Not long before August set out, Law, with the white patches on his face hidden beneath a rough cloth, was caught stealing bread by a shop owner and badly beaten for it.
Fortunately, he had protected his face the whole time, so his identity was not exposed.
Otherwise, it would have caused a huge commotion, and he might very well have lost his life on the spot.
After the beating, Law, exhausted and starving, simply sat in a corner by the street in a daze. It was not that he did not want to go back. He just truly did not have the strength anymore.
"What a pitiful child. Here, take this change and buy yourself something to eat."
After quite a while, a pretty young woman passing by noticed Law sitting there. Feeling sorry for him, she sympathetically held out two coins and told him to go get some food.
It was 200 Beli. Not much, but enough to buy some black bread and fill his stomach. After all, even a newspaper only cost 100 Beli.
Law was silent for a moment. Then, all of a sudden, he snatched the two coins from the woman's hand and immediately ran off with his head lowered, leaving her standing there in stunned disbelief.
Because he did not want anyone's pity or sympathy, he would rather "steal" the money that way.
That way, he was simply bad, nothing more, instead of some miserable thing that needed other people's compassion.
What Law did not know was that everything he had just done had been clearly seen by several beggars loitering by the roadside.
The few of them exchanged glances, then quietly followed after him.
"Huff... huff..."
Maybe it was his wounded pride, but Law ran a long way in one breath. Only after he could no longer see the woman did he finally stop, bending over and gasping for air.
The two coins were still clenched tightly in his hand.
With these 200 Beli, at least he and August would not have to worry about their next meal.
Thinking that way, Law gradually calmed down.
But just as he turned to go spend the money, he realized that the entrance to the alley he had run into was already blocked by two grim-smiling beggars.
Law's heart immediately sank.
Without hesitation, he spun around and tried to run deeper inside.
But at some point, the exit on the other side had been blocked too.
With both front and back cut off, Law had become a turtle in a jar, completely trapped.
Then the one in the lead, a long-haired beggar, bared his disgusting yellow teeth and said with ill intent, "Kid, you've got some nerve. Begging on my turf without so much as saying hello? Don't you know the rules?"
Law had not wanted any conflict with these people. In terms of numbers, age, and size, he was at a complete disadvantage. There was no way he could beat them.
But the word begging stabbed right into his pride and instantly stirred up his rebellious temper.
So without even thinking, he shouted back, "Bullshit! I stole this from that stupid woman!"
"Oh? Stole it? Then if we rob you, that should be perfectly fair too, right? Hahaha!"
The beggars immediately burst into mocking laughter, the malice on their faces no longer hidden at all.
Law knew there was no way he would be able to keep the money now. At a time like this, the smartest thing to do would have been to back down and beg for mercy.
But the rage that had been building inside him for so long would not let him do that. Instead, he glared at them with a vicious expression.
"Then come try it!"
That look naturally made the beggars extremely unhappy.
Every day, they had to endure countless sneers and disgust from others. Now that they had finally found a kid who looked easy to bully, they had wanted to have a little fun, only to discover he was the hard-boned type who refused to follow the script.
That completely enraged them.
"What an arrogant little brat. Let's see if you can still act this tough after I break all four of your limbs!"
After the long-haired beggar finished speaking coldly, he immediately stepped forward and kicked Law to the ground. The other three swarmed in right after him, surrounding the boy curled against the wall and stomping him mercilessly.
At this moment, Law had none of the future Supernova's bearing. All he could do was use both arms to protect his head as much as possible, grit his teeth, and refuse to cry out.
After another savage beating, Law was already on the verge of passing out.
These beggars from the bottom of society had no idea what mercy meant. When they kicked and stomped him, they did whatever felt best, venting all the humiliation they suffered in daily life onto Law's body.
As for the true trigger of the whole incident, those two coins had long since fallen to the side, forgotten by everyone.
Clearly, what was happening now no longer had anything to do with 200 Beli.
But even with Law already reduced to such a miserable state, they still had no intention of letting him go.
The long-haired beggar gave a cruel order. "Hey, pin him down. I always keep my word. If I said I'd break all four of his limbs, then I'm breaking all four of his limbs!"
The others immediately lit up with excitement. Not caring in the slightest that Law was only a child, they quickly spread him out and pinned him down hard.
The long-haired beggar bared his mouthful of yellow teeth again and grinned viciously at Law. Then he raised his right foot high, clearly intending to stomp down and crush Law's arms and legs one by one.
Even so, Law still glared at him with fierce, unyielding eyes.
For some reason, that look sent a sudden chill through the long-haired beggar, but it was immediately replaced by anger born of embarrassment.
"Once I break your limbs, I'll gouge out your eyes too. Let's see how long you can keep staring then!"
Just as his right foot was about to come crashing down, a sharp whistling sound suddenly came from behind him.
Bang!
A stone the size of a fist smashed directly into his back, making him cry out and collapse to the ground.
The sudden turn of events stunned the other three beggars.
But August, who had arrived just in time, had no intention of wasting such a good opportunity.
He placed another rock of about the same size at his feet, then kicked it out with all his strength.
August had never been a soccer player, but back in college in his previous life, he had played often enough. And with only about a dozen meters between them, his aim was still decent enough.
The result was that another unlucky beggar took the rock square in the face and was knocked unconscious on the spot.
Only then did the two remaining beggars finally notice August's presence.
Unfortunately, August's third kick missed. The stone slammed straight into the wall beside one of them and shattered into fragments.
"Tch."
After frowning, August did not try kicking again.
It was not because he was out of stones, but because the charge in the Power Enhancement Shoe on his right foot had already been completely drained. And since he did not have the same skill with his left foot, he decisively gave up on trying again.
(End of Chapter)
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