Stealing bread?
Garrett lowered his gaze, remaining silent. If theft is a sin, then stealing food might be the lightest of sins—
If a person would starve to death without stealing food, then the one at fault is clearly not him, but the society that forces him to commit such a cri.
Jean Valjean stole a loaf of bread and was sentenced to five years of hard labor.
Garrett always rembered how the great literary master Hugo described this man with such deep compassion, and how all subsequent films, operas, and literary analyses showed him imnse sympathy.
But Garrett rembered that he provided ample food for everyone in the hospital, every spellcaster, guard, and nurse. So Garrett turned his gaze to little Jenny, who stepped forward and stared at the woman nad Maria:
"Take the bread out of your clothes."
"This..."
"Take it out!"
Garrett silently took two steps back, turning away from the crowd. There was a sound of physical struggle, then Jenny's respectful voice rang out:
"It's done, sir."
Garrett turned around. The woman's face was flushed, holding a hard loaf of bread in her hands, standing there uneasily. The bread wasn't large, just about the size of two hands cupped together, with a small bite cautiously taken out of it.
Perhaps, she was using this action to show that she "had already eaten," so she could hide the bread in her clothes and take it ho for her children to eat?
"Jenny, how is the food supply in my hospital?"
Garrett asked softly. Jenny bowed slightly:
"According to your orders, everyone can eat their fill. Each nurse's al includes a loaf of bread, a bowl of oatal, a cup of milk, and a large bowl of cooked vegetables. Additionally, each al includes an egg, or a piece of fish, or a piece of at the size of an adult's palm."
As she spoke, the surrounding laundry won nodded, whispering in agreent:
"Yes, yes! Miss Jenny is right, no one dares to short us!"
"Doing this rough work, who can eat so much? It's already great to be full with oatal!"
"And there's milk! And at! If we're still not full, we can add more oatal as we please!"
"Honestly, I try to eat my fill at the hospital now and don't eat at ho, saving the rations for my children... Where can you find such a kind employer!"
Kind... Garrett didn't dare say that, he just tried to make sure his employees were full. Spellcasters had their standards, eating only the finest foods and delicate dishes for each al;
Warriors had their standards, they could eat black bread, but they had to be full and have enough at. Only with enough nutrition could they sustain their intense physical activities;
As for the nurses... as ordinary people, what Garrett could do for them was to provide tily and adequate als. According to the daily dietary standards of residents, he tried to properly balance the main food, vegetables, and at, so they wouldn't go hungry.
As for stealing food?
Garrett closed his eyes slightly and activated a teleportation spell. In a flash, he transported from the crowd in the square to the center of the mage tower. He knocked on the panel of the tower spirit and issued an order:
"MOSS, bring up the monitoring results of the invisible servants in the cafeteria. Show yesterday, three days ago, five days ago, and ten days ago."
"Yes, boss."
The tower spirit—MOSS No. 2—imdiately projected a light screen. Although Garrett rarely managed these trivial matters, he at least knew to install surveillance and let the tower spirit control the invisible servants to patrol irregularly.
The hall, the periter wall, the maternity building, the pharmacy, the ward corridors, the laundry room, the sewage treatnt room... all the places he could think of that might have issues were regularly checked by invisible servants. With a command, the data was imdiately retrieved.
Garrett scrutinized the data, and it was indeed as the nurses had said: there was enough food, and everyone could eat their fill. He also checked the bulk goods in and out, and found no evidence of anyone in charge of the cafeteria secretly transporting rice, flour, or at outside.
He then teleported to the kitchen, where the ovens were steaming hot, and the countertops were piled high with vegetables and at. Garrett quickly walked around, seeing rows of large pots, each bubbling continuously:
Oatal porridge, mush with lots of potatoes and corn, vegetable soup...
Stored grains, vegetables on the counter, eggs, at, and fish all looked fresh without any signs of mold or rot. This indicated that at least the cafeteria managers weren't skimming money.
It was also because Garrett laughed at himself: this wasn't the world he was from, where evidence had to be painstakingly collected and dealt with according to the law.
Here, if he suspected an ordinary person of embezzlent, he could directly use spells to interrogate them, throwing spells like "Charm Person" at them. Once the truth was revealed, he could bind them to the city hall, and if he wanted them dead, they would be dead.
And if it wasn't an ordinary person—those spellcasters working in the hospital, didn't they all know that following him properly was the best path to promotion?
But if there were no issues everywhere, it ant one thing: the situation outside was indeed very serious. Garrett slowly walked out of the cafeteria, returning to the arguing nurses. A glance around, and all the won lowered their heads, not daring to breathe.
