The Damn Family Is Back Again

Chapter 167

167 – 167. Legitimate Rights (7)

Ferdi doesn’t know his parents’ faces.

He doesn’t know his name, age, or even what their voices sound like.

What would a child who was abandoned by their parents at birth remember?

He doesn’t know anything.

It was something that couldn’t be understood.

To Ferdi, the world was extremely narrow.

All that entered the eyes of the child, who was only able to crawl on all fours, was a small, cramped house filled with a few adults and children he had never seen before.

Ferdi’s entire world began at the Shatren orphanage, and Shatren was his entire world.

But even within that narrow scope, there was sufficient depth.

“What’s your name? Ferdi, right?”

“Is it Ferdi?”

“Yes, Ferdi. It’s written like this, and you read it as Ferdi.”

The child, who grew up receiving care from strangers instead of parents, lived a life without lacking anything.

When Ferdi received his name and started walking on two legs, he realized there were similar children around him.

“Wow, Ferdi’s really good at this!”

“Hey, stop it! You have to stop!”

“Whoa, you got caught!”

“Is it because of Ferdi that we’re winning? We always lost before!”

Was there loneliness without parents?

There wasn’t.

Was there solitary desolation in the world?

That didn’t exist either.

“Hello, mister!”

“Haha. Isn’t that Ferdi? You look like you haven’t done your homework.”

“Uh… I’ll do it later! I have to play with the kids!”

“You’re not going to do it, are you?”

“What if I tell the lady?”

“Mister! You’re going to tell on me?”

—Hahaha!

To Ferdi, this world wasn’t left alone, but was embraced by the warm land of Shatren.

He had never felt hunger even once.

The loneliness of not having parents was filled by the friends around him and the adults who cared for him, leaving no room for it to grow.

Ferdi’s world, which grew steadily while eating, playing, and learning, was never shallow.

Even when he learned about his parents’ absence through his studies, it was the same.

However, there was certainly a dark side.

“Shatren is about to take off. You all know, but if we provide our specialty, strawberries and grapes, only to the nobles, we’ll grow exponentially.”

“But, you know, if we keep gathering those poor orphans in Shatren, what’s going to happen? The nobles will be disgusted if they see those impurities on the Noble Street.”

“Those who should be eliminated will be eliminated. It’s time to let go of those useless orphans who are leeching off the land!”

As the lord’s territory was a focal point, stories related to its development were always present.

Visitors from outside the territory would often mention such things, and Ferdi, who had grown a bit taller, could understand all of those conversations from then on.

“Ugh, the village head is being foolish again. If we think about the territory’s development, it’s wise to get rid of those orphans first and create a Noble Street.”

“When are we going to change this place? It’s the perfect opportunity now that we’ve escaped the royal family’s grasp.”

“If we push it a bit more, saying we’re poor, it might just work. It seemed like they were worried.”

“Oh, then…”

“Let’s artificially create a crisis. That way, the village head will definitely make a decision.”

There were already people in Shatren who were planning a conspiracy.

They were all people who had lived in Shatren for a long time, eating and drinking, and some of them were in league with external forces to develop Shatren.

Perdi, who overheard their conversation, couldn’t shake off the thought from that day on.

In the inner village. Everywhere in the village.

Was there a force that wanted to kick them out and change Shatren?

And that worry became a reality.

“What happened?”

“Heh heh. Of course, it was a success. It seems like no one noticed?”

“Yeah… This is money earned on our land, right? We could have received this all along, but we refused.”

“The village head is too stubborn! If we just kick out those orphans, it’ll be fine. Tsk!”

They had already taken action, and the production of Shatren’s specialty products, strawberries and grapes, began to decline.

As the supply decreased, the prices of the two specialty products skyrocketed, making it difficult for commoners to afford Shatren strawberries and grapes, and naturally, those fruits went to the nobles.

As a result, Shatren earned even more money.

“I only took a little, but it’s already like this. We could have gotten an even higher price.”

