How to survive as a beggar count

Chapter 4

I need to find something to eat.

Trapped in Ian’s body, this was the most urgent problem.

It wasn’t simply because of the starving condition of a South Korean citizen.

To survive, I had to become stronger, and to become stronger, I needed nutritional intake.

Right now, the harvest wasn’t great, but even if the situation improves, the financial condition of the Impera family was terrible.

It would be a miracle if I could afford to mix a few pieces of meat into the grain porridge.

And that’s if I didn’t lose in a trial by combat.

“Sigh…”

Just when I thought I could live more comfortably, it turns out getting food was a struggle.

I headed to the tavern located in the count’s territory.

In a way, it was more of an inn than a tavern, providing not only alcohol but also lodging and various other services.

But since it served alcohol, it was still considered a tavern. Given how poor the territory was, I couldn’t expect a proper tavern.

‘What can you expect from a beggar’s count’s territory?’

I easily found my way there, as it was a place I frequented in Ian’s memories.

In fact, my body almost seemed to remember the path. My steps toward the tavern felt strangely light.

‘I absolutely will not drink.’

I had no money to begin with.

It may sound crazy to go to a tavern without drinking, but I had a different purpose.

Information gathering.

Though I had Ian’s memories, there was hardly any useful information to gather.

He was always too busy drinking and gambling to have anything worth hearing.

“This should do.”

I threw on a simple cloak and entered the tavern.

“Welcome!”

The owner greeted me in a lively voice.

Because of my shabby cloak, he didn’t recognize me right away.

Ian usually wore extravagant clothes when he visited, likely trying to flaunt his nobility. It was his way of compensating for the inferiority complex he felt from being ignored by other nobles.

“What would you like to order…?”

Given my plain clothes, the owner didn’t recognize me at first, even though he had seen me many times before.

“…Huh! My lord?”

“Shh.”

The moment the owner recognized my face, he flinched. I placed my index finger to my lips, and he looked at me with confusion.

“I came to sit quietly today.”

“Quietly, you say?”

It was hard to believe that the notorious young master would be quiet, and the owner seemed skeptical.

It was true that every time Ian visited, trouble seemed to follow. He often picked fights with innocent customers or caused a scene by demanding expensive drinks.

Just a few days ago, he had beaten someone senseless, causing a commotion. That someone had been one of the vassals of Count Beneir.

A strange smell of trouble filled the air, but the owner had no other choice.

The owner silently closed his mouth with a stunned expression.

“Alright.”

“Hmm… Well, if you need anything…”

“I don’t need anything. I just want to sit quietly.”

“Alright… Then… I’ll bring you some water.”

I briefly considered ordering some side dishes, but when I saw the food being served at other tables, I quickly changed my mind.

This was the count’s territory, where the lord ate nothing but grain porridge.

The food here wasn’t much better either.

It was mostly stir-fried vegetables or strange grain mixtures tossed in with the vegetables.

I’d rather eat the porridge Illene made for me.

A man sitting in a corner was munching on the stir-fried vegetables as if they were a delicacy.

Wearing a bulky outer garment and hunched over, he didn’t seem like someone from this area.

‘Is that even good?’

For now, I settled into a corner of the tavern.

Sitting in the corner, I casually observed the people around me.

The people here were drinking some pale, watery beer, barely resembling alcohol.

Everyone had rough hands and ragged clothes, and none of them looked like they were enjoying life.

But still, they were better off than the count’s family.

“…Phew! This is the good stuff!”

“Looks like you’re doing a bit better these days? I see you here a lot.”

“Doing better? I’m barely making enough to eat every other day!”

I eavesdropped on the conversation for a moment.

I had a pretty good idea of what was being discussed. No matter how much they worked, their poverty never improved. Unsurprisingly, the blame was directed at the count.

“This is all that damn count’s fault!”

“It’s his son’s fault, not the count! I heard he was drunk and passed out a few days ago!”

“It’s the father’s fault for not keeping his son in check!”

“At least they didn’t raise the taxes. I heard the count’s family is struggling since they haven’t paid the national taxes.”

Ian’s wild behavior was well-known among the common folk.

The guy was barely seventeen but had caused so much trouble already.

The fact that the meals consisted of grain porridge was entirely Ian’s fault.

“Y-You, watch your words!”

“Did I say something wrong? Damn it!”

The man didn’t seem to realize I was eavesdropping, as curses were flying around.

The tavern owner, sweating profusely, tried to stop them, but it was useless.

It hadn’t even been long, and already they’d thrown a handful of curses my way.

Despite being in a position where every coin mattered to them, they were still complaining about Ian, the wild and reckless young master, who was always busy eating, drinking, and causing trouble.

It felt like their bellies were full just from cursing.

“How much are we supposed to pay in taxes? On top of giving everything to the noble, now we have to give it to the bandits too!”

“Noble? They’re both nothing but bandits!”

“God…! Will you just be quiet?!”

“So what? It’s not like that damn noble is here!”

“Ugh…”

The tavern owner glanced nervously in my direction. Instead of replying, I placed my index finger to my lips. The owner was visibly angry, but there was nothing he could do.

“Hmm…”

As expected, the situation in the territory was a complete mess.

In such a destitute territory, it was obvious that proper law enforcement wouldn’t be expected.

Now, bandits were openly extorting protection money.

“Your village is lucky! Do you know what kind of beast lives in the mountains behind our village? It’s a horned pig that eats people! Just recently, five men tried to hunt it down and barely escaped with their lives.”

“Did you file a petition to hunt it?”

“Of course! It’s been over a month already! Damn it!”

‘Good.’

Even though I’d only been sitting in the tavern for a short while, I’d gathered some pretty useful information.

