After thinking about all that, he started walking towards the market near the Leo clan. He was now contemplating another issue that had become glaring for the past two months. The issue was that he was more mature than his age.

He had noticed a few times that he used to think too much about things. He learned things faster than others and was more mature than all his friends.

Sure, he also had childish qualities. For example, he used to cry due to pain or sadness or any other minor thing.

He had never seen adults crying, except his mother whenever he was injured or suffered from an affliction but that was an exception.

Other adults barely cried even on the deaths of their relatives except for those which they truly loved, like how he loved his mother. They always had this tough attitude.

He also loved his playtime with his friends. That was also a childish thing to do. He never saw adults playing hide and seek or tag. That was another plus point in favour of him being a mere kid.

But he also could not deny that he was much more smarter and mature than the other kids of his age. He had this inherent hate for morally questionable things. Many times, his friends had invited him to trick some adult or sneak into forbidden areas but he refused them all the time.

In addition to that, he was willing to bet his life that non of his friends would be able to pull off what he did just a few minutes ago. None of them would be able to plan brilliantly like him and even find loopholes in their concocted plans.

Then there was this problem with his dreams. He never remembered his dreams. He was sure that he dreamt at night. Not remembering them was one thing but those affected his mood whenever he woke up. Sometimes, he would be sad, sometimes happy, sometimes angry.

He had asked about it from his mother and Lady Maria. According to Lady Maria, dreams affected the mood in the morning but the effect was very minuscule and rare. It went away in a matter of seconds. But he was affected for at least half an hour. That was not normal at all.

Jacob was sure that it was some kind of incurable hereditary disease. But his mother never complained of such a thing ever. She even used to tell him about her dreams whenever he asked about them. That made Jacob doubt his judgement.

Ah man. I am overthinking again. I will consult someone after getting settled somewhere. He stopped himself from thinking much and concentrated on reaching his destination.

After about twenty minutes or so of walking, he reached the entrance of Leo market. The market was named Leo market because of its proximity to the Leo clan manor. The same thing applied to the market near the Rokas clan. It was known as the Rokas market.

Along the way, he observed his surroundings with great interest. Especially the castle in the centre of the city. He was mesmerized by that massive structure. Those tall walls and towers were built so beautifully and majestically.

He had asked his mother about the castle. All he could learn from her is that a castle is located in the centre of all the towns and cities and the city government is run jointly by the three clans from this castle. She did not know anything other than that.

He didn't bother asking others about it. Most probably, they knew less than his mother. As for pestering his mother to ask the clan leaders, he would never have done that.

He would feel bad for pestering her to disturb others about this useless information. Everything had its limits.

As he entered the market, it was as if he had entered another world. The streets quickly became crowded even when it was early morning. It would only become more crowded as the sun rises further.

There were several shops and stalls on both sides of the streets. Sometimes, entire buildings were dedicated to working as a shop.

Those shops and stalls were sporting many things including daily life necessities. He even found a few shops dealing with herbs and potions.

Jacob was sure that he would find out shops dealing with cultivation materials. He had not fully explored the market yet.

Merchants were shouting already about their wares and trying to attract the attention of passersby and possible customers. Many people were also haggling with the merchants over various goods they were interested in.

Jacob started walking forward with the intention of exploring the whole market. It was just a few streets wide. He decided to observe the market first so that he may be able to find out about the shops or stalls which were suitable for him.

After that, he would head towards the various inns in the city to hunt for a part-time job there. It would solve his problem of where to spend his night.

Jacob was not aware that he was already in the sights of various pickpockets and thieves in the market.

He was just a defenceless child walking around in a market full of adults and was an easy target to pick if anything of slight value was involved.

"Young man, come here. I have perfect clothes for you. They are all high quality."

"Little boy. Need a toy sword? You would look like a hero with it in your hands."

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

As Jacob started walking, several merchants were already calling for him to come to their shops to browse their wares. They could all see his slightly high-quality clothes. They thought that he was some rich man's child.