“Don’t you feel resentful thinking that way?”

Among the villagers, subtle divisions began to emerge. At first, they followed the village head’s firm decision, but once they got a taste of the money, they didn’t want to let go of that right.

The way to live a more affluent and comfortable life was to increase the value of the two specialty products even more.

So, the prices of Shatren strawberries and grapes continued to soar. The two crops, which had been abundant and accessible to everyone, young and old, became luxury food that only the wealthy could afford.

Moreover, embezzlement was being carried out in a way that no one knew, and money was being laundered through other territories, slowly accumulating profits.

Perdi, who discovered all these facts, had no choice but to make an extreme decision.

“…Shatren is already ruined. You guys.”

“What are you talking about?”

“We’re going to get kicked out of this land. By those adults!!”

Shatren was ruined.

The warm and generous land he knew was no more.

Their eyes and ears were always focused on Shatren.

Then.

“I think we can’t just sit back and take it.”

They had to find a way to stop them from getting kicked out.

By interfering, obstructing, and stealing.

They wanted to protect this land, Shatren, which was like the entire world to them.

“That ungrateful bastard!”

“You don’t even know the favor that was done for you, and you’re stealing!”

“Why did such a scoundrel appear in our territory!”

Each word pierced his heart like a dagger.

The deep resentment was like a sharp sword that cut and hurt.

Ungrateful. When he heard that word, tears almost fell from his eyes.

Not some stranger, but a familiar face.

People he met in this Shatren, a place that was like the entire world to him.

The words they heard were even more painful and distressing.

Still, they had to overcome it.

Even if it was unfair, they had to continue this behavior.

They had to clearly inform the people that the Shatren territory was flawed.

Even if they had nowhere to go, and even if they received criticism from the aunt who had taken care of them for a while, they had to be scolded for being the territory’s fatal flaw.

It was disturbing, but they had to push through.

They had to somehow interfere with the traitors’ actions. That was the top priority.

That’s how they had been causing problems in Shatren for a long time.

“This farming method can’t be used!!”

Only one person.

Someone who would bring judgment to Shatren appeared.

The man’s name was Karsein Bagrand.

***

He thought this was for the best.

The reason he was caught was because he had stolen an external request and the ledger with the list and payment, and he was sure that would be enough to drive them out.

However, during the process of questioning where the request had gone, he didn’t know what would happen to his own safety.

Even if he was just a kid, he could provide evidence of his repeated thefts, and he knew that the moment he was caught, the problem would get bigger, so these people would definitely try to get rid of him.

“Still, I won’t regret it.”

At least, he would soon realize that there was an enemy within.

Then, Shatren would return to its original state?

At least, the world he grew up in, created by those people, wouldn’t be destroyed.

“That’s enough.”

Karsein said.

He wouldn’t be driven out of this Shatren territory.

Unlike the past, he would prove everything.

What was left was his responsibility, but if he, who had tried to solve Shatren’s problems, could somehow solve them, then he would.

Ferdi closed his eyes, resigned.

But soon, a loud crash was heard, and a person burst in, destroying the stacked boxes.

“Did he… steal more severely?”

“What nonsense is that?”

“Ferdi has been openly stealing in this territory, and everyone knows that. Don’t you know that he even stole from Rusmay’s peddler’s cart?”

“On the other hand, that person didn’t steal. He’s someone who has been working hard in our Shatren for years, burying his bones!”

The criticism poured in towards Karsein, who had kicked a resident in the stomach.

Ferdi heard the words and raised his head sharply.

The person who had burst in was a traitor from this territory, someone Ferdi had been keeping an eye on.

“You’re saying that, but you’re the one who got hit in the back of the head. You foolish people.”

“What, what did you say?”

“I used to hold the temporary lord position in the Shatren territory. Even back then, I knew that his store didn’t make a profit.”

It was true.

His store was the one that made the most profit, and every year, it received support funds from Shatren to stay afloat.

From noble mtl dot com

However.

