later we will have to build a separate hut for him, is that possible?
Gerard, as you might guess, is the muscular man, and Reuben was the name of the albino guy. Apparently, he was in charge of the dwellings in this strange company.
- It's winter right now, and I won't be able to build something worthy with our instruments, and we don't have materials, you know, a tree in this forest is not suitable for construction. But if one of us takes him to himself, making an additional furniture set will not be difficult.
After Ruben's answer, silence hung in the hall. Everyone stood with gloomy faces and thoughts.
- As you already understood, the child will have to live with one of you if you want to leave him here. Is anyone ready to take him on?
Silence again filled the wooden house. Everyone was actively thinking about whether they should take this child to their home. A minute, two, and three passed, and no one answered.
Astrid, seeing all this, sighed heavily and was already preparing to take the child to her,
"I can't leave him to be eaten by wolves after all…"
She thought, but suddenly…
- He will live with me.
The natural shock was reflected on the faces of all those gathered because it was said by none other than the man who brought Damian here.
Apart from the fact that it was the first time he said anything in this conversation, no one expected that he would be the one to take the child with him. Vivien was the first to come out of her shock.
-Oh, how cute! Thank you, Alrick!
There was something slightly amusing about that Damian figured out the name of his savior after every other name in this house, despite spending the most time with him, but given Alric's personality, that was probably normal.
-Thank you, Alric.
Astrid said, and after her, everyone thanked the silent hunter one after another. Alric solved their dilemma.
-So, since we have resolved all the issues with how and where he will live, let's now choose a name for him!
Vivien's cheerful voice rang out.
-Magnus sounds majestic, don't you think?
For a reason absolutely unknown to mankind, Wilfred spoke with enthusiasm for the first time in the evening.
-Boldr is a noble name. This child should be called that.
Astrid expressed her opinion.
- I agree.
Wilfred supported her.
-Froud would be a fitting name for him.
Reuben disagreed with the rest.
-You can't think of a better name than Arne, anyway!
Vivienne objected.
The tension between the speakers increased.
For some reason, in this dispute, no one wanted to compromise, unlike in the previous one.
They would have continued to argue, but Damian, whose name was in question, decided to announce his presence, loud and clear.
- WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
"Screaming and crying in any situation is already becoming a habit. I need to end this…" he thought, but was not going to stop.
Actually, he did not fully understand how a child could attract attention apart from screaming as loud as he could.
He did not like that his name would be changed without asking him, so it was necessary to make sure that all these people at least looked at him.
It worked well.
Everyone present quickly got up from the table and gathered around him. Someone looked at him with confusion, someone with panic.
-What happened, Arne?
Vivienne turned to him. Yes, she had already decided that she would call him Arne. Arne himself, oh, sorry, I mean Damian, did not particularly agree with this.
- E.....me....an…..
-What does he say?
-D….d….d….e.....me.....an...
- Damian?
When he was finally understood, the boy vigorously nodded his head.
-Damian... Strange word, like a name.
Luckily for the boy, Astrid voiced her opinion.
-Maybe we should call him Damian? He seems to like it.
Said Wilfred, who had been standing and wondering all this time.
- Hmm, well, since this is what he wants.....
-I agree.
-Good idea.
In such a simple way, Damian kept his original name.