Home/The Seven-Year-Old Village Chief of Exile/ch 76

Chapter 76

Hebenia, having studied in Korea for 25 years, knew well how important distribution was.

So she was very positive about establishing a trading company.

"Establishing a trading company won't be too difficult."

Modi, Hebenia's first assistant, advised.

"Since Molle Livus, the lord of the Deste Territory, is in that state, we can just forge his seal and signature to issue the establishment permit."

"Ooh, Uncle, you're so stylish!"

"So the real problem is securing the logistics routes."

Hebenia meticulously recorded Modi's explanation in her notebook.

To establish a trading company, they needed at least three things.

A headquarters to oversee logistics, branches to store transported goods.

And securing cargo trains for transport.

"...Forget the headquarters and branches for a moment."

Hebenia asked.

"Wouldn't my ability eliminate the need for cargo trains?"

"That could risk exposing your existence to the Emperor."

"Ah."

"Of course, the Emperor seems to already know you're alive, but it's still better not to act openly."

"That's true."

"Besides, if we keep relying on you, the trading company won't grow."

Modi argued that preparations for establishing the company should exclude Hebenia's ability as much as possible.

"Your help would certainly make things easier. But there are limits. Your life would become chaotic, and further, we might inadvertently come to use you too easily."

"......"

"This time, trust us."

Hebenia nodded.

"But I don't think the adults would ever use me."

"Right, we won't."

Modi's philosophy was that while human nature is inherently selfish, one must strive not to let that destroy the character built over a lifetime.

Hebenia often thought that compiling the adults' conversations into a book of quotes would sell well.

'With that kind of mindset, they took care of me even in the exile camp.'

Hebenia felt grateful once more that the first people she met after returning to this world were her exile family.

And so, Exilium Village began preparing to formally communicate with the outside world.

---

While the adults were working so hard.

What was I, the village chief, doing?

"Ugh, my eyes are going to fall out..."

"Want to step outside for some fresh air?"

"Let's eat something first. My stomach's about to stick to my back."

I was examining the research materials from the Antema Lab with Ian, Libby, and Verity.

The volume was enormous, so using my authority as village chief, I'd rented out an entire empty house.

Walls and floors were covered in paper.

"Ugh, I feel sick..."

The smell of paper and ink made me nauseous, and as soon as I got outside, I collapsed on the ground.

Ian and Libby, who sat down beside me, weren't much better. We stared blankly at the sky, inhaling the clear, fresh air like mad.

The volume of materials was immense, and all the words were specialized jargon, so we had to look up every term in a dictionary.

Still, it wasn't entirely fruitless.

"The undead weren't the goal."

The Antema Lab wasn't created to produce undying soldiers or obedient undead.

"All I see are herb composition experiments, not undead."

"I didn't know there were so many types of ores."

Libby tilted her head.

"Isn't it strange? Oppa and Habi said they saw so many bones at the lab?"

Now Libby also called me "Habi."

Of course, the important point was what Libby had just pointed out.

Ian and I had rescued six victims from the Antema Lab who were about to be experimented on, and inside the lab, we'd found several bodies and many bones.

Some rooms had walls and ceilings filled with bones, and others were painted red with a liquid suspected to be blood.

"Those were definitely human bones."

Ian fidgeted with his thigh. He was probably recalling the femur bone we'd found.

I quietly voiced a possibility.

"Maybe the undead weren't the goal, just a byproduct."

Then I struggled to sit up.

"During some research, they accidentally found an efficient way to handle undead, and then the incident at the Deste mansion happened, so..."

"They turned the dead employees into undead to cover up the tragedy?"

Ian caught on to what I was trying to say.

I nodded with a grim face.

"That's the worst-case scenario."

This time, Libby voiced the thought.

"Either way, no—actually, Habi's guess is worse. What kind of research would lead to such a horrible..."

"We'll find out if we investigate more."

"Ugh, I really hate this..."

As we despaired, Verity handed each of us a large, fist-sized bun.

"Here, let's eat for now."

The buns were filled with a mixture of minced meat, vegetables, and spices.

'It's like a dumpling...'

Delicious.

I chewed the bun weakly.

