I broke up with Merlin [Comprehensive]

Italy, Sicily, where the sun can shine, all look wonderful.

The island is surrounded by small islands scattered like pearls in the sea, and the waves with white shadows wash over the reefs at the very edge. among buildings.

Walking in such an island city full of comfort and beauty, stepping on the stone floor step by step to climb to the high place, feeling the aroma of citrus that comes with the wind and does not know where the source is, is undoubtedly a particularly enjoyable thing.

If you add more descriptions here-such as friendly residents, getting along with each other, and never having more than verbal quarrels, then it will be more like Xanadu.

only.

The premise mentioned above is that it is "where the sun can shine".

It is a pity that it is not only the will of God, but also a symbol of a certain power that hangs over Sicily for many years.

Where the sun is more intense, the shadows in the dark corners blocked by houses and streets are more intense.

The blackness cannot be faded, and it keeps moving in the dark where the well-dressed people do not notice, like a ghost beast that is about to move, waiting for the opportunity to prey on the poor people who have stumbled or are down in one fell swoop.

Once "preyed", there is no way to leave the darkness.

As for the humble lives that already live in the darkness, it is almost impossible to escape from it, and they are destined to linger in the sewer sewage where the sun does not shine.

therefore.

A certain city on the island, a certain dark neighborhood belonging to the slums in the city, the sky at this moment is unsurprisingly covered by thick clouds.

The already gloomy sky is even darker, this is not a change, until the heavy rain pours down relentlessly, only those who are hit by the cold rain barely notice it.

There is no unnecessary reaction.

They seem to be used to it.

The dilapidated hut made of unrecognizable wooden boards had many leaks, and the rainwater poured in, wetting the clothes corners of the women and children crowded in the house.

Not even a chance to cover himself, the ragged man lay on his back in the dirty sewage ditch, his whole body was wet by the rain, his face was muddy, his chest seemed to have no heaving, he didn't know whether he was dead or alive.

Such scenarios should be commonplace in slums, and it is unknown how many similar situations occurred at the same time.

"Hoo... huh... huh..."

The torrential rain beat the ground cruelly, and the turbulent sound overwhelmed the violent gasps that sounded in this area.

Although it was very hasty, as if trying to pull up the bellows in the thin chest, but the voice was too weak.

The source of the voice seemed to be a very young boy.

At the same time, there was movement and staggering footsteps.Someone ran quickly in the alleyway that was even darker in the rain, trampled on countless puddles that had gathered, and smashed through the rain curtain, as if they didn't dare to stop for a moment.

"Tat, ta, ta, bang! Bang, bang, bang—"

Faster and faster, and messier.

And, not long after, it inevitably stopped.

Although forced.

"Snapped--"

The person who ran away in a panic was probably too impatient, he didn't notice the obstacles under his feet, and accidentally tripped over.

Accompanied by a loud noise that was painful to listen to, the muddy water splashed far away, covering the thin figure even more unclearly.

"...Well, I was..."

The person who fell was grunting in pain, and his voice was fragmented due to weakness.

Immediately after this, a cursing sound that sounded like an adult man came from behind, with extremely obvious malice and anger: "Smelly brat, you don't know how to play, and you dare to run for me—run, keep running! I'll kill you when I arrive."

The "smelly brat" in these words, needless to say, must be a thin and small boy who fell down in front of him and couldn't get up for a while.

He seemed to have been running in the rain for a long time, so exhausted that he couldn't move.

There are countless injuries on the body.

Although it wasn't heavy, it was bloody, and the scars hadn't been treated at all, and they were soaked in rainwater mixed with a lot of dirty things, and they were already inflamed.

——So tired...so painful...

That's what the young man's voice should say.

——However, I can't... If I don't escape, today, I will definitely...

He didn't want, didn't want to stop here.

However, as if he couldn't escape, the adult chasing him persevered in catching up.

They are gangsters living in the slums, not yet qualified to join the Mafia, they can only do some blatant bullying to the mentally handicapped who are hard to resist.

The gangster set his sights on the child who was much weaker than them both in stature and strength, and wanted to snatch a silver coin from a kind lady who quietly ran outside the slum during the day.

Perhaps it was because the skinny little blond kid was so weak that he could fly away with one kick, so the gangsters relaxed their vigilance and didn't take it seriously at the beginning.

Because of this, the kid seized the opportunity, bit the arm of one of the gangsters who grabbed him, and cunningly escaped while the man was in pain.

There is no doubt that this is really courting death.

The man who didn't care at first was furious by this mouth, and it was impossible for him to let go of the money delivered to his door, so he immediately chased after him.

