A Secretly Capable Child Is Seeking For Her Dad - Chapter 96

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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A Powerful Child Searches for Dad Episode 96

A moment later.

Basto stood in front of the inn, holding his forehead as he opened his lips.

“…I’ll say this one last time. Whatever happens in the square, we won’t rashly intervene.”

“Yesssss!”

Tie was the first to answer,

“How many times do I have to say I understand? Anyway, this is tiresome.”

Then Veil replied irritably.

However, Basto sighed and recalled what had happened earlier.

Earlier.

When Tie was caught trying to sneak out of the inn with Kamang, she was utterly brazen.

“Tie, where are you going now?”

“To the square with Kamang!”

“Why to the square?”

“Well… if bad villains bully people, Tie has to save them, right?”

Basto was left speechless and closed his mouth.

But soon he spoke seriously.

“Listen carefully, Astie. You’re not going. Making enemies with nobles is dangerous in any situation.”

“Huh? But Tie is a mercenary?”

“Us being mercenaries and this village’s affairs are separate matters. We have no obligation to rescue them.”

At those words, the child looked shocked.

Then she fiddled with the mercenary badge on her chest for a while before asking in disbelief.

“Then we’re playing the bystander role here? Not the good guys…?”

That made sense, since Tie had been seriously misunderstanding one thing about mercenaries all this time.

‘I thought mercenaries and heroes were the same thing!’

In young Tie’s mind, ‘mercenaries’ were like some kind of Avengers.

Helping people when they’re in danger.

Defeating monsters stylishly.

When people shout ‘Thank you, Commander King!’, giving a thumbs up as if it’s nothing and laughing cheerfully.

In fact, situations in Pearl City and the Weapon District always flowed that way.

So Tie had been building her pride as a mercenary day by day.

But all of that was an illusion.

“Sh, shocking…”

When Tie staggered in place, Basto was at a loss for words.

Then Veil didn’t miss the opportunity and began persuading him.

“You know what? You’re not just breaking the kid’s innocence, you’re grinding it to pieces.”

“What do you mean I’m breaking Astie’s innocence…”

“Do you want to take away even her sense of mission from a kid who’s already living a tough life? What if the kid submits a resignation letter? You know Agabert would just be over too, right?”

Basto soon had no choice but to agree with Veil’s words.

More precisely, it was because Tie looking dejected was weighing quite heavily on his heart.

“Haaa.”

Basto sighed while gazing at the square where many people had already gathered.

‘There probably won’t be any trouble.’

As Nordics had mentioned at the pub, each crate in the square was packed full of coal.

In other words, since they had met the tribute quota, no particular problems should arise.

Of course, there was just one thing.

There was one crate that looked a bit concerning.

Basto gazed at that crate placed at twelve o’clock with troubled eyes.

The amount of coal in there was slightly less than the other crates.

But since it was a very minor difference, Basto deliberately looked away.

‘It should be fine.’

Basto also knew what Veil’s intention was.

Veil seemed to be wary that the knights would use violence against the villagers.

Even more so after the villagers used the word ‘suffer’.

Throughout their journey together, he had shown indifference to others’ affairs, so it was puzzling why this time was an exception.

Then he heard Tie chattering beside him.

“Veil oppa. If bad knights bully people, Tie will deploy first!”

“What are you going to do?”

“What do you mean what. Ask Ppupppu to make fog and then we’ll all run away together!”

Basto, who was listening, shook his head as if he couldn’t stop her.

That’s when it happened.

“Now, now! Everyone move aside!”

Suddenly the opposite side of the square became noisy.

When he turned his gaze, he saw a group of knights gathered there.

Then a man in fine clothes pushed through the knights and strutted into the square.

It was Reginald, the current lord of Kaldenbain.

“This week’s collection, my lord.”

At the knight’s report, Reginald slowly looked around the square.

He widened his eyes and soon burst into satisfied laughter.

“Hahaha! I knew it! Didn’t I tell you, sir. You can do it if you try?!”

He walked around the square with excited steps, looking into each packed crate one by one.

“What? Mining output is decreasing? The mine shaft is on the verge of collapse? Ridiculous. I figured out long ago that it’s all excuses and lies.”

Reginald gazed at the village residents with leisurely eyes.

“If you put in effort, it all works out like this, doesn’t it? Hmm?”

Immediately the air in the square turned cold.

But he shamelessly continued speaking.

“When you were making various excuses and being lazy, I was a bit displeased, but either way, I’ll highly value this effort and freeze the collection amount for the time being.”

He giggled and lifted his chin.

“So from now on, with respect for me in your hearts, mine with care and dedication. Well then…”

But at that moment.

Reginald, who was about to leave the square, froze in place as if he had discovered something.

His face, which had been filled with laughter, instantly became expressionless.

He soon quietly walked somewhere.

It was toward the crate that Basto had been watching earlier, the one with slightly less coal than the other crates.

“…Quilri.”

Reginald, who had read the surname branded on the crate, raised his head.

“Who is the Quilri family?”

As soon as those words ended, someone was dragged out of the crowd by the knights’ hands.

It was an old man with a crutch and loosely tied gray hair.

When Reginald held out his palm to the knight beside him, the knight handed him what appeared to be a ledger.

Reginald, who had skimmed through the paper, narrowed his eyes.

“Why didn’t your family meet the tribute quota?”

The old man visibly trembled as he opened his lips.

“Re, respected lord. Three days ago I fell in the mine shaft and br, broke my leg, so I couldn’t mine…”

However, Reginald immediately cut off the old man’s words.

“It says here that the Quilri family has a record of not meeting the mining quota 6 weeks ago too.”

The old woman’s eyes widened.

“That’s not true! The following week we definitely made an additional tribute for the missing amount…!”

But Reginald once again raised one hand as if annoyed, cutting off the Elder’s words.

When he nodded to the Paladin, the Paladin roughly struck and knocked over the crutch the Elder was leaning on.

“Ugh!”

The Elder, losing his balance, collapsed onto the Square floor.

“Grandmother!”

At the same time, a Child around Tie’s age burst out from the crowd.

The Child ran over with a pale face, embraced the Elder, and looked at her with pity.

“G-Grandmother… are you okay? Huh?”

“Rea. Go back, hurry and go back…”

The Elder spoke urgently, but the Child didn’t loosen her grip on the Old Woman.

Then Reginald, who had been quietly watching the scene, muttered.

“…Now that I look at it, even with a broken leg, there was a way to pay the tribute, wasn’t there.”

The Old Woman looked up with a dazed expression.

Reginald continued speaking nonchalantly.

“You should have sent your family to the Coal Mine instead. Originally, the narrower and lower the Mine Shaft, the easier it is for kids to work. When kids crawl or lie down, there’s no Mine Shaft they can’t enter, right? Your family will tribute 30% more than the usual amount on the next collection day.”

He grinned wickedly at the Child.

“And little one, you move aside. Your grandmother needs to receive punishment for not meeting the tribute amount…”

That was the moment.

Veil charged from somewhere and drove his fist into Reginald’s right jaw.

“Kuh, kuhek-!”

Fresh red blood splattered long across the ground.

Then, two teeth that had been knocked out raw rolled around at Reginald’s feet.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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