Chapter Three

Lorenz walked through the front door of his house and proceeded to lock it. As he turned around, he noticed that the door to the basement was slightly ajar. He opened the door all the way and continued downstairs. When he reached the bottom, he immediately saw Nicholas sitting at the foot of the bookshelf with a few books piled on top of each other on both of his sides.

"Huh, I had a feeling I would find you here."

Nicholas looked up from his book to respond.

"Oh, Hello Lorenz, did you come here to eat lunch again?"

"Yep, pretty much. I honestly don't get that many chances to eat at home like this. Slow week."

Lorenz sat next to the pile of books that were to the right of Nicholas, and the boy simply continued to read what was in his hands.

"You sure are finding those books pretty interesting?"

"Well, yes. They're talking about things that I've never even heard of or even imagined, like these things called 'jungles,' which are supposed to have these beautiful flowers and colorful birds."

"Oh yeah," Lorenz said as he looked over Nicholas to see what he was reading, "I remember getting that book."

The statement caught Nicholas's attention, "What do you mean?"

"That book you're reading, I remember how I got it. Hah, that was a day. You see, this rich noble who liked to collect rare books paid me in order to find that piece of literature," Lorenz gestured towards what Nicholas was holding, "in a run down castle."

Nicholas looked at Lorenz with an expression of interest.

"So I go to this castle, walking through the front door and finding the secret underground passage, easy enough. But immediately after I walk no more than two steps into the tunnel, this giant compound bow launches an arrow the size of my head at my chest, nearly skewering me like a pig. Luckily, I was fast enough to duck and hit the floor, nearly extinguished the torch I was carrying doing it."

"Well, what happened next?"

"The better question is what didn't happen next. That castle had about every trap that a person could think of. Spikes in the floor, giant, swinging blades, poison darts, hidden snakes, and the worst one had to be the giant, hairy spiders. But in the end, it was worth it, as I finally reached my destination. The noble gave me the key that was needed to open the door to the room beforehand, and boy, were there sights to see. It was like a giant, underground greenhouse that had some of the strangest creatures I've ever seen."

"Were they alive?"

"Huh? Oh no, they were all dead. Either stuffed or stuffed inside jars, but strange nonetheless."

"Oh...was there anything in there like treasure?"

"No, nothing like that. Although there were also some withered flowers, plants, and fruits that looked exotic. But the most important thing that was in there was the book I needed. The guy who built that castle must have come here when the walls were first built, and wanted to store his collection for safe keeping."

"Wow, that sounds like a pretty exciting day."

"It was, until the noble who payed me turned it sour."

"How?"

"I get the book to him and I'm going to hand it over, but as it turned out, he already got one! Right after I left to get his damn book, this guy contacts him and tells him he's willing to sell it! So right when I get back, I don't get a simple 'thank you,' I get a 'Oh, thank you, but as it turns out, there was no need for you to do that.'"

"That's pretty disappointing."

"Well, in the end, he still paid me. Not only that, but I also got a pretty interesting book out of it, so I chalk it up to a win. Oh, by the way, there was something that that I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?"

"How did you make that stew yesterday? It was pretty good."

"Oh, it's something I learned from the chefs while helping out in the kitchen."

"Where?"

"At the mansion where I worked as a servant."

Lorenz started to have a look of his own curiosity, "you know kid, if you don't mind my asking, how did you end up in the underground?"

Nicholas gave off a look of perplexity, "what makes you ask?"

"Like I said the first time we met, it's pretty obvious that you weren't from around there. I'm just wondering how a kid servant in an above ground mansion ends up in the underground city?"

Nicholas looked down at his book when he gave his answer, "well you see, I don't even know myself. It started out like any other day, but things became strange when Abigail-"

"What a minute, who's Abigail?"

Nicholas looked at Lorenz again, "Oh, she's my...um...well...I wouldn't say mother, but more like my...guardian."

"What makes you think she's not your mother?"

"Well, if you ever met her you would know, you see she's," as Nicholas was about to say the words, he got on his knees, leaned close to Lorenz's ear, and whispered, "she's old. But she hates it when people say that."

Lorenz gave a look of indifference "Ehh, that's understandable."

