Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 12: A Dream in the Slums
Striking precisely between the legs with the “cut-off-your-lineage kick,” Marlon sent the red-nosed Ianwan—who had been brimming with anger and ready to fight—collapsing to the ground, gasping sharply for air. Judging by his condition, the injury was serious.
“I’ve… tolerated you for too long.”
Looking down at the red-nosed Ianwan, curled up on the floor like a shriveled shrimp, clutching his groin, Marlon wore a mischievous little-smile. “Guess what I’m going to do to you next… something even crueler?”
Marlon’s expression and words filled Ianwan’s eyes with sheer terror. A few panicked gurgling sounds escaped his throat, and before long, he rolled his eyes back in pain and fear… and fainted.
“Useless as always. Honestly, I just wanted some rope to tie you up. At least for now… I’m not going to let Auntie and Cousin Anvi lose you as their worthless husband and father.”
The smirk on Marlon’s face faded, leaving only mockery and disdain—he had long since seen through the true nature of the red-nosed Ianwan.
Stepping over the fainted Ianwan, Marlon pushed open the half-closed door and entered the room. Under the dim glow of the gas lamp in the living room, he saw a small boy, no older than five, standing alone by the stairs leading up to the attic.
The boy’s face and arms were covered in large patches of bruises and purple marks—clear signs of a recent beating.
At the sight of Marlon entering, the lonely little boy’s eyes instantly brightened. Looking up with a weak, sobbing voice, he called, “Cousin…”
“Hmm.” Marlon gently patted the boy’s head, sighing as he crouched down to bring his eyes to the child’s level. “Little Anvi, have you had dinner yet? Where’s Auntie gone this time?”
“Daddy hit Mommy and took the money Cousin gave her. And then… then… Mommy went out this afternoon to look for work. She said if she earns money, she’ll come back tonight and buy something delicious for Anvi and Cousin Marlon!” The boy spoke with a mix of sadness and hope, but his hope quickly turned to worry. “But Mommy still hasn’t come back. Daddy’s drunk and hit me. My stomach is so hungry… Cousin, I’m scared.”
A loud growl from his stomach seemed to confirm the boy’s words.
Marlon sighed again, fully aware of what his cousin meant by “Mommy going out to work.”
Originally, the boy’s aunt had a job as a temporary worker in a factory producing military uniforms for troops before the war.
But now… the war was over, and she was unemployed.
A woman left jobless by the end of the war, in a time when men themselves could hardly find work in the postwar period, had little choice but to sell her body.
Marlon wanted to help—yesterday, he had given her two Lant from his already meager savings. Yet it had only resulted in the aunt being beaten and, just now, the red-nosed Ianwan stumbling drunk on foul liquor.
In fact, upon seeing Ianwan’s drunken, shameless attempt to borrow money, Marlon had already guessed what was happening.
So the kick he delivered was, in large part, for the sake of his poor aunt.
“Don’t be afraid, little Anvi. Cousin is here! And Mommy will come back soon, I promise!” Marlon felt a deep unease, but seeing the pitiful, trusting little boy, he pushed his own feelings aside. Smiling, he broke a large piece off the cheap, stale bread in his hand and offered it to the boy. “Here, Anvi, eat a little first. This will give you strength to wait for Mommy.”
“Okay!”
The boy was genuinely hungry. The faint smell of wheat from the warm bread made him reach out without hesitation and take it, devouring it in big bites.
But the bread was rough, and after two mouthfuls, Anvi began to choke and cough—but he refused to put it down. Hunger made him desperate.
“Take your time, eat slowly. No one’s going to snatch it from you.”
Marlon’s eyes softened completely. He stood, leading the boy into the sparse living room, found an old tin can to use as a cup, and filled it with half a cup of slightly foul water from the storage basin.
“Here, drink a little water before eating more.”
The tin can reached Anvi’s lips. Unlike children in our world who might hesitate even at fresh milk, Anvi gulped down two large mouthfuls without hesitation.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face. For a boy born in the slums of White Sand City, a cup of not-too-bad water and rough, choking bread was already a small happiness.
Watching Anvi eat, Marlon set aside the remaining bread and nearly empty tin can, then went to the door to drag the still-unconscious red-nosed Ianwan inside.
Next, he found two lengths of rope and tied Ianwan’s hands and feet securely.
While Marlon did this, Anvi, having finished his meager bread, sat quietly on a small stool, watching his father being bound. There was no fear, no resentment in his eyes—only excitement and satisfaction.
Children’s hearts are far purer than adults’.
They do not understand good or evil, and can gleefully squish a frog’s belly or break a rabbit’s neck.
They do not understand the value of money, and will happily trade their most precious possessions for worthless colored stones.
But any child with normal intelligence can tell who is good to them and who is not.
Anvi knew it: Cousin Marlon was good to him, never hit or scolded him, always smiled, and often gave him things to eat. Daddy was not—he beat Mommy and Anvi and gave nothing.
So in the boy’s eyes, Cousin hitting Daddy and tying him up was… right!
Daddy bound could no longer hurt Mommy or Anvi. Once Mommy came back, they could all live safely together.
Filled with this sense of joy, the full little boy finally succumbed to sleep and drifted off.
“Mommy—”
Anvi dreamed sweetly, of moving with his mother into a beautiful castle. The streets were full of bakeries selling the finest white bread, stacked to the ceiling…
But the most comforting part of the dream was seeing Cousin Marlon dressed like the colorful little prince in The Little Prince illustrations, with his crown and robe, keeping that ugly, cruel father locked outside the beautiful castle walls.