The poor orphan (chapter 1&2)

Henry Osa's eyes fluttered open, greeting the soft glow of dawn. He rose from his modest bed, the creaky wooden floorboards beneath his feet echoing through the small room. After a quick wash, he grasped the broom leaning against the wall, its worn handle a testament to his daily routine. With a gentle stretch, he stepped outside into the crisp morning air, the hint of grey in the sky a promise of a new day.

As he began to sweep the ground, the soft scratch of the broom's bristles on the pavement filled the silence. His tattered attire, a mismatched ensemble that seemed to hang loose on his frame, spoke to the hardships he had faced. In a world where strength and connections mattered, Osa's F-grade talent had relegated him to a life of menial labor. Yet, he found solace in the simple act of sweeping, the rhythmic motion a respite from the struggles that lay ahead.

After finishing his sweeping, Henry Osa sat on a rock, lost in thought. He reflected on the painful memories of the past six years, since his parents' passing. They were powerful hybrids with exceptional abilities, and he remembered the good life he had when they were alive. But everything changed after their death. People scorned him for his lack of talent, and his goal became uncovering the truth behind their demise.

Now, at sixteen, Osa felt defeated. He still hadn't awakened his hybrid form, a harsh reality that earned him ridicule and the label of "trash." He wept, feeling helpless and seeking revenge. But the obstacle seemed insurmountable, as his parents were part of the Blue Fur Organization - the most powerful group in the land, with a reach spanning hundreds of thousands of kilometers. Its leader, Blue Fur, was rumored to possess a B-grade talent, making them nearly untouchable.

Henry Osa's thoughts were consumed by the Blue Fur Organization, and the circumstances surrounding his parents' deaths. He felt depressed, thinking he might have brought shame to his parents. The only item left from them was a ring on his right thumb, which he believed to be ordinary. However, as he reflected on the events following their passing, he began to question this assumption.

Osa had tried every method to open the ring, thinking it might be a space ring used by powerful hybrids to store valuable possessions. But, he abandoned this notion after a series of events unfolded in the months following their death. The young Osa was a shadow of his former self, reduced to a frail and gaunt version of his previous energetic and lively personality.

One evening, Mr. Aaron, the estate manager, arrived at the house and was taken aback by Osa's frailty. He considered disposing of the boy and claiming his parents property but he was snapped out of his thoughts in the process of thinking about a plan by Osa's sobs. With an eerie grin, he approached the boy and offered hollow condolences, harshly reminding him that his parents were gone forever.

Manager Aaron's eerie smile made Osa uneasy. The manager convinced Osa to come stay with him, and despite initial reluctance, Osa packed his belongings and followed him. What astonished Osa was that Manager Aaron, had probably run all the way from his house to visit him yet he appear relaxed without a single drop of sweat on his face,

As they journeyed together, Osa's mind raced with thoughts of his parents' deaths and the possible conspiracy surrounding them. He wondered what could have been powerful enough to kill his parents, both high-level hybrids within the Blue Fur organization.

His mother was a brown scale cat, and his father a silver fur leopard hybrid, high-level hybrids in the Blue Fur organization, only surpassed by ancient monsters and Blue Fur himself. Osa believed a conspiracy was hiding information about their deaths, wondering who would dare keep the truth from him if he were a hybrid. Only the strong enjoy life's blessings.

Osa was startled by an unpleasant stench, finding himself in an abandoned playground, feeling afraid. Manager Aaron stopped, his eyes glowing purple, his mouth filled with sharp teeth, terrifying Osa.

The young Osa's instincts screamed at him to flee from the creature before him, but his legs refused to budge. He was frozen in terror, unable to even utter a scream. It was as if an invisible force held him captive.

Mr. Aaron's hybrid transformation would have knocked out any ordinary human with an F-grade talent. But Osa's resilience surprised him. Not only did Osa remain conscious, but he also attempted to escape. This prompted Mr. Aaron to reassess his opponent.