Eating something tasty made the gloom slightly lift.

Verity sat down across from us, also holding a warm bun.

"After you leave that house, try to forget about the lab work."

"That's easier said than done."

As I retorted, Verity picked a crumb from the corner of my mouth and said.

"That's why you have to try. We're doing this to eat well and live well—if this becomes the main focus, our lives will only become miserable."

Verity explained that only by taking care of our own lives could we consistently deal with such infuriating matters.

"Don't bury yourself too deep in tragedy."

I naturally nodded.

'He's right.'

Harsh as it sounds, there needs to be a certain distance between others' tragedies and my own life.

That's how I can protect myself and effectively help others.

"Still, the sooner we find out, the better. We can prepare countermeasures. Even if I don't start a revolution, I want to flay the Emperor's skin off and put it back on."

"Where did you learn those torture methods?"

Verity lamented how every word from her was so deadly.

I shrugged.

"Natural disposition and consistent reading?"

"That's strange. We only have fairy tales at home."

When Ian looked puzzled, Libby said.

"So what? Habi doesn't even look at them. Sometimes she even glares at the fairy tales with a resentful look."

"Those are beneath my level."

"You two saw that, right? You're blessed just by not being Clavis blood."

"Instead, I'm a rich man's daughter."

"Actually, I used to imagine it when I was young—if I were a Clavis daughter..."

"You'd be sent to an exile camp at seven and go through all sorts of hardships."

The rich daughter answered nonchalantly.

That would be me.

"...On second thought, I guess my fate is pretty good."

"One can't truly understand another's tragedy."

After that, we silently ate our buns.

And went back into the house to continue examining the materials.

---

'As Verity said, taking care of my own life is more important.'

The Emperor's antics were an eyesore, but in the end, what mattered was the present peace.

So, following the demon butler's advice, I only looked at the research materials when I had free time.

The rest of the time, I did my duties as village chief as usual.

I checked that the new residents were adapting well, and I also placed a new order for a 'school' where the children could study together.

And I created currency.

"From now on, all transactions in the village must be completed with this."

I distributed a certain amount to each villager and explained.

"Once the trading company is established and trade with the outside begins, we'll exchange this toy currency for real money."

I promised to make it happen by this winter at the latest.

And I declared that from then on, I would collect a small amount of taxes.

Uncle Modi, the village representative and my secretary, offered his opinion.

"Then we'll need someone to professionally manage the village's administration and finances. We should elect an administrator and a treasurer."

"We'll hold a village meeting soon to discuss this."

Though it was toy currency, the residents couldn't take their eyes off it for a long time, moved by the prospect of private property after so long.

I gifted each of them a wallet.

Made through a wish to Verity, they were black and gold, borrowing from the Korean belief that such colors bring good fortune.

"Let's live without worrying about money!"

I pretended not to see the tears welling in the adults' eyes.

'Sigh, they're crying again.'

There will be more good things to come—will they cry every time?

I inwardly chuckled, thinking adults were impossible.

"My Lady, are you crying?"

"Just got some dust in my eyes."

"Then why are you sniffling?"

"I have a cold. Ah, I should brew some Dulcevia tea."

And so, our village became much more vibrant than before.

Thanks to the new residents, the village finally had its first major life events.

"Uncle Modi and Aunt Prellia want to hold their wedding in the village. I've agreed to officiate."

"A seven-year-old officiant."

"Ian oppa, you don't even have a woman to marry, so why are you commenting on someone else's wedding? Be silent."

"Puhahaha!"

"...My little sisters are too fierce."

At dinner, I shared the village's good news.

"And Aunt Elva seems likely to marry that scary-looking doctor uncle."

"Oh, that's great news."

Verity nodded in agreement and added some boiled peas to my plate.

I had been hoping for bacon, so I chewed the peas with a sad expression.

"There's more..."

"More good news?"

Ian cut his portion of bacon into bite-sized pieces and shared them with me.

I quickly popped the bacon into my mouth.

And passed along the other news.

"Uncle Pofina and his wife are getting a divorce."

"That's not good news."

At Ian's flustered response, I nodded.

"His wife joined the gang to get a divorce."

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