Sunny woke up before his heavenly namesake.
Not because he wanted to, but because he simply couldn't take it anymore.
It had been a long night.
He had tossed and turned through the entire damn evening, listening to snoring from the neighboring rooms, the irritating squeaks of rats, and the chirping of cicadas. The floor beneath his cheek was hard and damp. The rotten rag that served as a mattress reeked of sweat, mold, and something else he didn't even want to think about.
Sunny slowly got up to the quiet creaking of the floorboards and looked at his sisters.
They were still asleep. Their golden hair, stained with dirt, shimmered under the sunlight like precious metal. Irene clung tightly to Aileen as if trying to keep warm. Judging by their calm breathing and the faint smiles on their faces, they were dreaming about something pleasant.
Maybe yesterday's bread.
Swallowing the traitorous saliva gathering in his mouth, Sunny remembered where he was.
The southern district. A chunk of rotting flesh stuck to the body of a dying city.
The streets here were so narrow that even two skinny men had to suck in their stomachs just to pass each other. The ditches were always overflowing, and not with water, but garbage. The rotten wood of the houses had long since lost every trace of dignity and crumbled apart before your eyes like an old man without teeth. The people here were free in the worst possible sense of the word.
Free to die, suffer, steal, and keep quiet.
A literal slum.
Sunny rubbed a hand over his face, feeling the rough stubble on his cheeks. He didn't want to sleep anymore, yet his eyes still kept closing on their own. Last night's events were still fresh in his memory. He didn't want to think about them, but the thoughts refused to leave him alone.
Thinking about the boy's offer, he couldn't help but think about his own life.
His mother had undoubtedly been a beautiful woman. Blonde hair, delicate features, perfect posture. For as long as he could remember, she had always carried the pride of noble blood within herself. Once upon a time, she had lived in a house with gardens, warm baths, and shelves full of books.
And then she became nothing more than a toy.
His father... his father had been the leader of the Wild Fang gang. One of those men feared even by drunken mercenaries. He spoke loudly, laughed even louder, and lived without restraint. He had many women, many wives and concubines.
Sunny didn't even know if his mother could be counted among them.
She had been more of a trophy. Someone had ordered the destruction of a noble family, and his father hadn't simply wiped them out. He took everything that remained for himself. Money, property, pride, and even flesh.
That was how Sunny had been born, and later Aileen and Irene as well.
How the hell had his life turned out like this?
Even if he wasn't one of the favorites, couldn't a rich father at least take care of them?
Sadly, no.
His father simply had too many wives and concubines. Who knew how many children he had fathered over the years? A few dozen? Maybe a hundred?
So their mother had taken care of them instead. A kind woman who loved them just as deeply as she hated their father.
Unfortunately, she died three years ago, when Sunny was twelve and his sisters were only five. She simply lay down one day and never got back up. His father didn't say a single word. The very next day, some huge brute with filthy nails and the stench of sour cabbage took over their room.
And the children were thrown in with the other "rats."
Since then, he, Aileen, and Irene had worked to survive. Pickpockets, beggars, simple errand runners.
There was no talk of food, care, or warmth.
After everything they had gone through, Sunny wasn't even sure his sisters understood what parents were. Did they still remember their mother's face? He never dared to ask, afraid of hearing the answer.
The only thing he was grateful to his father for was that nobody touched them. The others feared that one day their boss's conscience might suddenly awaken. And as everyone knew, his conscience was unstable and usually accompanied by a great deal of bloodshed.
Still, everything they earned was taken by the higher-ups, who tossed them scraps in return, just like every other street rat. Enough to survive, but not enough to live. Sunny had learned to fill his stomach with water because he always shared his portion with Aileen and Irene.
They were still growing.
And he... he could endure it...
That was what pushed him toward the торговый district. Closer to the north, where nobles often dined. Their leftovers always contained something decent, enough to fill an empty stomach.
It was dangerous. Other gangs controlled those streets.
But he had no choice.
Sunny only went there at night and stayed careful. For his scavenging, he chose streets that weren't too wealthy. Anything was better than the Southern District.
For several months, everything went well.
So well that he relaxed.
And he paid for it.
He couldn't stop thinking about the rich boy's offer.
From people like him, Sunny expected nothing but contempt and mockery. But that boy had reached out a helping hand. Fed him. And made an offer that made everything inside him tighten.