As Nicholas returned to his sitting position, he continued, "don't get me wrong, even though she's old, I still like her. She's like a grandma, an aunt, and a best friend all in one. She's pretty nice too."

Lorenz gave a bit of a chuckle, "Yea, I can see how you would like her."

Nicholas returned to looking at his book, "as I was saying, It was a pretty normal day, but then, Abigail took me to the front door and these two tall, mean-looking guys put me in a carriage and took me to the underground city."

It was this piece of information that caught Lorenz's attention, "Hmm, what did they look like?"

Nicholas looked up trying to recollect, "well, one had dirty blonde hair, and the other had reddish hair."

Lorenz looked away and put his hand to his mouth in contemplation. Nicholas looked on in confusion.

"Umm, Lorenz?"

This question snapped Lorenz out of his thinking. He looked to Nicholas, who just seemed bewildered.

"Huh? What is it?"

"Well, your mind just seemed to wonder."

"Oh...you're right...say kid, do you have somewhere to go after this place?"

"What? What makes you ask that?"

"Look kid, whether or not you realize it, you will have to move out of this house at some point. I just want to make sure that you have somewhere to go when the time comes."

"Well, I guess I would just go back to the mansion."

"Hmm...by the way, where is this mansion you used to live in?"

"Well, I don't know specifically, all I know is that it was close enough to wall Sina that you could see it."

"Anything more specific."

"Well...Oh! I remember that we were near the southern district of Ehrmich."

"Hmm, yeah, that should be enough for me."

Lorenz got up to leave the basement while Nicholas just looked puzzled at his last statement, but before he left, he turned around to say, "Oh by the way kid, you're coming with me to the baths tommorow."

"Huh, why?"

"Because you're starting to smell ripe, and I don't think the clothes you've been wearing for three days straight helps."

Nicholas looked down at his attire with a bit of chagrin.

"So you're coming with me to the baths tomorrow, and you're either going to buy new clothes, or you're going to wash the current ones you have on."

"Well, why do you care what I smell like?"

"Because you're going to be my roommate for another five days, and I'd prefer it if you didn't smell like a rotting corpse."

With the that, Lorenz began to climb up the stairs, with Nicholas sticking out his tongue to him as he left. Nicholas started to read his book again, but after a moment of thought, he lifted up piece of his shirt to his nose and smelled it. After gagging for a moment, he shut the book in his hand and put it in the pile to his left. He went up the stairs to the main level, and saw Lorenz in the kitchen eating a sandwich and drinking something out of a mug. Nicholas shut and locked the door behind him and went upstairs. He headed upstairs, went into his room, got his coin pouch in the top drawer, and put it into his left pocket. He went back downstairs and began to head for the front entrance.

"Hey kid, where are you going?"

"Outside, I'm going to explore a bit."

"Alright, but don't you want any lunch?"

"No thanks, I already ate."

"Alright, just remember what I said."

"I know, avoid dark alleyways and suspicious places, got it."

With that, Nicholas walked right up to the front door. After a second of hesitant, he grabbed the keys in his right pocket, and unlocked it. He turned the handle and walked through. Putting up his hand in front of his face in order to block the sun, he gave himself a second to adjust to the light. After a moment, he could see clearly in front of him, and he was outside. Nicholas shut the door behind him and locked it. Afterwards, putting the keys back into his pocket, he walked down the stone road and onto the cobbled path. He followed it until he finally got onto a main street. There was an influx of people walking and going about their business.

"Well, I guess I should just take care of the clothes first."

Nicholas saw a young woman dressed in a beige, button-up top and a bright yellow long skirt. She had white cuffs on her top, and had on a sapphire necklace embroidered with diamonds. She had red hair and black eyes. He approached the woman very bashfully, with red cheeks, and asked, "umm, excuse me, ma'am?"

The woman looked at Nicholas with a tender smile, "yes?"

"Do you happen to know where the closest clothing store is?"

"Oh yes, you simply follow the road up," the woman pointed to right, "and it's on the corner to your left."

Nicholas gave a little bow, "thank you Miss."

The woman gave a little bow back, and said, "you're welcome."

Nicholas headed off to where the woman pointed, turned left, and quickly found the store. It was easy as there was a metal bar that pointed out and had a wooden sign above it that read, "Schwarz's clothing."

