Mystery: A Spark

"So the security team was organized by Hugh? And that workers' mutual aid association I heard about recently, you also set it up?" Audrey asked in surprise.

This was indeed beyond her expectations.

“No, actually no. I’m working for someone else too; I’m just an executor,” Hugh said, shaking his head.

“I see. By the way, can we go over there and take a look?” Audrey became interested; she was very curious about the person who had formed the security team and the workers’ mutual aid society.

"You want to go and see it too?" Hugh asked, somewhat surprised.

“Yes, it sounds like it should be really interesting,” Audrey said with a smile.

After reading the books Arthas brought, she felt she had gained new insights into the affairs of the East End.

However, I still felt that I couldn't see things very clearly, so I wanted to take this opportunity to see for myself.

“Well, in that case, how about tomorrow night? My boss will be showing up at the Peace Tavern tomorrow night, you can go and check it out.” After a moment’s thought, Hugh finally agreed to Audrey’s request.

"Peace Tavern?" Audrey felt the name sounded a bit strange.

“Yes, this is also my boss’s property. It’s a very spacious tavern with a wide variety of drinks,” Hugh explained.

"Okay, we'll definitely go tomorrow."

……

Saturday night, Peace Tavern in the East District.

The spacious tavern was now full of people; a rough estimate puts it at over a hundred.

They took their seats and chatted animatedly about life, enjoying the wide variety of drinks offered by the tavern.

They are all members of a recently formed workers' mutual aid society, and after joining the organization, they have gained a more secure life than before.

They will no longer be easily owed wages, and they also have some other worker benefits, all of which the mutual aid association has fought for for them.

Tonight, they heard that the president of the mutual aid society would be appearing here.

And give a speech to elaborate on the future of the mutual aid society.

Chapter 197 The Angry Audrey

Wow, it's so lively here!

After disguising themselves, Audrey and her three companions entered the Peace Tavern. Looking at the lively atmosphere inside, they were somewhat surprised and said...

This was her first time in the East District; she had only known about the area from newspapers before.

However, since she arrived at night, and the Peace Tavern was located on the edge of the East End, near Hillston, Audrey didn't actually see much of the East End.

"And such a spacious tavern is quite rare in the East District." Fors had never been here before, so he was naturally a little surprised.

"Let's find a place to sit. There seem to be two tables in that corner." Grylint looked around and finally found an empty spot where someone could sit.

The four of them went over there and sat down, each ordering drinks.

"Hmm, the drinks here seem a little different." Audrey looked at the drink menu on the table and felt something was off.

Because in addition to the familiar alcoholic beverages, this list also includes some unfamiliar spirits such as "vodka," "gin," and "rum."

The regular wines were relatively inexpensive, while the wines whose names we hadn't seen before were more expensive, but still within the budget of the group.

"These wines are all brewed by the boss using a new recipe. They are a new type of alcoholic beverage that was created after many trials. They have a unique taste, so you can give them a try."

"By the way, it's best not to order vodka, because I'm afraid you won't be able to get back later," Hugh explained when he saw that the others were a little confused.

"Why can't we go back? Is this wine very intoxicating?" Grylint raised an eyebrow, showing some interest.

As a viscount who inherited the family business, he didn't have much to do in his spare time; his favorite thing to do was collect and taste all kinds of wines and spirits.

Now that he's encountered a new category of wine, he naturally doesn't want to let it go.

Hugh smiled helplessly and said:

"It's more than just intoxicating; this liquor is nicknamed 'one-drink wonder,' meaning that most people will lose consciousness and pass out after just one glass. And it's not just vodka; other liquors like this are also very easy to get drunk on."

"Look at these workers, they're all drinking beer. It's because when these beers were first launched, there was a free tasting event. A lot of the people who drank vodka passed out, and the others weren't much better off. That's how they made a name for themselves."

"So unless someone is deliberately trying to get drunk, they won't order these drinks. If you really want to drink, you can take a bottle home later and enjoy it at home tonight."

"Well, okay, then I'll have something else to drink first." Seeing how terrifying Hugh made vodka sound, Grylint felt a little uneasy and didn't insist any further.

The four ordered drinks and some snacks, and then started chatting like everyone else.

However, because there were too many people here, it wasn't convenient to talk about more private topics, so they just chatted casually while waiting for the president of the mutual aid association to appear.

However, after a while, the president did not appear, but Audrey saw a little girl who looked about ten years old and was dirty peeking out of the tavern.

The little girl's clothes were somewhat worn, and her face was stained with black dirt. She couldn't help but swallow as she looked at the food on the tables in the tavern.