I quietly nodded and started organizing the details in my mind.

The tavern owner’s face turned pale when he saw me writing something down.

He probably thought I was making a hit list.

To be honest, I felt more like giving a reward than creating a list of death.

Thanks to that man, I had gathered many stories I wouldn’t have known sitting idly at home.

‘Horned pig…’

Though I’d never seen one myself, I could tell from the name that it was a beast similar to a wild boar.

I had heard that its meat was edible as long as you avoided the innards.

In one of the novels, the protagonist survived a tough situation by eating horned pig meat when stranded.

It was said to taste similar to pork.

As the saying goes, “A thirsty man digs a well.” If there’s nothing to eat, hunting would be the solution.

‘But such simple sayings didn’t apply in this world.’

A river full of poison, a land rotting away. There wasn’t even a blade of grass left, let alone any prey.

Compared to that, this place felt like heaven. The food was everywhere.

“Tsk…”

Before I knew it, saliva was dripping from my mouth.

Screech…

As I was about to let my imagination run wild, the old door creaked open loudly.

The noise of the bustling tavern hid the sound, so it didn’t draw too much attention.

“……”

The man didn’t seem like a regular customer. Wearing a ragged cloth that was barely covering him, he looked like a beggar come to ask for charity.

However, the look on the tavern owner’s face was one of shock. It wasn’t just confusion—it was the kind of gaze you’d give when seeing a monster that shouldn’t be here.

While beggars could be seen anywhere, the tavern owner’s reaction was different from usual.

“Please… just a penny… I haven’t eaten in days…”

“Huh? What? A beggar… Ugh!”

Those who had been eating and drinking looked at the beggar and immediately swallowed their breath. Their gazes were fixed on the beggar’s hand, or rather, the lack of one.

At the end of his left arm was a stub where his hand should have been. It was a heart-wrenching sight for me, but the others seemed unaffected.

“Blank!”

“What… what the hell is this bastard doing here?!”

A man who seemed to have had a little too much to drink kicked the beggar without hesitation.

The kick was so strong it was hard to even call it a kick aimed at a person.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

The man who had been kicked in the stomach immediately collapsed onto the floor, unable to even put up a fight. His claim that he hadn’t eaten in days seemed to be true.

Even the tavern owner, who didn’t seem like a bad person, defended the man who had kicked the beggar, not the beggar himself.

“How dare you lay hands on someone?! Get out of here! What are you doing in here!”

“Ugh…”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

But of course, this was all within the context of Ian’s world, not the world of Lee Jinsoo from South Korea. In Ian’s world, this was a completely normal situation.

A person abandoned by the gods. A Blank.

A being whose mere presence was considered a bad omen.

Thinking about some of the special types of Blank, it was no surprise that the reactions around here were what they were.

The people around were more concerned about the man who kicked the beggar than the beggar himself.

“Are you alright?”

“Ugh! What a bad luck, meeting a Blank too!”

“Get out of here! You can leave on your own, can’t you?”

“Ugh… Please have mercy…”

‘This is a bit too much.’

Even so, they were still human. I didn’t know what made him a Blank, but before losing his left arm, he was probably just an ordinary villager.

But even among the common folk, the treatment of Blanks was like this.

Less than livestock. Even if that Blank was someone like Aemon, he would’ve been treated no differently.

“Tch.”

Unable to watch any longer, I stood up. I might not be able to help, but kicking him like that was too much.

“Get up.”

“Huh?”

Before I could say anything, a man, the same one who had been eating vegetable stir-fry in the corner, stepped in.

He threw a half-eaten piece of bread at the beggar.

Thud!

The bread was so hard it sounded like a stone being thrown.

“Go on. Don’t make any more noise.”

“Th-thank you! Sir! I will never forget your kindness!”

“…”

Although the bread was terrible, the beggar bowed deeply with his one arm and immediately grabbed the bread and ran away, perhaps worried that the man might change his mind.

“Giving bread to a Blank…?”

“You have a problem with that?”

“No, it’s just… nothing.”

The man who had been furious just a moment ago seemed to have wanted to pick a fight. But when he met the man’s sharp gaze, he immediately quieted down.

Without saying anything more, he quickly left the tavern. His jet-black hair stood out, looking especially striking among the crowd.

In any case, thanks to him, I was able to avoid unnecessary trouble.

I had gathered all the information I needed, so I stood up and lightly waved goodbye to the tavern owner.

“I’ll be leaving now.”

“Y-Yes! Please take care, sir!”

“Sir?”

“…Ugh!”

The men who had been cursing me earlier suddenly recognized me, and their expressions turned to shock.

“P-Prince!”

“When did you… here…?”

I paused in my steps and approached the drunkards who had been chatting excitedly just a moment ago.

Their faces, which had been flushed with alcohol, turned pale as white paper when they saw me.

“Hey.”

“Y-Yes!”

“What’s your name? Where do you live?”

“Th-th-that…! I-I’m Lam, from Erobel!”

“I see. Lam. What kind of place is Erobel?”

“Uh… it’s a village mainly for gathering fruits…”

“Fruits, huh.”

“Y-Yes…”

“Erobel village’s Lam. I’ll remember that.”

I gave Lam’s shoulder a light pat.

“Phew…”

“Good work.”

As I turned to leave, Lam collapsed onto the spot. It made sense—he had been cursing nobles just a moment ago, and now a noble like me was remembering him.

“W-When did you…?”

“I’ve been here the whole time! I told you to be quiet earlier…”

“Ugh…”

“By the way, why didn’t you say anything and just leave?”

“Is that really important? I’m just glad I’m still alive. Or maybe you were planning to punish me later…”

“Ugh… I’m doomed…”