Nicholas went into the store, and a bell ringed above him that announced his presence. A man came from a backroom. He had on a brown long-sleeved shirt and had blonde hair, a beard, and green eyes. He said to Nicholas, "Yes, can I help you young man?"

"Oh, don't mind me, I'm just here to buy clothes."

"For youself?"

"Yes."

"Alright then, clothes your size are to your left."

"Thank you."

Nicholas went to the left wall and gazed at his options. There were all sorts of colors and types of fabric to choose from. The pants were folded on wooden shelves and the shirts were located on racks hung up with wooden hangers. The prices for the clothes were shown by paper that was attached to either the wooden shelves or at the end of the racks.

Nicholas thought to himself, "hmm, better keep things cheap."

After a moment of contemplation, he selected a dark blue pair of pants and a grey shirt from a rack.

"Hmm, let's see...this cost this much, and this costs this much….so…"looking at the prices and doing a bit of math, he concluded, "these two things should be enough. Besides, I can always just wash the clothes I have on."

Going to the counter, Nicholas started to observe the store around him. The store was an average clothing store. On the left wall were clothes for little children and people in their adolescence, and had garments for each gender. On the wall opposite where clothing for just adult men and women. In the window were some mannequins that showed off the merchandise. Nicholas went to the front counter, which had an inkwell and small pads of paper, and presented the items he wanted to buy. The clerk started to add up the cost.

"Now let's see...this, combined with this…"

"Umm, excuse me?"

"Yes."

"You wouldn't happen to have any socks and...hmph, undergarments...my size?"

"Hmm, let me check in the back."

The man disappeared into the backroom, and after a minute or two, appeared again. He carried a bundle of underwear in one hand and a package of socks in the other, both held together by red string. He put them on the counter and continued his calculating.

"Now then, add this and this…"

He grabbed the inkwell and the pad of paper from the counter, wrote the amount due down, and ripped the piece of paper from the pad. He showed it to Nicholas.

"Can you pay for this?"

"Of course."

Nicholas got the coin pouch from his pocket and began counting the amount owed. He put his payment into the pouch, and put his change back into his left pocket. He gave the pouch to the clerk who opened it and made sure everything was there. He put the pouch underneath the counter and asked, "Would you like something to carry your clothes?"

"Yes please."

The man got a burlap sack from underneath the counter and placed all the clothes inside it. He handed it over to Nicholas.

"Thank you for your business, have a nice day."

"Same to you."

Nicholas took his burlap sack and exited the store. After walking a couple of steps up the street, he reached into his left pocket, and brought out his change. Staring at his palm, he saw that he had three coins left.

"Well, I was able to buy at least one new set of clothes, but I doubt that I could buy anything else."

With that thought, he but the coins back into his pocket and glanced at his surroundings.

"Hmm, I wonder what else there is to see?"

Lorenz exited his house and locked the door shut behind him.

"Huh, I wonder how the kid is doing by himself?"

He went down his stone road, made a left turn, and went down a maze of streets and alleyways until he reached an alleyway that had stairs that led down. At the bottom of the stairs waited a man, wearing dark brown dress shoes, tan pants, a matching tan vest over a white button up shirt with a black necktie, and had a dark brown trench coat that was unbuttoned. He had circular black glasses on, and a gold chain protruded from the front left pocket of his vest. His skin was fair, his head was bald, he had no facial hair, and had quite a number of lines on his face. Lorenz greeted him.

"Hey Kuno, how's it going?"

"Hey Lorenz."

Lorenz went down the stairs to meet him at the bottom. Once he got at the bottom, Kuno started the conversation.

"So tell me Lorenz, anything interesting happen to you lately?"

"Well, I got a new roommate."

"Is it a girl?"

Lorenz gave a look of unamusement, "Do you honestly think that I'm that lucky?"

"Mmm, no."

"It's a kid."

"Oh...is it...?"

"No, he's not mine. I found him in the underground city."

"Huh, didn't know you were that generous."

"I'm not, he paid me for room and board. But the fact of the matter is, he isn't FROM the underground district. As it turns out, he actually used to work in a mansion near the southern district of Ehrmich."

"Really?"

With a look of contemplation, Kuno followed up with, "how does a kid from an above ground mansion end up in the underground city?"