In the Rokas clan, only those who formally joined the clan wore the clan uniforms. Children only wore normal clothes. So the merchants there were not able to associate Jacob with the clan using the clothes he wore.

Jacob did not pay any mind to those merchants. He was not here to buy anything after all, no matter how much interested he was in something. He was already tight with money.

He could already detect some shops dealing with carpentry and sewing clothes. That was hard work but good work. But he did not approach them and decided to wait. It won't hurt him to explore the entirety of the market first.

As he started his observations, he came upon his first beggar in the market. A man was sitting on a dirty mat near a stall. He was in a haggard state and was missing a leg.

Jacob was not new to beggars. His mother had warned him about them. She had taught him how to differentiate between true beggars and lazy bums.

True beggars were only those who suffered from debility and could not work themselves for earning.

Only those were worthy of help.

The lazy bums had no debility and were fully capable of earning for themselves. They were just lazy. They were not worthy of any kind of help.

The beggar in front of him was a true beggar. He was missing a leg and was thin as a stick. He was missing the upper garment and his ribs could be seen due to starvation. Looking at his emaciated appearance, Jacob could not help but become sad.

He was not holding his hands out for help. He was just sitting there staring into nothing with his head slightly down as if in deep thought.

Seeing all this, Jacob's eyes became full of kindness and a kind expression came on his face.

Will he be able to eat today? Where will he sleep? Such questions were swimming through his mind.

He imagined himself in his place. He could not even imagine how tough conditions he would face then.

Previously, he could not help any of them because he had no money. Now he had money. Maybe he could eke out a few bronze coins out of his tight funds. He was going to earn them back later.

He was carrying the bag over his shoulders with one hand. The bag had two straps but he was holding it with one only. He took it off and opened it.

After that, he put one of his hands into it and took out the pouch containing the coins. The pouch even jingled due to coins as he took it out of the bag.

He opened it and took out a few bronze coins. He bowed down a bit and gently dropped those on the mat in front of the beggar.

Maybe he can eat a proper meal for a few days. This is the most I can do. It got the attention of the beggar and he slowly looked up at him with a smile and eyes full of gratitude.

"Thank you, young man.", the beggar thanked him with a sincere voice.

Jacob smiled back and nodded at him. After that, he got up.

But he was not aware that as his eyes were full of kindness and sympathy, the eyes of some people around him were full of evil and greed.

As he stood straight, someone near him grabbed his pouch and pulled it towards himself with a forceful jerk, thus pulling it out of an unprepared Jacob's hands.

Jacob was not prepared for this daylight robbery. His hold on his bag's strap was not that tight. He almost fell due to that forceful jerk.

After getting the pouch, the thief broke into a run.

"THIEEEEF!! CATCH HIM!!!"

"STOP THAT SCUM!!"

It was not Jacob who shouted first. It was the merchants around him. They were observing Jacob giving charity to the beggar with interest.

They were law-abiding citizens of the city. They had no malice or greed in their heart. But they were many times older than Jacob and had seen the ups and downs of life. So they quickly reacted to that daylight theft and shouted to catch the thief.

People quickly became aware of the crime and some broke into a run to chase the thief. Similarly, three of the merchants who had aides in their shops also ran after the thief.

Jacob's mind went blank at the sudden turn of events. One second he had the pouch in his hands, the other second, his hands were empty.

It took his mind almost 5 seconds to catch up to his current reality and he also started running after the thief. His future was in someone's hands and it was about to be lost.

By then, the thief and the chasing party were almost out of his sight. But he still ran after them. He could still hear the far-off shouts of the people who were chasing the thief.

Unfortunately, the thief was lithe and thin. And he was a professional. He knew how to navigate a crowd quickly with the least effort.

He also knew the layout of the streets consisting of the market and the narrow streets interconnecting them to each other and beyond. He had immediately covered his lower face just before committing the felony.

