Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad Chapter 164
"Tomorrow, I promise you, I will bake one for you," Maya said, pacifying Arabella as she gently brushed her daughter's hair back.
"Dis big!" Arabella spread her arms as wide as she could, gesturing how big the cheesecake should be.
"Yes, I'll bake a big cheesecake tomorrow." Maya sighed as she looked at her daughter, whose eyes were still teary. A helpless smile tugged at her lips. Arabella was such a glutton.
Arabella reluctantly agreed and let her mother wipe her tears. She sniffled softly, her nose red as she leaned into Maya's hands. She promised herself that she would always eat at the table from now on. She didn't want to experience the tragedy of missing food ever again. It was simply too heartbreaking for her small mind to accept.
"Now play with your brother," Maya said, lightly patting her head.
"Hm!" Arabella quickly forgot her sadness and approached her brother, who was playing with toy cars. Her steps were short and adorable.
"Arabella is clearly the youngest because she cries a lot," Karlos said, watching the kids with warmth.
The twins' births were only separated by a few minutes, with Iñigo being born first, followed by Arabella.
...
...
...
The next day, Karlos and Brandon waited for Alfred to arrive. They stood by the gate, occasionally glancing down the road.
"I guess I'm the only one who's taking this seriously..." Brandon muttered.
When Brandon arrived earlier, he was wearing a formal long-sleeve shirt as if he were going to attend church. But when he saw Karlos in simple attire, he immediately went back home to change into something more comfortable. He scratched his head awkwardly.
"You really took this seriously?"
"Of course. We are going to a shrimp farm to be the bosses. We should wear proper attire," Brandon explained.
"That would be awkward. Just wearing a shirt and pants is fine. We're not attending a business meeting, just checking the shrimp farm. Wearing long sleeves would be too hot and uncomfortable." Karlos waved it off casually.
A few minutes later, a car stopped in front of the house. Alfred stepped out and greeted Karlos respectfully, bowing his head slightly while maintaining his professional demeanor.
At first, Alfred thought that Karlos and Roman were not related, aside from sharing the same surname. But that thought was slowly changing as their interactions increased.
'... Young Master and Karlos have connections.' Alfred had been working for the Alejandro family for decades and was a trusted subordinate of Heneral Alejandro. He firmly believed that Heneral had never cheated on his wife. That was impossible in his eyes. His loyalty was unwavering.
But the resemblance between Karlos and Roman was uncanny. It didn't help that Roman was gradually warming up to Karlos.
If not for the news that Karlos had sold an expensive herbal plant to Roman in exchange for 60 million pesos and a shrimp farm, Alfred might have believed that Roman had given those things out of personal generosity.
Karlos nodded and extended his hand. The butler/manager shook it. Brandon also shook hands with Alfred, though his expression remained stiff, clearly nervous in front of someone of higher status.
Karlos and Brandon had calloused hands, proof of their physically demanding work as fishermen.
"Would you like to visit the bank first or the shrimp farm?"
"Which one is closer?"
"Our route will pass by the town center."
"Then let's settle the money first." Karlos decided that securing the money was the priority.
Karlos and Brandon sat in the back seats while Alfred and the driver sat in the front.
Una Town mostly had tricycles, motorcycles, and bicycles on the road. But once the car reached a major road, more cars began to appear, especially along the route leading to the fish port and the town center.
They arrived at Adobo Bank. Surprisingly, the process was far smoother than Karlos and Brandon expected. Usually, when they deposited money, they had to wait in long lines for their turn.
But it seemed that Alfred had ways to secure VIP treatment, making everything faster and more efficient. The exchange rate that day was $1 to 54 pesos, though it didn't matter since Roman had paid in pesos.
Still, if they had accepted $1 million, it would have amounted to 54 million pesos.
Karlos and Brandon were stunned. They already knew the approximate amount, but seeing it firsthand was still shocking.
Such a large sum usually came with significant processing fees, but Alfred had already taken care of everything.
Brandon received 3 million pesos directly into his bank account. He stared at his bankbook with a wide grin, practically drooling over the numbers.
As for Karlos, he received 57 million pesos. His hands trembled as he realized their total savings had reached 63 million pesos, including their previous funds. He swallowed hard. He couldn't believe that the ginseng they found had increased his savings tenfold.
When they returned to the car, both men were still in shock. But their surprise didn't end there.
As they reached the southwest of Una Town, they saw a vast farm stretching into the distance.
"... The last time I came here, this place was just endless grassland with big trees. That was two years ago. I can't believe it changed like this. There's even a road now," Brandon muttered.
Una Town still had many undeveloped areas with simple infrastructure. The southwest region was one of them, consisting mostly of small villages whose main source of income was fishing in the mangroves.
The shrimp farm was located in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by grasslands and trees.
From afar, Karlos couldn't determine its size. But as they got closer, he realized just how massive it was.
"How big is the farm again?" Karlos asked, not recalling Roman mentioning its size. He had only described it as small.
"The shrimp farm spans 3 hectares, with most of the space occupied by ponds," Alfred explained calmly.
"..."
'Small shrimp farm my ass... This is 3 hectares! How is this considered small!?' Karlos screamed internally.
"Then..." Karlos swallowed. "How much did Roman spend to build this farm?"
"Including construction and equipment, approximately 15 million pesos."
"..."
Karlos paled.
[Thank you guys for your support. Also, Steel Ball Run was released today! Let's goooo!!]