"Raaahhh!!!"
A whole group of kids suddenly lunged out from behind Ur, and every one of them was brandishing some sort of weapon. If Ur hadn't trained in martial arts, this might've been a real headache.
But with even just a little basic training under his belt, combined with his natural physical strength, handling this kind of situation was a breeze.
He stepped back, dodged the nearest wooden stick swinging at him, then raised his hand and smacked a few of them upside the head. A couple of slaps later, the whole group of kids, none of them with HP likely over "5", were lying on the ground groaning.
"Waaahhh!!"
"Wahhh!!"
These kids were all much younger than the blond boy from earlier. Some looked to be only five or six years old.
Even though Ur had held back, the moment they hit the ground, the wailing began. The crying was loud. Really loud.
Ur felt an awkward tug of guilt as the chorus of crying filled the narrow alley.
In both his past life and this one, he wasn't the type to bully children. If they were just a bunch of bratty troublemakers, that'd be one thing—but these kids… these kids were just pitiful.
And the way they looked up at him, teary-eyed, sniffling, utterly vulnerable.
Yeah, that didn't sit right with him.
So, after standing there thinking for a while, Ur walked back over to the blond boy, Gu Yi, lifted a hand, and gave him a good smack on the head.
"Look at what you did," he scolded. "Would your little brothers be crying if it weren't for you? What kind of big brother are you supposed to be?"
Gu Yi: "?????"
What the hell!?
How is this my fault!?
You're the one who hit them!
Gu Yi was left completely dumbfounded by the slap and that ridiculous line. He looked up at Ur, confused and dazed.
Ur stared back at that blank face, immediately growing more annoyed and hit him again with a "what-am-I-going-to-do-with-you" kind of sigh.
"Well? Don't just sit there like an idiot. Look at this guy—do you recognize him or not? Or do you want your siblings to keep crying?"
A blatant threat.
Pure intimidation.
Gu Yi snapped out of his daze, wide-eyed, staring at Ur like he was some kind of monster. "Are you even human? You'd use little kids as leverage!?"
But as it turned out, Ur's "scolding" worked wonders.
Eventually, the boy caved. He sat up straight and obediently studied the wanted poster of Jericho that Ur held up to him.
"Well? Do you know this guy?"
Possibly still traumatized from the earlier discipline, Gu Yi examined the image very seriously. He studied it for a long while.
Finally, under Ur's expectant gaze, he nodded and said, "Yeah… I know him."
"Seriously?" Ur's eyes lit up with genuine surprise.
Honestly, he'd only questioned the boy on a whim. He hadn't expected to get anything useful. But lo and behold, it had paid off.
"Yeah, that guy's name is Jeris. He used to hang around Stygog all the time… 'fishing.' But about a month ago, he just disappeared."
Gu Yi spoke with confidence.
He didn't know Jeris well, but they lived in the same town and were in the same line of work, so their paths had crossed from time to time.
"Jeris…?"
Ur paused for a second. That wasn't the name on the bounty, but he quickly realized that was likely just an alias.
"Do you know where he went?"
"No idea. After he vanished a month ago, he never came back. But… if you really want to find him, try the Party Tavern in the town center. You might be able to pick up some leads there."
Gu Yi was much more cooperative after getting "scolded." He answered whatever Ur asked without hesitation.
A little while later, after getting directions to the tavern, Ur stood up and prepared to leave.
But just as he reached the mouth of the alley, he suddenly stopped.
Seeing this, Guyi immediately stepped in front of his siblings protectively, watching Ur as if he were some kind of demon from hell.
Ur looked at them and sighed, exasperated.
"Relax. I'm not gonna do anything. I just wanted to say—The way you're living now? This town isn't a place for you."
He paused, glancing at the frightened kids behind Gu Yi.
"When you've got the money, take your brothers and sisters and move to a different city. Try Magnolia. It's a decent place. Safer. At least there, you won't have to be constantly looking over your shoulder…"
With that, Ur waved goodbye without turning around and walked off, leaving the group in silence, the blond boy and his siblings lost in thought.
❖≔﴾═══════ﺤ
After leaving the alley, Ur made his way straight toward the Party Tavern.
That advice he gave Gu Yi? It hadn't been for show. He wasn't the type to go soft, but that group of kids had stirred a little sympathy in him.
They were just too young.
If it were just Gu Yi alone, then fine, Stygog might even be the perfect place for someone like him. The chaos had its advantages, after all.
But dragging a bunch of younger siblings into this kind of unstable life? That didn't sit right.
Of course, all he could offer was a bit of verbal advice.
Financial support?
Yeah, no. He was broke.
Stygog wasn't a very large town.
After walking out of the alley and asking around a bit, it didn't take long for Ur to locate the Party Tavern in the town center.