THIBV - Chapter 132

Chloe was with Josh at the office of a moneylender in the capital.

Originally, Isaac had intended to lend Chloe his money.

But these days he was penniless.

So he introduced Chloe to a broker. The broker listened to Chloe's story, gave her a quote, and then connected her with a loan shark, saying he had just the right person.

That's why she came here.

Chloe was a little intimidated by the large men she saw when she came in.

There are so many of that bad guy Josh also looked obviously nervous.

Chloe became even more nervous at her brother's appearance.

But she soon felt relieved when one of the previously scary-looking thugs smiled kindly and brought out some tea.

"Our boss is running a little late. Why don't you have a drink while you wait?"

Chloe felt much better after drinking a sweet drink made from fruit juice.

"I think they are kinder people than I thought, Brother."

"Shh, Chloe. This isn't the place to be chatting."

Josh stopped her for no reason, keeping an eye on the big man.

Then the big man laughed.

"Make yourself at home. It's okay."

A person who comes to borrow money is a customer. If he pays back the money and interest properly, he is a truly excellent customer.

Of course, they can't pay back the money.

The big guy was trained not to prejudge customers and to always be friendly.

And there are many ways to make it anyway, so there's no reason to be kind.

So just as Chloe and Josh were starting to relax, the noise outside the living room grew louder.

Someone showed up leading a group of thugs. It was a man with a large scar near his cheekbone.

"You need a lot of money? This is Nigel Abbington."

Josh didn't know Nigel. He just knew him as a rich commoner.

But the words naturally became louder.

"Uh, this is Count Josh Florence. I need the money for my sister's wedding here..."

"Enough with the small talk. How much and for how long do you want to borrow?"

Nigel slammed the papers down in front of Josh.

Josh swallowed hard and wrote down the amount he had discussed with Isaac on the form.

Nigel's gaze was visible as the number of zeros increased by one.

Josh finally wrote down the number he wanted, his hands shaking as if he was afraid of being scolded at any moment.

"Huh."

Nigel, who had been looking at the numbers with interest, laughed out loud.

Josh was startled by the laughter and cringed his neck.

"Oh, that won't work?"

"No, no, it won't work. That's why I like noble customers. They're all so generous! Haha! Even when they have no money, they come to borrow money, but their pride is reflected in the amount. It's not just the Count, but many people are like that."

Josh, who took Nigel's laughter as a sign of affirmation, laughed along with him.

Chloe, who had been rolling her eyes when her brother laughed, also laughed along, thinking that everything was going well.

"However."

Nigel's laughter suddenly stopped.

He leaned forward and tapped the papers on the table with his hands.

"Do you know that you can't borrow this much money without collateral?"

The broker, who had been silent until then, smiled and nodded at Josh.

"Oh, yes. I have told you everything. Haven't I, Count?"

"Well, of course. How can I borrow this much money with just one contract?"

The broker approached Nigel and whispered in his ear.

Nigel's lips were split open.

He looked Chloe up and down, then looked at Josh.

Josh avoided eye contact with Nigel and loosened his tie slightly.

Nigel chuckled at Josh and then told the big man to bring him some more papers.

The documents were placed in front of Chloe.

"What's your name?"

Chloe blinked her eyes wide in response to Nigel's question.

"Chloe Florence."

"Age?"

"Eighteen, I'll be nineteen soon."

"Let's do eighteen. Hey, read the documents carefully. Don't say anything else later."

Chloe opened her eyes wide and read the papers.

But before she could fully read it, the big man took out a pen and put it on Chloe's finger.

"Yes, please mark here and here."

"I haven't read it all yet..."

"You're not signing the contract?"

"No. that's not it..."

"Then, please stamp here, here. I'm busy, I'm busy. There are many places to stamp."

Chloe glanced at Josh.

Josh didn't say much.

She had no choice but to stamp the seal as ordered by the big man.

Nigel watched her with amusement, as he took a cigarette out of his golden cigarette case and put it in his mouth. Chloe coughed as the acrid smoke filled the air.

