"Here," Lynn said calmly, marking the stone with charcoal, "there is a discrepancy of five gold coins in the funds allotted for weapon procurement."
"And here," he continued, "the protection fees from the East District Tavern were recorded wrongly on three separate occasions, totaling seventeen silver coins."
"And here…"
His hand moved steadily as he spoke, pointing out each flaw with quiet certainty.
As the problems were revealed one by one, the temper of the room changed.
Though the thugs could not read the ledger themselves, many sensed the weight of what Lynn uncovered. Some of these matters were not unfamiliar to them. They had heard half-spoken complaints and drunken grumblings.
And more than once, a single name stirred uncomfortably in their minds.
Ghost Fox.
One-Eyed Wolf's lone eye gleamed brighter. He leaned forward slightly, resting his weight upon the table.
"In total," Lynn said at last, lifting his head, "this ledger conceals false figures and omissions amounting to twelve gold coins, thirty-eight silver coins, and seventy-seven copper coins."
"And this," he added, "does not yet include the inflated procurement costs."
When he finally presented a clear accounting of income and expenditure, the skinny accountant beside him had gone deathly pale. His whole body trembled.
It was finished. Completely finished.
He was about to speak in his own defense.
Bang!
One-Eyed Wolf slammed the table with such force that cups and dishes leapt. The sound echoed through the room, freezing everyone in place.
He fixed Lynn with a burning stare.
"Good," he said slowly. "Very good."
A savage smile spread across his face.
"Boy. What is your name?"
"Lynn."
"From today onward," One-Eyed Wolf said, pointing at the ashen accountant, "you take his place."
"I give you one month. Set all my ledgers in order."
"If you truly help me earn coin," he continued, "you will be known as the Blood Hand Gang's Abacus Snake."
"And if you cannot…"
He sneered and left the words unfinished.
One-Eyed Wolf had no intention of acting against the deputy immediately. He needed time, time to investigate, time to see exactly how much Ghost Fox had stolen over the years.
When the gang leader personally bestowed a title upon Lynn, envy flickered across the faces of those present.
Lynn bowed in gratitude, lowering his head and concealing the cold glint that flashed briefly in his eyes.
Abacus Snake?
A crude title.
But I accept it.
Thus, Lynn became the Blood Hand Gang's new accountant.
He was given no proper lodging and still slept upon a pile of straw in the woodshed. Yet the cage was behind him now, and with it came a measure of freedom.
Knowing that Ghost Fox would surely seek his death, One-Eyed Wolf forbade Lynn from stepping even half a pace beyond the gang's headquarters.
Nor did the gang leader fully trust him. A thug who knew a few characters was assigned to watch him closely, both to prevent escape and to ensure the ledgers were not tampered with.
The man was nicknamed Skinny Monkey.
One-Eyed Wolf overestimated him.
Lynn was certain that even if he openly falsified the books before the boy's eyes, Skinny Monkey would notice nothing at all.
Lynn's first task was to sort through all of the Blood Hand Gang's accounts and business dealings.
He was given rough parchment and poor ink.
It soon became clear that the few characters of this foreign land he knew were not enough. The gang members were barely literate, unable even to write their own names.
The former accountant, once the most learned among them, had already been "dealt with."
After committing so many hidden misdeeds, even if the gang leader spared him, Ghost Fox never would have.
One-Eyed Wolf refused to allow Lynn to leave the headquarters to seek instruction. Instead, he ordered Lynn to copy unfamiliar characters and send them with others to ask their meanings and report back.
Learning progressed slowly.
Yet within this slowness lay opportunity.
If Lynn could not read their script, then neither could they read his.
An idea took shape.
He found a thin wooden board and a piece of charcoal and told Skinny Monkey, "This is safer. A true ledger should not be easily stolen."
Skinny Monkey did not understand, but it sounded reasonable enough.
Thus, Lynn began writing in the characters of his former world, using Arabic numerals and symbols of his own invention, forming a ciphered ledger only he could understand.
To any outsider, it was meaningless scrawl.
Relying on the logic and mathematical skill of his previous life, Lynn swiftly untangled the gang's chaotic finances.
All deception pointed toward one man.
Ghost Fox.
The deputy had profited enormously over the years.
The once-easy relationship between leader and lieutenant fractured, and tension within the gang grew sharp and volatile.
Lynn redesigned the lending system and interest rates, introducing upfront interest deductions, borrow ten silver, receive nine, yet owe interest on ten, and harsh penalties for overdue payments.
Many common folk were ruined by this compounding debt, especially gamblers drawn daily into the gang's casino.
Half a month later, the ledgers were fully sorted.
One-Eyed Wolf was greatly satisfied.
Lynn was rewarded with several copper coins and a thick linen shirt, worn but serviceable. The gang leader publicly declared him the Blood Hand Gang's official Abacus Snake.
With this came a little freedom.
Yet whenever Lynn walked the streets, he met the fearful and hateful gazes of common folk.
None dared strike him within gang territory, but their resentment was plain.
Still, Lynn's ambitions stretched far beyond this.
While managing the accounts, he quietly skimmed a portion of the protection fees, took fractions of loan interest, and inflated procurement prices, all buried deep within the incomprehensible ledger.
It was dangerous. Discovery would mean death.
But he had no choice.
He could not remain in this filthy gang forever. He needed capital, to build a
a future.
At the same time, Lynn began preparing his own escape.
A strong body would be required.
This restored flesh, long denied to him in his former life, felt light and freeing.
Each night, once Skinny Monkey fell asleep, Lynn trained in the shadows of the woodshed.
Squats. Push-ups. Sit-ups.
The body was healthy, but frail. It had to be forged.
He did not attempt escape. The headquarters was well guarded, and haste would only lead to death.
As One-Eyed Wolf's trust slowly grew, so too did Lynn's freedom.
When Lynn proposed entering an academy to better manage the accounts, the gang leader flatly refused.
The academy's influence was too great. If Lynn became associated with them, control would be lost.
Frustrated, Lynn settled for requesting books for self-study.
This time, One-Eyed Wolf readily agreed and even gave him thirty silver coins.
Thus, during an errand to purchase writing supplies, Lynn entered a quiet, nearly deserted bookstore.
In this world, knowledge belonged to nobles. Common folk struggled merely to survive.
The shopkeeper, seeing Lynn's shabby clothes, meant to drive him out.
But Lynn slipped a few silver coins into his hand while Skinny Monkey looked away.
The man paused, then pretended nothing had happened.
Lynn picked up a book and casually flipped through it.
And as his finger traced the yellowed page, a translucent light screen unfolded before his eyes:
[Memory Library Activated]
[Recording: Abridged History of the Continent… 1%… 15%…]