Work at a brothel...
Sunny's first instinct had been to refuse.
But the longer he thought about it, the more tempting the rich boy's proposal became. It was as if that boy had peered straight into his soul and dragged out every fear and insecurity hidden deep inside.
Even at their young age, Aileen and Irene were beautiful. Too beautiful. In a place like this, there was no curse worse than beauty.
And he was disgustingly weak.
The boy had offered him protection. Shelter. A future.
His words were tempting, just like the devil's.
If only the devil didn't lie.
If only...
Lost in his thoughts, Sunny failed to notice the sky growing darker. Another day slipped into the past, dissolving into the haze of sunset as though it had never existed at all. Only when the final rays of sunlight caught the peeling rooftops and painted them in dull gold did he finally stir.
The appointed hour was drawing closer with merciless certainty.
He cast an uncertain glance at Aileen and Irene, who always followed him despite the hunger and exhaustion, like two adorable little tails. Then at the bowl for voluntary donations, where three tin coins lay at the bottom.
He didn't say a word. He simply took his sisters by the hands.
And did not go to the leader of the rats.
Instead, he headed toward the trading district, where a deal with the devil awaited him.
His heart pounded heavily, echoing the turmoil inside him. It was as though it warned him, "It's not too late to turn back."
But his legs already knew the way.
There, in the alley near the shops where the evening bustle still hadn't faded, his answer was waiting.
The black-haired boy sat directly on the bare stones, as though he didn't notice the cold, the dirt, or the dampness around him.
Beside him stood a mortar in which he carefully ground some strange-looking powder. His hands moved precisely, without unnecessary haste, with the calm focus of someone who had long since stopped expecting help from anyone.
Passersby walked past without even noticing him. Some hurried home, others dragged themselves along beneath the weight of heavy bags. No one paid attention to the boy sitting among garbage and stones, as though he were some kind of ghost.
Everyone here had their own problems.
Other people's lives meant nothing to them.
Sunny stopped and stared.
The boy seemed somehow... out of place. Too neat. Too clean for somewhere like this.
His black hair was messy, yet somehow looked carefully arranged, as if it had been done on purpose. His eyes were blue like ice, cold and determined far beyond his age. He looked fragile, yet there was a strange grace in his movements, one that hinted at a strength frightening in its silence.
"Ridiculously handsome..." Sunny muttered under his breath before immediately biting his tongue.
Then he looked at his two sisters, who stared at their benefactor with admiration, and doubt crept into his mind.
"Is this really worth it? What if Aileen and Irene fall into his hands? Would that truly be any better than ending up in a brothel? What the hell am I even doing here?"
In the end, Sunny let out a long breath and stepped forward. He would take care of his sisters himself. Whether that brat taught him or not.
Grey raised his eyes as though he had always known they would come sooner or later.
"Does this guy always have such a stone face?" Sunny wondered, remembering that it really had been like this from the start. Even when the black-haired brat praised Aileen and Irene's singing, not a trace of emotion had appeared on his face.
"So, you've made your decision?" Grey asked evenly, without surprise or anticipation.
Sunny simply nodded in response.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"Good. Let's go," Grey said. "Too many people here."
They returned to the dead-end alley cluttered with junk where they had met the previous night. The shadows of the houses hid them from curious eyes. Nobody here would care about their conversation. Even the evening light seemed uninterested in this alleyway.
Grey pulled three rolled sheets of paper from inside his clothes. They were folded neatly, as though meant for princes rather than children from the streets. The moment Sunny saw the documents, his heart skipped a beat.
"What are those?"
"Contracts," Grey answered calmly. "Witch contracts."
After adding those last words, he stared at the brother and two sisters with visible interest, carefully watching their faces as he waited for a reaction.
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Author's Note:
Guys, we're getting incredibly close to one hundred chapters! You can't even imagine the emotions I'm feeling right now. A huge sense of accomplishment and pure euphoria from all the work I've put into this.
Even though this book is just a hobby and not my main job, I've poured so much time and energy into it that I honestly don't even understand how I managed to do it.
I truly hope we can reach one hundred active readers before the hundredth chapter is released, and I'm asking for your help with that.
Please leave a review if you haven't done so yet. Share your honest opinion about the book. I would be extremely grateful.