"What are you all still doing here?" Garrett said slowly:
"Is there no work to be done in the hospital? Are all the sheets washed? Have the duvet covers and pillowcases been cleaned? Have the walls, bed fras, and small tables been wiped with disinfectant? Have all the patients been checked, and is there nothing else they need?"
"We'll go right away!"
The nurses and laundry won ran off. Only Jenny stood still, and the woman who had stolen the bread stood trembling in front of Garrett. Seeing the crowd disperse, she knelt down with a thud, pleading bitterly:
"Please don't drive away, sir, please don't drive away! I won't dare again! Deduct my wages if you must, punish in any other way, just please don't drive away! If you throw out now, I really won't survive—"
She prostrated herself on the ground, crying bitterly. Garrett, with his hands behind his back, looked down at her silently for a long ti before sighing:
"What is your monthly salary, Maria?"
"Five silver coins, sir." Maria shrank back timidly. Five silver coins, working 10 hours a day, with lunch and dinner included.
For a laundry woman who knew nothing and only had strength, finding such a job, being able to eat well and not be bullied, was already very good.
"Five silver coins." Garrett sighed:
"I rember flour is about a copper coin a pound, for bread..."
"You can't buy it anymore, sir!" Maria raised her head suddenly:
"The cheapest rye flour, mixed with a lot of bran, is two copper coins for three pounds! Bread, the bread you provide, the size of two hands cupped together, costs three coppers for one!"
Garrett gasped. From one copper coin a pound to two copper coins for three pounds, it seed like a small increase, but it was a 50% price hike. How could the poorest urban dwellers withstand a 50% price hike?!
"And this is in Nevis, where the archmages have rcy on us and keep the grain prices down." Maria continued to cry, lying on the ground:
"My husband's sister's family, in their city, the price of flour has increased fivefold! Fivefold! They held out for two months and couldn't hold on anymore..."
At this point, tears were streaming down her face, and her voice choked:
"A couple with three children, dragging the whole family to rely on us. They can't find work, my husband is kind-hearted and can't bear to drive them away... the children have been hungry for two days... adults can endure it, but the children can't..."
Garrett sighed deeply. He looked around, seeing no one spying, and casually lifted his hand, sending two mage hands to lift the woman off the ground:
"Regardless, taking food from the hospital is always wrong, madam."
"Yes, yes, I am guilty." Maria bowed frantically. Garrett had to add another mage hand and then turned to Jenny:
"Things must be done with rules. Eating is allowed, but taking is not, this is the rule. However," he closed his eyes slightly:
"If it's just taking your own portion out, just, just pretend you didn't see it..."
"Yes, sir." Jenny bowed deeply with a face full of pity. She hesitated, then finally stamred:
"But sir, if they are not full—"
"Bread can be taken, eggs, fish, and at must be eaten on the spot, and soone should supervise. Additionally," Garrett's face turned stern, trying to make his tone as severe as possible:
"If soone makes a mistake in the hospital, regardless of whether it's because they didn't eat enough, were hungry, or lacked energy, they will be imdiately dismissed. In the current situation, I think there are plenty of people willing to be hired, let them think it through."
"Oh, and make the bread half as big again."
Jenny curtsied and left quickly, taking the woman with her. Garrett stood still, closing his eyes for a long ti before slowly, slowly sighing—
He established the hospital, stocked up on food, provided good treatnt for the security and dical staff, trying to create a small haven of peace and warmth.
But now, the storm outside was still pouring in.
When the people suffer during peaceti, they suffer during chaos. Disasters caused by people or nature, the people suffer the most.
However, the nearby people had already started to flee for famine... It's only June, and they have already started fleeing for famine? Didn't the council prepare in advance, storing grain and stabilizing prices?
If they can't hold on in June, by the harvest season, winter, and next spring, wouldn't they sell their children and die in droves?
Garrett paced around in circles, unable to stand by and do nothing. No, he had to tell the teacher. If he ran into the reviewers, he had to tell them too—
Speaking of which, he didn't know anyone in this review committee. Maybe he should use the excuse of asking about the negotiation progress and how much money he could get to find them?
He stomped his foot, took out the "Endless Ink Pen," and activated its teleportation function. His figure disappeared on the spot and reappeared at the top of Igor Peak, looking up at the towering Tower of Heaven.
This thing's teleportation function was originally set to Igor Peak, outside the lock. Garrett could modify it after reaching level 7.
Unfortunately, Garrett's level in teleportation was not good. Although his mage level had surpassed it, he still couldn't modify it...
Fortunately, he didn't need to. He commuted to work every day, joking and laughing with Cirilla and Bernard on Appa's back. It was convenient. As for teleportation, he left it for seeing the teacher.