Even though the young man was naturally quick-witted and tried his best to detour into the remote alleys, he still couldn't get rid of the people behind him because of the injuries left by the previous beating and the huge physical strength gap between young children and adults.

The result is what you see here.

The young man who suffered an indiscriminate disaster because of a silver coin fell down and was unable to get up. The sole of the man's shoe stepped on the back of his head and stepped hard into the foul-smelling sewage.

"Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh!"

"Damn kid! Cut, it's really bad luck. In order to catch this kid, my clothes are all wet. Hey, kid, how do you want to pay?"

Struggling to raise his head, he was stepped back mercilessly. The boy's mouth, nose and eyes were soaked in sewage, making it difficult to breathe.

He couldn't make a sound either, his whole body twitched, and his fingers tried to dig the dirty ground.

If you look closely, you will find that this is the subconscious reaction of the body before suffocation.However, the gangster who stepped on the young man didn't notice it, and was still cursing, stomping on him again as if to vent his anger, without lifting his foot.

"Grandma, I have to clean up this brat to relieve my anger."

The gangster said to his companion who came a few steps behind.

"Hey! Big brother is right, the little devil has to be taught a lesson, so that he can have a better memory later."

The pretentious little brother flattered and flattered, not forgetting to show his position, and kicked the motionless boy on the ground.

After kicking and kicking, stepping and stepping, after a while of tossing around, the leader of the gangster who was bitten finally calmed down a little.

Of course, there were also reasons why the rain was getting heavier and heavier, which made him very uncomfortable, and he didn't want to suffer from it anymore.Otherwise, he wouldn't let the daring brat go so easily.

"Okay, let him go today."

The gangster impatiently wiped the rainwater all over his face, spit on the ground, and ordered the younger brother to pick up the brat and take away the silver coins that the brat hid in his trousers bag.

They probably want to touch it again to see if the brat has anything else of value.

But it's a pity, except for this silver coin that didn't belong to him, the young man only had clothes and pants that didn't fit well and were still full of muddy water. He even lost one of his shoes on the road.

"Bah, poor brat! Go away."

Boom!Crash.

As a result, the boy was picked up, and then fell heavily into the muddy water.

He still couldn't move.

After the gangsters who complained that the rain came at an untimely time took advantage of it and vented their anger, they finally walked away triumphantly.

a long time.

"..."

"..."

Only the sound of rain is still roaring in this dark world.

It's more deserted than it was not long ago.

Because, even the panting and groaning that were just covered no longer sounded.

The boy fell alone in an alley where no one would pass by.

The rain was so heavy that it seemed to smash his scarred body into pieces and wash it into the mud everywhere in the slums...

It looked like a dead body that was no longer breathing, but in fact, he was still breathing weakly.

After being trampled heavily, his black and blue fingers trembled again.

This struggle, which is weaker than before, cannot be ignored.

At first there was only this point, but it was quite unbelievable—it was hard to imagine that something that a skinny boy who looked like only five or six years old could do happened here.

He moved.

Under the premise that his body was full of scars and his consciousness was about to fade to zero, he no longer just gently hooked his fingers, but slowly stretched out his arms that were also bruised and purple, bit by bit, with force——

The boy used his own hands to slowly move his body, which was as heavy as a boulder, from the depths of the alley to the outside.

I don't know how much time it took.

Don't know pain, don't know fear.

In the young man who insisted on forcing himself to do this incredible thing with the utmost perseverance, there must be an important existence in his heart that supports his unwillingness to give up.

——So tired...so tired, too tired, I really want to rest...

——but... no.You have to... go back.

That's it.

The young man who was very likely to fall down in the depths of the dark alley and die alone due to an inflammation of the wound or a high fever, stubbornly broke this tragic fate.

He moved himself out.

His eyes are blurred, so he can't distinguish the direction, so he can only rely on his intuition to move towards the "light" place that his intuition told him.

In the slums, one cannot have too much hope of being rescued in time by well-meaning people.

Because this is the darkest place on the back of the glamorous Sicily under the sun, no matter the original residents or the wanderers who have fallen here, they cannot protect themselves.

"Live" is such a simple word, it is extremely difficult to realize it, let alone hope that the kindness that does not expect anything in return will appear just right.

……but.

Such kindness should exist.

It's just that it can't be distinguished for the time being.

can't tell...

Sure enough, it was because the rainstorm was too intense and the surroundings were too dark.

The boy himself may not even know where he is.

The muddy water under his body was bone-chillingly cold, and he unconsciously shivered from the cold, and couldn't help but stretched out his hand as hard as he could——

"..."

