Sir Fux's intentions were clear. As a member of the parliament, he wasn't allowed to participate in such large-scale commercial activities, especially when it came to smuggling.
So, while he asked Sir Morssen to arrange a ship and cargo for him, it would be best for the receipt to be changed into an IOU.
If it was an IOU of 500 crowns, Sir Fux would be able to occasionally mention it in front of others and leave a deep impression on them.
When the fleet returned, Sir Morssen used the excuse of not having enough money to repay the debt to pawn the ship and cargo to Sir Fux.
That way, no one would say anything even if Sir Fux made a fortune.
Back then, Sir Morssen didn't question whether it was unreasonable to pawn a ship full of Nubissian specialties that was worth nearly ten times the 500 crowns to Sir Fux to repay the debt.
Back then, his mind was filled with the glorious prospect of money. He believed that the fleet would definitely return safely. After all, the new trade route was in their hands.
So, Sir Morssen happily wrote an IOU and got his friend to sign it as a witness. He also complimented Sir Fux on his thoughtfulness.
Borkal's father, Rubire, was also present at the time. He even secretly tugged at Sir Fux when he was about to write the IOU.
It was a pity that Sir Morssen didn't notice that. He thought that it was a little too crowded and moved to an empty spot. Now that he thought about it, it was too late for regrets.
Claude finally understood. He had been wondering about it. Didn't Sir Morssen own two ships in the fleet?
The last time his father did the accounting, he only remembered that his father had invested 350 crowns and borrowed 150 crowns from the national bank.
That added up to only 500 crowns, which was only enough to invest in one ship.
As it turned out, the other ship belonged to Sir Fux, but it was under his father's name.
Now that something had happened to the fleet, all the investors lost their money. They even had to compensate the families of the sailors to appease the public.
Sir Morssen thought that he was free from debt, but he didn't expect Sir Fux to send Butcher Bill to him with the IOU and demand payment of the 500 crowns.
Claude didn't know what to say. His father was digging his own grave. He thought that since everyone had suffered heavy losses, Sir Fux would be the same.
He didn't expect Sir Fux to have already set up a trap when he asked him to write the promissory note. The five hundred crowns had already become his debt. Even though Sir Fux didn't make a fortune from the merchant fleet, he could recoup his losses from him.
"The people who demanded the money have all left?
What did they say? "That was all he could ask.
"Th-that Bidlir Blanche from Blacksnake said to give me two days to gather funds to repay the debt …" Morssen covered his face in agony, tears trickling down from the gaps between his fingers.
When Bidlir Blanche produced the note he had written to Sir Fux, he knew at once that he had fallen into a trap. Written in black and white, with the signatures of his friends as witnesses, the debt of five hundred crowns was now on his head.
"What about two days later?
What will happen if you don't have the money to repay the debt? "
He wondered if he should pay Butcher Bill, the boss of Blacksnake, a visit at night. Perhaps he would be able to retrieve the promissory note his father wrote on his corpse. At that moment, Claude's murderous intent had been ignited.
"Two … two days later … If we don't have the money to repay the debt, he said he'll get a notary and an appraiser from the national bank to appraise the value of our house …" Morssen looked up at the ceiling in despair.
"They want to use our red brick house to repay the debt?"
Morssen shook his head dejectedly. "It won't work. The last time we took out a loan of 150 crowns from the national bank, this house was appraised to be worth only 320 crowns.
Even if I have more than 40 crowns with me, I'm still short of 140 crowns.
Without this house, where am I supposed to get that many crowns to repay them? "
"Can we borrow it?"
"Borrow?"
Morssen was startled, but he quickly became disheartened. "It'll be difficult. If I didn't give them compensation and beard money, it wouldn't be difficult to gather 500 crowns.
But now that they've lost all their money, it'll be difficult to borrow it. I don't have the capital to repay that much either. "
"I'll repay it. You know a lot of people. You can borrow it and I'll pay it back.
When summer comes, I'll go hunting. If I'm lucky, I should be able to earn a few dozen crowns. That way, I'll be able to repay the debt in a few years. Even if the interest is high, it won't be a problem. "
Claude thought that he could just rob Blacksnake a few more times. He believed that he would be able to gather the money in no time. Given his father's situation, it was clear that he wouldn't be able to win a lawsuit.
Morssen finally calmed down. He looked at Claude with a wistful expression. He didn't think that his second son would be willing to shoulder the responsibility for his family during such a difficult time.
As a father, he couldn't just sit back and watch as misfortune befell his family. At the very least, he had to go to Sir Fux and ask for an explanation.
Rubbing his face hard to wipe away his tears, Morssen regained his solemn expression and forced a smile. "Claude, I've made a fool of myself in front of you.
I'm fine now. I'll go out and think of a way.
Don't worry, I'll get through this no matter how difficult it is. Don't worry, I'll think of a way to solve this problem. "
Claude looked at his father suspiciously. Who was that panic-stricken man in front of him?
"Yes.
"It's really nothing," Morssen said confidently. "I'll go talk to Sir Fux.
It's fine to accept the debt of 500 crowns, but he has to give me some time to repay it.
I believe that he'll agree to my reasonable request on account of our decades of friendship.
As long as I have the time, I believe I can earn the 500 crowns. "
"What if he doesn't agree?"
