Criminal Forgery [Wriolette]

⚖️/Chapter 32

And then, Wriothesley and Neuvillette entered the arcade along with Sigewinne...
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It was a fun day for both of them, Wriothesley taught Neuvillette how to play arcade games, and Sigewinne had a lot of fun. After that, they both came home and had a great dinner, drank tea and played family games.

Most days were like this, as they were finally happy, all together. Wriothesley helped Sigewinne with school, as Neuvillette was often busy with the courts. There's nothing big that happened, since they were a normal family, and in those years Wriothesley didn't want any job because of his criminal past. Neuvillette received a good salary as he was the Chief Justice of Fontaine, so they had good economic conditions.

7 years later, when Sigewinne turned 15, and Wriothesley turned 44. That day, Sigewinne had to change cities due to her studies: She spent her time with Clorinde and Navia, both of whom took care of Sigewinne.
And of course, Neuvillette and Wriothesley always visited their daughter when they could. It was sad, they both missed Sigewinne's presence, but they always video called every day.

One day, Wriothesley was called by an unknown guy to his old office at the Fortress of Meropide, and of course, he went.
This guy seemed to be a new worker at Meropide prison, but something about him was strange... He seemed to have a job offer for Wriothesley.
"Mr. Wriothesley, isn't that right?"
The mysterious guy asked.

"Oh, yes I am. Who might you be?"
Wriothesley was a bit intrigued by that man and wanted to know who he really was.
"Do you have some kind of job offer you would like to discuss with me?"
He asked while looking at that mysterious guy, he didn't understand why they were meeting up at his old office though, it was unusual for someone to meet with him, especially a stranger.

The guy nodded, he was wearing a mask on his face and a hat, he didn't seem like he was going to reveal his identity.
"Yes, I would like to ask you sir, would you like to be the Duke of the Fortress again? Your criminal past isn't required."
He said slowly.

Wriothesley was surprised when he heard that question, he couldn't understand if it was real or just a dream. Was the man for real asking him to be the Duke of the Fortress again?
"You...you're...offering me my old job back?"
He took a second to process the sentence then looked back at the man, he still couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Is that...true? You're not making a joke, are you?"

The man nodded and handed him some papers through the hole in the glass wall between them.
The paper required a signature, and there were huge letters saying they would guarantee his job as the Duke of the Fortress of Meropide back.
"Yeah, it's been almost a decade since you've worked here, this place is a huge mess without you, Duke."
He said, mentioning his old title.

"But...I'm...a killer. I don't understand why would they want to give me my old job back."
Wriothesley said as he opened the papers that were given to him, he started to read them and saw the words that made him surprised.
"You're saying that I won't have to pay for my crimes?"
The Duke couldn't understand if he should sign the papers or not. He really liked working as the Duke of the Fortress, but his crimes shouldn't be forgiven, especially after all those murders.

The man laughed mysteriously... his vibe was dark, he didn't seem like someone to trust.
"No payments for your crimes, just take care of the Fortress of Meropide."
He said, a mysterious whisper.

Wriothesley sighed.
"That's really tempting but it all feels off...I don't think that my crimes are forgivable. I've killed a lot of people, I don't remember how many. And those people I killed...they were innocent..."
He said as he started to doubt about whether or not to sign those papers, he didn't want his life to be too peaceful, he still had regrets about his past.
"But...I can't deny I enjoy working there. It's fun to take care of a prison, I'm tempted to sign..."

The man smiled mysteriously, he sighed lightly and spoke.
"You've always led this place by being a criminal, but look at the fame you've achieved... The people here trusted you, why not accept this extraordinary offer? Your salary will be increased if you accept."
He said.
No no... this offer seemed very strange and meaningless, it was very random.

Wriothesley was tempted to sign those papers, it was indeed a good offer, but it felt too good to be true. He didn't want to go back to his old way of life. And why was the man hiding his face to begin with? It all felt weird, too good to be true, maybe it was just a trap so he would be able to be arrested again or something like that.
He looked at the man, thinking if he should sign or not.
"Can't I know your name at least...? Knowing who I would be working with is very important."

"My name is not important now..."
The man said, his voice a mysterious whisper, with a slight tone of irritation.
"What do you think of the offer?"
He asked.

Wriothesley was curious about the man's name to begin with, but he decided to leave it for now and speak about the offer.
"You said that the salary is increased...how exactly much did it increase?"
He was starting to believe that the offer was real, it was tempting him too much. But he still had questions about that offer though.

The man laughed lightly, he spoke.
"How much mora does your husband receive per month?"
He asked. What seemed strange, what did the Chief Justice's salary have to do with this?

Wriothesley didn't understand why the man asked him about Neuvillette's salary, he felt like there was something wrong with him. He didn't feel like the man he was talking to was human and the whole scenario felt off. He was now sure that this guy was not just some random stranger.
"How much does...Neuvillette receive?"
He asked, his voice was filled with suspicion and curiosity about the man. But he didn't seem like the kind of guy to just randomly give information about Neuvillette's salary.

The man nodded, he smiled, but it couldn't be seen since he was wearing a mask.
"Yes... what is your husband's salary?"
He asked.

Wriothesley was a bit nervous about the conversation that they were having. He felt like the mask man was going to use this information to threaten him for some reason. And since he already knew Neuvillette's salary...it was strange. He decided to just answer the question.
"Well...Neuvillette receives about 800.000 mora per month."
He answered honestly and didn't think that the salary was that high at all, maybe the man wanted to use the salary for something.

The man nodded and laughed, he then spoke.
"Great, I'll pay you 1.000.000 mora per month. Do we have a deal?"
He said, he definitely didn't seem like someone to trust...