Nigel grinned and stamped his own copy of the document that Chloe had stamped. He kept one copy for himself and gave the other copy to Josh.

"Give him the money."

At Nigel's command, a large man brought out a bag full of gold coins from the safe in another room.

The big man weighed each coin in front of Josh, making sure the amounts were correct.

"We don't deal in bills, we only deal in cash. The same goes for repayment."

"Yes, of course. I know."

Josh nodded in rapture at the sight of the enormous bags of gold coins before him.

Nigel clicked his tongue as he looked at Josh like that.

"The rule is that we keep the collateral, but this is a special case, so it's an exception. But don't think about throwing it away. My subordinates are all watching."

"Yes, yes, of course. Take me out. That won't happen."

"If that's the case, then that's good. Be sure to keep your promise. If you're even a day late, the collateral... You know what's going to happen even without me saying it."

"Don't worry."

"Good. The deal is done, so you may go out. An important guest is coming soon."

Nigel shouted at his men.

"Guys! The customer is leaving. Grab the carriage."

“Yes!!”

Big men put the money in a box and carried it onto a carriage.

Chloe was just thrilled that she had made so much money so easily with just a few clicks of her finger.

'I can marry Utah Sir!'

She didn't even look at the contract that her brother had prepared for her. She had faith that Josh would take care of everything.

Josh sighed in relief as he climbed into the carriage.

'That's it. At this point, not only Chloe's dowry but also my investment funds have been secured. If I use this, I can raise a family!'

The amount of money Josh borrowed in Chloe's name was more than enough to cover her dowry.

He didn't plan on using all that money for Chloe's wedding.

He had pooled his own investment funds.

It was all thanks to Isaac's advice.

"I'll put Chloe up as collateral. The price of a virgin noblewoman is considerable. Many old men want her, so she can be sold anywhere. That means you can easily borrow a lot of money."

"What if Chloe really gets dragged off as a slave?"

"No way! Bridget is here, If Chloe is being dragged off as a slave, wouldn't Bridget feel sorry for herself and move? It's a surer way than begging for money. Bridget would never turn a blind eye to her sister being sold off as a slave."

"Right. I guess I can't learn without helping, right?"

"That's right. It's all Bridgrt's money that will be paid back. Don't be afraid. The wealth will come straight from His Majesty the King, the highest authority in the kingdom. What are you worried about?"

Chloe, who knew nothing about it, trusted her brother and brother-in-law and signed the slave contract herself.

***

Michael noticed that Nigel seemed particularly excited today.

'Could it be because of the man and woman who just passed him by? She looked like Mrs. Winston. Am I mistaken?'

Michael lost his temper as soon as he saw Nigel.

"Why did you call me again? There's no game today."

"I thought I'd give him some good things to eat as a player. He's already our champion with three consecutive wins, so I should treat him well."

Nigel spoke softly and sat Michael down next to him.

Michael frowned.

"I warned you not to call me for useless things again."

"You like lamb ribs, right? I invited a famous chef from the capital. Bring it, kids."

As Nigel gave a signal to his men, urging the sharp Michael, they lined up and came in carrying trays.

A feast of delicacies, including perfectly grilled lamb ribs, was placed before Michael.

Nigel sneakily put an arm around Michael's shoulder.

"Is this still useless?"

"I eat it because I see the sincerity that went into preparing it. Don't ever call me for something like this again."

Michael held the utensils with a subdued attitude, pretending to be absorbed in the food.

Nigel laughed at that.

"It's cute."

"..."

Michael swallowed his curses and pretended not to hear.

As Bridget said, Nigel was starting to feel increasingly anxious about Michael.

It seemed like it had come quite a bit.

Enough to turn a blind eye to Michael's frequent pilfering of his expensive-looking belongings.

Michael's pretending to be poor seemed to appeal to Nigel, for whom money and possessions were the funniest things in the world.

Nigel didn't hide his sense of superiority that he could fill Michael's deficiencies.

Michael took advantage of Nigel's arrogance and stole his belongings.

Today's theft was a gold cigarette case.

All the stolen goods were being delivered to Diane.

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