Chapter 64: A Clash of Realities
As I looked around, still dazed, a disheveled woman suddenly came running towards me, catching me off guard. She moved with an almost animalistic desperation, crawling on her hands and climbing onto my body.
"Give me this! Give me yourself. I’ll be rich in an instant. Give me the dress you’re wearing. Give me all the money you have, and I’ll buy a year’s worth of food for myself," she pleaded, her voice trembling with desperation.
Fearful for both her safety and my own, I attempted to calm her down. "Hey, hey! Stop doing this. I’ll give you food, as much as you want, but stop climbing on me like that, or we’ll both fall," I pleaded. Despite my words, she continued to scratch at me, leaving painful marks on my shoulders.
Erios, my loyal companion, moved to intervene, but I halted him. "Stop it, Erios!" I shouted. "She’s not a beggar."
"If she’s not a beggar, then everyone present in this place should be called beggars as well," I added, directing my gaze at the others nearby.
"Lady, come with me. I’ll get food for you. You don’t have to be scared. You don’t have to behave like this to get food. I’ll take care of the food and you too. So come with me!" I offered, extending my hand towards her. The woman’s eyes filled with tears of relief as she accepted my help.
I walked with the woman to a nearby store, but as I tried to enter, a waiter came outside, blocking my way.
"You can’t enter here with this beggar," he said with a dismissive tone, referring to the woman. I was infuriated.
"Why can’t I enter? And why do you call her a beggar when seventy percent of the population looks the same as her?" I retorted, my patience wearing thin.
"I can’t say, but you can’t enter this shop with a beggar. If you want to, you can, but she can’t. We have our reputation to maintain, to keep our heads held high with dignity. If we start letting these beggars inside, our reputation will be ruined. They will run without paying for the food. Then what should we do? We’re not running a shelter for orphans; we’re running a business to feed ourselves. So this is the rule," he explained arrogantly.