I Had Them Check On Nick
“Good work, Mr. Takumi. Thank you for picking up Milina.”
“Not at all. It was easy, as she didn’t have any heavy luggage. Also, we stopped by at Mr. Kalis’s store, as we had to deliver the herbs.”
“I see. So that’s why Nick didn’t stop by today?”
“Yes. Thankfully, Ms. Lyra had loaded the herbs onto the carriage.”
After Milina and the others left, we moved to the dining hall as we continued to talk.
It was so we could have a late lunch.
Apparently, Ms. Claire and Sebastian had been talking so much that they hadn’t eaten yet.
Tilura had eaten ahead of them and was training now… I would join her after I ate my own lunch… Ah, but I also have to spend time for my Weed Cultivation research… I still haven’t figured out my limits for using it one day.
“Mr. Takumi. About your request…”
Sebastian brought it up as we were eating.
I felt bad, as I knew that he was busy dealing with the malicious store, but I had asked him to look into Nick’s past.
While Mr. Kalis said that he was working seriously now, there were other things to consider, depending on the number and nature of his past crimes.
He had made a scene in public, and regardless of whether he was capable of reform, if people started spreading rumors that I was hiding him, then it could cause trouble for Ms. Claire and the others.
And I might have to do something for the other victims as well… Apologizing would not be enough.
“As for Nick…there were fewer offenses than I thought. While he looks like he’s accustomed to threatening people, it was mostly him imitating his friends.”
“Yes. However, there are other offenses, even when ignoring the time he threatened Lady Claire, as well as his escape from prison.”
“Uhh, can you tell me the details about how many there are?”
“Let me see. First, there are four counts of threatening merchants. This includes Mr. Kalis’s store, as well as the malicious one. If you include the event with Lady Claire, the number would be five. Also, he escaped from prison… He escaped right after being caught.”
“Hmm… The malicious store is one thing, but what about the others?”
“He apparently did this while alone, so they were able to drive him out before he caused any damage.”
“He didn’t cause any damage?”
While I had been able to deal with him when I had only just started my training, he had looked so intimidating… He had a shaved head now, but I wouldn’t have been surprised if some places gave him money out of fear…
“Well…it seems like he didn’t look like that until recently. My guess is that he changed his appearance in order to intimidate others.”
So that explained it.
And it had been quite effective, I suppose.
“Apparently, he changed shortly before we first met him with Lady Claire. It was around then that he met the others by chance.”
“So…what happened to his friends?”
“They had many more offenses, when I looked into it. My view of the matter is that they pulled Nick in and made him take part in their crimes.”
So he was trying to be bad, but failing, and it wasn’t until he changed his appearance that he caught the eyes of some gang, who then asked him to join them…
It was a very…typical pattern for delinquents in Japan…
“While it was a coincidence, it gave us information about that store. And while there was no damage, I think it would be best if he went around and apologized to each store, and then the matter can be explained to the guards.”
“No, it was no trouble at all.”
“Not only am I grateful that you looked into it…but you agreed to let me hire him in spite of the possible damage to this house… Thank you.”
“But Mr. Takumi. I do think you were right back then. While he is hardly an innocent man, I don’t think that merely punishing everyone who has made a mistake is right.”
I was thankful towards Sebastian for allowing it, especially because of the possibility that it could affect their reputation.
But it seemed like Ms. Claire was of a similar mind as me.
It wasn’t that I believed that everyone could be reformed…there were unforgivable crimes that could not be undone.
And Nick had done something that no person should do.
However, he was working seriously now, and it seemed like he could be reformed. And according to Sebastian, his past crimes were rather light.
Though, he would still need to make some apologies.
“Well…it seems like with this case, he was struggling to feed himself, which could be taken into account. However, you will be more careful from now on, won’t you?”
While it was no excuse for going around and threatening people, it made things a little more understandable.
Though, Sebastian gave me a warning there at the end… I would have to be careful…I think.
We finished eating lunch, and just as I was thinking about joining up with Tilura and training, Milina came to the dining hall.
“Milina. What do you think about the mansion?”
“I’m relieved that there are people here who I know. And the room was very nice… Thank you, Lady Claire.”
Milina was asked what she thought about the mansion, and so she answered.
She had looked lonely as soon as she left the orphanage, but now that she saw familiar faces, she seemed more cheerful.
“What are you going to do now, master?”
“Me? I was thinking about doing some sword practice.”
“A sword…? But when will you be studying medicine?”
Ah, right. Milina had come here in order to learn about medicine… We were supposed to study it together.
“Well…let me see… I’ll train for a little, and then we’ll study. uh, How about one hour from now?”
“I understand. I’ll do my best!”
I left the enthusiastic Milina in the dining hall, and then I went out into the garden to join Tilura.
There, Tilura was training quietly.
…She was working so hard and seriously, so I couldn’t slack off.
Studying Weed Cultivation, sword training, and learning about medicine. I had a lot to do, but I felt more motivated after seeing Tilura.