CCTnovel Book 5: Chapter 220: Name
Book 5: Chapter 220: Name
“who should i look for? or rather, who do i need to find?”
after so many days, she was still stuck at square one. the only person luna wanted to find right now was master lilith. but lilith wasn’t in this world, so where should she even begin her search?
that damn mysterious being!
what luna hated most in her life were idiots who spoke in riddles and acted all mysterious.
“hey. thou hast stepped on our castle.”
lost in her thoughts, an unfamiliar voice suddenly rang in her ears. luna turned to see a disheveled beggar standing at the other end of the bench.
frowning slightly, she took in the boy, who looked about fifteen or sixteen. he wore a dirty black shirt with long sleeves that seemed out of place in the summer heat, paired with shorts and flip-flops—one of which was tied to his foot with a rope since the strap had broken.
his hair was damp as if he had just come from a shower. it hung in messy strands, long enough to brush his shoulders, droplets still clinging to the tips.
he looked rather unassuming—not handsome but not ugly either; just an ordinary face that would blend into a crowd. yet, at that moment, his expression was one of childish indignation, akin to a puppy’s.
luna felt a twinge of displeasure. though he didn’t reek, the realization that he was a beggar stirred an uncomfortable feeling within her. she didn’t see herself as a benevolent princess who would willingly shake dirty hands.
her upbringing had taught her to loathe beggars—those who relied on the pity of others to survive.
“hey. thou hast stepped on our castle. remove thy foot.”
luna’s indifference seemed to irritate the boy further, his voice now colder and sharper. she crossed her arms and legs, looking at him haughtily as she asked, “what castle?”
“this is the castle that we live in.”
ah, so he has a screw loose. that’s why he’s ended up as a beggar even though he’s able-bodied.
luna softened her tone slightly and said, “take a better look, there’s no castle here. why don’t you go somewhere else?”
“nonsense! it’s clearly there.” the little beggar pointed angrily at the soles of luna’s feet. “look, it’s always been there!”
“huh?”
luna followed his finger and glanced at the bottom of her feet. there was indeed nothing that could be called a castle. the only thing she saw was a stack of scrap cardboard, left behind by socially irresponsible people.
wait...
luna lifted her foot and regarded the young beggar with a bemused expression. “certainly, the castle you’re talking about isn’t this right...?”
“worms also have six times the protein of beef.”
“......”
luna shifted, crossing her other leg and kicking the beggar’s cardb-... castle in the process.
“where are your parents?”
“the fledgling bird spreads its wings and soars; we no longer need parental shelter. we can rise against the wind...”
“speak human.”
“i am an orphan.”
“then what about your other relatives? you can’t be the only one in the family.”
“a lonely and unruly soul need not a place of bondage. we can manage ourselves.”
“speak human.”
“they abandoned me. they think i’m a burden.”
“heh, i’m not surprised, with the way your mind works.”
“nonsense! we have a friend named old shen; he’s like our brethren. we fight valiantly side by side, never abandoning each other...”
“he’s in the same situation as you?”
“....yes.”
luna turned her head and scrutinized the young orphan. in the moonlight, his face glowed like pure jade, and his thick, long eyelashes fluttered like a girl’s as his eyelids lowered.
the light obscured his expression, but luna doubted it was one of sadness. she sensed a strength in him—strong enough not to display sorrow. perhaps the label of ‘having a screw loose’ was just a hasty judgment she had made on her first impression of him.
“what’s your name?”
“name?”
the teenager sprang to life at her question, and in the moonlight, luna saw his eyebrows raised in delight.
“our true name is aristides castro g morris brooklyn washington george i. we are the lord of this empire, the shadow keeper, the guardian of the world, the terminator of eternal time and space...”