Chapter 6 – They Met (3)️

When does a person get more angry?

Is it when they get hit by a strong straight or when they are hit five or six times by annoying jabs?
It is, of course, the latter.

Cale threw five jabs before he was hit. Which means, one jab should be okay.

"Are you heading out?"

"Yes."

There were not many people left in the tea shop.

It was past 9pm. This was the time when there were more people in the bars than tea shops. Since this was the time that the people mining in the pits went to drink, the bar should be full of people.

"I look forward to your next visit, young master."

Cale nodded his head at Billos's statement.

"The tea was great."

Cale shared his observations with Billos.

"And the book was good even though I only got through half of it. I especially liked the main character whose abilities are appreciated and the way he grows."

In that instant, the corner of Billos's eyebrows frowned for a moment before returning to normal. His eyes were cloudy as he observed Cale.

However, Cale did not notice, as he was trying to remember the contents of the book. He was too worried about Choi Han that he did not pay too much attention to it.

However, it was still fun to read while having this sense of urgency in his heart.

It might be an auto-setting from possessing the original Cale's body, but Cale was able to understand the language of this world, and had no issues reading and enjoying the book. A smile formed on Cale's face as he continued to speak to Billos, who was standing there with a blank expression on his face.

"Don't let anyone else read that book,so that I can read it whenever I come."

This truly was the immature son of the Count, who was trying to monopolize someone else's property. Billos, the bastard son of a wealthy merchant guild might not like it, but what could he do? Cale was the son of the Count.

"Yes! I will reserve this book only for young master Cale!"

However, Billos's response was different from what Cale expected. Billos smiled brightly as he urged Cale to come back soon.

"Please come again soon. I will be waiting for you."

"Sure, whatever."

Cale didn't want to go, but had to leave to go meet Choi Han. Ring. The bell rang once more and it suddenly felt like the tea shop became louder once Cale left.

However, it was even louder outside the tea shop than it was inside. Even though this territory was far from the capital, the fact that a lot of artists resided here and that they had a special product made it a popular location. These individuals, as well as the miners who were looking to relax after a long day in the mines, all were out late to drink.

Cale walked that street alone.

'If you think about it, he really is a unique person.'

Normally in fantasies or martial arts novels, the trash of the family tend to hang out with the gangsters or bad crowds. They drink, fool around with women, and cause a ruckus on the streets or stores.

The funny thing was that Cale Henituse actually hated gangsters and scammers. In fact, he despised them.

'He thought that they were all scumbags.'

The worst of all scumbags. It was better to at least be the citizens who worked hard even though there was no hopes for a better future.

That was why he never beat people up when he was drunk but had no issues throwing things at the gangsters he saw. Well, attempted to throw things, since his aim when drunk was terrible.

Maybe that was the reason.

"Aigoo, young master, you're here?"

The owner of the bar was extremely afraid of Cale. It was because of that one day when Cale broke pretty much everything around where he was sitting to drink. In fact, Cale was probably number one on the blacklist for Western City bars.

He did not respond to the owner's greeting and just threw a gold coin at him.

"Bring a bottle of my usual. Oh, and roasted chicken breast. Don't put salt on it."

"Excuse me? Y, you don't want to find a seat first?"

Cale started to frown. The owner immediately waved his hands and bowed his head.

"Immediately! I will bring it immediately!"

The owner was moving quickly, but it looked like he was smiling. It was because it looked like Cale was not planning on sitting down. Cale looked around the bar that became quiet once he walked in. Everyone was avoiding his gaze and turned their heads. It was like they were wondering why he had to choose this bar of all bars in the city. The gangsters and scammers in the bar were all extremely nervous right now.

"Tsk."

The sound of Cale clicking his tongue could be heard through the silence in the bar.

"Young master, here is the bottle you requested."

"Great."

Cale grabbed the bottle and bag of chicken. It was the alcohol he drank often. It was probably the most expensive alcohol in this bar. He accepted the bottle with no regret and left the bar.

Cale immediately opened the bottle and drank about half of it as soon as he stepped out of the bar.

"Oh."

The alcohol tasted pretty good. Since Cale had a high tolerance to alcohol, it did not affect him at all to drink half of the bottle at once. He just flushed easily, making people think he was a lightweight.

Cale quickly walked along with the bottle in his hand.

He walked back past the tea shop he stayed in all day until he saw the guards stiffen up after seeing him. Seeing them acting like that made him want to go out of the gate, but unfortunately, that was not his destination.

"Ah, I'm starting to get hot."

Cale felt himself heating up as he continued to drink. He walked a bit further until he reached the city wall not too far away. The tall city wall that started at the gate seemed to defend against any potential intruders.

'Well it depends on the person.'

Cale recalled the information from the book.

'Approximately 100 steps from the city gate.'

That was the location where Choi Han jumped over the city wall. Cale clenched the bottle in his hand as he quickly ran toward the location. There were not many people on the streets because it was the residential area.

Cale took a deep breath once he arrived at the calculated location.

