Picked up by the Protagonist of a Tormented! MC Novel

Volume 1 Chapter 3

Even though Xi Wei made such a promise, Zeno did not feel optimistic about things. Although the snow had stopped falling, the weather remained as bad as ever. The cold wind whistled through the alley, and both children shivered uncontrollably.

They have no food.

Xi Wei was very calm. His everyday life is constantly in a precarious state of balance, and he has managed to survive thus far.

Street rats naturally have their own way of life.

He held Zeno firmly as he quietly slipped back into the trashcan. Although the smell was unpleasant, it still provided some shelter from the cold, penetrating wind.

Zeno also quieted completely. He examined the protagonist’s face; even though he is so young he gives off a strong air of indifference. As he observed, he found that he felt a bit complicated in his heart.

In the novel, even though the protagonist suffers a great deal, the focus is on his older self: the gratitude and grudges, love, and loss. The arduous childhood that formed him was relegated to a one-line tidbit, so Zeno did not realize that the next 'door' was about to open. (t/n: physically and metaphorically speaking)

After a short span of time, a crude voice rang out from a nearby doorway, “Obviously you knocked over the grill yourself, who would know that you are the master and I am an apprentice, bah.”

The tone of the voice's owner is rough, cursing out others without room for response. Zeno perks his ears; although the speech is coarse, the pitch belies a younger age, and the impetuous words and air of discontent indicate a youth. It seems that the baker’s master knocked over the grill, resulting in several loaves of bread falling to the ground.

The bread that had stayed fairly clean was taken by the apprentice to eat, and the rest was considered too dirty so it was brought out of the bakery to be discarded.

Zeno was a working-class, pseudo-bourgeoisie who used to sit in front of a computer in his clean apartment only hours ago. He cannot, of course, think of the dirty bread as anything more than feed for animals. Due to this, he does not understand why Xi Wei shifted ever so subtly when he realized what was going on. (t/n: the raws say that this is after hearing about the bread being discarded, but since there's no clear indication that it was spoken out loud I decided to put it this way)

The apprentice grabs his nose as he approaches the trashcan—it is clear he does not want to be anywhere near that smell. Because he won't get close enough to the trashcan to lift the lid, and doesn't want to allow even more of the foul odour to escape, he simply throws the bread lazily, leaving it where it falls on the ground next to the trashcan.

The three small loaves end up scattered around the trashcan, freezing quickly due to the cold

The aroma of bread quickly dissipated as the bread cooled, and Xi Wei swiftly reached out and grabbed the bread and pulled it into the trashcan. He gripped it tightly as if to prevent it from being taken away.

Rumbling sounds came once again from Xi Wei's stomach, although this time Zeno could also feel his belly churning slightly; apparently he is also hungry.

Children cannot help but be hungry, and now that he has experienced true hunger, Zeno finds that it tastes too depressing. Now that he finds himself ready to cry with hunger, he begs in his mind to return to his happy life—he will never complain again!

Enhanced by their acute hunger, the aroma of the cold bread became clear and the slightest trace wafts into the boys' noses. Without realizing it, both of them have started to salivate, swallowing the excess saliva subconsciously.