Chapter 4: Abel Carriers [2]

After finishing my meal, I went into my room.

My mind was very complicated.

The workers were shocked to hear they were being asked to pay compensation. In addition, Deacon Miller Xavier even asked if I was serious.

'I guess I was originally a very cold person?' (old owner of body)

The results of checking the employees' information were disastrous.

Their loyalty was all 'low.' Some even had 'very low' scores. It was quite serious.

If my reputation is like this, who on earth will protect me?

"No, wait a minute. Now that I think about it, there are no knights?"

That wasn't the only strange thing.

There were not even a single soldier, let alone a knight. Without a proper defense system, it was natural for workers to die.

In fact, Tavion did not die from overwork, but was attacked by a monster.

'That's a pain in the ass.'

The immediate task was to acquire information.

Basic knowledge about Abel Carriers and this world.

First of all, I needed those things. That way, I will be able to respond when something happens. I can't always improvise.

I searched the room. However, I found neither a diary nor even a doodle.

"How can a person who is said to be the best among judges be so far from a book?" I couldn't help but laugh.

In the end, it seemed like I had no choice but to get help. I gave Deacon Xavier an order. Searᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"I want to know the status of the property."

"What?"

"Why? Is it that strange?"

"No. You didn't check it when you first came here, so I was just confused for a moment."

"How long has it been since I came?"

"It's been three months."

"Then it's time to figure it out. Please organize it and bring it."

"...Yes."

It was a quite shocking reaction, but it was okay. Is there an easier way than this? I have to endure at least some strange looks.

After a while, the butler returned with some documents.

"Here it is, Your Majesty."

"Great job."

I picked up the paper as calmly as possible.

But the moment I read the first line, I couldn't keep my composure.

For a moment, I thought my eyeballs would pop out.

'What? This.'

I could barely stop myself from yelling, but I couldn't hide my surprise. If the butler hadn't lowered his head, he would have thought it strange.

'100 hectares of wheat fields, 100 hectares of vineyards, a mansion, three villas, five warehouses, 40 horses…'

After that, miscellaneous content followed, but it didn't really catch my eye. Because the first items were so shocking.

They said I was a duke, and my wealth was enormous.

'How much is 100 hectares?'

Since 1 hectare is 10,000 square meters...

'247.105 acres?'

A large piece of land measuring over 600,000 acres including wheat fields and vineyards. 8.169 acres is about the size of 5 soccer fields, so it was an area that could fit approximately 300 people.

But suddenly the butler opened his mouth with an awkward expression.

"There was a lot more loss than expected. It's because it's not managed very well."

I couldn't help but be even more surprised.

Is he saying this has decreased now? So how much wealth did I have in the past?

Hiding my bewildered heart, I nodded. Then suddenly I asked a question.

"How much compensation should be given to Tavion?"

"It's so unprecedented, I don't know."

"Money may not solve everything, but it should still be an amount of comfort. Please tell me your opinion."

"I think 5 goldens will be enough."

The moment I heard the butler's words, several memories came to mind.

It wasn't anything grand, it was information about the currency units in use.

One golden coin was worth five Ceylons, and one Ceylons coin was worth five silver coins.

It costs approximately 120 goldens per year to feed 50 serfs.

It was about 1 Ceylon per person per month. If it's 5 goldens, can I say it's roughly 2 years' worth of food expenses?

If it was a lot, it was a lot. If it was a little, it was a small amount. I shook my head and answered.

"What? Really?"

"When have you seen me talk nonsense?"

"You barely said anything… no."

"Tavion's funeral expenses will be calculated separately, so please pay compensation to his family first."

"Yes."

The butler looked even more surprised than before. It seemed like he had no idea I would pay so much compensation.

As I watched that scene, the corner of my mouth curled up.

After Deacon Miller Xavier stepped down, more and more memories of Abel Carriers came to mind.

'Remodeling the reputation of this socially inept guy. It starts now.'

In fact, Abel wasn't a strange guy from the beginning.

When the dukedom was alive, he was quite a cheerful guy. However, people changed since he lost his parents to an infectious disease.

He was so disappointed that he couldn't do anything.

The emperor felt sorry for this and summoned Abel from the north, even by putting him in a decent position.

However, not much has changed. He just repeated meaningless commuting and idling around.

'He lost his reason for living.'

Somehow, I felt like I knew why I had been possessed by this body.

My life was truly stubborn. I grew up in a single-mother household, but when I became an adult, I lost all ties.

It was because my mother remarried.

I did my best to survive.

The exact opposite of Abel Carriers.

"Is that what he wanted? Good. I will make everything happen."

To be honest, the conditions weren't that bad.

Although it was inconvenient to not have modern civilization, in return I gained a high status and a lot of wealth.

What more could I ask for here? All I can do is just work hard and do what I do. My decision has been made.

What should I do to restore my lost reputation?

'I have to take care of my people first.'

I left the mansion straight away. The purpose was to inspect the fields, warehouses, and workers. Immediately afterward, the butler followed.

"Your Highness, why did you come out?"

Originally, Abel stayed in his room all weekend.

Then, when Monday came, he reluctantly went to work at the courthouse. Since his behavior suddenly changed, it was natural for him to ask this question.

"The yield was lower than I expected. I would like to find out why."

"That…"

The butler frowned. I felt like I knew what happened next even without hearing it.

I guess they just said it was because the owner didn't care. I tried to ignore it and walked on.