Cornflower Witch

Chapter 372 Post-Disaster Investigation
"Why is all the credit going to those guys when it was all done by Hedra?"

In her dormitory room, Luo Weier looked at the new newspaper in her hand, a dissatisfied expression on her face.

"Because those credits are useless to Hedra, while police officers can get promotions, raises, and extra funding by getting credits," Aurora put down her book and answered with a hint of helplessness.

"Didn't Hedra mention this yesterday?"

"But seeing it still makes me a little unhappy." Luo Weier closed the newspaper, picked up the golden tabby cat rubbing against her calf, held it in her arms and rubbed it, then hugged it and rubbed it with her cheek.

The golden cat was a bit silly. With its two front legs being pinched by Luo Weier, it opened its eyes wide, looked around innocently, and let out a meow.

"Hedra said he's going to the police station's celebration party tonight and will be back late, so we won't be going out to dinner together."

“Alright, then we’ll have to do it together tomorrow.” Luo Weier lay down on the table, pressed the kitten onto her knees, then it jumped down, shook its fur, and crawled under Luo Weier’s chair to lie down.

……

Meanwhile, Hiltia was having dinner with a group of police officers at a restaurant. After finishing her meal, she sat in a corner and listened to the officers next to her recount the results of their interrogations.

"He explained why he chose to target the orcs." The officer sipped his drink.

Why is that?

"Because the person who cheated him on the black market back then was a leopard-eared beastman. If it weren't for that incident, he would have already advanced to the third tier. You could say that his life was ruined by that time he was cheated."

“Extreme hatred and resentment twisted his mind, causing him to specifically target orcs. In addition, orcs do not have a high status in the Asra region, so they face less pressure from being hunted.”

“Sigh…” Hiltiya sighed.

"Are the families of those dead orcs being taken care of now?"

"Part of the compensation will be paid from Ibis Jellivin's assets, but he won't have much left."

“We can’t help much either. The police station receives many cases every day. At most, we can help punish the murderers, but we can’t help the victims.”

“I know.” Hilti was not the kind of naive child. She knew that people in the police station also faced many problems. It was already very humane of her to talk to her about these things.

“Give me the list of those victims, I’ll go take a look,” Hiltiya said after thinking for a moment.

"Are you sure you want to go? This is completely beyond your responsibilities. Besides, you're a student; where would you find the time, energy, and money?" The other person shook their head.

"And the most important thing for you now is to focus on your studies, prepare for further education and to enter a higher education institution."

"Having a kind heart is a good thing, but meddling too much can harm both yourself and others," the other person thought for a moment and reminded them again.

"I've seen far too many people repay kindness with enmity, tsk tsk."

“I understand, and I will be mindful of the limits,” Hiltiya replied.

"Okay, it's good that you're mentally prepared. I'll have my colleagues compile the list and addresses for you tomorrow."

"If they ask, you'd better say you're sent by the authorities, otherwise they'll keep bothering you."

"Thank you, I understand."

Three days later, Siltia and her two roommates arrived at Agate Street.

"Is this the place?" Luo Weier looked at the dilapidated house in front of her and compared it with the address in her hand.

"That should be it." Aurora looked around and nodded.

“Let’s go in and take a look. According to the records, the victim’s family includes two children and an elderly person.” Hiltiya knocked on the door.

After a while, a coughing sound came from behind the door, then the door was opened, and a thin, short old man appeared, his face full of wrinkles, leaning on a wooden cane.

"Hello." The three greeted each other briefly, and then Hilti introduced their group's background.

“The previous perpetrator has been caught. We are here to compensate the family.” Hiltiya produced the police station’s certificate.

After squinting at them for a while, the old man stepped aside to let them in.

"Please sit down. It's a pity I don't have much to offer you." He slowly walked into the house, brought out a pot of water, and placed it on the table.

"The cups in the room aren't very clean. If you're thirsty, you can drink some water directly."

"Thank you." The three of them drank the water without much interest.

Hiltiya looked around the room and was slightly surprised to find that there was almost nothing of value there.

She was prepared for the orcs' plight in the Asra district; after all, this was the Mage Alliance, not orc-ruled territory, and orcs were inherently unsuitable for mages, hence their lack of importance. However, the Asra district was a relatively wealthy central region of the Mage Alliance. Even waiters and porters on the streets earned over ten silver coins a month, and slightly better shops offered 20 silver coins a month. With such income, her family shouldn't be in such dire straits.

After hearing Hilti's question, the old man sat on the stool against the wall, looked at the young girl, and shook his head calmly. He was neither angry nor mocking, as if he no longer had the strength to argue. He simply explained the reason in a calm manner.