Without hesitation, Mr. Aaron pounced. Osa's heart raced as if a massive bus was about to crush him. He was paralyzed with fear, unable to move or escape the claws that seemed destined to tear him apart.

In a shocking turn of events, time itself appeared to freeze just as Mr. Aaron's claws were about to strike. Osa's eyes snapped open to find the claws hovering mere centimeters from his face. Though Mr. Aaron seemed aware of his surroundings, he was motionless, his eyes fixed intently on Osa. The only sound was the soft blink of Mr. Aaron's eyes.

Mr. Aaron, suspended in mid-air, was consumed by fear as he wondered which powerful entity he had unwittingly offended. Despite his E-grade talent and 20 years of honing his skills, he was certain that no mid-level hybrid could restrict his movements in this way. Even a high-level hybrid would need to reveal themselves to achieve such a feat. The mysterious hybrid's power was evident in their ability to freeze everything around him.

Mr. Aaron's skepticism turned to dread as he gazed at the ominous red glow emanating from the ring on Osa's thumb. The ring suddenly sprouted dozens of blood-red tentacles, which latched onto him and began draining his life force. In mere moments, the once-formidable Mr. Aaron was reduced to a lifeless corpse.

Osa watched in shock as the powerful hybrid met his demise. He hastily removed the ring from his thumb, examining it with a mix of curiosity and trepidation. Apart from the red glow, the ring seemed unremarkable. Osa had heard tales of rare beast artifacts that enhance a user's power, but he felt no surge in strength upon holding the ring. This only deepened the mystery, leading Osa to wonder if his parents had given him the ring as a self-defense tool, leveraging its beast artifact properties. Osa's excitement grew as he pondered this, but his expression remained perplexed.

Given the rarity of beast weapons, Osa was confident that the Blue Fur Organization wouldn't have returned the ring if it was a genuine beast artifact. His late parents claimed that beast weapons are priceless relics created from magical beasts in the distant past. Osa started running back, following the path he and Mr. Aaron had taken, not wanting to waste time. He ran as quickly as his legs would allow, tripping and falling several times before getting back up to continue running. Even when he reached his street, he ran past without stopping, only halting at the main road that separates Blue Fur City. Dozens of guards in dark blue uniforms approached him, their leader, John, a young man in his early twenties, eyeing him with vigilance.

The head guard asked, "What are you doing outside at this hour?" Osa replied, "Sir, I was i-i-i," too terrified to explain what had happened. John, the head guard, brought Osa to his office, sensing that Osa had been through a lot. Inside, John's office had two chairs and a table. John sat on the right, and Osa on the left. John was taken aback by Osa's youthful appearance, wondering what had happened to him and where his parents were. John was upset, believing that Osa's parents didn't value their son, otherwise, he wouldn't be outside at this time.

Chapter 2: A New Beginning

John asked Osa what happened, why he was in this state, and where his parents were. Osa replied truthfully, "My parents are dead," recounting his story, omitting the part where he was saved by the ring. John observed Osa's expression, seeming to say "I am lying," and shook his head. John wondered when Blue Fur City began to have so many hybrids, knowing there were only 100 hybrids, with ten hidden hybrids, two of which recently passed away. John believed Osa was attacked by Mr. Aaron and saved by the Force King, an enigmatic hybrid with unknown origins.

According to rumors, Force King is the third most powerful hybrid in Blue Fur City; he even challenged two high-level hybrids in the city, but no one saw the fight, so everyone assumed he lost, because, as a mid-level hybrid, challenging two high-level hybrids is equivalent to seeking defeat. Just as John was lost in thought, so was Osa, who was preoccupied with his own thoughts. He was considering where to start his career and his education, and he was in his second year of junior high school, which he needed to attend for future reference, because, should he not awaken, he would have to rely on his education to secure a better tomorrow for himself.

