Wallet Woes

The gang boss began to interrogate each person meticulously.

But this was bound to be futile; those who wanted him dead and the real thief wouldn't speak the truth.

He tried his best to see different expressions on others' faces, but with his talent, he was destined not to discern anything he wanted.

The beggars outside the courtyard were also called in one by one. Finally, a timid child, under the scolding, said, "Akai and the others gave us a lot of bread that day, we really didn't eat any."

Hearing this, Mel Carlo frowned slightly. The three of them had just been beaten, and now they were going to run into this bad luck again.

However, as long as the origin of the bread was explained, his single silver coin, which he had only used once so far, should not be implicated.

"It was you three who stole it, right? And then you used the money from the wallet to buy bread. Where's the wallet! Hand over the wallet!" The gang boss flicked the whip in his hand.

Akai shielded the other two behind him.

The whip cracked against his face, leaving a conspicuous red mark.

"Grab those three and search!"

Gang members quickly began searching them. Besides some copper coins, nothing else was found.

"Where did these copper coins come from?"

"I stole them." Mel Carlo stepped forward.

"So, you stole that wallet too!" The gang boss flicked his whip, glaring at Mel Carlo.

But his intimidation had no effect on the child before him, because an adult soul resided within this child's body.

"It wasn't me, I didn't steal anything."

As Mel Carlo shook his head, a whip struck him. The burning pain instantly surged, but he didn't feel much anger. In his eyes, the gang boss before him was already a dead man.

How could he find it in a week? He had placed the wallet in his system space.

However, to show fear, Mel Carlo still staggered back a few steps, avoiding eye contact with the man in front of him.

"Go search everywhere! You little piglets, if you don't find the wallet, you'll all die!" The gang boss, turning around in anger, continued to instruct his subordinates: "Keep a close eye on these brats. Maybe they really stole it and have hidden it now."

"Also, go search the pigsty."

He couldn't believe there were people so lacking in discernment. That was the Duke's daughter; one could tell she was different just by her attire. How could anyone dare to lay a hand on her?

After all the beggars were driven away, they walked aimlessly through the streets. Fortunately, the weather wasn't too cold yet, otherwise, they might have frozen to death on the streets.

At the same time, within the Duke's mansion, the Doll had locked herself in her room ever since her wallet was stolen. She was curled up behind the door.

It was the only gift her mother had left her, and it had been stolen just like that.

Outside the door, the head maid walked over. "Has Miss not come out yet?"

"No, it's all the fault of that wicked little thief. That wallet must be very important to Miss."

The Female Guard also walked over at this moment. "It's my fault, I shouldn't have taken Miss out. If we hadn't gone to the market, perhaps this wouldn't have happened."

"My Lord, you don't need to blame yourself. The Duke's mansion has already put pressure on the gang responsible for that area. It won't be long before the wallet is found." The head maid bowed slightly to the Female Guard.

It was also her idea to let the guard take Miss out to relax. Miss couldn't always be confined to the Duke's mansion; it wasn't good for her mental and physical health.

Ever since Madam passed away, Miss seemed to have become less lively than before.

Mel Carlo, Akai, and Lily walked towards a brightly lit bench. Although this world didn't have electric lights, it seemed to use a magical mineral to replace streetlights, and the illumination was not low, like little suns emitting red light.

"Mel, are you okay? Why did you step forward earlier? It would have been fine if you said I stole it. Now both of us have been whipped." Akai sat on the chair. He thought his skin was thick and tough, and getting whipped a couple of times wouldn't be a big deal; he'd just sleep it off.

But Mel was different. Mel was too thin and weak. After taking such a whip, he would probably be in pain for several days.

"It's nothing. Someone who likes to whip people like that won't live much longer." Mel Carlo chuckled sinisterly, not taking the whip strike seriously at all.

"Really?" Lily poked her head out. It felt a bit terrifying for them to discuss someone else's death like this.

"Yes, if they can't find the wallet, he'll definitely die. The person who lost the wallet seems to be a very important figure." Mel Carlo knew very well that the wallet was on him right now, but he absolutely wouldn't take it out.

The only thing that made him a little wary was what was going on with that scarred man named Anke. First, he had given him 20 Orens to resolve a crisis, and then he had looked at him strangely regarding the wallet issue.

The gang had many informants. It was possible that the scarred man had seen him stealing.

The situation would become complicated. It was best not to go back for a while, lest he be taken to be buried with the gang boss.

For the time being, his interests and those of the scarred man were aligned. After the boss died, Anke would likely become the new boss, and the beggars would remain beggars.

"There are still a few months until winter, do you know?" Mel Carlo asked.

"What's wrong? Three months from now."

"It's nothing, it's just that we need to consider how to get through the winter. If we don't prepare now, the winter could be very difficult." Mel Carlo was calculating that he had only been in this otherworld for three days, and the information he could gather was limited.

If he couldn't escape from here before winter, he would need to prepare in advance to cope with the cold of winter.

It was like dealing with the early stages of a game; he had very little information, yet it felt very interesting.

As the three of them were chatting, Chubby mysteriously approached them with an oil-paper package.

"Mel!"

"What, are you looking for a beating?" Mel turned his head and glanced at Chubby. He thought Chubby had come to cause trouble.

After all, he had just taken a whipping, so it was normal for the Chubby to show off a little.

"No, no! I'll treat you to something delicious!" the Chubby quickly explained, opening the oil paper package in his hands.

The oil paper package contained a large pork chop, which looked well-roasted by its color, with some bite marks already on it.

It was then, by the light of the mineral street lamp, that Mel Carlo noticed the grease stains around the Chubby's mouth.

"Where did you get that? Did you steal it?" Mel Carlo looked at the pork chop before him, feeling a bit hungry. He hadn't eaten anything today since his last full meal yesterday.

"No, definitely not stolen. You guys eat, I'm already full," the Chubby patted his belly.

Seeing that the other party had no ill intentions, Akai and Lily were already starting to salivate, and Mel Carlo had nothing more to worry about.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.