"Yes, the salary in the Asura District is much better than in other places, but the cost of living is also very high. You have to make sure you don't get sick, stay young and strong forever, and don't have any family burdens in order to live a good life."

"The cost of medical treatment and medicine when you are sick is very expensive. Once you get old or disabled, it is difficult to find suitable work because there is a lot of competition. In addition, the expenses increase significantly for each additional person you support, and the cost is several times that of other regions."

"So, the result is what you see."

"Feel sorry."

After a moment of silence, Hilti asked again.

"What about the two children?"

“I’m studying with the teacher, but I can only pay the tuition up to this semester,” he replied slowly.

"They are orc teachers from Agate Street. They charge very low fees and can teach them to read and do basic arithmetic, so they won't be cheated when they get a job later." As for getting into the Mage Alliance school, forget about it; the teachers here don't have that kind of knowledge or ability yet.

"When will they be back?"

"Soon," the old man replied briefly, his gaze passing over the three people and looking towards the door.

Half an hour later, the two orc children trotted back. When they got home, they saw the three girls inside. They were a little shy, but also somewhat admiring, since all three were wearing fine clothes and were exceptionally beautiful.

"Come in, these three ladies are here to help us," the old man beckoned.

"Hmm." Two orc children stepped across the threshold and came in.

One of them has small, curved horns on its head, while the other has no horns but has unusual eyes, with bluish sclera and larger pupils.

After briefly introducing herself and her background again, Hilti asked the two what they were currently studying.

"I'm studying Chapter 12 of Book 1 of 'A Brief History of the League,'" one of the children with bluish eyes answered proudly.

"What's this chapter about?" Hiltiya asked gently.

"He recounted the beginning of the 'Battle of Iron and Fire,' saying that firearms were more powerful than knights, and that for the first time, knowledge triumphed over flesh and armor," he recited from the textbook.

"Looks like they're learning very well," Hiltiya thought to herself, and then chatted with the two children for a while longer.

"Here are 200 silver coins. Take them and use them sparingly. They should last you for a while." Before leaving, Hilti placed a bag of silver coins on the table.

The two children couldn't resist and opened the bag, excitedly counting the silver coins inside. The old man behind them stared at the bag for a long time before looking up.

"Thank you." He bent down with difficulty to express his gratitude.

“I know, this shouldn’t be compensation from the police department, thank you very much.” He had lived in the Asura district for so many years, he knew the police department’s style all too well, how could they possibly have the time or energy to do something so unnecessary.

"It's alright." Hilti said goodbye to their family and then went to several other houses.

Overall, the process went smoothly, except for one particularly greedy family who wanted more from Siltia, but Siltia refused.

"Sorry, this is all the money we have."

Even from a distance, after she left home, she could still hear the family whispering behind her back, saying that she was a foolish young lady from a noble family, and that she could pretend to be even more pitiful next time to swindle more money.

Hiltia simply shook her head and ignored her.

After walking through the orcish-inhabited districts, Hilti's understanding of the Asura District became much more comprehensive, especially regarding the large number of neglected low-level laborers.

Generally speaking, the salary and benefits in the Mage Alliance are better than in other regions, but the life expectancy of workers here is actually lower than in ordinary agricultural countries, and many people at the bottom of society live even more arduous lives.

This is caused by a series of complex reasons, including the low strength and lack of attention given to orcs and marginalized individuals, as well as the fragile relationships between individuals due to urbanization, the scarcity of solid mutual assistance mechanisms, and the lack of safety net institutions.

Orcs are at the bottom of the Mage Alliance and are never recognized. Furthermore, due to the lack of high-ranking superhumans, they have little say and can hardly cause any significant trouble.

However, it is precisely these orcs who undertake a large number of arduous grassroots jobs in the city, supporting its operation in corners unseen by ordinary students.

Rude, durable, cheap, and impulsive—these are the most prominent characteristics of orcs. If Hilti were an enemy of the Mage Alliance, she would probably incite these orcs to fight for their own interests, disrupt the operation of the city, increase the Mage Alliance's security costs, exhaust their energy, and sabotage the Mage Alliance's major plans.

However, the Woodlands and the Mage Alliance are not yet at the point of life or death. If the Woodlands were to undergo reforms like the Mage Alliance and experience a wave of urbanization, it would likely face the same problems. Finding solutions and ways to improve the situation is her current task.

Well, although it was only a small step, as she walked around the orcish-inhabited areas for a period of time, she gradually accumulated a little reputation, which allowed her to obtain a lot of inside information from the orcish race.

(End of this chapter)