Chapter 5

"Thanks, Red." Otie petted her head; she only shoved his hand away and left to the alley that they both lived in. She found it more annoying that he would be this much of a troublesome person when he was practically a beggar yet sought out more trouble. "Hey! Are you not going to come with me to find out what we can get out of this?!" Otie shouted out to her; she did not have the slightest bit of interest in knowing about the value of the wallet that he had just stolen, which was the reason why he was nearly killed earlier.

There was no way that she was going to lose her life over him trying to have a wallet. It was not her thing but since he saved her then she has practically made it even for the two of them. 'If he seeks more trouble then he gets it on his own.'

***

Otie had gone through the streets, seeing if he could get anything from what he had pickpocketed that day besides the wallet. The girl he called Red knew nothing about him pickpocketing more than just wallets. Going to the pawnshop, he could get a few good silvers off of everything that he had just pawned in. Some people really liked the wallet since it was a certain design and material used to make it. Smiling, he held his bag of silver and then noticed the same man he had just stolen from. "That child was no human!" The man told the guards who were listening and jotted down all the details that the man was telling them.

"How was she not human?" The guards did not seem to really believe the man, with most of them thinking that he was getting too old to be able to describe accurately.

"I am not lying! She had the eyes of a monster and claws like a monster! What kind of human has claws like a beast?! Like those beastfolks! Nothing but monsters and ruthlessness!" The man was shouting while holding his hand out to let the guards see that it looked like an animal had attacked him with a deep wound that needed stitches from the doctor. "Her teeth are not even human!" The man said, but the guards assumed that a dog bit him since it looked like a dog's bite, according to what the doctor had informed them.

'Monster?' Otie thought; he then smiled and thought again about how much one would pay him for Red if she were a strong monster or a beast folk. 'Sorry, Red. As your friend, I would like to be able to reach my goal. You still owe me, after all, for saving your life. You won't mind, will you?' Otie did not have any thoughts or feelings of guilt in his heart for Red. He only saw the value that could help him return to the noble society. 'I'm sure that you won't mind it. Besides, your intelligence is below average.' Otie assumed that he had never once had the chance even to sell a beast folk since they were really valuable in human society. The greed was enveloping him to feel the need to sell Red for an even higher price.

***

Continuing to be a beggar for the next few days, Seven did not even think that Otie would come to like this so much and get this much food. Yet, he had been acting strangely now for the past few days at the same time. "Hey, Red, do you think I will ever be able to achieve my goal of getting back into high-class society?" Otie had asked Seven out of the blue. She continued to stare up at the night sky that had been filled with stars. Seven just nodded her head, but her response was always going to be the same: either nodding her head or shaking it. "Ah, do you know I wonder all the time about how fortunate I was to be able to meet you," Otie said, with Seven ignoring it.

She had fallen asleep that night, being comfy in the box she assumed was her new home. Suddenly, she felt her ankle get grabbed as she was dragged out and held tightly around the wrists. Being a small kid only, she still only had limited strength in herself.

"You assume that she is a good deal?" Hearing an unknown man say that, she glanced back and saw that Otie was there with the men who had captured her. Feeling them open her mouth to take a look at her row of bottom and top teeth with a look of amazement. From what they could see, they were completely sharp as canine beast folk. "Truly, this is unique. You do not ever see such a monster like this very often. Besides, many are willing to use a beast folk, especially if they are a female." The man then took a look at her hands, seeing claws that would be able to harm more than a human. They were growing, and they assumed she was a late bloomer as a beast folk. "Truly extraordinary!" The man did not know how else to describe this monster that was right in front of him. "How much are you offering?" The man looked to Otie while Seven looked to see that this young human boy had actually sold her out.

'I guess this is what I get for trusting humans. Even trusting a human child is not even safe.' Seven starred deadly to Otie, who did not even bat an eye for her. Almost cursing every second of the way in hopes that he would come to a painful end.

"Hm… How about fifteen-thousand silvers?" Otie knew that he could not be ripped off, mostly when the monster girl was not something to be put up for a low price.

"Do you really think that I will give you that much for this one monster?" The man asked.

"Hey, do you ever come across a monster like that nowadays?" Otie asked the man this time. The man looked to Otie and then to the little girl who was still struggling to get out of his men's arms—seeing her eyes go back between human and beast at that moment with a deadly gaze placed onto him. Young and small beast folk were also hard to come across, and most humans assumed they were easier to tame.

"Give him the payment." He ordered his men, who gave Otie the money while dragging the girl who was still trying to get out of their hold.

'Red is definitely a good deal not to overlook!' Otie told himself. Looking at the group of men who were all there and staring down at him.

Seven knew that she should have found it suspicious for someone like him to take care of her and feed her after all of this time. Perhaps she just got too comfortable with the human and thought that he needed more help to survive on the street, but even now, it made her heart close off further.

'What was I thinking?' Seven did not have the strength to fight back, seeing that these men must be a part of the slave trade. Feeling her cheeks get grabbed, the man observing her was looking to see her eyes. Her eyes naturally sharpened and turned feral, staring deadly back at the man.

"I'll give you the amount that you asked for." The man handed a bag to the boy, who held the look of greed on his face. Seven did not think that he would sell her, but the desire was far too good in this world. Being taken away, she had taken a bite down onto one of the man's hands.

"AHHH!!!!!" Feeling them tightly pull her hair, she had no choice but to let go as they quickly tossed her into the metal bar cage. "Damn monster!" He was just about to try and teach her a lesson when the man leading the whole business stopped him.