Chapter 113. A Noble Lily
Charles was taken aback by Lily's question. This was the first time she had asked him for a salary, despite the long time they had spent together.
"Haven't you always just dragged me around whenever you wanted to buy something before?" Charles inquired with a hint of curiosity in his gaze.
Lily's ears drooped as she recounted what happened. It turned out that she had seen James' wife giving out stale bread to the pitiful refugees from Shadow Island, and she wanted to do the same.
"Mr. Charles, can we help them? They are so pitiful. I saw some of them were starving to the extent that they would rummage through trash heaps to fill their stomachs with scraps that even mice would ignore," Lily implored and tugged at Charles' finger like a child asking for a treat.
"With so many refugees, can you even help them all?"
"But... even if I can assist one, it would mean a lot to them. Starvation is a horrible feeling. Jumpy also mentioned that there's an increase of dead bodies in the sewers."
Charles contemplated Lily's words for a brief moment before he scribbled down an amount on a check and handed it over to the white mouse. "Here's your salary. Don't withdraw it all in one shot. Get Dipp to set up a bank account for you."
"Thank you, Mr. Charles! You're the best!" Lily excitedly received the check and scurried out of the room with her furry friends.
"Are we even in the position to be so generous with our money? And letting a brat squander the money away." Richard's voice sounded in Charles' head.
"Those are her just wages. It's none of our business how she decides to spend it. Besides, we won't be staying here for long, so that amount of Echo can be overlooked." Charles took out his sketchbook and started drawing.
Richard's voice suddenly disappeared in Charles' mind, but his prosthetic arm abruptly moved without his conscious control. It picked up another brush, and both hands worked in tandem.
As the two brushes danced across the sketchbook, a warm and cheery depiction of a family of four appeared on the paper. However, only the visage of the young man stood out clearly, with the other three countenances shrouded in ambiguity.
Charles believed that the situation with Lily had been resolved, but to his surprise, she returned that evening, deeply upset and sobbing uncontrollably.
"What's the matter?" Charles asked as he placed the brush down.
Lily wiped off a drop of tear with her tiny paw and answered with a sniffle, "They... They stole my bread. I asked them to line up, but they wouldn't listen. They even... even tried to rob me..."
"Are you okay?" Charles immediately picked Lily up by the tail and turned out 360 degrees to check if she had any wounds.
Hanging upside down by her tail, Lily responded, "I'm fine. My friends bit them. But why, Mr. Charles? I was trying to help them."
Relieved that Lily was unharmed, Charles gently placed her down on the floor. "Not everything in life needs an explanation. Don't go there anymore. Save the money and buy some treats for yourself."
Hearing Charles' words, Lily's eyebrows knit together in confusion. She settled down onto the carpet and played with her tail absentmindedly. Despite her best efforts, she couldn't comprehend why they treated her with such aggression and snatched her bread when she was just trying to help them.
As time trickled by, the brown mice beside her had curled up and fallen asleep on the carpet. However, Lily remained perplexed and deep in thought.
Noticing Lily's knitted brows, Charles shook his head. He placed his brush down and picked her up to cradle her in his hand. He then approached the window.
"Are you thinking that they should have been grateful to you because you empathized with them and helped them?”
"Yes. They were hungry, so I gave them food. Shouldn't they thank me? That's what good people do."
"Who told you that pitiful beings are always good people? Some would discard all morals for the mere sake of survival. Living becomes their sole focus."
Peering out into the streets, Charles gently prompted Lily to watch the unfolding scene. A young boy, seemingly no older than seven or eight, was cutting into a sailor's pocket with a knife.
The sparkle of innocence typically found in a child's eyes was absent and had been replaced with a glaring hunger for money.
In an instant, the sailor caught on to the boy's theft. Grabbing the boy dressed in ragged clothes, he hurled him violently to the ground. Without any consideration for the child's tender age, he raised his right foot and delivered a crushing blow to the young thief's chest.
The onlookers were indifferent to the harrowing scene and merely took a step away to avoid being splashed by the blood gushing from the child's mouth.
Spitting out blood, the young boy struggled as he crawled toward an elderly man smoking nearby. His bloody lips parted in what seemed like a plea. The old man cast him a cold glance before flicking his cigarette butt into a nearby grimy puddle close to the boy. He then left without a word.
"Living in this world, we can only protect ourselves, or at most, those close to us. We can't be too concerned about other people's business. They are pitiful, but who in this universe isn't? Existence in itself is suffering," Charles advised as he gently stroked the soft fur on Lily's back.
The white mouse on Charles' palm clenched her tiny paws with her gaze fixated on the young boy on the ground, forsaken by all.
Just when Charles thought that his message had gotten through to his gunner, Lily let out a series of squeaks. The brown mice on the carpet were roused from their sleep and dashed out.
Soon enough, Charles witnessed the mice swiftly dragging the injured boy to the corner or a nearby alley.
Pushing Charles' hand away, Lily turned around and looked up at Charles. She shook her head and said, "Mr. Charles, you're wrong. Daddy said that a person lives not just for themselves. Humans have to help each other to make this world a better place!"
Lily jumped down Charles' hand and landed on the ground. With passion burning in her eyes, she proclaimed, "Even if they don't thank me, I'll still help them! Mr. Charles, don't you stop me!"
Seeing Lily's agitated appearance, Charles let out a chuckle. "I won't stop you. Do what you wish to do. Remember to buy some fish and mushrooms for those people. You'll be able to help more of them. Bread is too expensive, and even the cheapest black flour requires freshwater."
Lily was stunned, but she soon composed herself and vigorously nodded in understanding before darting out of the door.
Observing the bustling streets from the window, Charles exhaled a deep breath. Undeniably, Lily was much more virtuous than him.
The events of that day soon faded from Charles' mind. He didn't really intervene with Lily's work in aiding the refugees. As long as it brought a smile to her face, that was all that mattered.
As time passed, a legend began to circulate in the harbor district. The legend spoke of "Angel Mice," who were the guardian angels of homeless children and beggars. These angelic creatures would bestow food to the hungriest of kids.
"You've done well this time," Charles commented. In the warm room, his gaze landed on the white mouse who was munching on an oyster with a satisfied look.
Lily let out a giggle and replied, "I waited till they had fallen asleep and sent the food one by one. That way, everyone would get something to eat, and no one would starve."
Charles picked up his paintbrush and continued his work.
The joy in Lily's eyes meant that the money was well-spent.
"Mr. Charles, what were you doing by the seaside when it's sleeping time, though?"
Charles' paintbrush halted in mid-air upon hearing Lily's question. "You saw me heading toward the seaside? When was that?"
"Yeah," Lily answered as her tiny head nodded. "My friends saw you a couple of times, leaping from rooftop to rooftop toward the sea."
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