The Ultimate Litter: A Beast World System Tale novel Chapter 158

Chapter 158 Scars Left by Betrayal

Claire nodded and looked at the man standing in front of her.

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Bertie looked to be around 40 years old. He had an average build and a slight hunch in his back. He wore old animal-hide clothes, worn thin with holes in several places, but he still kept wearing them. Everything about him looked plain and humble.

A thick beard covered most of his face, leaving only his eyes visible. Deep lines fanned out from the corners of them, making him look worn and weathered by life.

“Hi, Bertie. My name is Claire. I’m from the fox clan,” Claire introduced herself with a calm, gentle smile.

Bertie couldn’t speak, but his hearing was perfectly fine.

Marcus had told her that Bertie hadn’t been born mute. He had injured his throat during a fight years ago and lost his voice afterward.

The moment Bertie saw Claire, his whole face froze.

He sucked in a sharp breath and stared at her in disbelief, looking her up and down several times.

Claire blinked in confusion. Just as she was about to ask if he knew her, Marcus suddenly coughed.

“Bertie, what’s wrong?”

Bertie’s reaction had been so obvious that Marcus couldn’t miss it even if he tried.

Startled back to his senses by Marcus’s voice, Bertie quickly calmed himself. The shock vanished from his face, replaced by a steady expression. Then he grabbed Marcus’s hand and quickly traced signs into his palm.

Marcus translated for him.

“Bertie says you’re wonderful. Bertie, we already bonded. Look, these are our babies!”

He stepped aside, revealing the small bed behind him where the babies were sleeping soundly.

The cloudiness in Bertie’s eyes disappeared at once. His eyes lit up as he stared at the babies with excitement and affection. He immediately began signing rapidly into Marcus’s palm again.

Claire knew the two of them had their own way of communicating. After spending so many years together, they could understand each other easily.

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14:26 Mon, Jul 20

Chapter 158 Scars Left by Betrayal

Still, she couldn’t stop thinking about Bertie’s first reaction.

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That look on his face had held shock, joy, and something else she couldn’t explain. It felt like he had suddenly met someone he had missed for years, only to realize that person no longer recognized him.

That was exactly the feeling Bertie gave her.

Before Claire could think deeper about it, Marcus’s cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts.

“Bertie, I know you’re happy for me.”

Then Marcus’s tone changed. He patted Bertie’s hand gently and asked, “But what happened to you lately? You should tell me now, right?”

Bertie had actually woken up a long time ago. But no matter how much Marcus asked, he refused to explain what had happened. He spent his days tossing and turning in bed and barely touched the roasted meat prepared for him.

Bertie glanced at the babies, then at Claire, and finally back at Marcus.

It had only been a short time since they last met, but Marcus had changed a lot. He had a mate now, children too, and he seemed far more mature than before.

At last, Bertie began tracing signs quickly into Marcus’s palm again.

Marcus explained everything to Claire while he signed.

Finlay had captured Bertie.

Finlay had forced Bertie to poison Marcus’s daily meals, but Bertie refused firmly. Furious, Finlay locked him up and had him whipped every day, trying to break his will.

But Bertie would rather die than give in. The scars covering his body were proof of the torture Finlay’s men had put him through.

In the end, Bertie was dragged outside the city and thrown into a crack between the rocks in a mountain valley. They wanted to use him as bait to lure Marcus out.

As Bertie remembered those terrible days of abuse, his emotions boiled over again. Anger filled his tired old eyes when he thought about Finlay. It took him a long time to calm down.

“Bertie, this happened because of me,” Marcus said heavily.

So it really was Finlay.

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14:26 Mon, Jul 20

Chapter 158 Scars Left by Betrayal

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He had wanted Marcus dead for a long time. Maybe the fact that Marcus was the former city lord’s son kept Finlay awake at night. Even though Marcus had never shown any interest in taking his place, Finlay still refused to let him live peacefully.

After what he had tried to do to Claire, the hatred between them had only grown stronger. Soon, their conflict would no longer stay hidden.

“Bertie, don’t worry. I’ll get revenge for you,” Marcus said firmly. “I won’t let Finlay go.”

Bertie hurriedly waved his hands, his face full of worry. Even Claire understood what he meant.

He was worried about Marcus’s safety.

Claire gently comforted him. “Bertie, you don’t have to worry. Marcus isn’t alone. I’ll help him

too.”

After hearing what happened to Bertie, Claire finally understood what kind of beastfolk Finlay really was.

Fake. Cruel. Rotten to the core.

And now that she thought about it, the people who attacked her that night were probably Finlay’s men too.

Otherwise, there was no way Marcus could have failed to find them after all this time. More likely, he had already discovered the truth, but because of Finlay’s status or the powerful people backing him, he had no choice but to stay quiet for now.

Everything finally made sense.

Her instincts had been right all along.

Finlay was the real villain.

Even though she had never met him, anyone who could become city lord had to be powerful. Marcus was strong too, but he was still young. Claire wasn’t afraid of a fair fight. What scared her was the dirty tricks Finlay might use behind the scenes.

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