"That's what I want to find out."

And with that, Lorenz began to leave, " Kuno, I'm taking the rest of the day off."

"What? What the hell are you going to do for the rest of the day?"

With a smile, Lorenz looked back and answered, "satisfy my curiosity."

With that, he exited out of the alleyway and proceeded to the nearest carriage

Lorenz got out of the carriage at the edge of the village. He gave the driver, who was dressed in a black suit and top hat, a few extra coins.

"Stay here for a little while, okay?"

"Yes sir."

Lorenz went on his way while the driver lit up a pipe. He looked up at the sky and took note of the sun's position.

"Hmm, about three, I guess."

He saw the mansion at the very edge of his line of sight. He started to walk, and walk, and walk, until he finally reached his destination. He approached the mansion from his left side, hiding in some bushes. While there, he reached into the right inner pocket of his vest, and brought out two black leather gloves. He put them on, and proceeded to come out of hiding. He crept along the side of the house until he reached a window. Peeking in, he saw a maid that was sweeping the floor. He looked around, finding a tree that was relatively close to the wall. He began to scale it, quite quickly in fact, and looked for his next move. He noticed that there was a stone ledge that separated the two levels on the outside. He jumped from his vantage point on the tree and was able to grab onto the ledge. Finding a foothold and using the outside windowsill, he pulled himself up and stood on the ledge. He quickly shuffled to the side, out of the window's way, peeked inside to make sure no one spotted him, and continued across the ledge, It wasn't until Lorenz got to the window at the very end that he found something of interest. The master's study. It had a fireplace opposite to the door, with a massive scenic painting atop it. There were giant bookshelves that lined the walls and reached the ceiling. There two giant double doors, with plants inside ceramic pots on both sides. Making sure no one was hidden inside the room, Lorenz reached into the left inner pocket of his vest with his right hand and pulled out a knife. This knife had a brown wooden handle, a hole in the handle for a person to put their index finger into, and had a curved blade like the claw of a beast. He slipped the blade between the the window pane to get at the hook that was keeping the window locked. He got the hook out of the hole, and wiggled the knife so that the window swung outward. Climbing through the window, he carefully landed on the red carpet floor, and made sure the window shut carefully behind him. Creeping on the desk, he looked at the drawers. The one that caught his attention was the one that had the lock. He searched the center drawer of the desk and found a letter opener with a wood and silver handle. Jamming the blade between the lock and the wood, he wiggled it until finally it opened. Once opened, he saw the papers that were inside, and began rummaging around.

Nicholas got through the front door of the house and locked it. He went upstairs to his room, unpacked his newly-bought clothes and put them all in the top drawer of his dresser, and put the change he had in his pocket on top of it. He laid down on his bed and began to close his eyes, when he heard someone come through the front door.

"Hey kid, you here?"

Nicholas got up from the bed and responded.

"Yeah, I'm in my room."

"Alright, just...just stay there."

The tone of Lorenz's voice caused an alarmed look to appear on Nicholas's face. He heard Lorenz come up the stairs, and Nicholas simply sat on the bed. Lorenz slowly opened the door, and entered the room. In his left hand, he held a single piece of paper. The expression on Lorenz's face made Nicholas make an expression of concern.

"What's the matter Lorenz?"

"Well...it's just...just...read this."

He handed Nicholas the piece of paper.

"I'll make dinner tonight kid, just come down when you're ready."

Lorenz left the room, leaving Nicholas alone with the piece of paper. Wondering what was in his hand, Nicholas began to read.

Hello,

This is a letter informing you what will take place tomorrow concerning your servant named Nicholas Reyes. Seeing as how you would like to sell him, we would be happy to purchase the boy. From what you described, he seems like a healthy, attractive child, with all his body parts accounted for. It will be very easy for us to find a buyer for him. We know how you nobles like to keep your names clean, so wanting to get rid of a bastard son born of a whore is entirely understandable to us. We will see you tomorrow, and you'd better not have lied about the state of the merchandise.

Nicholas had a look of absolute shock and horror. He fell to his knees on the floor, looking at the paper. Just two words swirled around his head.

