The rain fell heavily over the silent city, washing the narrow streets in a cold, endless rhythm.
Long before that night, there lived a boy who had already lost everything.
No one remembered when he was abandoned. No one cared where he came from. From the moment he could remember, the world had already shown him its cruelty. Hunger was his constant companion, and the streets were the only home he had ever known.
To survive, he learned quickly.
He stole.
He lied.
He took whatever work anyone was willing to give him, no matter how dangerous or humiliating it was. All for one reason—to eat.
The world had taught him a simple rule:
Only the strong survive.
One afternoon, the boy wandered through a crowded street market. The smell of food drifted through the air, making his empty stomach twist painfully.
His eyes stopped at a small fish stall.
Fresh fish lay on the wooden table, glistening under the sun.
He quietly stepped behind a stack of crates and observed the old fish seller carefully. The boy had done this countless times before—waiting for the exact moment when the seller looked away.
And then it happened.
The seller turned his back for a second.
That was enough.
The boy rushed forward, grabbed a fish, and bolted.
"HEY! THIEF!" the seller shouted.
The boy ran as fast as he could, weaving through the crowd while the angry seller chased him through the busy streets. His legs burned, his breath grew heavy, but he didn't dare stop.
Only after running several blocks did he finally slow down.
Panting, he looked back.
No one was chasing him anymore.
He let out a long breath and made his way toward his hiding place beneath an old bridge outside the city center.
As he climbed down the muddy slope, he smiled faintly.
"I'm home."
Two cats immediately ran toward him.
One was black as night. The other was white as snow.
"Sorry," he said softly, kneeling down. "I could only get a little today."
He tore the fish apart and shared it with them.
The black cat was named Kuro.
The white one was Yuki.
They were the only family he had.
The boy leaned back against a pile of worn cardboard boxes as the sound of rain began to rumble above the bridge.
"I wonder…" he murmured quietly.
"When will I be able to sleep in a soft bed… eat good food… and maybe even be liked by a girl?"
The thought made him laugh softly.
"I want a home," he whispered.
"A place where someone would accept me… where my hard work would mean something."
But dreams were cheap.
Reality was not.
With the rain pouring harder above him, the boy slowly closed his eyes, surrounded only by the quiet breathing of the two cats beside him.
And that night, he fell asleep.
The next morning, something suddenly smacked his face.
"Ugh—what the…"
A piece of paper had blown in with the wind.
He grabbed it and looked at it.
His eyes widened instantly.
"A bazaar?!" he shouted.
"Today?!"
His face lit up with excitement.
"This is perfect! There'll be tons of food!"
He quickly stood up and stretched his tired body.
Before leaving, he knelt down beside the two cats.
"I'm heading out, Kuro. Yuki."
"Wish me luck. I'll bring back a lot of food today."
He lightly slapped both of his cheeks to pump himself up.
"Alright… let's go."
On the way to the bazaar, he noticed a group of gangsters causing trouble at a small coffee shop.
They were smashing furniture while threatening the shop owner.
One of the gangsters noticed the boy watching.
"Hey kid," the man growled. "Get lost if you don't want to get hurt."
The boy frowned.
"I'm not a kid."
The gangsters burst into laughter.
"Look at you," one of them sneered. "Short, skinny, weak. One kick and you'd go flying, brat."
"This isn't a show for children. Get out of here."
The boy clenched his fists but said nothing more.
He turned and walked away.
There was no point fighting people like them.
Not yet.
When he arrived at the bazaar, it was even more crowded than he expected.
Food stalls filled the streets.
He quietly observed the area like a hunter studying prey.
He quickly marked three stalls in his mind.
A fruit stall.
A snack stall.
And the same fish stall he had stolen from yesterday.
He glanced toward the old fish seller.
"If I steal from him again, he'll definitely recognize me," he thought.
So he turned his attention toward the snack stall instead.
There, he noticed something unexpected.
A girl around his age was helping her parents run the stall.
She handed snacks to customers with a bright smile.
For a moment, the boy simply stood there, watching.
Something about her smile made his chest feel strange.
He had never felt that before.
He looked away quickly.
But reality hit him hard.
If he didn't steal…
He wouldn't eat.
And neither would his cats.
He forced himself to focus.
After watching from a distance for a while, he saw an opportunity.
The parents stepped away to rest.
The girl turned around to organize something.
Now.
The boy rushed forward.
CRASH!
He smashed the glass display case and grabbed as many snacks as he could.
"HEY!" someone shouted.
But he was already gone.
He ran faster than ever, clutching the stolen food tightly.
Unbeknownst to him, the same gangster from earlier saw him running from the direction of the bazaar.