“‘You’re bringing this up here…!'”

It was as if he was going to prove it right there.

Ferdi gulped and shouted.

“No way! Young Master!”

There was no need for a detailed explanation.

But the future looked too bleak.

Even if he wrote down the request here, the store of that traitor would still be in the red. It was impossible to prove.

With a desperate mindset, Ferdi shouted, and Karcein smiled faintly in response.

“Hey, Ferdi.”

“…Yes?”

“You’re not a criminal, Imma.”

Karcein said he would prove it from now on.

“Where, why don’t the profits match up? Let’s hear your opinions.”

“That’s because this guy is the best at stealing from our store, isn’t it?”

“Do you know how many times Ferdi has stolen from us? Even if we count on our fingers and toes, it’s still not enough!”

“And how many times has he hindered our business? We can’t even trade with other territories because the quantity is always lacking!”

The townspeople chimed in, refuting, and Karcein openly ridiculed them.

“Pfft, so what’s the profit margin? How much did you lose?”

“Huh, you, the temporary lord, didn’t even investigate that?”

“Ugh… I’ll say it myself! The average quarterly loss is 4000 pessel! Why are you acting like this, as if you’re the victim?”

“4000 pessel? Ahahah. Hahahah!”

At that moment, Ferdi had a hunch.

Why Karcein was laughing so confidently.

‘Can you prove it?’

He asked himself inwardly, but the answer was already out.

He would prove it.

“I… stole from Rusmaier’s merchant cart yesterday too. That’s the truth.”

“You little thief!”

“What’s with this story…!”

“Keep talking, Ferdi.”

“How much did I steal from you, Young Master?”

“What’s with this sudden…?”

“Ferdi stole from my merchant cart yesterday, so I’m asking how much he stole. It’s not that hard to answer, is it?”

Among the confused townspeople, Karcein raised one finger.

“1000… pessel, you mean?”

“No, 100 pessel. He only stole food, after all.”

“Food…?”

“Yes, food. He didn’t even touch anything except for what he could eat.”

“Is that all the damage you suffered?”

Note: 페셀 (pessel) is a unit of currency in this novel.

-Fallang.

“The amount I calculated yesterday is like that. If you don’t believe me, would you like to see it for yourself?”

“…”

“This is really strange, right? Why did that guy’s store suffer a huge loss of 4000 pesel, but only 100 pesel was lost in the carriage with many goods? Is it because he’s the one in charge of the festival? Or is it because he wants to take advantage of me, a newcomer, more than the people from our territory?”

As he spoke, the villagers looked at the documents Carsein presented one by one, and their gazes turned to the frightened man with suspicion.

“There really is a loss of 100 pesel in the documents…”

“Explain how this happened.”

“What are you talking about? Are you suspecting me now!!”

“You should explain where the 4000 pesel loss came from.”

The villagers’ gazes changed one by one, filled with suspicion.

The accusatory gaze had already pierced deeply into the defector’s heart, trying to justify their own actions.

“That’s definitely Ferdi, the thief…!”

“Are you saying he stole that much goods?”

“It’s unbelievable!”

“When I think about it, it’s strange. Can a loss of 4000 pesel really happen?”

“We haven’t even had a festival recently…”

“So, I’m saying he’s a thief. That guy performed tasks in other territories even when Sharuten was still okay.”

Carsein pulled out another item from his pocket.

The neatly folded document was a request from another town.

“What, what is this! How did this end up in your hands!”

“When we receive a request like this from another territory, we report the loss and receive support funds, and then we get the remaining pay. It’s a really clever method, isn’t it?”

“…”

A perfect causal relationship.

The evidence appeared, leaving no room for doubt, and the suspicion turned into conviction.

“Yes, you…!”

“You deceived our Sharuten like this!!”

“Let’s hurry and tell the village head about this!”

Just then.

Ferdi shouted.

“No! We can settle this right here!”

“Ferdi?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Everyone, the person here is our Sharuten’s lord!”