Chapter 14 - Wesley's Preparation Part 2

Wesley continued refining for about eight hours. Most mages only refine for an hour or two, just enough to replenish their spent mana. Wesley, on the other hand, refined for more than four times that amount. His mana capacity didn’t increase at an astonishing speed— in fact, his mana capacity wasn’t much bigger than his peers’— however, the quality of his mana was astonishing. He could do twice as much as other mages with half the mana expenditure, while his understanding of Dark Globe also grew. Of course, Wesley didn’t know this, as he had no dark mages his age to compare himself to, and old man Rale was simply too monstrous.

'This should be enough. I’m sure the sun has already set.'

Wesley immediately warped out of the basement and reappeared in the study. After looking around the study for a moment, he decided to go out and see how Lane's work was progressing.

The moment Wesley set foot outside the study, he was startled by the scene in front of him. The once desolate Manor was now bustling with activity. Around four women were cleaning the main hall, and two more were in the kitchen. There were men all over the hallways, some painting the walls, others fixing the lamps and chandeliers. There were screams everywhere— men shouting at other men to do something, others grunting under the heavy loads they were carrying. Wesley was pleasantly surprised.

'Haha, it seems Lane went all out.'

He walked through the various projects going on all over the house and made his way to Lane, who was speaking to a tall, burly man twice his size. Lane was holding some sheets in his hand and pointing at them, while the tall man also looked at the sheets, nodding his head.

"The foundation of the outer walls seems to need some reinforcement. Send some men to handle that as well."

"Understood. But the top section of the walls will need to be rebuilt. Adding up all the expenses, I’d need around a hundred gold." The burly man spoke in a low, almost whispering voice.

As soon as Wesley approached Lane and the burly man, they immediately looked up from their work. The burly man had a questioning look on his face, as if asking who Wesley was, but Lane immediately bowed respectfully and said:

"Master, I didn’t know you came out."

The burly man, hearing Lane's words, was startled. He had thought Lane was the master of the Manor, which was surprising enough, but now it seemed that this child, who appeared to be no older than Lane himself, was the true master. Wesley didn’t pay attention to the burly man and spoke to Lane:

"How are things proceeding? There seems to be a lot of activity."

"Yes, Master. We’ve started renovating the Manor. I’ve also hired a few maids to handle the cleaning and cooking. I left the hiring of the guards to a later date, after the renovations are finished."

Wesley was impressed with how competent Lane was. He simply nodded his head in satisfaction as he listened to Lane's report, then asked:

"Where are Stein and the others?"

"Stein, Wannel, and Lavar are overseeing other projects around the Manor, while little Sala is playing in the backyard."

"Good. Keep up the good work. I will be going out for a short while to take care of some business. Is there anything you need from me before I leave?"

"There is nothing, Master. Please don’t worry, I have everything under control."

"Good, I’ll be going then."

As Wesley walked out of the Manor, he saw that there were at least a hundred people working all over the place. But what amazed him was that, despite doing tedious physical labor for who knows how long, each of them had an incomparable look of satisfaction on their faces.

'The satisfaction one gets from earning a living through their own sweat is tremendous. If only nobles understood this simple fact, then this world wouldn’t be in its current state.'

The looks of dejection and hopelessness he had seen on the faces of people in the Seventh District were nowhere to be found here. These workers didn’t want wealth or gold— all they wanted was to feed themselves and their families, and to do so with dignity. Take away people’s ability to provide for their families, and you take away their dignity, tossing them into despair.

Wesley had millions of thoughts running through his mind, but he cast them aside and focused on the task at hand. It was time to take care of the Shorn Family, but he still lacked information about them.

'First, I’ll need to collect as much information about the Shorn Family as possible. And the best place for information is...'

Wesley knew that if you wanted to collect information, the best place to go was the local pub.

'Since the Shorn Family is from the Seventh District, I’ll first go to the biggest pub in the Seventh. Afterward, I’ll make my way to a pub in the Sixth District where Lane said they lived.'

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The pub in the Seventh District was almost a shanty. The only reason Wesley knew this was his destination was because of the small sign that hung outside with the word 'Tavern' on it.

'It seems this district really is rundown to the core.'

Wesley was surprised to find a pub in such a condition. After all, taverns were one of the most resilient businesses.

'In a place like this district, full of misery, there should be a lot of people drinking to forget their worries. But that won't happen if there's no money to be spent.'

Wesley was starting to hate the unfairness in this world more as time went by. Walking into the pub, he noticed it was completely empty, except for the bartender who stood behind the counter.

The moment Wesley walked in, the bartender's eyes lit up as if he had just seen a diamond. He immediately walked towards Wesley, bowed, and spoke respectfully:

"Welcome, sir. Please, have a seat."

Wesley wasn’t too surprised; it seemed this pub didn’t get many customers. He sat down, then looked up at the bartender who was standing by his side.

"Two of your house specials, please."

The bartender was delighted beyond words, his face lighting up as he heard Wesley's request. He immediately spoke:

"Coming right up!"

The bartender nearly ran to the kitchen. Wesley chuckled inwardly, but still felt some pain at the misfortune that surrounded the entire district. He kept thinking of ways to help these people. While lost in his thoughts, the bartender returned and set two roasted quails in front of Wesley.