The Lord of Thunder quickly t with him. Hearing Garrett's report and suggestions, the Lord of Thunder didn't show any surprise. After listening, he directly pulled out a piece of paper, cast an "Arcane Mark" on it, and tossed it to him:
"This matter wasn't originally ant for you. But since you asked—take this note to the review committee, and tell them it's my idea. That certain count's territory, you go and run it."
Garrett held the note and withdrew, tears streaming down his face. Teacher, you didn't write a word on this note, only left an "Arcane Mark"—equivalent to your personal seal for a mage—are you letting fill it in myself?
Can I write whatever I want?
Alright, I wouldn't dare...
Also, which count's territory is it? What's the matter? Teacher, you are so vague, how can you just send off like this...
He muttered as he went downstairs, taking the elevator all the way down to the 120th floor of the Tower of Heaven. The review committee's office wouldn't change location for no reason.
Garrett had been so familiar with the review committee for years—interrogations, etings, negotiations, asking for money and projects.
The review committee's eight mbers, as usual, each represented a different school, serving as rotating mbers. The office door's naplate didn't show nas, only the representative emblems of each school—Garrett guessed, probably to save budget.
Thus, Garrett was naturally brought to the office of the evocation school's representative.
"Master Nordmark? Please sit."
This rotating mber was a middle-aged woman in a dark blue mage robe, embroidered with a few snowflake patterns in silver thread. Maybe a mage specializing in ice and snow?
No wonder the office didn't need air conditioning, and the temperature was two degrees lower...
Garrett sat down properly before her. Taking the tea cup handed by the staff, he observed the other party:
This female mage was about forty years old, with a stern face, her hair tightly coiled in a bun. Deep nasolabial folds, a furrowed brow, even when greeting with the note, she didn't relax.
"Hello, I am Eliza Usman, the rotating mber of this term's evocation school." The female mage glanced at the note, then filed it away, searching a file rack. She greeted quickly:
"I already know your purpose. There happens to be a task requiring a mage of sufficient level to go. Since it's the Lord of Thunder's intention, please take this—ah, here it is."
She swiftly pulled out a docunt marked in light yellow, confird it, and handed it to Garrett:
"On the island to the west, Count Roskon refuses to store grain in advance or open the granary during the famine. Now, there are already large numbers of refugees in his territory. The council is negotiating to guide the refugees to other areas, but he refuses—"
"So soone needs to be stationed?"
Garrett blurted out. Usman smiled formally:
"Yes. Specific negotiations, guiding refugees, and transportation work are being done, but we need soone with enough weight to sit and negotiate. Now, it's you."
"I will go imdiately!"
The Kingdom of Kent consists of two large islands and several small ones. The western island, Eoran, is known for its lush trees, rivers, and is called the "Erald Isle" or "Green Jewel Island."
Count Roskon's territory is in the central north of Eoran, about 200 miles of sea route from Nevis, and another 200 miles of land route after landing.
Based on the information provided by the review committee staff, the council had already prepared a fast ship for the envoys, but Garrett was in a hurry—
"No need! Find a fast ship to wait at the nearest point to Eoran, I'll go by land directly!"
There are already refugees!
That ans people are already dying!
At this ti, arriving earlier would be better!
"The nearest is Belton Port, only 20 miles of sea route, but—"
"That will do!"
Garrett jumped up, ran down. Returning to the mage tower, he raised his voice:
"Bernard! Call Appa! Cirilla! I'm going to Eoran in the west, are you coming with ?"
"Of course we are!"
"Then hurry! Pack your things, and let's go!"
He explained the situation while finding his long-unused space bag—the biggest one had been taken by Lynn—sweeping things into it. Cirilla listened for a mont, then raised her eyebrows:
"Why let Appa run? We can fly straight there! Much faster, we'll arrive tonight!"
"Fly straight..."
"Fly straight! I'll carry you!" She spread her arms wide, proudly lifting her head:
"I'm an adult now! I can carry you, Bernard, and Appa, even more if needed!"
At sunset, atop the mage tower, a giant silver dragon soared into the sky. Bernard clung to a spine, Garrett sat in front of him, holding the cat-sized Appa, wrapped in a gentle white cloud—
A shield crafted by the silver dragon for them. With it, they were protected from wind and rain.
Breaking through the cold rain, through the clouds, the silver dragon spread its wings, leaping out from the rolling cloud waves to the thick storm clouds above.
The warm light of the setting sun enveloped them, coating the silver dragon's scales and Garrett's sun-facing face with a faint golden glow.
"Cirilla, let's go! West, south! Fly along the coast, over the sea, to the big island!"
Please take a mont to rate this novel at Novelupdate.
User Comments
0 comments from readers