About Gutter Alley, Part 3
In the words of the adults, Labin was a rotten seed from the start.
When they brought the silver-haired girl to the hideout, Brack showed brief interest in the fact that she was female, but after looking at her face, she didn't seem to be his type, and he quickly lost interest.
"How'd you end up here?"
"Just pickpocketing people until I got a bounty on my head. One thing led to another while running away?"
"Can you fight?"
"Yeah, I guess."
Rummaging through her pockets, Labin began pulling out various trinkets.
Brack, who had scoffed at first, found it quite amusing as items kept pouring out of her pockets.
On the other hand, the adults in the gang were flustered as Labin pulled out their own belongings.
"Hey, that's my dagger?!"
In particular, Groom the knife-fighter flew into a rage when he realized she had stolen his weapon.
"You little brat!"
"Ah, that's enough. She looks useful, so let's raise her as a fighter. Put her on the vanguard with Arciel."
Brack stood up and patted Labin on the shoulder, praising her.
"You've got talent."
"Thanks."
Then, catching Labin off guard, he gripped her shoulder and drove his knee straight into her stomach.
"Urgh!"
"Don't ever think about touching our stuff again."
"...Yes, sir."
Thus, Labin was accepted into the gang without much friction.
However, her compatibility with Arciel was the absolute worst.
"You crazy bitch!"
Waking up in the morning, Arciel swore loudly at the sight of Labin sleeping tightly snuggled in Lee's arms.
It seemed Arciel's foul mouth had started developing around this time.
"Shut up, I was sleeping so well."
"Get away from Lee!"
"I don't want to. This position is perfect. It makes me so sleepy."
When Labin completely ignored her nagging and even rubbed her cheek against Lee's chest, Arciel exploded.
"Even I haven't slept cuddled up with Lee yet!"
"Then keep sleeping by yourself. I'm going to sleep like this."
"You... you... bitch!"
From that day on, the hideout greeted every morning with a physical brawl between Arciel and Labin.
The adults, who had little entertainment, even joined Brack in making bets on the daily fights.
The only one suffering was Lee, who got beaten up while trying to break them apart.
Time flew by.
It was inevitable when every day was a struggle for survival.
Arciel learned boxing from Brack, while Labin learned knife-fighting from Groom.
While the girls grew, learning skills that suited their natural temperaments and talents, Lee learned how to cook under Spindle, getting harshly beaten and burned in the process.
In fact, it could be said that he mastered all sorts of miscellaneous skills, excluding combat.
By the time they turned thirteen, they were accepted as proper members of the gang, unlike the 'other children'.
But that didn't change the nature of their work.
If they did well, they were given more work; if they failed, they were beaten.
Yet, through the days of honing their skills just to survive, their abilities only grew.
That day was no different.
Lee was now doing more than his share, even surpassing Spindle.
When he gathered enough food from the forest surrounding Gutter Alley to feed over ten people and even made jam out of some nameless wild berries, even Brack praised him lavishly, which was highly unusual for him.
And today, having found a couple of large bird eggs in the forest, Lee made fried eggs as a special treat.
"Labin, if you're here, sit down."
He spoke toward the tree branches, but there was no reply.
Lee sighed and uttered that embarrassing phrase.
"Truth be told, I've been waiting for a man like you for a very long time."
"That's not it!"
At that, Labin yelled as she leaped down from the branch, landing lightly on her feet.
"I'm a girl, so you should say you've been waiting for a girl like me!"
"But I wasn't waiting for you..."
"Shut up, dummy! You're ugly anyway! If it wasn't for me, no girl would ever take you!"
"Well, I don't really plan on living with anyone."
"What?!"
"And like you said, I'm ugly..."
"Who said that! Who!"
The messy, silver-haired girl frowned and pressed him, but the only response she got was Arciel's fist flying out from the bushes.
Labin jumped in surprise, but the punch connected cleanly with her jaw.
"Keugh!"
