4 The Starving Boy

Conor halted. He was taken aback to see Ren's state.

Ren sat down on the edge of the cell, both of his wrists were bound to the wall. Both of his ankles were tied together with chains, leaving him unable to move. His black long hair almost covered his face completely, making it hard to guess what he looked like. His black hoodie jumper and blue jeans were shabby and got torn all over. He didn't even wear any shoes. Through his tattered clothing, Conor could see his skinny wrists and calves. But the most noticeable thing of all was the dark murky aura surrounding Ren. Conor couldn't describe what it looked like, but he felt like the strong aura choked him, making him unable to breath properly. If that was what they meant by demonic aura, Conor could understand why those guards mistook him for anything other than human.

Knight Captain Joren noticed that Conor froze in place. He quickly thought that Conor was terrified.

"We put on anti-magic collar on him, so Young Master do not need to worry"

Once Joren said that, Conor's gaze fell on a metallic collar on Ren's neck. But Conor knew that the collar was meaningless, as it could only hold a tiny part of Ren's magical power. Ren could easily broke it with a little tuck, just like in the novel. Realizing that, Conor let out a cold sweat. He was quite confident that Ren would keep being a good boy if he didn't make trouble, but looking at the situation Ren was into, he took back his overconfident remark. His death door might come at any time now.

Ren probably noticed the noises in front of his cell, as he tilted his head upwards towards Conor's group. When the hair covering his face were gone, Conor could see Ren's face clearly. His face was dirty with mud and blood, but Conor was more interested in Ren's pair of black eyes, a common east Asian features. His face looked really young, most probably helped by his Asian genes and lack of facial hair. Though, the main factor of his young appearance could be explained by magic. Many scholars studied the relation between magic power and immortality, and having a huge amount of mana proved to slow down aging. Ren was thrown into this world at the age fifteen, and he didn't look like he aged a little bit even though five years had passed by. Conor could not imagine how strong Ren had become in a mere five years.

Conor stared down at Ren, and Ren silently observing him back inside the cell.

"Young Master, should we go back?"

Joren's voice brought Conor back to his sense. He looked back at Joren and the other Knights who were ready to climb back the stairs, thinking that Conor was satisfied with just that. However, Conor could not leave empty handed like this.

Conor pointed at the cell's door.

"Do you have the key?" Conor asked.

Joren instantly looked at the bunch of keys that he tucked to his pants. At the same time, the keys rustled at Joren's movement as if to appeal to Conor.

"I do, but what-" Joren stopped when he looked at Conor who already extended his hand, waiting for Joren to hand him the key.

"Quick" Conor demanded, he was clearly impatient.

But Joren was hesitating. He held the key close to his chest, thinking what his Young Master up to. He couldn't imagine what kind of ridiculous act Conor would do once Joren passed him the key.

"But Young Master, what are y-"

Before Joren could finish his sentence, Conor snatched the keys from his hand. Conor quickly headed towards the cell, and proceeded to unlock it. When the heavy sound of clicking came from the keyhole, a slow creak from the iron door sounded like a slow motion in Joren's ears. His eyes were opened widely, shocked at Conor imprudent act.

"Young Master! It's dangerous!" He quickly ran to stop Conor from going into the cell. But Conor slapped Joren's hand away from him.

He looked down at Joren coldly.

"Just wait here. I'll take responsibility for whatever happen from now on."

But Joren was looking at Conor as if he had said the most ridiculous thing in the world. Conor didn't blame him though. He would also doubt himself if he was in Joren's shoes, knowing his own reputation. But still, this Joren was really troublesome, as he proceeded to cling and beg him to not enter the cell. Didn't he had any shame clinging to a teenager like him?

Conor clicked his tongue, annoyed.

"You can hold onto my words"

Honestly, Conor himself was frightened. Afraid that he might somehow pull the trigger of Ren's rage. And Joren's behavior didn't help him at all. All he wanted was to communicate with Ren, and that's it.

Conor finally entered the cell, together with the five Knights. Conor told them to wait in front the cell, but they were afraid of losing their job if Conor was hurt even a little bit. Hence, they decided to follow him inside the cell.