Audrey noticed that the little girl seemed very hungry, so she went over to her and tried to take her away.

However, the little girl was a bit timid, and when she saw Audrey walking towards her, she couldn't help but back away.

The guards outside the tavern didn't pay any attention to the little girl either, since they were mainly focused on the adults.

“Don’t be afraid, little girl, I won’t do anything to you. Look, my table is right there. I just wanted to say that if you’re hungry, you can go and get something to eat.” Audrey squatted down a little distance away from the little girl and spoke to her gently.

Even though Audrey was disguised, she still couldn't hide her good looks. Coupled with her ability to influence the audience's hearts, the little girl gradually lowered her guard against Audrey and followed her to the table.

Seeing that Audrey had brought over a little girl who looked very hungry, the other three kindly pushed the food they had ordered over to her.

However, since they had all eaten dinner before arriving, these were just snacks, so Audrey ordered a bread roll instead.

In addition to drinks, this Peace Tavern also offers some food, all of which are inexpensive and filling.

The cheapest item is black bread, which is even cheaper than in other places.

Audrey naturally didn't buy the hard, stick-like black bread, but instead bought another type of bread that was more expensive, but soft and delicious.

"Eat slowly, little girl, all this food is yours." Audrey looked at the dirty little girl and felt a pang of heartache for no reason.

“She doesn’t seem to be a local; I’ve never seen her around here before,” Hugh said to Audrey after glancing at the little girl.

As a sheriff, she can remember the appearance of a target as long as she has seen them in person, or even just in a photo or sketch, gaining extra sensitivity on a superhuman level.

Therefore, she knew every single resident living in the area under the jurisdiction of the security team.

The kingdom's governance in the eastern district was extremely chaotic. Apart from some police officers patrolling the streets to prevent violence in public, there was practically no order.

Even many violent incidents are often ignored because gangs are usually involved behind the scenes.

In this situation, trying to get any kind of household registration is pure nonsense. People of all kinds of unknown identities come and go without anyone interfering.

Therefore, the only way to determine the identities of residents and the number of people is to rely on Hugh's extraordinary abilities to act as a human identity recorder.

Not a resident of this area? Could she be a little girl who escaped after being abducted? Upon hearing Hugh's words, Audrey's first thought was of the previous Capin incident.

Audrey watched the little girl wolfing down her food, reached out and wiped the dirt from her face. After the little girl finished a piece of bread, she asked tentatively in a gentle voice:

"Little girl, what's your name?"

"My name is Vina," the little girl answered softly.

“Vina? That’s a lovely name. What’s your last name?” Audrey continued.

Vina asked, somewhat confused:

What is a surname?

She doesn't have a surname? Audrey couldn't help but be taken aback.

“Maybe he’s a homeless child,” Grylint guessed from the side.

“No, it’s very difficult for homeless children in the East District to survive.” Hugh shook his head, denying the conjecture.

Audrey looked Vina over and noticed several tears in her clothes, so she asked tactfully:

"Vina, why isn't your mother mending your clothes?"

She wanted to use this opportunity to learn about the little girl's family situation so she could find a way to help her.

Vina stopped picking up the second piece of bread and replied dejectedly:

"I don't have a mother anymore."

"Did your mother leave you? Where did she go?" Audrey asked, puzzled.

“She starved to death,” Vina replied.

Audrey felt her heart skip a beat.

She looked at Vina, who was silently eating her second piece of bread with her head down, and asked with her last glimmer of hope:

"And what about the rest of your family?"

Vina swallowed the food in her mouth and said:

"They're all gone."

An unspoken silence filled the group, and no one spoke again.

A moment later, Vina ate the second piece of bread. She didn't touch the third piece, but looked at Audrey and said:

"Sister, I'm full."

"Two pieces of bread are enough? Don't be shy, there's more here," Audrey said in surprise.

Vina shook her head, her hands nervously clutching her clothes, and said with her head down:

"Two pieces of bread will be enough, sister. I'll sleep with you twice."

"Sleep? Sleep what?" Audrey asked in astonishment.

The other three also looked over at this moment. Among them, Xiu frowned because she understood the meaning behind Vina's words.

Fors and Grylint, however, were unaware of these things.

Vina glanced up at the group, then lowered her head again, stammering as she spoke:

“In the past, someone came to my house and told my mother that if she slept with him, she could get bread in return. She could get a piece of bread for sleeping with him once.”

Audrey's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

She had heard of such things before, but only through third-party accounts, such as newspapers, so even though she felt sad, the feeling wasn't profound.

Now, hearing the story of a little girl who had experienced it firsthand, she immediately felt incredibly distressed.