Wesley looked at the dishes in front of him, then looked up and spoke to the bartender:

"I don't think I can eat all of this by myself. How about you join me? On me, of course."

The bartender was delighted. He wasn’t starving, but who would turn down a free meal? In fact, he was getting paid to eat, so of course he accepted.

"Thank you."

Wesley and the bartender began eating. After finishing their respective dishes, they exchanged satisfied looks and both burst out laughing. Wesley spoke first:

"Thank you for this meal. It was truly delicious."

"No, thank you. To have you grace me with your patronage and still invite me to a meal... Truly, thank you."

"Don’t mention it."

'Good. Now should be a good time to get some information.'

"You see, my family just moved to the area. We were really surprised at the state of the district. What happened here?"

The bartender’s laughing face immediately turned ugly, and a fierce look flashed in his eyes. He looked straight at Wesley and spoke:

"It’s all thanks to those vultures from the Shorn Family. They’ve bled us dry."

'Good, good. Direct to the point.'

"The Shorn Family? I’ve never heard of them."

"They’re the nobles in charge of the Seventh District. They’re nothing more than leeches, sucking the life out of this place. Did you know that this place didn’t use to be like this? Life was never easy, but we had enough. But then those bastards killed off the Black Family and took sole ownership of the district. Since then, they tripled taxes and shut down any businesses that couldn’t comply. This place became what you see now in less than a year."

The bartender was truly angry. He continued to tell Wesley how the Shorn Family would send their guards to terrorize businesses. After most businesses closed due to the high taxes, they started taxing homes, which led to many people becoming destitute and homeless. He also revealed that most of the Shorn Family's transgressions were carried out by their two sons.

After listening to the bartender for a while, Wesley decided it was time to leave. He stood up and looked at the bartender, still sitting with a sad look on his face. Wesley patted him on the shoulder and spoke:

"I’ll be leaving now, old man. I’ll visit again soon."

The bartender looked up, and realizing that Wesley was trying to console him, he squeezed out a smile and said:

"Yes, yes. Please do."

Wesley immediately left the pub and headed to the Sixth District. The Sixth District was mainly a middle-class residential area, with one-story houses and small courtyards lining the streets. There were also a few minor noble families with houses similar to the Black Manor, though they were rare.

Wesley made his way to the inn he had stayed in when he first arrived in Blackreach City. Compared to the one in the Seventh District, this inn was like a palace, with its two stories and giant, well-lit sign.

Wesley walked in and found that the inn was half-filled with people drinking and chatting. He made his way to the counter where the bartender was currently standing and sat down. The bartender looked up at Wesley with a disinterested look, but then his eyes suddenly lit up, and he said:

"Little Wesley! Why didn’t you come back last night? How did the examination go?"

"Haha, Michael. I got accepted into the academy. I also found a new place to live, so I came to tell you and have some of that famous tea you made me yesterday morning."

"Haha, Wesley! Congratulations! Let me get you some of that tea, on the house. Tell me, where are you living now?"

"Oh yes, I found a little house in the Seventh District."

Hearing "the Seventh District," Michael’s face changed. He looked at Wesley with concern and asked:

"The Seventh? Why would you live in such a place? I thought I told you how bad it is there."

*Good, this talk is heading in the right direction.*

"I was short on money, and the houses in that district are rather cheap. Only, I didn’t expect the condition of the area to be so bad. I should have listened to your warning."

"I guess it couldn’t be helped. The Seventh... Sigh... I used to live there a few years ago. But after the Shorn Family took control, those who could afford it moved out and opened businesses in other districts. Unfortunately, only a few could afford such a move, while the rest were bled dry."

*It seems the actions of the Shorn Family are known by most people. That means there would be less outrage after their death. Good.*

"But why isn't anyone doing anything? What the Shorn Family is doing can’t be right."

"Of course, no one would do anything. The people who live in the Seventh are simply too poor to matter to the city’s higher-ups. Also, the Shorn Family is extremely rich, so people are reluctant to offend them."

"But how rich could they be? They’re just a minor noble family."

"It’s true they’re minor nobles. But before becoming nobility, they were a successful merchant family with huge wealth. And after becoming nobles, they taxed the people in the Seventh to death. If it weren’t for the fact that they only became nobles recently, they would already be one of the ruling families of the city."

"I see. Such a shame," Wesley said, his voice filled with genuine concern.

"Don’t worry, little Wesley. That’s just how the world works. The nobles do what they want, and the rest of us do what we must. Let’s celebrate your acceptance."

Wesley and Michael talked until midnight. During their conversation, Wesley managed to learn the location of the Shorn Manor from Michael, as well as discovering that most of the Shorn Family’s guards were privately hired. While the guards weren’t numerous, most of them stayed within the manor. Wesley finished his chat with Michael and decided it was time to begin.

"I’ll be leaving now, Michael. I’ll come visit often."

"Haha, little Wesley, make sure you do. And be careful on your way home. The Seventh isn’t known for its safety."

"Will do. Goodnight, Michael."

'Haha, time to pay this infamous Shorn Family a visit. I wonder if I should kill them in their sleep, or wake them up so they can beg for their lives.'