Hello, this is pain.

Time passed, the sun was hot, the hoe was biting into the ground, and the four tall guys behind Jun were trying to negotiate something.

"Hey, he said he knows, so he knows." One of the big men said, and glanced at Jun.

The boy continued to weed as if nothing had happened.

"Are you an idiot?" The tallest one asked, also glancing at the boy. "The Lord doesn't accept anyone, especially men," he reminded his companion. "How do you suggest we get the kid to him?"

"Uh, guys, I have an idea." Suggested a third, almost the lowest. "Let's ask Little Xia to pretend to be a Lord."

The others looked at the smart guy, and almost the shortest of the big men looked confused.

"It's a good idea." He muttered. "Don't you think?"

"Just great." The tallest man said. "All we need is a castle and a rented throne."

"You think the kid's smart enough to notice the switch?" The second taller man asked, and glanced at Jun. "He's definitely smart." He told himself immediately.

"Yeah, he pretended to be a blockhead to trick us." The shortest one agreed. "He knows something for sure." He whispered, biting a nail on his right hand.

"Then what do we do?" Another big man asked.

The tallest man flexed his fists.

Jun continued to weed the ground, ignoring the big men behind him. He remembered the flatbread in his pants pocket and put down the hoe to eat. When he took the first bite of the dust-and-sweat-soaked bread, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

It was delicious!

"Hey, kid!" The big men called out, apparently agreeing on something.

Jun swallowed the last bite, closing his eyes in pleasure, and turned around.

"Yes?"

Jun was sitting on the ground. The hoe lay a little way off, and there were crumbs on his hands, but he had just finished the bread. He wanted to look at the faces of the big men, and Jun had to look up.

The bright sun immediately made him close his eyes, and at the same time a shoe flew into his face.

"Tell Lucy that Lord is tired of playing her games." A voice boomed through the haze of pain in Jun's head. "Now tell us where the treasure is while you're still alive."

Jun lay face down on the ground, gasping for air. The blow hit the lower jaw and knocked out several teeth. Jun had already spat blood several times, but the blood wasn't going to stop.

He spat out another tooth and laughed. He liked the pain. This was something new, not tested until now. As with the taste of food, the sensation of pain was also completely erased from memory.

When he finally recovered enough to turn on his back and then raise himself up on his hands and sit up, the big men were still standing over him, blocking out the sunlight.

At least now he didn't have to squint to get a better look at them. Seeing how long he lay face down and how strangely he laughed, spitting blood, two of the giants hesitated. Jun looked at them like an innocent puppy and smiled.

"I don't remember." He said. "What treasures?"

This time Jun was hit by a second big man, the shorter one. However, the lack of a few centimeters of height compared to the leader of the squad did not affect the force of the blow at all.

Jun had lost another tooth, and his left cheek was swollen beyond recognition. The salty taste of blood tickled his taste buds, and Jun groaned in satisfaction at the new, heart-wrenching experience.

After a while, he cleared his throat and rolled onto his back through the pain. The pain and loss of blood made his vision blurry, as if the field was shrouded in a thick fog. However, the sun was at its zenith, and the real fog had disappeared in the early morning.

"Guys." He said with difficulty. "I think I made a mistake."

"What are you talking about?" The tallest man asked. "Where's the treasure, boy?"

The two big men, the second and third tallest of the four, looked at each other. They did not expect that the boy would laugh when he received a blow from the leader of their party. The lowest one was silent, and the leader was getting angry.

"I didn't see it." Jun smiled as much as his swollen cheek and split lips would allow. "I thought you asked about weeds. There are a lot of weeds here, take them. And here's another…"

Jun had to take a break to get a third boot to the head. He lay there, staring at the sprouts in front of his nose, inhaled the faint smell of dry soil mixed with snot and blood, and spat out a piece of tooth. When the pain finally stopped bringing a sense of novelty, Jun continued.

"Tell the Lord," he said, spitting blood, "that as long as Lucy stands on this land, no one will get her father's treasure. And also…"

The fourth blow caused Jun to lose consciousness, but he soon returned to reality and forced himself not to moan in pain. The image of Lucy pointing out the field to him with a jug of milk clutched to her chest loomed in Jun's mind and made the boy make a decision.

These big men could promise him all sorts of riches, but they couldn't promise him one. Gorgeous breasts of a red-haired beauty.

"Tell the Lord." He whispered under his breath.

He remembered the freckles on Lucy's face and smiled.

The shortest man leaned closer.

"Tell him." Jun repeated, coughing and grimacing in pain. "Tell the Lord-" He wanted to finish the thought, but a sharp twinge of pain made him close his eyes. After a moment, he continued... "There is a protector on this land."

This time, a fist landed in Jun's face. The pain seemed like a familiar friend, but this familiarity did not make the pain pleasant. The world in his eyes faded and Jun fell backwards. A blissful smile hung on his split lips.

A giant eagle high in the sky rolled its eyes.

"What an idiot." He muttered, watching the big men walk away from the wide field, angry and still a little dumbfounded.