"Who else, you little tramp? You're the one who calls him ugly every chance you get!"
"Arciel!"
Labin did a flip in the air before crashing to the ground.
Lee scolded Arciel for using such harsh language again.
"But she started it...!"
"You could just use different words. The meaning changes so much depending on how you say it."
Although he had originally said those words to Labin, he somehow found himself saying them to Arciel more often now.
Arciel, noticing how Lee's face visibly stiffened whenever she swore, tried to be careful in her own way, but Labin's constant baiting made it difficult.
"Lee! The gorilla hit me!"
"Arciel, apologize."
"Why should I!"
Another sigh escaped him.
"Labin, stop teasing me just to get a rise out of Arciel."
"Ugh...!"
Labin flinched, flustered by Lee's disapproval.
Arciel gloated at the sight, but her face fell just the same at Lee's next words.
"Arciel, if you don't apologize either, neither of you is getting any fried eggs."
"Aw, why!"
"Can't be helped. Arciel, yours is going to be hard-fried."
"Ugh!"
Labin immediately struck a smug pose, as if she had been waiting for this.
Watching her, Arciel trembled with rage.
"So... so..."
"Huh? So-so?"
Labin cupped a hand to her ear, teasing her.
"So-so-so-so?"
"So...!"
"Is 'so' all you know? Where did the 'rry' go?"
"So..."
"Haha! Lee, did you see that? She can't even speak properly—"
"Son of a bitch, shut up!"
A second fist connected cleanly with Labin's jaw.
After blacking out for a few seconds, Labin woke up, drew her daggers in both hands, and gnashed her teeth.
"You absolute whore!"
"Bring it on. I'll make sure you never chew your own food again."
"You two, seriously!"
Just as Lee clutched his head in the face of this explosive situation—
Bwooooooo!
A horn blew.
"A raid?"
As Arciel lowered her fists and muttered the meaning of the horn, Labin immediately sheathed her daggers.
"Arciel! Labin!"
"Jack! What's going on!"
"Soldiers! Three squads of soldiers are heading this way!"
"Three squads?"
Labin was shocked.
Why would they send so many soldiers to a dump like this?
Slipping his slingshot into his pocket, Jack urged the fighters.
"Gather up, quick! And Lee, the adults said to have food ready for when they get back."
"We're almost out of food, though..."
"We'll be fine if we just steal those soldiers' rations."
"Got it. Don't die, Jack!"
"And Lee, call me next time! I like fried eggs too!"
The three of them quickly ran out of the forest toward the entrance of Gutter Alley.
Watching them disappear into the distance, Lee prayed that everyone would return safely.
"Ah, they're completely overcooked."
The boy bitterly packed up the now hard-fried eggs.
When he returned to the hideout in a hurry, no one was there.
Even Spindle seemed to have grabbed his kitchen knife and left.
It was dead silent.
He wanted to go out and fight too, but every time he brought it up, all the kids, including Arciel and Labin, got angry and stopped him.
Spindle had also told Brack that if he died, Lee would be the one responsible for feeding everyone, so Lee was always left behind to guard the house.
"Huh?"
While cleaning up the shabby kitchen, Lee noticed that the food storehouse door was slightly ajar.
Did Spindle forget to lock it properly?
Judging by the fact that the fire in the crude hearth was still burning, it seemed they had left in too much of a hurry to clean up.
Approaching the storehouse, Lee heard the sound of someone eating ravenously inside.
Chomp, gulp... cough!
The intruder kept pounding their chest as if choking, yet they didn't stop eating.
Even if he was a non-combatant, Lee was still a member of Gutter Alley.
He decided to ambush the intruder while they were distracted.
He flung the door open.
"Who's there!"
"Hieek! *Gasp... cough!* Hic!"
Startled, the intruder ended up choking on what they were hastily swallowing.
As they fell to their knees, gasping for air, a panicked Lee poured some water and held it out.
"Are you okay? Here, drink some water, quick!"
