As usual, morning arrived with its familiar chaos. Beggars ran here and there in search of food—some chatting loudly, others somehow still sleeping through the noise. I woke up to Mac's voice and Aunt Moneru's constant grumbling. Aunt Hasami and Arim had already risen before me.
I asked Arim about his injuries, but as always, he didn't answer. He wasn't talking to anyone. It felt like he was either breaking under the weight of guilt or running away from it. Even his friends had stopped speaking to him.
With an anxious thought crossing my mind, I sighed.
He's like me in a way—both of us betrayed by friends.
Roberto was nowhere to be seen.
That old man must've left early, trying to avoid my pestering, I thought.
Well, that only helps my plan.
A faint, dark chuckle escaped me.
After everyone woke up, I pulled them aside, keeping some distance from Arim, and spoke in a low voice. I explained how I'd been trying to recruit Roberto and how he kept avoiding me. I also laid out my plan to bring him onto our side.
Everyone listened carefully—and by the end, they were smiling.
With a grin that didn't quite hide my intent, I asked,
"So… are you all ready for it?"
"Yeah!" Mac, Hasami, and Aunt Moneru answered together.
I told them to stay in the alley while I went to the street market to observe as usual. Mac insisted on coming with me, but I made him stay behind.
I was just about to leave when Hasami suddenly shouted and hurried over, her face filled with worry.
"Sorry to stop you, Loid," she said anxiously. "I have a request."
I smiled lightly. "What is it?"
She looked straight at me, serious and tense.
"Can you let Arim join the team? He did steal, yes—but you know how life is for beggars. He's just a child, immature. It was a mistake."
She kept staring at me, and my expression turned serious.
I know she's worried about him, I thought.
But I'm not like the others. Someone who distances himself from those close to him just to eat better… that kind of person isn't easy to trust.
Still, I gave her a calm smile.
"When I come back, I'll talk to him. If I think he's suitable for our work, I'll take him in."
Her face lit up. "Thank you for considering it."
I nodded. "Alright then. Bye. And you didn't forget about today, right?"
"No," she said with a small smile.
After that, I headed toward the street market. I observed Dov's shop for a while. As expected, there wasn't much of a crowd, because he didn't have the product to sell.
Still, some people were keeping an eye on the shop.
After observing a bit longer, I slipped into a quiet alley.
[System Activated]
[Available Points: 1175]
[Item Shop → Food Category]
[Bread ×5 selected]
[Cost: 5 Points]
[Points Remaining: 1170]
I hid the bread under my clothes and returned to the beggars' alley.
I handed the bread to everyone—Mac, Hasami, Aunt Moneru, and Arim. As usual, they wanted to eat only half, but this time I forced them to eat properly.
Everyone except Arim ate while chatting and smiling. Arim stayed quiet, his head down, not touching his food.
After they finished eating, I asked Hasami to take everyone aside so I could speak to Arim alone.
"Hey, Arim," I said softly.
"Do you remember the days when we were together? We played, ate, and begged side by side. Those were good days, weren't they?"
Mac told me everything about him, I thought.
I smiled gently.
"Mac and I were happy back then. You were like our little brother. Everyone adored you—Aunt Moneru, Aunt Hasami, even old man Roberto. But when Ahin and Jelin came to the beggars' street, you became close to them, and you changed. You distanced yourself from us."
My voice hardened just a little.
"I don't know why you stole. I don't know why you pushed us away. But everyone wants you back. We want to live like before… as a family."
Arim kept staring at the ground, but when I caught a glimpse of his eyes, they were overflowing with emotion.
I asked him seriously,
"Will you come back, Arim?"
"Yes…" he answered in a broken, crying voice. Tears and snot streamed down his face.
Seeing that, I asked one more question.
"Why did you distance yourself from us?"
Between sobs, he explained everything. He'd learned to steal with Ahin and Jelin. He wanted to do something for us—but when Hasami suspected him and said,
"If you do bad things, don't show your face to me,"
it broke him.
After that, his relationship with Hasami worsened, and he stopped talking to everyone. He didn't know how to face us anymore. Realizing his mistakes, he'd been drowning in guilt ever since.
I called everyone back. In front of them all, Arim confessed his faults, crying uncontrollably. One by one, they forgave him.
Only old man Roberto was missing.
Again… I'm letting emotions drive me, I thought.
Once Arim calmed down, I told Hasami about our business and the plan to recruit Roberto.
Hasami smiled at me—kind and grateful.
"Thank you, Loid. For everything."
Then she returned to Arim.
What's done is done, I thought.
Thinking about it won't change anything.
Morning passed quickly. The sun was already high above us as we sat waiting for Roberto.
Then he returned.
Mac jumped up immediately.
"Grandpa! Grandpa Roberto!"
Everyone rushed forward, trying to recruit him. Voices overlapped.
"Please join us, Grandpa!" Mac and Arim pleaded.
"We're like a family," Hasami said. "So we should work together, right?"
"We'll be able to eat every day," Aunt Moneru added.
Roberto looked at Arim and raised an eyebrow.
"So, kid… you've joined their team too, huh?"
Arim smiled. "Yeah, Grandpa."
We kept trying until nightfall, but Roberto still didn't agree.
Finally, he called me over.
"Loid," he asked quietly,
"why do you want to recruit me so badly?"