Conor kept his gaze straight at Ren, who had been staring him ever since he stepped his foot in this underground cell. Conor didn't notice it before, but Ren's black eyes were shaking slightly. Conor didn't know whether Ren was pleased, or enraged, therefore he was a little hesitant before moving closer towards Ren. But the nosy Joren was once again bothered him.

"Young Master-"

"Keep your mouth shut or I would shut it myself"

Irritated, Conor let out a cold retort. He was in a pinch, and this noisy Knight made Conor even more nervous. Moreover, the boy in front of him only got more intimidating the more got closer. It was mostly due to the strong choking aura that Ren emitted, which felt like pressing his chest more every step he took.

With Ren's eyes still riveted to him, Conor scooted down. He was finally on the same level with Ren, as their gaze met each other. Now that Ren wasn't looking up, his hair was slowly flowing back to cover his face, following gravity.

"Hey, can you speak?"

Conor carefully asked. Ren was still looking at him but kept his silent, seemingly thinking.

After some time Conor could see Ren opened his mouth slightly. But, still no sound coming out. It was strange as Ren opening and closing his mouth a couple of times, struggling to let out a word. But, Conor might know the reason why. Ren hadn't spoke for the whole five years. He probably didn't forget how to speak, but it might be difficult for him to form a sentence after being alone for such a long time.

"Wh..."

After a minute, a quiet mumble could be heard from Ren's mouth. Conor was ecstatic, as he finally able to communicate with Ren. But he kept his calm and waited for Ren to speak his full sentence.

"Wh...ere...is.....it?"

His voice sounded just like a boy whose voice hadn't cracked yet. It was neither too light or too deep, but Conor could not analyze it further since Ren's voice was barely audible. Conor was about to happily explain what was happening, and how this poor boy ended up in here. But, when he looked at the confused Knights, a sudden realization came to him like a thunderbolt.

Ren was talking in Japanese.

Conor cursed at his stupidity. Was it another detail that he forgot about? He didn't consider the language difference because he was too keen on the idea of communicating with Ren. Then how the hell Ren communicated with people in this world? Conor started racking his brain to find the answer, and quickly recalled it.

The village that his father annihilated.

Ren learned how to read and write, slowly getting used to the language in that village. That means, before that event, Ren language skill was even lower than a baby. He was just arrived from The Lawless Land of Demons after all.

But to think about it again, how could Conor speak the language he never knew before? That was one more mystery that he didn't know the answer to.

Before Conor could think even further, Ren's stomach grumbled.

Conor furrowed his eyebrow.

'What now? They don't even feed him properly?'

Conor thought. He then took one more glance at the skinny boy in front of him. He definitely looked like he starved, but the one in charge of Ren should have been feeding him properly right? He was hoping that was the case.

"Joren, did he eat his lunch already?" He asked without looking away from Ren.

Joren who was still standing stiff replied.

"Not yet, his meal is supposed to be here at night" Joren's voice was a little shaky. He still had his hand on his sword handle, in case of the worst.

But Conor turned to him with a confused face.

"Night? How about his lunch?"

Hearing that question, Joren somehow a little hesitant to answer. Why would Conor care about that anyways?

"He... only has one meal arranged each day"

"What...?"

Conor stood up instantly, looking straight at Joren who still paid his full attention to Ren. With that sudden move, Joren quickly shifted his gaze towards Conor who looked at him with a piercing gaze.

"How could you...!"

Conor was about to lash out, but quickly regain his composure. He massaged his temple gently.

"Forget it, quickly bring a meal here" He ordered.

Hearing that unexpected order, Joren stood still.

"Pardon..?"

"Should I repeat myself? Bring his meal here, right now"

Joren was still confused, but he sent one of the knight to the surface while the five of them waited inside the cell. Something was strange. Joren expected that Conor would do something audacious, but it was totally different from what he thought. This asshole noble was actually concerned about a meal for Demonic Beast? What was he trying to do? Joren tried to look for the answer by observing Conor, who stood there with a stern expression.

But Conor was only worried that Ren would went wild and crushed them flat. He cursed whoever took charge of Ren, how daring were they to only provide him a meal a day? They didn't even know Ren could send them to hell in a second.