It's... weird.

The few fingertips protruding at the front seemed to be suddenly out of touch with the coolness.

Rain, stop?

No, no... because except for the fingertips, the rest of the body was still beaten by the heavy rain.

This narrow space that can avoid the wind and rain seems to come from a person who stopped in front of him who was crawling and unable to move any more.

"for me……"

Can't hear clearly.

The boy was holding on to the consciousness that lasted until now, and suddenly disappeared for no reason.

As if he knew it in advance, it is enough for him to persist until this time, the person in front of him is trustworthy, and then there is nothing to worry about.

Exhaustion poured down like a mountain.

There was nothing to say, and no energy to listen.

This is the moment.

An unprecedentedly reassuring darkness swept the boy.

……

"I'm sorry."

After a while of groping, Cyril, who just came here, lowered his head and looked at the embarrassed young man who had fainted in front of him. After being slightly stunned, he could only apologize to him with a helpless wry smile.

"It came so suddenly, I really didn't bring an umbrella."

"However, if you do this...it doesn't matter if you don't need an umbrella."

He bent down, not disliking the stains all over the boy's body, and very easily picked up the future student who seemed destined to meet.

The space covered by the enchantment will not be invaded by heavy rain.However, the deafening rain cannot be blocked.

Cyril pondered for a while, then raised his head and looked towards a slightly bright place in the distance.

"Just go there."

With that said, he took a step.

*****

Giotto struggled for a long time in the nightmare before waking up in a cold sweat.

"what!"

Unable to hold back the exclamation, he blurted out uncontrollably.

The blond boy sat up suddenly from the bed, and accidentally, the thin quilt that was originally covering him slipped to the ground.He didn't notice, and he didn't have time to reach out to pick up the quilt.

"..."

After screaming, the boy who was sitting blankly was speechless.

He probably thought he was still dreaming.However, it was transferred from a nightmare to a rather strange dream.

If it wasn't a dream—how could he appear in a clean room and sit on a bed that was also clean and even had a slight fragrance?

In my impression, there are no such houses in the slums.

Moreover, he remembered that he fell in the depths of a dark alley, being continuously washed by the heavy rain.

That being the case, the snow-white shirt she is wearing now should not exist in reality...

"……what?"

The boy who was still wondering if this was a dream, suddenly let out another stunned sound.

His eyes subconsciously searched the extremely clean room.

From near to far——I saw a table with many bottles and cans, I saw things that were obviously simple but placed very comfortably, which were probably decorations, and I also saw that the other side was open. A door to a room.

And, at this time, the one who happened to be holding something and walked out of the door...

"Ah, are you awake?"

Cyril, who came out of the potion, smiled and said: "Since the similar scene has appeared three times, and the look in your eyes seems familiar, I think I will explain it again."

"I am the magician who passed by accidentally last night. I met you who was injured on the road, so I brought you here."

"magician……?"

"It's just someone who knows a little practical tricks."

Cyril is still very modest, and he will not say much about himself until the time is right.

Holding the medicine, he walked over, and sat on the edge of the bed very naturally, beside the boy who was sitting blankly.

Both the older and the younger have blond hair. Although there is no similarity between their eyebrows and eyes, such closeness will always bring a sense of familiarity that can shorten the distance.

Not to mention, the blond young man with a soft smile has always been a gentle and friendly person.

"Your injury is fine, but, child, your body is really weak."

Under the gaze of the boy's gradually clear eyes, Cyril patted him on the back with his free hand.The boy didn't dodge, and his voice mixed with worry could be said smoothly:

"Trauma isn't a big problem, it's mainly malnutrition... I'll prepare some medicine for you, drink it while it's hot."

"Well……"

Looking at the medicine bowl full of turbid black liquid in front of him, the boy hesitated, as if he was still at a loss, and he didn't dare to trust the stranger he met for the first time.

Well, for such a young child, it is good to be vigilant.

Therefore, Cyril was not surprised, the smile was still sincere.

"It's okay, look, you can drink."

He first made a demonstration by himself, taking a sip of the potion boiled for the young man.When he tasted the taste, there was a slightly satisfied look on his face: "Yeah, it seems to be a success, not bad."

Giotto looked at him: "..."

It was around this time that the dazed young man realized that his silence had caused a misunderstanding to his benefactor who had saved him, so he hurriedly said, "No, sir, I didn't doubt your intentions."

When he opened his mouth, his voice was immature in line with his age, but what was unique about it was that it was logically clear, he would not panic or get excited when faced with situations beyond imagination, and his temperament was stable beyond his age.

