Finihiya lowered the hood of her cloak and tried to pass by these men as inconspicuously as possible.
But to these men, her behavior looked more like that of a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
She hadn’t gone far when three burly men blocked her path.
“Never seen you before. Are you from outside?”
Seeing this, she furrowed her brow and took a step back, trying to keep some distance between them, then slipped her hand into the small pouch she carried.
“Forget it. I don’t want to waste words.”
“If you don’t want to get hurt, hand over anything valuable you have on you.”
Hmm…
She knew this was a serious, tense moment, but hearing those words, she couldn’t help but smile inwardly with a sense of delight.
Not long ago, she had thought something like this might happen—and now it truly had.
“Speak up!”
“Just leave all your valuables, and we’ll let you go.”
The beastman on her right said as he stepped toward her, reaching out his right hand as if to pull off her hood.
At this, her alertness flared once more.
She took two steps back and pulled a small stone from her pouch that glimmered with a vivid red hue.
“This is… a Ruby?”
The three men stood frozen, staring blankly at the small stone in her hand. Finihiya warned them with a heavy tone.
“Don’t come any closer, or you’ll get hurt.”
This small stone was indeed a Ruby, a one-time-use, expensive magical item.
When she infused it with magic power and threw it, the Ruby would activate its magic and cause a wide-range explosion.
What’s more, this magical gem was extremely convenient—the scale of the explosion could be reasonably controlled depending on the amount of magic infused. The only downside was the steep price…
Even as a Saint enjoying the best treatment in the Theocracy of Saint Margaret, she only had a few dozen of these Magic Rubies.
“Get hurt?”
“Haha—”
“Miss, how do you expect to hurt us?”
The man before her sneered at her words, mocking her while greedily edging closer to the gem.
Just as Finihiya frowned, preparing to throw the Ruby in her palm, a male roar suddenly came from behind.
“Whoa—”
The whooshing sound swept past her side.
A tall, broad-shouldered figure charged in front of her, swinging a sharp giant blade horizontally.
The three men blocking her path froze for a moment but quickly reacted and dodged back. However, the fierce attack had caught them off guard, causing all three to retreat awkwardly to varying degrees.
Once they regained their senses, the beastman among them scowled and questioned.
“Who the hell are you? How dare you ruin our fun?”
“A passing and helpful demon citizen,” the man replied proudly, then turned to her, “Miss, are you alright?”
Finihiya’s cheeks flushed with mild surprise as she looked at the dimly gleaming mane under the weak light.
“Sir, you…”
Of course, she recognized the Half-Beastman in front of her—the vendor she had met earlier at the barbecue stall.
“Miss, we’ll talk later. Let me deal with these three scoundrels first.”
With that, the vendor turned back to face the three men.
Maybe it was the sheer strength of the Half-Beastman’s physique, or the giant blade in his hand, but the three, unarmed, clearly showed signs of fear.
“Remember this: this isn’t over.”
Leaving this symbolic threat behind, the three men turned and fled.
Watching their awkward backs disappear into the dusk, she slowly withdrew her gaze and gently bowed to the man before her.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
The vendor lifted his giant blade onto his shoulder with one hand, flashing a bright smile for a moment before suddenly straightening his face, “I told you, this place is dangerous, but you wouldn’t listen.”
“Sorry.” She apologized earnestly, then looked up and examined the rugged man again, “May I ask your name?”
“My name? Balco Felix.”
“Mr. Balco.”
“And your name, miss?”
Hearing this, she bit her lip and fell silent for a moment, then decided to reveal her real name.
***
In the short time since they met, she knew Balco was a kind-hearted person, despite his fierce Half-Beastman appearance.
“…Finihiya Hilesfiliana.”
“Finihiya?” Balco rubbed his chin with his left hand, as if thinking, “That name sounds kind of familiar.”
“Is that so…”
“I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before.” Balco gave up after thinking for a while and changed the subject, “Miss Finihiya, we should leave this dangerous place quickly.”
“…Alright.”
Finihiya remained silent, contemplating for a moment, then nodded lightly.
Her real reason for coming here was to see the children living in the slums.
Now that she had roughly seen them, and considering how chaotic the area’s security was, she agreed with Balco’s suggestion.
As she turned back along the same path, her gaze suddenly caught sight of a young woman carrying a wooden basket.
The woman appeared to be of the Demon tribe. Her dry hair was tied carelessly into a ponytail, strands falling over her thin back. Her pale face held a certain sadness in her eyes.
Staring at the thin and worn profile, a faint sense of familiarity surfaced in Finihiya’s heart.
She seemed to have seen this woman somewhere before.
Searching her memories, she soon vaguely recalled that it was the day she arrived here, sitting in the carriage.
Because the woman was busy caring for several children, she had left an impression in Finihiya’s mind.
“Miss Finihiya, what’s wrong?” Balco asked in confusion as he noticed her gradually stopping and standing still, then followed her gaze, “Do you know Maya?”
“Maya?” Upon hearing Balco’s words, a slight surprise appeared in her eyes, “Do you know her, Mr. Balco?”
“I can’t say I know her well.” Balco scratched the back of his head as he explained, “Since Maya is always taking care of the orphans here, most people around know her.”
Hearing this, a small look of wonder appeared on Finihiya’s delicate, doll-like face.
“All the orphans here are cared for by Miss Maya?”
“Not all of them, that’s impossible. But it’s true that she’s looked after many of them, to some extent. There are a few hundred orphans living here. How could she care for every single one on her own?”