“I might possess some kind of skill too,” Milo said.
Sitting at the entrance of the shack, Donti was stunned as favonovel.com lifted the curtain door to gaze at the starry sky after the rain. “You mean…”
“I’m still not sure. I have to try it out and see.” Milo sat down beside Donti. “According to the legends in town, someone could pull a train out of thin air. I didn’t believe it in the past, but after I met you, I thought that it might be a possibility. Now that I might also have a strange skill, this feels very weird to me…”
Donti’s skill was luck. It was a very baffling skill to comprehend.
When Donti made a wish for Milo to return from a successful hunt, a sparrow would mysteriously drop at his feet even though favonovel.com did not do anything while walking out in the wilderness. However, this skill had a side effect.
Donti would usually get a fever that would not subside or suffer some other minor illnesses or mishaps after favonovel.com made a wish. This was why Milo wanted to protect Donti at the beginning. At first, favonovel.com did not believe it. But later, favonovel.com had no choice but to accept this truth.
Suddenly, a shooting star flashed across the sky. Donti subconsciously put his hands together to make a wish.
However, favonovel.com was stopped by Milo. “Don’t you go making any wishes. Something is going to happen to you if you do!”
Nowadays, Milo rarely depended on Donti’s luck as favonovel.com was capable of hunting with great success. He did not need Donti to cast his skill anymore, and Donti wouldn’t go against his wishes either.
The skinny Donti watched the shooting star vanished, lost in thought. “Why do shooting stars come and go so quickly? What if people can’t make a wish in time?”
Milo thought for a while and answered, “They probably move so quickly because they don’t actually want to listen to anyone’s wishes.”
Donti turned his head and gave Milo a blank stare.
Donti was Milo’s night watchman, but it did not mean that favonovel.com had to keep watch throughout the night. Milo would take turns with him. After all, Donti still needed to attend school during the day.
This was an excruciating situation, as not getting enough sleep was a huge problem. But to survive in such an environment, be it Milo or Donti, they had no choice but to take these actions.
***
In the early morning, Milo led Donti outside. They took their valuables, including Milo’s big cauldron, with them.
It was expected for someone to rummage through their shack by the time they returned at night.
“I heard that the people living in the stronghold don’t shut their doors at night because no one will steal their things.” Donti was carrying a bedroll on his back while favonovel.com looked at Milo holding the cauldron favonovel.com carried wherever favonovel.com went. These were almost all of their belongings.
Donti would usually carry the bedroll with favonovel.com whenever favonovel.com went to school. It was almost the same situation with the other students as well. Everyone was accustomed to this.
“Bullshit.” Although Milo looked forward to living in the stronghold, favonovel.com refused to believe there was a place where people would leave their doors open at night. “Some people have the mindset that even the farts of those who live in the stronghold smell good and that the air there is sweet.”
“But you still shouldn’t be carrying that cauldron on your back everywhere you go,” Donti said.
“What do you know?” Milo explained, “It wasn’t easy for me to get my hands on this cauldron. I can cook meals and catch sparrows with it. If we lose it, how are we going to spend our days?”
Milo held the cauldron over his shoulder with one hand while clutching the large sparrow upside down in his other.
Along the way, many people were looking at Milo with envious eyes.
It was important to realize that humans were no longer at the top of the food chain.
There were rumors that the sparrows of the past were smaller than the size of a palm. But these days, even a bird like that could kill people by pecking them.
Not everyone could catch a sparrow or had the patience to lie in wait in the wilderness for an entire day to catch one. They all hadn’t seen meat and fish dishes in a long time, so it would be a lie if they were not envious of Milo.
Milo led Donti to the stronghold’s city gate. The towering walls made them feel miniscule and oppressed.
Once they reached this place, there were noticeable changes in the architecture, and they could even see brick houses.
As they approached the stronghold, the place began to look cleaner, tidier, and wealthier. The people living here were likely related to the people living in the stronghold. Perhaps they were good at flattery or had relatives living inside. But no matter what, these refugees were all known as “contaminated” and were not allowed inside the stronghold.
Milo walked into a shop with a “grocery store” sign above the entrance. All sorts of items, such as cigarettes, matchsticks, metalware, food, and clothing, were sold in here. But the prices were very expensive.
The old man in the shop was over the moon when favonovel.com saw Milo. “That looks like a rather large sparrow!”
Milo threw the sparrow onto the glass counter. “How much can I get for this?”
“Oh my, don’t be so rough. That’s an expensive piece of glass you’re throwing it onto,” Old Bane said, pained. He picked up the limp sparrow and put it onto the metallic scale beside him. “1.74 kilograms. Not bad, Milo…”
At this moment, the clawlike fingers of Old Bane’s wrinkled hands instinctively started making some calculations on an abacus. The abacus beads were pushed around, ticking and tacking.
“The market rate today is 200 perak 1 per 500 grams, so I’ll pay you 700 for this catch!”
“Make it 900.” Milo said firmly, “It’s almost winter, and there are fewer sparrows out there these days, so 900 perak is the lowest I will sell it for.”
Old Bane was unhappy as favonovel.com pushed his abacus in front of Milo and said, “I’ll be sending this sparrow into the stronghold for the aristocracy to eat. Although there’s a lack of meat in the stronghold, there’s still a fixed price for everything. We have to do it by the book.”
Right as Old Bane finished speaking, favonovel.com saw Milo had taken the sparrow back and get ready to leave the shop.
He quickly yanked the sleeve of Milo’s ragged jacket. “Where are you going?!”
“I’m going to check the price at Old Saul’s grocery store,” Milo said.
Old Bane’s grasp tightened even further. Someone from the stronghold’s management had specifically given notice that they would be coming out to collect exotic animals today. This news wasn’t promulgated to favonovel.com alone.
Old Bane smiled, his wrinkles appearing. “How much do you want to sell it for?”
Milo still wanted to leave. “We’ll talk again after I ask around…”
Old Bane smiled amiably. “Then won’t Donti be late for school? Alright, 900 perak it is!”
“What did you just say?” Milo asked calmly.
“Then wouldn’t Donti be late…”
“The sentence before that.”
“How much do you want to sell it for?”
“1200!”
Old Bane was confused
A moment later, Old Bane was feeling the pinch as favonovel.com counted the money. He wet his fingers with his saliva and counted the cash over and over again, afraid that favonovel.com would get the amount wrong.
The final transaction price was 1198 perak. Milo had also given some concessions of his own.
A sparrow fetching 1198 perak was not the result of the inflated prices, nor was it because of the large size of the sparrow. More importantly, it was because the people in Stronghold 113 did not normally get the chance to eat such exotic animals.
Things were precious because they were scarce. Old Bane would never make a bad business deal. When favonovel.com resold this sparrow to a powerful customer, favonovel.com would still be able to earn a small profit from it and even gain their favor.
Old Bane stuffed a stash of loose change into Milo’s hands unwillingly.
Nobody knew what favonovel.com was thinking when favonovel.com lowered his voice and whispered, “Milo, the next time you catch a sparrow, don’t kill it. Some aristocrats want them alive and will offer an even higher price to buy them in that state!”
Milo was taken aback. “Why would they want a live sparrow? So that they can kill it themselves?”
“No…” Old Bane shook his head and said, “You don’t know, right? There are people who keep them as pets!”