Exactly 100 steps away from the city gate. It was a corner of the residential area so there wasn't any other light other than the torch the guards put on top of the wall, as well as the lights coming out of the residential windows.

But that was enough light. Cale slowly approached his destination after letting his eyes adjust to the dark.

'Just as I expected.'

He could see something curled up underneath the city wall. Actually, there were multiple things.

Delicate looking things that were shaking because of the cold. Cale continued to walk toward the location. He could hear the voices of the curled up lifeforms.

Meow Meeeeeow.

Two cats were meowing as they lay curled up underneath the city wall. Cale started to smile.

'It's right here.'

He found the right spot. The moment Choi Han jumps over the wall, a baby kitten is body slammed by the alpha cat of the neighborhood and gets sent tumbling to the city wall. Choi Han quickly twists his body to avoid landing on the kitten. This was a world where coincidences played a big role.

'He really is a good guy.'

Choi Han twists his ankle after unexpectedly twisting his body to avoid hurting the kitten. He had run like crazy to reach Western City after killing tens of people for the first time and burying the corpses of the villagers. His body had reached its limit making him unable to land properly after making such a movement.

Meeeeow Meeeeeeow.

Cale gazed at the kitten that was curled up and shaking, as well as the other kitten that seemed to be its sibling licking the shaking kitten. He then turned his gaze.

He turned to look at one of the alleys that was close to where was standing. He could see him.

'I found him.'

The man who was wincing in pain while looking like one of the homeless that lived in the slums. Cale could see the shaggy black hair and the old and burnt clothes.

According to the novel, Cale and Choi Han would meet tomorrow. Tonight was the night Cale got drunk and got the scar on his side. Things were already different than in the novel, even though it was just minor details.

Cale stood up as he had crouched down to look at the kittens. Choi Han must have felt his gaze from a few moments ago, as Choi Han slowly raised his head and his eyes focused on Cale through his shaggy black hair.

'Damn it, I'm shaking.'

Cale could hear his heart going crazy.

Although it was too dark to see clearly, Choi Han's eyes that Cale could see through his hair were extremely cold.

Cale thought that it was a good idea that he chose to drink.
Cale congratulated himself for making such a smart decision and calmed himself down as much as possible. Jab. He needed to launch a jab and leave a good first impression.

Cale took a deep breath as he started to speak to Choi Han who was staring at him.

"You look like you are hungry."

Tsk tsk. Cale clicked his tongue and took the chicken breast out of the bag. Then with an extremely gentle movement, Cale offered the roasted chicken breast not to Choi Han, but to the kittens.

"You poor things. Go ahead and eat it."

Cale didn't know that the kittens would be this small. He hope that they could still eat the chicken breast. Tsk. He clicked his tongue as he ripped the chicken breast into pieces so that the kittens could eat it better.

He was wondering what the hell he was doing crouching here feeding these kittens.
To be honest, Cale did not like cats. However, Choi Han treasured small animals.

Grrooooowl. Groooooowl.

The injured kitten must have understood Cale's dislike for cats, as it showed its teeth and started to growl, but Cale started to pet the kitten's silver fur as he looked into its golden eyes. The kitten must not have liked it, as it did its best to avoid Cale's hand.

"You poor things. Eat this and get better soon."

He didn't even look at Choi Han when he said that, however, he was thinking that Choi Han was definitely looking at him.

"Do you have somewhere to go?"

He did not hear a response. However, Cale continued to speak. The guards would soon come to patrol this area, and he needed to make a move before Choi Han started to limp away to avoid the guards.

"Or a place to stay?"

Cale petted the growling silver furred kitten with golden eyes and pushed away the red kitten that was trying to attack him as he asked. The red kitten kept trying to hit Cale for some reason. It's golden eyes, that matched its sibling's eyes, shined brightly even in the darkness.

But Cale needed to focus on Choi Han.

"Are you hungry?"

There still was no response. Cale had expected this.

Choi Han was probably observing him right now, but he also probably wanted to rest.

Both his body and mind had reached their limit. In addition, he had received a huge shock just the other day. For someone like Choi Han who had lived on his own without any human contact other than the villagers of that small village, Western City was completely foreign to him. He may have lived for tens of years already, but he was still young.

"Are you not going to say anything?"

"…Why are you talking to me?"

Choi Han finally seemed to have decided that Cale was weak.

Cale was weak enough that he could easily kill him even though he was at his limits. That was why Choi Han felt that it would be okay to accept Cale's goodwill even though he had no idea why Cale was being nice to him.

Cale stood up and walked toward Choi Han. The guards would soon come patrolling through this location.

"Hey."

He could see Choi Han's situation better once he got closer. He was a mess. However, maybe it was because he was the main character, but his eyes were clear. The black hair and black pupils that showed that Choi Han was Korean were actually quite nice to see. That was why Cale smiled as he casually spoke to Choi Han.

"Follow me. I'll feed you."

The best first impression was to be the one who provides delicious food.

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Yu Ryeo Han]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Rai_Mayank]