The intruder instinctively grabbed the cup and gulped it down.
Once they calmed down, they raised their head and glared at Lee.
"Ah..."
Fair skin that could never be found in these alleys.
Hair that looked like melted gold.
Sharp, fox-like features that gave off a strong impression.
Clear, shining gray eyes.
And a green dress woven from fine fabric, though it was now covered in dust.
Was this what they called love at first sight?
Lee found himself completely captivated.
"How dare a lowly peasant stare so blatantly in my presence!"
But the girl's manner of speech was incredibly rude.
Lee realized for the first time that there were ways to offend someone without using curse words.
"What about you? How did you get here? This is a very dangerous place."
"Where is this place? Speak."
"This is Gutter Alley..."
"Gutter Alley? What a filthy name."
But I came to the right place.
Lee heard the girl's murmur clearly.
He would learn later that Gutter Alley was once an old castle site that had fallen into ruin while defending against the Demon King's army during the era of the first Hero.
Although it was located right below the Imperial Capital, it was barely known to the public due to the dense forest surrounding the ruins.
Since it was a gathering place for criminals and outcasts, the rulers turned a blind eye to it.
Unlike Labin, who had ended up here by chance, this girl had come on her own two feet.
"What's your name?"
"I have no name to give to a peasant like you."
"I'm Lee. I don't have a first name, just a last name."
The girl was incredibly rude, but Lee was just happy to be talking to her.
Wanting to win over the girl who was bristling like a hedgehog, Lee brought out the fried eggs he had saved.
Though it was just a cold fried egg sitting lonely on a plate, the girl, who had been chewing on raw ingredients in the storehouse, swallowed hard.
"Do you want some? It's cold, but I made it not too long ago."
"Eat it yourself. Who do you think you're offering that to?"
"This is a real delicacy. Normally, only the boss gets to eat this, but I'm giving it to you."
"The boss?"
"Yeah, the highest-ranking person here."
"Hmm. I suppose this is a tribute of sorts?"
Licking her lips, the girl reluctantly accepted the plate.
"Oh, let me get a fork—"
Slurrrp!
She must have been starving, because she buried her face in the plate and sucked the egg right into her mouth.
It was a comical sight, completely contrasting her previous attempts to maintain dignity, but Lee found even that endearing.
"You got some oil here."
When he pulled out a relatively soft, clean cloth to wipe her mouth, the girl raised her chin as if it were only natural.
"Not bad. I shall praise you."
"Thanks."
"What should I call you?"
"Lee. Since I don't have a name, just call me Lee."
"Very well, Lee. I appoint you as my first vassal in this place."
"Thanks."
"Good. It is a lord's duty to reveal their name to their vassal. My name is Rinaci... Rina."
"Rina! That's a really pretty name."
"Of course it is. My mother was very proud of it too."
"She had every reason to be—"
Bwooooooo!
The horn blew again.
"What is that sound?"
"The battle is over. It seems the fight with the soldiers outside has ended."
"The result? What happened?"
"Only we blow the horn, so hearing it means we won."
"Thank goodness..."
Rina sighed in relief and slumped down.
But it wasn't long before the gang returned to the hideout.
Drunk on victory, Brack laughed boisterously, his arm slung over Arciel's shoulder.
Unlike usual, Arciel also looked to be in high spirits.
"Lee, who's that little lady?"
Brack asked, his eyes widening at the sight of the fair, pretty young girl.
"How rude...!"
Lee grabbed Rina's wrist in a panic just as she was about to snap back.
Seeing this, the expressions on Arciel and Labin's faces instantly hardened.
"He's the boss. The leader of this place. We all live under his rule."
Startled by Lee's explanation, Rina corrected her posture, lightly lifting the hem of her dress to curtsy.
"It is a pleasure to meet you. I am Rina. I happened to stumble upon this place by chance. I ask for your generous understanding..."
"So you're the concubine's daughter the soldiers were chasing."
"...!"