However, to say that it surpasses is just to compare with peers.

"Thank you--"

Seeing the strange blond-haired young man showing such a gentle smile to him, the young man still showed a bit of embarrassment, pursed his lips, and took the medicine bowl calmly.

"Ah, let me remind you that the taste of the medicine has been improved by me, so it may be a little strange."

Giotto: "Huh? Oh, um, thanks."

Obviously, the young man understood a little bit, thinking that what Cyril meant was that the taste of the medicine would not be very good, but he still bravely drank the unknown pitch black potion in one gulp.

He was mentally prepared that his expression would be distorted by only smelling the bitter/sour potion with a really weird smell, and secretly decided that if that was the case, he must try his best to control his facial features so as not to deform.

however.

After a few seconds.

Giotto stopped holding the medicine bowl: "..."

After a long while, the young man who seemed to have recovered, said to himself in surprise:

"...It's a bit bitter, but you think it's...sweet?"

"Well, I improved the taste of the potion to chocolate." Cyril smiled, happy that his impromptu idea produced a good effect.

That's right, this was his temporary idea.

Improving the taste of the potion, although a bit more troublesome than the normal steps, is not impossible.

Before that, he made potions countless times, and he was indeed questioned by customers (such as Mr. Uchiha Izuna who expressed dislike the most) because of the taste, but he didn't try to improve them.

After all, good medicine tastes bad-hereby note, this is based on the experience of the Duke who has been drinking medicine since childhood, and the Duke himself deeply agrees.

If so, why, this time, is there an exception?

Cyril will never tell others, this is because when the future student was feeding him the medicine when he was unconscious, the future student screamed and wanted to vomit in a daze...

He was hit.

Really, deeply hit.

Skipping over the process of quietly rolling up his sleeves to improve the taste of the potion, Cyril regretted that he did not adhere to the principle of good medicine tastes bitter this time. However, after witnessing the juvenile's puzzled look of joy, he felt very sad. I am relieved.

By the way, the specific flavor is actually milk chocolate.

Overwhelm the bitterness of the potion itself with the soft and silky sweetness, the two blend together, it becomes an excellent taste that children will definitely like - and by the way, milk chocolate is already the taste of adults Cyril likes it all... ahem!

"chocolate?"

Another new term that Giotto had never heard of.However, he guessed, it should be some kind of food.

"That's right. I just have a piece here, do you want to eat it?"

"...Ah, thank you sir, but no need."

Although it was obvious to the naked eye after drinking the medicine that the energetic young man sat up straight with his shoulders straight and his eyes were pure, but after the "but", there was a slight pause.

Cyril pretended not to notice.

With the blessing of the preconceived impression of his future student, he intentionally observed carefully from the very beginning, and after being relieved, he felt that the child could still resist temptation, which was quite good.

Not surprisingly.

For well-behaved children, Cyril always likes them more and more, and wants to take good care of them.

"Here, spread out your hand, here's the chocolate."

"...!"

Giotto subconsciously opened his hand, and soon, there was a long square wrapped in a black bag in his hand.

At this moment, the young man's expression was particularly surprised and joyful, and he hadn't completely concealed his skills.

Beyond that, of course, is gratitude.

He squeezed the chocolate in his hand and looked at it a little.During this period, Cyril watched him with a smile.

However, for a while, Giotto really didn't look at him curiously all the time.He retracted his gaze not long after, raised his head, and looked at Cyril again.

"Thank you, kind sir, if you are willing to give me a chance, I will do my best to repay you."

Cyril smiled and said, "Your body is still important, do you feel better?"

Giotto: "Yes."

However, the boy then said: "I want to apologize to you first and ask for your forgiveness—my companion is seriously ill and still stays at home. I must go back quickly."

"Huh? Is there any companion who is seriously ill?" Cyril was a little surprised, "That really can't be delayed. How about it, I will go with you."

He got up immediately and went to pack his things.

Seeing the boy's nervous appearance, Cyril tentatively judged that the situation should be very serious.

He packed all the clothes, bedding, necessary daily necessities, crucibles and medicinal materials in the house.

Unexpectedly, Giotto, who was so familiar with Mister Kindness, was stunned: "..."

"Wait, wait, sir, I can't trouble you any more—"

"It's okay, it's my honor to help you all. And..."

Cyril turned his head, as if remembering something again.

"If you feel sorry."

He smiled unabated, and said that sentence very naturally:

"Then you will be my student. The teacher solves the students' difficulties, so you don't have to look outside at all?"

"So, what's your name?"