Chapter 17: Conrad's Gift
Konrad looked at the recruits around him, each of them training desperately. Sixteen years old, they had recently joined the Wayne Group.
The Primarch didn't understand why some people worked for Wayne so desperately and voluntarily, even the laborers. The money Wayne gave them was only enough for daily expenses and an occasional big meal, yet they worshiped him, regarding him as their savior.
Only now, looking at the children who had come from other regions with their parents, did Konrad understand why.
Those people were accepted into the Wayne Group area after undergoing inspection to ensure they had no infectious diseases.
Then they were given clothes, daily necessities, and seasonings. Most importantly, they received a key, a key to the door of their own home.
The clothes on their bodies had been as tattered as garbage. The water they carried with them had been like sewage from the underground. They had been so skinny they couldn't even afford to eat.
Now, the Wayne Group gave them food, water, houses, and the health training that would follow. After all, letting starving, suffering people go to work directly would be murder. Their bodies simply couldn't handle high-intensity work, so after a period of recuperation, they would be assigned jobs.
The people at the bottom, who had experienced all of this, regarded the Wayne Group as heaven.
Konrad watched as the Wayne Group arranged a job for a disabled person who only needed to press elevator buttons. He watched those children being placed into schools by the Wayne Group, watched the sick being given free medicine, and watched the happy smiles on their faces.
Konrad smiled. He couldn't help but laugh out loud. For some reason, Konrad liked everything in front of him.
He looked at the Black Guard in charge of security here and knew that his father had transformed this city in twenty years.
"He is a hero," Konrad said.
The recruit who accompanied him opened his mouth. "Isn't that right? My father had his spine broken by gangsters and became disabled. It was the Wayne Group who arranged for surgery to install a mechanical spine, allowing him to stand up and work again."
These recruits were not even Robin. They were equivalent to preparatory classes. Only those with excellent grades could join the Scavengers, and those who were qualified could join Robin. The rest would be arranged to enter the Black Guard.
They couldn't eat enough or keep warm in the past. It was this area that gave them the hope to survive.
"Is my father so great?" Konrad asked.
Another teenager chimed in. They were very talkative, Konrad noticed.
"If you go to other cities, like the city I was in before, you'll see rape and robbery everywhere. I saw a woman being raped to death by a dozen people. I mean, it's everyday stuff there, but... that, that was something."
Konrad looked at the teenager with the knife scar on his face. "What about you?"
"I was targeted by gangsters and chased after. They cut off skin from my face, they urinated on me, and then spat on me. Even so, I was almost taken away by human traffickers. If it weren't for the Black Guard finding me, I would have died long ago."
Konrad felt a little sympathy for the teenager before him. After all, that kind of experience was a double blow to the body and mind. Fortunately, the gangsters didn't have any special fetishes, or this teenager would have suffered even more inhuman torture.
"How were you found?" Konrad asked.
The young warrior smiled faintly. Sadness flashed in his eyes, like a helpless child.
"The Wayne Group controls Nostramo's foreign trade through space orbit and transport fleets. Lord Wayne doesn't allow human trafficking, so I was rescued and sent back to my parents. My father quickly knelt down and begged the Black Guard to bring us over. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to enjoy today's life, and my younger sister and brother wouldn't have the chance to study."
The teenager was about to cry as he spoke, and he couldn't help but choke up. "To be honest, this place is...heaven. The first time I ate meat was when the Black Guard saw how pitiful I was and gave me a piece of ham. I really..."
"At least you're safe now," Konrad said.
The teenager couldn't help but cry out. "What moved me the most was when the Black Guard said, 'Don't kneel to me. What the Wayne Group wants are people, not slaves. Come with me."
Konrad realized that the warriors under his father had inherited his righteous side. The problem was that Wayne had his own crazy side, too. He was like two sides of a coin. Wayne's front side was saving the world, but what about the back side?
A female soldier spoke. "Konrad, I read the comics that the Wayne Group prepared. One of the comics is called 'Batman.' The main character's last name is Wayne. What is Wayne's full name?"
This stumped the Primarch. How would he know Wayne's full name? After all, no one had ever mentioned this matter.
"I don't know."
The female soldier frowned, looking at her captain. "Captain, aren't you his son? How can you not even know what your own father's name is?"
Only then did Konrad realize that he had been by Wayne's side for almost two years, but he didn't even know his full name.
The Primarch looked at the squad members who were about to go on vacation. On the surface, they were warriors, but in fact, they were still children and students at a youth military academy.
They were about to go on vacation, and each person used their student allowance to buy gifts for their families.
Konrad looked at his empty hands, recalling the past two years. He hadn't given Wayne anything.
Wayne had sent him to the training base, then to the library. Next, he would probably send a warship or something else, but Konrad had never given anything to his father.
Father's Day for the Wayne Group was fast approaching. It was said that this kind of holiday originated tens of thousands of years ago, and now mortal warriors had prepared gifts for their families.
But he had nothing. He opened his mouth, not knowing what to say.
"Captain, where's your gift?" one of the recruits asked.
Konrad sighed. "I don't have one."
"Captain, to be honest, you're a bit of a failure as a son. You don't even know what your own father's name is, and you don't have a gift either."
Konrad rubbed his hair. How would he know what Wayne needed? This kind of rich person had everything.
"Why don't you fulfill one of his wishes?" the recruit suggested.
"What wish?"
"Master Wayne doesn't have any children right now. Our family has a method that can make people satisfied."
The Primarch thought about this. "Is that okay? Is that even right to do? Isn't it some unorthodox method?"
Konrad hoped that Wayne would have a biological child. After all, his bloodline had to be passed down, and the fact that he didn't have a biological child made Konrad feel a little guilty.
It was as if Wayne was breaking his heart for the Primarch, thereby giving up his own happiness.
Konrad thought of Adelaine and Wayne together back then. Now, a year and a half had passed, and the biennial noble gathering was coming up soon, but Wayne hadn't made any moves.
Still, Konrad wouldn't use any unorthodox methods to help Wayne. After all, Wayne taught him to distinguish what should be used from what shouldn't.
The female soldier was shocked by Konrad's words. "What are you thinking? It's just a candlelight dinner, with some wine and food. My family used to do this, and then the gangsters robbed our shop, and we were left homeless."
The female soldier no longer felt sad. After all, their family had opened another restaurant on Wayne Group land, and life had returned to the way it used to be.
Konrad realized that everyone around him was from the bottom. If they had any dark methods, how could they have been reduced to the bottom?
"Okay, let's do it. We will prepare a meal for them. This idea is good. Everyone, help me out. You go buy the raw materials, and I'll be responsible for cooking."
The Primarch had completely forgotten he couldn't cook. For the past two years, Talia Adelaine had always been the one cooking.
And his first time cooking...
[End of Chapter]