When I woke up, it was exactly noon.
Within the confines of the prison, meals were only provided during morning and evening hours. However, if you made your way to the break room, you could at least enjoy a cup of tea.
According to Event, that tea tasted as bland as horse dung, but by adding milk and sugar, it became somewhat more bearable to consume.
Naturally, you had to procure the sugar on your own.
I wanted to have a snack, but the last crumb of buttered bread had been eaten by the fairy sprawled out on my bed, sleeping.
I couldn’t even afford to buy new biscuits.
Besides, I still hadn’t managed to buy a needle and thread to mend my clothes.
There were noticeable holes in the toes of my socks, and the sleeves of my shirt were torn.
Yet, my wallet held a meager sum of only 300 gil.
I suppose I had no other option but to focus on my clandestine business…
Silently slipping the box filled with cigarettes into my pocket, I cautiously rose from bed so as not to disturb Kimberley, who was still fast asleep.
Leaving my residence, as I tried to enter the prison, they happened to be in the middle of accepting new prisoners.
One by one, the prisoners were being brought down from the black saint (carriage responsible for bringing prisoners).
“Rick Poe!”
A man of the human race, called by name, was being dragged by the guards with chains attached to his arms and neck.
“Are you Rick Poe?”
“No, sir! I haven’t done anything wrong, I swear.”
“That’s something you’ll have to negotiate with the judge. I’m just a prison guard.”
With tears streaming down his face, the man named Poe pleaded, but this was a common sight during the intake of prisoners.
There were plenty of prisoners shouting their innocence.
However, few shouted as loudly as Poe.
He swung his emaciated body vigorously, proclaiming his innocence.
My colleague Matthew stood beside me, and I spoke up.
“Hey, it’s quite lively today, isn’t it?”
“Hey, Wolf. Just finished your night shift?”
“Yeah. Who’s that guy?”
“Oh, him? He’s still an awaiting trial prisoner, but he’s quite interesting.”
Matthew returned with the files of the prisoners.
Reading the charges, Poe was accused of fraud, but the details were rather peculiar.
Rick Poe used to be a street vendor selling bread in Le Bont Street, but his method of selling was somewhat peculiar.
Poe offered two types of round bread: a larger one priced at 310 gil and a smaller one priced at 110 gil, both ten gil higher than the average bakery stall.
Surprisingly, these bread rolls sold well.
It wasn’t because they had exceptional taste or were unusually large.
The secret was that customers who bought bread from Poe’s stall were given a lottery ticket.
And if they won, they would receive an additional bread roll of the same kind they purchased.
The people of Londia City had a penchant for gambling, and this business strategy apparently thrived, bringing prosperity to Poe’s street stall.
However, despite customers trying their luck with the lottery tickets, very few of them ever won.
As time went on, some regular customers became furious and eventually reported the matter to the authorities.
“You know that lottery thing? It turns out the winning ticket was the one with a red mark on the bread. There were a total of 150 portions, but there was only one winning ticket,” Matthew said.
With a 1 in 150 chance of winning, it was rare for anyone to actually strike it lucky.
“But, hey, the winning tickets were included, right? Does that make it a criminal offense?” I asked.
“Who knows? It all depends on the judge,”
Laws seemed to be more of a concept than a reality, and the judge’s mood determined the verdict in such cases.
For a crime of this magnitude, a fine and maybe a week of imprisonment would likely suffice.
Casting a sideways glance at the prisoners being dragged off to the shower room, I hurried towards the cell block.
I wanted to sell as much liquor and tobacco as possible.
Should I try selling cigarettes with winning tickets too?
Prisoners had a penchant for gambling, so sales might double.
But at the same time, the probability of a riot breaking out would likely increase, so it was best to refrain.
In the end, sticking to the tried and true was the wisest choice.
Leave a Reply