"Son...sell...son...sell...son...son...son...sell"

Nicholas looked at the paper with a sense of anger, tears welling up in his eyes, and tore it to pieces. Looking at the scraps on the ground, he quickly put them all in his mouth and swallowed. Holding himself, began streaming down his eyes, and he fell to the floor, crying.

Nicholas was cleaning the entryway of the mansion, which was polished granite. He was on his hands and knees, using a rag and a bucket to get rid of the dirt. Abigail came up behind him.

"Hello Nicholas, need some help?"

Nicholas looked at her with a smile and said, "sure Abigail, but only if you have the time."

She gave a chuckle and said, "of course I do."

She left and came back with a bucket and rag. Abigail and Nicholas were cleaning different parts of the floor, when Nicholas asked, "Hey, Abigail?"

"Yes?"

"Why am I called 'Nicholas?'"

This caught Abigail's attention, "huh? Why do you ask that?"

"Well, children get their names because parents name them, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, I've never seen my parents...so who named me?"

After a second, Abigail responded, "You see Nicholas, you were left at the front door of the mansion as a baby. A little piece of paper was attached to the blanket that you were wrapped in, and that had your name on it. That's why you are called 'Nicholas Reyes'"

"Oh, okay."

Nicholas went back to cleaning and Abigail did the same, until Nicholas asked another question.

"Hey Abigail?"

"Yes?"

"...Who are my parents?"

Abigail took longer to respond, until she finally said, "well...you...you see.."

"You don't know, do you?"

"Umm...no...I don't."

Nicholas looked over to Abigail and simply smiled, "it's okay Abigail, I don't think there would be anyone out there who would know that."

Nicholas went back to cleaning the floor, and Abigail did the same, but not before looking at Nicholas and having a look of sadness.

"I'm sorry Nicholas. I promise I'll tell you...someday."

Nicholas woke up on the floor of his room, his tears dry. He looked around, noticing that the sun was setting. He slowly got up from the floor, onto his knees, and wiped his face. He went through his door, and proceeded to go downstairs. When he got to the bottom, he saw Lorenz in the kitchen, waiting at the table. There was a pot on the stove, and a bowl for each of them with a mug, napkin, and spoon. Lorenz saw him. In a gentle voice, he said, "Oh, hey kid. How do you feel?"

Nicholas just looked at the ground.

"Well, I made some soup, want some?"

Nicholas went to the table and sat down. Lorenz served them both, and began eating. For a moment, there was absolute silence.

"So, kid...why don't we buy some sweets tomorrow? I've been having a craving for them."

Nicholas said nothing.

"You know, you don't have to take a bath tomorrow, it was just a suggestion."

Nicholas still said nothing. Lorenz gave a sigh, "Look kid, do you want me to do anything?"

Nicholas just quietly got up from the table, and headed for the front door.

"Hey kid, where are you going?"

Nicholas stopped, but didn't turn around, "I'm going to end my life."

Nicholas continued to head for the front door, but Lorenz, after having a gasp of shock, sprung up from the table and ran to get in between Nicholas and the door.

"Wait, what the hell, kid! Why do you want to kill yourself?"

Nicholas responded, but with a voice that had a few cracks in it, "because let's face it, I can't go back to the mansion, I'm not wanted there. Not only that, but in about four days, you'll kick me out of this house, and I'll be forced out onto the street. Sooner or later, someone will kidnap me, and I'll just be sold like a piece of meat...again. Might as well end things before they get that bad.

Nicholas tried to go around Lorenz, but he still attempted to block his way.

Nicholas just looked up at Lorenz with empty eyes, "don't worry, you can still keep my money."

Lorenz had the most depressed of expressions, "Now wait a minute kid, you don't have to kill yourself."

"Why not? Where else am I supposed to go?"

After a moment of contemplation, Lorenz had his answer, "you could stay away with me."

Nicholas had a look of absolute surprise, "Really?"

"Yeah, you could be my...what do they call it?...my assistant! Yeah, you could be my assistant and help me around the house. You're good at cleaning and cooking, so you definitely would help."

Nicholas just looked Lorenz in the eye, his face began to fall, and he started to tear up. Lorenz squatted so that he was at Nicholas's level, and held out his right hand.

"So what do you say? Do we have a deal...Nicholas?"

Nicholas extended his right hand as well, while using his left to wipe his eyes, and they both shook hands.