"I don't care which noble family's concubine you belong to, but here, I am king. You heard what he said, right? Yes, everyone here is under my rule."
It was an insulting remark, but Rina endured it.
Finding her reaction amusing, Brack chuckled and kicked Arciel in the rear.
Arciel tumbled forward ungracefully and scrambled to her feet, but Brack didn't even spare her a glance.
"You're dismissed."
Brack beckoned Rina with a curl of his finger.
"From now on, you'll stay by my side."
"What did you say?"
"Staying by my side means no one but me can touch you."
Everyone in the hideout understood.
A fair, pretty young girl.
Brack was claiming her.
The clever girl understood immediately as well.
She hated the idea.
Rina wanted to be the source of power herself, not live off someone else's authority.
However, she currently had no foundation.
Though young, the ambitious daughter of a concubine nodded.
"Fine."
In contrast, Lee lowered his head.
That night, Labin asked Arciel, who was lying down.
"Hey, did Brack's 'side' always mean that?"
"How should I know?"
"You were the one in that position. If you don't know, who does?"
For once, Lee also perked up his ears and focused on their conversation.
"I don't know. Whenever he joked, I just laughed along, chatted a bit, and he taught me boxing. That was it."
"Hmm... I see."
"What are you trying to say?"
"Well, seeing what happened today, I thought Brack's 'side' meant being on standby for... you know, that kind of thing..."
It was incredibly beat-around-the-bush for someone of Labin's personality, but Arciel understood.
Naturally, she was furious.
"You bitch...! If it were that kind of thing, would he have let me sleep separately every night?"
"Maybe it's because we're still young? Look. My chest is only starting to develop now."
"Oh...? You're growing breasts?"
"Yeah, right here."
"Whoa, really? They swelled up a bit."
"Ouch! Don't just grab them. There are lumps forming, so it hurts a lot."
"Sorry."
Arciel was so amazed that she apologized meekly with a blank face.
"I'm jealous. You're starting to grow breasts."
"Heh, in the future, I'm going to have a super curvy, smoking hot body."
At this point, we have a duty to pause and wipe away a tear.
Meanwhile, Lee, his face bright red, forced his eyes shut and pretended to sleep.
But a moment later, a voice called out, making him bolt upright.
"Hey, is Lee here?"
"Rina!"
Arciel and Labin immediately took offense at his enthusiastic response, which was completely different from how he reacted to them.
In particular, Labin openly growled at Rina.
"What are you here for?"
"Brack told me to sleep here."
"There's no room for you here. Go sleep somewhere else."
When Arciel snapped right after Labin, Rina stared intently at Lee.
Lee hurriedly gathered straw and dried grass to make a soft bed for her.
When he topped it off with a coarse straw mat, Rina nodded in satisfaction.
"Good job, Vassal Number One."
"Thanks."
Arciel glared at the natural way Rina looked down on him.
"Who's a vassal? Don't call Lee that."
"He is my first vassal in this place. Do you want to be my vassal too? Actually, no. You're too vulgar. Didn't you get kicked in the butt by Brack earlier?"
"Why, you...!"
"Forget it, Arciel. Let's just sleep."
Surprisingly, it was Labin who stopped her.
The quick-witted girl knew that bickering with Rina right now wouldn't please Lee.
Damn it, Labin alone was annoying enough!
Why did a girl from a completely different world come all the way here to order my man around? Should I stab her to death tonight?
Rina's skin is so white, even in the dark.
Damn it, why on earth am I in a place like this...!
Lying down in the order of Arciel, Labin, Lee, and Rina, they tossed and turned for a long time, lost in their own thoughts, before finally falling asleep.
Morning.
"..."
"..."
Arciel and Labin looked down at Rina, who was sleeping tightly pressed against Lee's back.
"Do we have to hold back this time too?"
"No, not at all."
From that day on, every morning in Gutter Alley began with a physical brawl between the three girls: Arciel, Labin, and Rina.