Pri chuckled, a sound that quickly turned into a cough. "Job. Job. Job… oh, how little children…their innocence stolen as they're now wanting to be in the workforce. Truly is unfortunate really."
Ryckel was losing patience. "Is there any job or not?"
"Rude, huh?" Pri replied, unfazed.
"What about carriages? How much to leave town? And where can I spend the night?" Ryckel asked.
Pri coughed again, waving a hand. "So many questions. One at a time, alright? Why the rush?"
Because I have a family waiting for me back home, and I need to find them.
"For the job," Pri said, counting on his fingers, "I'm not sure. Lilliebore already has enough night-soil men as it is… though the fibres need plucking? You know how to farm, Ryckel?"
"Yes."
"Good. Good. Good. Well, then there's also engineers, but you don't look like someone who is educated?"
"No," Ryckel said simply.
School had been a luxury Ryckel's family always pressured but knew they couldn't afford. So he left it.
"As for carriages… yeah, they are available. How much? Depends on the distance. And for a place to sleep? You're not going to afford them. Not one bit." Pri paused, looking at Ryckel's ragged appearance. "So, why I propose this? You come stay with me? At least you'll have a roof over your head and you can worry about the job tomorrow."
It was an generous offer, but in a place like this, generosity was usually a lure. Ryckel immediately thought of Hood and his gang.
"No."
"No. I insist."
"Why all this for a stranger you just met?" Ryckel demanded, his voice hardening.
"I normally don't," Pri said, his tone turning serious for a moment. "I just have a really soft spot for children."
Totally not weird at all…
But with his berries gone, his water low, and no place to sleep, he realized he had no other options.
He sighed, calculating the risks. "Fine."
Pri smiled.
"But," Ryckel added, letting his defensive, innocent boy act fall for just a second, his voice dropping, "try anything, and I can and would kill you and everyone you love."
Pri blinked, startled by the sheer coldness in Ryckel's eyes, then chuckled, though it sounded a bit forced. "Oh, then rest assured, if you can. I won't do anything. I am very killable, after all."
He turned toward a narrow alleyway. "Very well then, follow me. And uhm, since you're probably new, there is something you should know."
"What?"
"Don't look in the barrel," Pri said seriously. "It's often full of shit."
---The End of Chapter 22---