After a while, the Knight who was sent to bring the meal showed up. He held a metal plate with food inside. The problem was, the plate was a mess. It was like someone crammed their leftover to the plate.

"What is this?" Conor asked.

"The meal for Demonic Beast" The Knight answered almost instantly, as if it was something obvious.

But the color in Conor's face changed immediately. He was truly raged. Didn't he tell them to bring a meal? He wanted a fucking meal! Not a pile of leftovers. He was also offended that the Knight addressed Ren as a Demonic Beast.

"What Demonic Beast? Can't you tell that he is human? Are you guys blind?"

His tone getting higher and harsher in fury.

"Bring me proper food. And what I mean by proper food is something that I usually have"

Conor tried to stable his breathing, he needed to calm down. But to be fair, he waited long enough for the Knight to fetch a real meal, not a disappointment like this.

"Huh? But..."

The Knight was hesitant. He felt that Conor's order was too strange. Even a Knight like him could not savor the same meal as their Master. But now Conor told him to feed the strange creature in front of them the same meal they served the nobles? That was completely ludicrous. Moreover, he was thrown away between obeying Conor, or keep still so they won't receive Viscount Marcel punishment.

As if understood what the Knight was thinking, Conor quickly added.

"I will tell everything to father so just screw off and do what I say" He motioned him to go away quickly.

"Yes!" The Knight replied and climbed up the stairs once again. But before he was gone, Conor added.

"And add lots of meat"

The Knight who halted when hearing the order replied in affirmation before going to the surface. While they waited, Conor turned his gaze towards Ren. Ren had a blank look on his face, maybe because he finally realized Conor and the Knights speaking a completely different language from him. Conor was a little bit worried in that sense. Did he went over the line with the yelling? He did something nice, but if Ren could not understand a word Conor was saying, would Ren think of him as hostile?

The second meal came up later than the first one. But Conor paid it no mind since he was satisfied with the meal that the Knight brought. Rather than a metal plate like before, he brought a tray with varieties of salad, soup, meat and beans. It wasn't as grand as the dinner Conor usually had, but it was a decent meal at the very least.

"From now on, he will eat three meals a day just like normal human. Do you understand?" Conor stated to the five Knights. The Knights looked at each other briefly before replying in unison.

"Yes!"

Conor then grabbed the tray from the Knight and personally put it on the floor. It wasn't appropriate, but he didn't have any choice since the cell was empty without any furniture. Conor then looked towards Joren.

"Release his hands"

Joren's face turned pale when Conor ordered that. His voice was shaky.

"Young Master..."

"What? Are you saying he should eat like a dog? I told you he is human" Conor quickly retorted when he saw the ridiculous look on Joren's face. "If you are that worried, just change it to the long chained one" He added.

Joren was silent. It was definitely better than having the Demonic Beast unbounded. But still, the safety of the long chained shackles were lower than the one planted on the wall. But under the menacing gaze of Conor, Joren didn't try to argue. He felt strange looking at Conor's behavior today. Conor was getting strict and demanding, just like Viscount Marcel.

Once Ren could move his thin arms, Ren gave a deep look towards Joren. Joren flinched, but didn't reach for his sword since Ren didn't show any hostility. Ren then looked up to Conor, still with his shaky eyes. Conor shivered as he didn't know what that meant, but quickly relieved when Ren shifted his gaze to the food.

When Ren picked up the spoon, the Knights were a bit surprised and started murmuring among themselves. Ren was spooning his soup normally, like a human being. But when he took the first sip, Ren's face softened. Like he never ate for months, he gulped down the whole soup and savagely grabbed the meat to shove it down his throat.

Six people who were there was a little taken aback by that sudden change. But, Conor had a different expression. He was satisfied looking at the relaxed Ren. With this, his first mission to appease Ren was a success. Conor smiled happily when he thought he had avoided the first death door.

However, the Knights had a different idea seeing a genuine smile on Conor's face. It was their first time seeing such expression from the ill rumored Young Master.

That day, the five Knights had a new impression of Conor.