"He'll agree. Even though I was the one who wrote the promissory note, Rubyll, Tomas and the others were there and they know why I wrote it.
If he doesn't want his reputation to be tarnished, he should be happy that I'm willing to accept the debt. "
Claude pursed his lips. He didn't believe in Sir Fux's character like his father did.
How could a person who used his influence to swindle a niros crocodile from a few youths, a councilor who pressured everyone to the point where they didn't dare to bid for a dozen crowns have such a thing as character?
Not to mention, 500 crowns were at stake. Would he care about what others thought of him?
What a joke.
"By the way, Claude, go back to the wood. There's nothing going on at home.
I can't protect you anymore.
You're an adult now and the only one you can rely on is Madam Maria. With her care, you won't end up like your father, stuck in a small place like Whitestag.
If you can become a herbalist, perhaps you can develop your career in the royal capital. "His father started lecturing Claude again after he calmed down.
"Alright, Father. Let me know if there's anything.
Forget it, I'll make a trip home in the next few days. "
Perhaps to Morssen, lecturing his son was a sign of fatherly love, but Claude couldn't stand it and decided to leave first.
He spent the next two days rushing between the wood and home, but he didn't see his father.
His mother said that his father always came home late and didn't look any different from usual. When she asked him about the debt, his father would always say that he had some ideas and told him not to worry.
It was just that every night, he would sleep very late and sit alone in the study until very, very late …
"Speak!
Where's your boss? "
In a dark alley, Claude pushed a gang member against a mud wall. The gangster was beaten beyond recognition. His face was swollen and a few of his teeth were knocked out.
"I-I really don't know. Please, please let me go."
The gangster was choked by Claude and soon, he couldn't breathe.
Only when he struggled for his life did Claude loosen his grip and let him breathe a little. "Are you going to speak or not?"
"Fish- fish- fish- processing factory. Go there and take a look."
Claude punched him in the temple and the gangster slid to the ground along the mud wall.
"You don't know anything and keep spouting nonsense! And you didn't even bring any money with you!" Claude cursed angrily.
He hadn't been able to find the boss of Blacksnake, Bidlir Blanche, and the casino was still empty. He really didn't understand why Bidlir didn't reopen the place even though he was released from the military camp.
As for the fish- processing factory, Claude had gone there the previous night. Apart from the air and the stench of fish, he didn't find anything else.
He grabbed a small boss and asked him about it. The boss said that the boss hadn't been there for a long time, at least half a year, and that he still owed him two months' worth of wages.
That night, Claude came to the old street to enter the headquarters of Blacksnake.
But he didn't expect that there would be a squad of ten men from 4th Band on duty there. Faced with ten muskets, Claude had no choice but to retreat. It would be too much of a waste if he got shot in the dark.
Also, he observed for a long time and noticed that the gangsters entering and exiting the place were rather lazy. That meant that Butcher Bill wasn't there.
In the end, Claude secretly tailed a Blacksnake member who was looking for a prostitute to relax in. He led him to the alley and quickly found out that Butcher Bill wasn't in the gang's headquarters. However, the member didn't know where he went either.
Tomorrow would be the third day. Bidlir Blanche would bring the garrison soldiers to his doorstep again. He wondered how his father was doing with his preparations.
Claude looked at the sky and decided to head back. It wasn't easy to make a living on the old street. Most of the people who came to visit the prostitutes were sailors from the two naval warships. It was rare to see someone like Claude who wore a robe and mask, so he would be easily noticed.
Now that Blacksnake had muskets, Claude wouldn't be able to ambush them as he used to. If he was discovered, he would definitely be targeted by the garrison soldiers.
To be honest, he was a little afraid that the muskets would be aimed at him. He knew the power of the muskets better than anyone else. It would be fine if they missed, but if they did, it would definitely leave a thumb-sized hole in his body. The damage would be even greater at close range.
Bidlir Blanche was lucky that he didn't run into him for two nights in a row.
Claude decided to return home the next morning to help his father through this ordeal.
At the same time, Morssen was writing furiously in his study on the second floor, tears rolling down his cheeks as he wrote.
He had been running all over town for the past two days, but the response he received left him cold.
Sir Fux refused to meet him. His butler said he went to the prefectural capital, but Morssen knew he was in the manor.
When Mr. Morssen wished to see his eldest son, Albert, he was informed by his steward that Albert had resigned two days before, and that he had stolen a pair of crystal and silver candlesticks, which were Sir Fux's favourites.
Had it not been for Sir Fux's kindness, he would've called the police and put Arbeit on the wanted list.
Morssen was utterly disheartened. He spent the entire day at the entrance of Sir Fux's manor, but no one paid him any attention. In the end, he returned home, hungry and thirsty.
The next day, he went to look for his friends in the afternoon, only to find that they were either not there or unable to help. The only person who might be able to help him was Rubire, who had gone to Syromikian two days ago.
Morssen put down his pen and looked at the two pages he had written twice. He corrected two typos, wiped his tears, signed his name, stamped his fingerprint, and blew out the candle.
After sitting on the chair for a long time, he stood up and checked his attire under the moonlight. Then, he fished out a bottle of wine from his pocket and took a sip. Then, he crept up to the attic and clumsily climbed out of the window. Sitting on the roof, he began to slowly sip the wine from the bottle.