As Osa considered his future, his anxiety increased, because John's final decision would determine his fate. If John decides to let him go, which is highly unlikely, he believes that, even though his future will be difficult, he can still be saved. However, if John decides to take him back home or to the city lord's residence, then he would be finished, because further investigation may uncover the truth about what really happened to Mr. Aaron, putting him in danger.

After a few minutes, John finally decided that, since he had no parents to care for him, taking him to the North District Orphanage would be the best course of action. When John told Osa that he would be taking him to the orphanage, Osa was ecstatic, because he would not only be saved there but also provided with all the necessities. Osa was so happy that he even started crying, but these were tears of happiness. Observing the child sobbing in front of him, after being startled, John realized that he really did not want to go home.

Taking into account the graffiti detailing Osa's ordeal, John considered taking him to the City Lord's residence but ultimately decided against it after considering Osa's words. Taking him to the orphanage, where he can be closely monitored, is the best option - after all, it is not too late to take him to the city lord's residence should things turn out bad in the future. John made up his mind and told Osa to sleep in the office because it was already late, and he would pick him up early the next day to take him to the orphanage. John then left to go patrol with the other guards.

As soon as John left, Osa fell to the ground and went to sleep. Very early the following day, just as John had said he would come and take Osa to the orphanage, he arrived at the office door and waited a short while before opening it. When he did, he was stunned to find all the office paperwork and other items on the desk scattered around; it was as if a wind had appeared out of nowhere and had blown away everything. Osa looked up, confused, at everything until his eyes fell on John, who was standing at the entrance, suspiciously recalling what had happened the day before.

Osa stood up and greeted John, "Good morning, sir," nodding his head, and he signaled for Osa to follow him. In the farthest reaches of the South District, Milly's Orphanage sits on a small plot of land next to the Merchant Guild, the most well-known shopping center in Blue Fur City. After crossing the main road, John stopped a taxi, which he and Osa got into. About ten kilometers separate Milly's Orphanage from the Southern District Boarder. A short while later, the taxi driver pulled up outside a typical-looking four-story building.

As he got out of the car and observed the old building, Osa was shocked to see that the Milly's Orphanage he had imagined was not the same as what he was seeing at the time. "Is this the Milly Orphanage?" Osa inquired of John, who had by now also exited the taxi. "Yes, this is the Milly Orphanage where I grew up," John replied, stunning Osa. It appears that John chose to bring him here because, as it turns out, he is also an orphan who was raised in Milly's Orphanage. When Osa saw John walking towards the building's entrance, he immediately ran after him.

As soon as Osa stepped inside the building, he could not help but remark, "Wow, the reception hall is so big. I think they use the entire downstairs for it." John could not help but chuckle lightly as he walked to the lady behind the desk. "Hi, Miss Mary. Is Aunt Rose in?" John asked the woman behind the counter. "Yes," the woman replied, raising her head to glance at John before turning to face Osa and grinning at him, earning an uncomfortable glance from the latter.

John immediately said his thanks as he led Osa upstairs. Osa was once again astonished because, just like downstairs, upstairs is also a huge hall, possibly even bigger than that of downstairs, but there is some difference. Unlike downstairs, there appears to be a playground with kids of different ages playing around. A middle-aged woman, who appeared to be in her late thirties, was standing among them. John asked Osa to wait for him as he walked up to the woman.

While John was gone, some kids ran up to Osa as they curiously examined him. One of the kids, who did not appear much older than Osa himself, walked up to him and said, "Hi, I am Peter. What is your name, please?" Osa replied, "Hello, I am Osa." The child inquired right away, "Are you going to be staying with us?" Osa replied, "Well, maybe." Peter yelled while singing about Osa, and Osa could not help but smile as he watched the child sing and dance.

Shortly after, John returned with a smile on his face and said, "Osa, you are going to be spending a lot of time here. Treat everyone as family." Osa answered right away, "Yes, sir."