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Rotten Luck

In the great world of Yugantar, there exists a spiritual energy between heaven and earth, commonly known as "Urrja." Some special people can use this energy to increase their strength and enhance various aspects of their bodies, and they are known as cultivators, while non-cultivators are referred to as mortals.

Cultivators can draw Urrja into their bodies to purify it from worldly impurities, which results in increased longevity. Mortals do not understand much about cultivation, but the ability to live longer has always made them look toward cultivators with envy.

In the remote parts of the Eastern continent, at the foot of a mountain, was a small village by the name of Kamalpuri, which got its name from the hundreds of blooming lotuses found in the lake formed by the waterfall falling from the mountain.

The village itself consisted of only 50-60 houses, with a population of around 500 in total. Some of the houses, located in the southern part of the village, were made of mud and were very crude, while other houses in the northern part consisted of two- or three-story buildings, which was a clear indication of the divide between the residents.

There was only a single main road, wide enough for a carriage to pass comfortably, stretching from the west (the entrance to the village) to the east, where it led to a wall of the mountain.

All the residents of this village were mortals, and they mostly depended on the mountain and its forest to earn their livelihood. There were some small shops in the village for the buying and selling of items found in the surrounding forests. Most of these shops had a similar character — "Vata" — indicating that they belonged to the same family.

The Vata family was the most powerful in the village. The current head of the family, Kamal Vata, was also the head of the village. Almost 70 percent of the businesses were owned by them, and hence, their level of influence was well known. No one in the entire village was willing to offend them and everyone was happy to follow them in order to curry favours.

As the sun rose, villagers could be seen going about their daily work. A small boy, around 8 or 9 years old, could be seen walking down the road toward one of the shops. At first glance, the boy seemed completely ordinary. He wore very simple, low-quality garments that had many patches of different colours, indicating how worn out they were. He didn’t have any shoes and was sweating, yet he still had a smile on his face. Ordinary, in every way possible.

But if one carefully examined him, they would notice that despite his worn-out clothes and other signs of poverty, the boy seemed to radiate an aura of otherworldliness. His eyes were a sapphire blue, shining brightly, and his face was cute and lovable. Coupled with his smile, his face seemed to give off an aura of pure innocence and peace. A single glance at him could cause people to forget their problems, as if they were living in a heaven without the slightest trouble.

The boy's name was Aaryan, and he was currently heading toward one of the many shops where he worked. Wherever he walked, he would greet everyone he saw. Some people greeted him back, some smiled, some looked at him with pity in their eyes, and others simply ignored him. Yet, no matter the response, he greeted them all with the same smile, as if it didn’t bother him at all.

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One of the villagers, whom Aaryan had just greeted, waved his hand back and smiled at him. After he passed, his companion asked, “Who is this boy? From his clothes, he looks like a beggar, but his demeanour is that of a prince of high stature. Such a contrast.”

The man sighed and responded in a low voice, “His name is Aaryan. A few years ago, one of the villagers found him in the mountains, lying there alone. He tried to find his parents, but found no one. The boy had no family, so the man brought him back with him. That man was one of the guards of the head of the village and was tasked with hunting wild beasts and carrying out other dangerous tasks for him. Four years ago, he died trying to save the chief from an assassination attempt, leaving the boy alone. Since then, he has lived on his own, surviving on titbits given to him by the villagers. For the past few months, he started working on his own, joining multiple shops as a temporary helper.”

The man was surprised by the story, wondering what kind of rotten luck this boy had to be earning at such a tender age. With a hint of admiration, he said to his companion, “What an unlucky fellow. And still, he has such a profound smile on his face.”

Unaware of their conversation, Aaryan continued on his way to join the group that was supposed to go into the forests up in the mountains to gather herbs and other items. He soon caught sight of the group standing on the side of the road and waved his hands toward them. When one of the boys in the group saw him, he scoffed and said to his companions, “The clown has arrived.” With that, all of them started laughing.

Aaryan heard their laughter and understood that they were making fun of him, but it didn’t bother him at all. Due to the circumstances of his life, one could say that he was quite mature. It was rare to find someone under 20 who could compare to him in terms of maturity.

He also knew about the nickname they had given him, “The Clown,” which was due to the smile he always kept on his face. The truth was, he knew no other way to face his endless difficulties. There was no way to prevent himself from going to bed on an empty stomach or sleeping on the floor during cold and rainy nights. His only response to such continuous tribulations was hope — hope that the next morning would be better. In a way, one could say that his smile resembled the hope in his heart.

He also knew why these people mocked him. They saw him as just a child, and any expedition in the forest involved risks. They had no way of removing him from the team, so the only thing they could do was belittle him, claiming he was a burden on them, hindering their earnings by reducing the overall strength of the group. Some even took it further, stating that Aaryan's earnings were a form of begging since they did all the work.

Aaryan knew all this, and he also understood the root cause of their hatred and jealousy. It was true that he was physically weak and couldn’t contribute much, but in terms of contribution, he had his own ways. He was very smart and had helped the group many times since joining. He was adept at handling dangerous situations. He had saved the lives of many of the group members, but instead of thanking him, they blamed him for causing the dangerous situation in the first place and took all the credit for themselves.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried to explain the situations to the higher-ups, but they didn’t consider it worth their attention. Allowing him to join the team was already a grace on their part, and everything that followed was for Aaryan to handle. He didn’t want to complicate his already complicated life, and he hoped to leave the village once he had enough savings to explore the world and see its wonders.

While all these thoughts were running through his head, he arrived in front of the shop. The entire team was present, yet they didn’t seem to be moving out. Aaryan found this unusual and was about to ask one of the members when a handsome boy appeared at the doorway of the shop. Seeing him, Aaryan realized that this expedition was different from the others he had participated in.

The boy threw a casual glance at everyone present and spoke in an authoritative voice:

“This mission is a stakeout mission, and any mistakes will cost you your head.”