The boy carried a large sack of food.
The gangster narrowed his eyes.
"Did that kid just rob the bazaar?"
Curious, he quietly followed him.
All the way back…
to the bridge.
"I'm home!"
Kuro and Yuki ran toward him happily.
But the boy didn't notice the gangster stepping out from the shadows.
"Hey kid," the man said.
"Do you live here?"
The boy froze.
He tried to run.
But the gangster grabbed his arm firmly.
"You're not going anywhere."
"Sit."
The boy trembled and slowly sat down.
"What's your name?" the man asked.
"K-Kael…"
"My name is Kael."
The gangster lit a cigarette.
"So… you robbed the bazaar, huh?"
"I… I was hungry," Kael said quietly.
"I don't have anything… so I stole food."
The gangster exhaled smoke.
"Where are your parents?"
"They're dead."
"Other family?"
"They don't care about me."
The gangster stared at him for a moment before standing up.
"The world is cruel," he said calmly.
"If you're weak, you'll be trampled."
"So become stronger."
"Because in the end… everyone is just trying to survive."
Then he walked away.
Kael watched him disappear into the distance.
"Become stronger…"
That night, while eating with Kuro and Yuki, Kael stared into the darkness.
"He's right."
"I need strength."
"I'll do anything to survive."
Anything.
The next morning, a scream echoed nearby.
Kael rushed toward the sound.
He found the girl from the snack stall being threatened by two men.
Without hesitation, he grabbed a rock and threw it.
"HEY!"
The rock hit one of them.
"Leave her alone!"
The men turned and laughed.
"What are you gonna do, kid?"
Kael charged forward and punched one of them with all his strength.
But he was no match.
They grabbed him.
Then slammed him to the ground.
A wooden stick struck his back.
Another kick hit his ribs.
Pain exploded through his body.
"Pathetic brat," one of them sneered.
"You're lucky we're not killing you."
They left.
Kael slowly pushed himself to his feet, wincing as pain spread across his ribs. Every step hurt, but he forced himself to walk toward the girl.
"Are… you okay?" he asked, his voice slightly unsteady.
The girl looked at him for a moment before nodding.
"Yes… I'm fine."
A gentle smile appeared on her face.
"Thank you… for saving me."
For a moment, Kael just stared at her. Seeing her smile made something strange stir inside his chest, something warm and unfamiliar.
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"My name is Kael Varyn," he said. "You can just call me Kael."
The girl blinked in surprise for a second, then smiled even brighter.
"Well… it's nice to meet you, Kael."
She hesitated slightly before speaking again.
"My name is Putricia Julienne… but everyone calls me Julie."
Kael repeated the name softly.
"Julie…"
For some reason, saying it made him smile.
It was a small smile, awkward and unfamiliar, like someone who had never smiled much before.
"I'm glad you're safe," he said quietly.
Julie looked at him curiously, as if trying to understand the boy standing before her.
Despite the bruises on his face and the dirt on his clothes, there was something strangely sincere about him.
"Thank you again, Kael," she said softly.
"I'll remember you."
Kael nodded, suddenly feeling embarrassed for reasons he couldn't explain.
"Well… I should go now."
Julie waved lightly as he walked away.
And for the first time in his life…
Kael felt something new inside his heart.
Something he didn't yet understand.
But when he returned to the bridge…
Everything was gone.
Kuro and Yuki lay on the ground.
Motionless.
Dead.
The two men stood nearby.
Something inside Kael broke.
Without thinking, he rushed forward, grabbed a knife from one of them, and stabbed him in the throat.
Blood sprayed across the ground.
The second man tried to fight back.
But Kael was no longer human.
He slashed the man's leg.
The man fell.
Kael stabbed both of his hands.
Then—
He drove the knife straight into the man's skull.
Over.
And over.
And over.
Until the bodies were unrecognizable.
Rain began to fall.
Kael held the lifeless cats in his arms and ran deep into the mountains.
There, inside a forbidden forest owned by the most feared mafia family in the city, he buried them beneath a tree.
"I'm sorry… Kuro… Yuki…"
Tears streamed down his face.
"Why does this always happen…?"
"Why does everything precious to me disappear?"
He screamed toward the sky.
"WHY?!"
"Why do you keep taking everything from me?!"
"Damn you, God!"
"If you take everything precious from me…"
"Then I'll take everything precious from everyone else."
"So the whole world can feel what I feel."
The rain poured endlessly as Kael walked deeper into the forest.
His eyes were empty.
His tears would not stop.
Until finally—
His body collapsed.
Somewhere in the distance…
Footsteps slowly approached.
To be continued.