"How about this, can I call you Nameless for now?"
The child didn't reply, only staring blankly at Ryan Carter.
Was this a yes or a no?
"Ah haha, it's alright if no one gave you a name. From your voice, you sound like a girl. You must have suffered a lot, being abandoned by your parents at such a young age. Well, we're alike then, I'm an orphan now too."
To build rapport and gather information, Ryan looked for common ground.
The child shook her head.
"Uh… you're not a girl?"
The child shook her head even faster, and after shaking, she weakly replied:
"Woo… I am a girl, but I'm not an orphan. I… I live with my parents now."
"…"
He had wanted to play the emotional card, but now it was awkward.
Ryan stared at the little girl in front of him, unable to see any sign that she was a child looked after by her parents.
This unlucky kid looked more like a beggar than he did!
"Alright, then why aren't you staying at home on such a cold day? And why did you run to such a dangerous place? Your parents will worry. I'll take you home."
Ryan pulled his drafty top tighter, shivered, and stood up, ready to take the girl home first.
Asking for information or repaying her, neither could be rushed. First, ensure the child's safety.
"I… I can't go home."
"Hmm?"
"There's no food for me at home recently. I need to find food and a place to stay outside."
The girl stated a tragic fact in a flat tone.
"…"
Ryan fell silent again. So, the food he had just eaten was painstakingly found by this child. He owed her a great debt of gratitude.
At the same time, he understood. Those parents were scum. This girl was no different from an orphan, a truly pitiful person.
"Then I'll help you look for it. Everything we find will be yours."
A hint of surprise appeared on the girl's expressionless face. This was the first time someone had offered to help her. She didn't know how to respond and froze in place.
"Lead the way. And tell me what's edible and how to find it."
She finally reacted and walked ahead, beginning their food-seeking journey.
Along the way, the girl answered whatever Ryan asked, her replies very brief. But whenever a question required judgment, she would fall silent.
Clearly, this Nameless person was not a very good information provider.
But on the other hand, she was a very good demonstrator.
Ryan found that the girl had excellent eyesight. She could always find some leftovers behind the back doors of shops on Flower Street. Although not much, it was edible. Occasionally, they would encounter lone beggars, and no conflicts occurred between the two of them.
In the end, the girl still shared half of the food she found with Ryan.
Ryan wanted to refuse, but his stomach wouldn't allow it. Helplessly, he incurred another debt of gratitude.
"Ding! Host consumed a portion of inferior coarse grains, skill point energy progress +0.003%."
Looking at this pitiful energy progress, Ryan couldn't help but sigh: This food-loving system was truly wasted on him.
If it had been two years earlier, when he was still that young master, enjoying good food and drink every day, with this golden finger, he would have rapidly accumulated skill points, endured for two years to find the Demon Slayer Corps and learn the Breathing Technique, soaring to success would not be a dream.
But now he was a beggar.
Late at night, the Flower Street in the distance was brightly lit, bustling with noise, a true human paradise.
Ryan, hiding in a dark corner, watched this scene, a glimmer of light reflected in his eyes.
Just then, the girl walked over. She piled the scattered charcoal she had collected in a sheltered spot. Ryan stepped forward to help, and it took them a good while to start a charcoal fire.
"Nameless, do you know where we can chop firewood?"
A hint of surprise appeared in the girl's blank eyes.
"Always eating those unclean things, we'll eventually get sick and die. I need to find a way to earn money and eat clean food."
The fire in Ryan's eyes burned brightly.
"We'll try selling firewood to earn money first. Once we save up some capital, I have many ways to make money. Believe me, as long as one of them succeeds, we'll earn a lot of money and eat big fish and meat every day."
As if drawn by the future he described, a highlight appeared in the girl's eyes.
"East… There's a small grove to the east, but it's very far."
"Far isn't the problem. Do you know where we can get an axe?"
"…I don't know."
"Then forget the axe. Anything that can cut wood will do."
"There's… there's behind a shop…"
And so, after a strenuous exchange, Ryan finally had a rough plan for making a living and invited the girl to join him.
Early the next morning, after warming up their frozen bodies, they took the first step of their plan.
-------------------------------------
Three years passed in a blink of an eye.
Early in the morning, Ryan was practicing swordsmanship in a dojo.
At this time, Ryan had grown from a malnourished orphan into a robust 15-year-old youth.
From his vibrant demeanor, it was clear that his money-making plan had been a great success, and his determined gaze seemed to convey that he had endured much hardship over the years.
And reality was indeed so.
That morning three years ago, they found two broken knives in a garbage heap, then went to the forest and painstakingly chopped firewood, gritting their teeth to carry it back to Flower Street to sell. However, due to the small quantity, they didn't earn much money.
Half a month later, they were discovered by other firewood sellers and driven out of the forest. If Ryan hadn't had a weapon, they might have even been attacked.
Ryan had anticipated this and was not discouraged. He told the girl his new plan.
Afterward, they braved the cold wind by the river for a cold bath. Then Ryan used his meager savings to buy two sets of clean clothes. After changing into them, the refreshed duo began looking for work on Flower Street.
Finally, they found odd jobs at a ramen shop.
Although it was hard and tiring with little pay, they could finally eat clean and nutritious food, and their physical condition significantly improved, which was only the first step of the plan.
With a stable environment, Ryan began his second step.
He bought paper and pen, squeezed out free time to become a plagiarism writer, writing novels and submitting them to publishing houses. After several twists and turns, he successfully earned royalties.
Perhaps due to cultural differences, or perhaps suppression from peers, his royalties were neither too much nor too little. Becoming an instant success and making a fortune was clearly unrealistic.
Ryan took this in stride; every bit of money earned was a gain, and he had subsequent plans.
For the third step of his plan, he found a highly reputable kendo martial hall—Ren Martial Hall. After extensive inquiries, he made up his mind, pulled the girl along, quit their jobs at the ramen shop, paid both their tuition fees, and joined.
They both lived and ate at the martial hall, becoming ordinary kendo apprentices who worked part-time and studied part-time.
Ryan never forgot the dangers of this world. Earning money was never the primary goal; becoming stronger was.
Learning kendo could provide transferable skills and would be somewhat helpful for learning the Breathing Technique in the future.