Three vicious dogs barked loudly, their saliva dripping everywhere.
The man had no intention of letting the little beggar go. The villain, who had lost a fortune in gambling and had no way to vent his frustration, snorted coldly and loosened his grip on the dog collars…
The little beggar heard the sound of rapid footsteps behind him and immediately started to run. However, his luck seemed to take a rare turn for the better at that moment. The Angel of Doom seemed just a joke.
Just as the three dogs were out, six figures appeared in front of the dogs, blocking all three vicious hounds.
"What's going on? Why release the dogs for no reason?" Outside the alley, a young girl's voice rang out, muffled as if through a thick curtain, making it unclear.
The man holding the ties of the three vicious dogs immediately went to a luxurious carriage and knelt down, saying very respectfully, "Prin… Princess! Actually…"
"I won't allow you to lie! My people saw everything. You released the dogs intending to harm a child. Don't think you can be reckless and illegal just because Senag belongs to the Crystal Ice Republic, not the Buck Empire Empire. The Crystal Ice Republic is a vassal state of the Elk Empire, and you must follow the will of the Elk Empire, uphold justice, and not commit evil deeds!"
At that moment, the man didn't dare to speak up and could only nod repeatedly, admitting his mistake directly as if he were a knight of justice.
What appeared before the little beggar and the baby was a carriage drawn by four horses, decorated exceptionally and luxuriously. The thick curtains were enough to block out any cold, making it as warm inside as summer.
After a brief inquiry through the thick curtains, the princess inside the carriage had a general understanding of the boy's intention.
The girl's voice softened.
"So, the kind boy just wanted to find someone to adopt this baby, and you, having lost money in cards, wanted to vent your anger on them. By law, you are supposed to pay 20 gold coins for emotional damages to the kind boy, and if it happens again, you will be arrested and put in jail."
The man nodded in agreement, admitted his mistake, and paid the money to the boy with a "kind" smile.
The girl continued in a sympathetic and lively tone.
"With it being so cold, it's understandable to want someone to adopt one's sister. Let the boy come in and hand the baby over to me; I'll take the infant back to the royal orphanage halfway, which is just on our way to the Elk emperor. The side of justice will always take care of the weak."
The girl's voice, muffled by the heavy curtains of the carriage and several meters away from the little beggar, mixed with the howling wind and snow, was too vague. The little beggar could only understand that she agreed to adopt the baby. It was then that a person in a long robe appeared before the little beggar, waving to him.
"Hey, that's interesting."
The devil on his arm let out a cold laugh.
The little beggar paid no attention to it. He was already so relieved that the baby girl would be taken in by someone.
Following the robed figure, the little beggar quickly approached the heavy curtains of the carriage, from which the girl's voice was emerging. As the voice sounded, two maidservants emerged from behind the curtain, drawing it back slowly.
"You're lucky, boy. I'm going home tomorrow, and I'll introduce you to a good job that will keep you fed and paid enough to support yourself."
In that instant, as the curtain was lifted, the little beggar saw the face of the person speaking inside the carriage, then turned around and ran away as fast as he could, with a decisive and swift escape.
This scene changed too quickly. No one knew why the little beggar ran away, so everyone was stunned on the spot, not knowing what to do.
It wasn't until the little girl who spoke saw the back of the little beggar clearly that the tenderness on her face turned into resentment in an instant, and she gave an instant order with a finger.
"It's him! It's him! Catch him! No, kill him!"
The atmosphere changed suddenly, and everyone still couldn't understand the changes that happened at that moment. But the three vicious dogs sensed the little girl's anger and suddenly barked in unison. They all broke free from the servant's control and chased the little beggar in the direction where he had fled.
The man was the first to react to everyone. Although he didn't know why the princess wanted to kill a little beggar, he had long wanted to find something to vent his anger.
He immediately took out the sword from his waist and stalked after his wolfdog. The remaining guards around the carriage were stunned for two or three seconds before finally waking up. Some were left to protect the princess, while the others all eagerly chased the little beggar.
…
This was the worst night ever. He initially thought it was a rare chance of his luck in recent days, which was just turned to prove that the beggar was so fucking unfortunate and now was in a more serious misfortune.
The little beggar needed to correct his understanding. His luck had not been better. It seemed that the power of The Angel of Doom was everywhere just like the wind and snow in Senag.
Now he was running on the snow with all his might, wildly trying to escape the three wolf dogs.
If caught, he was certain death awaited him; his body would be torn to shreds, turned into mincemeat, and then devoured by the dogs.
Only in this moment of danger did he fully grasp the gravity of the first of two mistakes he made the day before.
He had been careless, assured that the girl would be cleared without trouble, so he had shown his face to her without a second thought. As the saying of the Devil Emperor's Sword goes, his naivety was bound to land him in hell.
The dogs' barks grew louder, so close now that their rapid footsteps were audible. The gangster's terrifying voice started to ring in his ears.
The little beggar couldn't believe he would survive more than ten minutes if they caught him.
What should be done now?
The little beggar weaved through the crumbling, narrow alleys, his familiarity with the area just barely keeping him ahead of the wolf dogs. But the gap was closing, and he needed a better way out of this.
The snow kicked up as he moved quickly. His body was rushing, but his mind was cool and calculating. The more dire the situation, the more patience and calmness were required.
He scanned his surroundings. The alley was leading to a main street outside. The closest street here was a commercial one, where the drugstore he had been locked in just two days ago was located.
But now, blanketed in snow, the street was deserted, all the shops were likely shut…
Shut? Really?
A spark of an idea struck the little beggar. He no longer sought refuge deeper into the alleyways filled with trash and obstacles but turned and ran towards the street. In a flash, he was out of the alleys and on the commercial street, carrying the baby girl.
The dogs' howls were becoming much clearer, and three wolf dogs burst out of the alley. Seeing their target, they barked more excitedly and charged with renewed energy and stimulation.
The little beggar didn't dare look back; there was no time. Checking the distance to the dogs wouldn't help him escape. He just ran, all the while keeping an eye on the shopfronts lining the road.
"Haha! There he is! Over here, everyone! Quick!"
The gangster and several guards spilled out from the alley, spotting the little beggar instantly and giving chase with renewed energy.
As expected, almost all the shops were closed, with no alleyways in between for a person to slip through.
Wasn't the little beggar headed for certain deeper doom?
Maybe, but he wouldn't give up forever as long as he was still able to struggle and be alive. His guess was correct. Among all the shops that were closed, one remained open, marked by a cross sign.
It was a drugstore. Inside, the owner was calculating the day's earnings, a sneer on his face, a mole as big as a fingernail between his eyebrows. He couldn't stop laughing at the sight of his money bag.
"Hey, boss, how's the business today?"
A man with thick eyebrows emerged from a side door of the shop. The drugstore owner's lips shook at the sight, and his contented smile twisted.
The thick-browed man leaned on the counter, eyeing the money bag in the owner's grip, and gave the storekeeper a sideways glance.
"Looks like your business is doing well, huh? Ever since I cleared your opponent, everyone in the area's been coming to you for remedies. Also, with the heavy snow these past days, more folks are falling ill. You must earn much without any rivals. See, you're still open at this late hour – business must be booming~"