So after a few minutes of chase, the chasing party lost the thief. But they still didn't give up. Many of them spread throughout the market to search for him. They still knew the clothes he was wearing. It was not a foolproof plan but they didn't have any other option. Some also went to inform the guards.

But the guards had already become alert to the theft when they heard the shouts. They were quickly mobilising to catch the thief.

Jacob also came to a halt when he saw the chasing party stop. He knew that they had lost him. He stood there blankly. This was all too sudden. He was not expecting this at all and was not that alert. Now he had lost his money and his future.

Tears were already welling up in his eyes due to his stupidity and ignorance. He was blaming himself for everything. He had known about thefts. But he had thought that it occurred rarely and only the mentally handicapped do. He was wrong and reality had given him a hard punishment for his naivety.

He again did not realize that he was just a child barely in his first decade. As he was about to sink into an abyss of despair, a merchant approached him. He was the merchant who shouted first. He was a middle-aged man with a large brown beard and a thick voice.

"Sorry kid. We lost that scum. But don't worry. The guards have been informed. They are already cordoning off the entire market. More guards are also being called from the clan. They will find your money."

The merchant tried to calm the kid. He could see his tears and depressed face. But he knew inside of his heart that the chances of his money being found are slim. The thief had plenty of time to slip out of the market before the guards finished mobilisation.

Upon hearing the merchant, hope blossomed in Jacob's heart. His tears disappeared before flowing down his cheeks. His depressed expression also eased.

"Really? Will my money be found?" Jacob asked with a hopeful voice. It was as if he has seen light in pitch black darkness.

"I can not say for sure. But there is hope. The guards are already mobilizing and the city is not very large. The guards will also check everyone on the gates."

The merchant did not want to give the child false hope. But he also did not want him to get depressed. He was in a dilemma between two things. So, he quickly pulled something out of thin air.

He mixed half-truths with half-lies and gave him an appropriate response. He was sure that any adult could detect a dozen loopholes in his half-baked story.

For example, couldn't the thief spend the money without leaving the city? Or, couldn't the thief hide till things cool down before leaving the city? These were just two of the half dozen loopholes he could detect in his response.

Upon hearing the merchant's reply, Jacob believed him immediately just like a drowning man clutching at straws. He did not think too deeply about the merchant's response.

He just wanted to hear from someone that there was still hope. His expression saddened a bit. He thought about something else and asked the merchant with a hopeful voice,

"Ok. Thanks for your help. Can I work at your shop? I don't have any money left to buy something to eat."

The merchant looked at him with bewildered eyes.

"Little kid, where are your parents and what were you doing wandering around the market with that much money?" He asked Jacob a few questions. While he was chasing after the thief, these two questions were constantly swimming through his mind. Not only he but everyone was thinking about the same thing.

By now, four other people have gathered around Jacob. How can someone give this much money to a kid to bring to the market? Are his parents fools? Why weren't his parents looking after him? Look at what happened now. Is he missing? Is he lost? Have his parents kicked him out? Such were the thoughts in everyone's mind.

Upon hearing the merchant's questions, Jacob's expression saddened much more than before and he replied with a melancholy voice,

"Both have died. I also don't have any siblings. As for the money, it was the savings of my mother for my future."

"Why were you carrying this much money in the market?" One of the persons surrounding him asked.

"I never thought that someone would steal from me. I thought that only perverted and mentally handicapped steal." Jacob replied while looking toward the person who asked the question.

"That thief was by no means a mentally handicapped person. If he was, he would not have slipped from us at all." The first merchant replied with certainty.

"Kid. Thieves are not mentally challenged at all. They are all trained in stealing and theft. This is their way of living. They along with many others are the dark side of humanity. They would do anything for their benefit, including killing and stealing. That's why city guards are here for. Didn't your parents teach you that?"

Another person standing near them launched into a small lecture about morality after he heard the ridiculous thoughts of Jacob.

Jacob started looking down at his feet with a sad expression. That person was saying the truth. His mother had really not taught him anything about thefts and murders as professions.