Chapter 12
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Open the Door
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"C-Conversation?! I am the lord of Viscountcy Hirovencal! Viscount Domos Hirovencal! Do you filthy bandits really think you can get away with this outrage against heaven and earth?! If you kneel and beg forgiveness right now, I might spare your lives..."
Slap!
Viscount Domos suddenly saw stars and felt his cheek burning like fire, leaving him dazed.
But as his head whipped around and he saw Johann's open palm, he quickly realized he'd just been slapped.
As the pain faded, shame and rage surged in—but in that instant, they were swept away by Johann's cold, emotionless voice piercing his eardrums.
"Still think this is a joke?"
Twitch!
No threats or curses were needed. Viscount Domos's trembling eyes met Johann's.
Sometimes, a person's soul shines through their gaze—and this was one of those times.
Within those eyes lurked a man who had weathered countless battlefields, piled mountains of enemy corpses, and let rivers of blood flow atop them.
For a coward like Viscount Domos, not dropping dead from a heart attack was a miracle.
"P-Please spare me! I'll give you anything you want! Just... please let me live..."
Viscount Domos wept profusely, begging for his life. Having realized his pathetic threats meant nothing, groveling was all he had left.
"Eat this."
"W-What is this?"
Viscount Domos stared doubtfully at the three small, black pills Johann pulled from his pocket, earning a slight frown in return.
"Don't want it? Then die."
Snatch!
Before Johann's hand could rise again, Viscount Domos snatched the pills and shoved them into his mouth.
"Chew them thoroughly before swallowing. Vomit, and you're dead."
'Urk! What the hell is this...'
The pills were bitterly acrid, with a faint grassy aftertaste. The more Viscount Domos chewed, the more convinced he became that this was no ordinary medicine, swallowing tears along with it.
Gulp...
Once he'd chewed and swallowed enough, Johann pulled a white pill of similar size from his bosom and offered it.
"Chew this one thoroughly too. I won't take responsibility if you don't."
He had no idea what "responsibility" meant, but the words filled Viscount Domos with dread. Sweating profusely, he chewed even more meticulously than before.
It tasted just as bitter, with that same grassy hint.
"From now on, I'll give you one of these white pills every day without fail—so take them properly. Forget even one, and just slit your throat or jump off a cliff. It'll be quicker than the agony of your flesh melting away from the inside."
'Th-Then that black pill I just ate...!'
Twitch, twitch!
"By the way, I plan to feed the same to your eldest son, Sazan. Want me to do it myself, or should you handle it?"
"W-Wait a moment! My son... Sazan has nothing to do with this!"
"Nothing to do with it? When you die, he'll be the official heir to this territory. Of course I need to collar him now. Unless you'd prefer the cleaner option—I always say there's a neater way."
"I-If you kill us father and son, House Crimford won't stand for it!"
Viscount Domos inwardly praised himself for invoking House Crimford, regretting not thinking of it sooner.
But Johann just sneered.
"Suppose you were the head of House Crimford. Between a ungrateful bastard who only knows how to eat and shit while secretly bribing higher nobles with slush funds, and a talented young rookie like me—who do you think they'd pick?"
"H-How did you...!"
Viscount Domos couldn't hide his shock at Johann knowing his dirty secrets like the back of his hand.
Johann walked to a painting on one wall of the study and pressed the horse's left eye in the image.
Click.
Flinch!
A mechanical whir came from under the desk, and Viscount Domos broke out in cold sweat, eyes wide like a rabbit's.
From the hidden safe beneath the desk, Johann retrieved Viscount Domos's secret ledger.
'He'll be purged for this eventually anyway. Might as well use him usefully for now.'
"Got anything to say?"
"I pledge my full loyalty!"
'Is this really okay? Are we just supposed to sit here?'
Garet bit her lip, peering from the forest at the tightly sealed south gate.
The number of soldiers gathering atop the south gate walls was swelling rapidly. Soon, there wouldn't even be standing room.
Meanwhile, they were just ordinary folk who'd only ever handled farm tools. Their "weapons" were nothing but brooms.
"Um... Boss. Is this really fine? Shouldn't we do something to draw their attention or provoke them?"
Evidently, Garet wasn't the only one harboring doubts—a subordinate nearby voiced them hesitantly.
She shook her head firmly.
"Don't forget—our mission is camouflage. As long as we keep their eyes on us, we're golden. What do you expect us to do, charge out? We'd be crow food in under a minute."
Her words were as much for her subordinate as for herself.
This could be their once-in-a-lifetime chance. Was settling for this really enough? It was her own self-persuasion to quell the anxiety and doubt.
"We can't fool them forever, of course. They'll catch on if we stay put too long. So we just hold their gaze until then. The new boss will handle the rest."
The subordinate confessed his true feelings.
"That's easy to say, but honestly, I don't trust this new boss or whatever. Alpha, was it? Making some skeleton who popped up out of nowhere our leader? It's ridiculous. I don't get why Captain Gellpin handed over his position so easily, or why you all accepted it."
"If you can't trust him, then leave. Why stick around whining?"
"Well..."
As her subordinate hesitated, she patted his shoulder.
"The dream of turning our hometown into a proper village someday. The resolve to fight to the death in this group for that goal. You're not alone in that. Me, everyone else here—we all feel the same. That's why former Captain Gellpin endorsed that skeleton as leader."
Garet stared at her fist, speaking earnestly.
"What we need most is power, no matter what anyone says. Absolute power to overturn this hellish situation. The skeleton has it. And for some reason, he wants our group. Our desires aligned, so the deal was struck."
"That strong, huh? This Alpha guy."
"I haven't seen it myself, so I can't say for sure, but the former captain did. Even if he had a hundred men, Alpha would still win."
The subordinate knew Gellpin's strength well—perhaps better than Johann's. He couldn't believe Gellpin had said it himself.
"C-Captain Gellpin said he'd lose even with a hundred men?"
"Who knows if it's true until we make him a hundred strong. But he's not the type to lie to deceive us. No reason to, right?"
In that moment, Garet's eyes—still fixed on the gate—sharpened.
"Shh! They're moving."
As Garet said, the soldiers atop the south gate walls were shifting subtly.
Having received some news, their once-steady formation wavered, soldiers milling about in confusion even from afar.
"Did they spot our disguise?"
"If so, they'd send scouts first. Still, prepare to retreat just in case."
"Got it!"
Even after her subordinate hurried off with the order, Garet kept watching the enemy.
'They're moving!'
The soldiers finally broke, rushing off in haste. Garet's tension mounted.
But no. No matter how long she waited, they didn't open the south gate and charge out. They must be heading for the inner keep.
"Something big must've happened in the inner keep, then. Please let it succeed..."
Even if the feint lured away some inner keep guards, plenty would remain.
Infiltrating alone to assassinate the lord? Near impossible.
And yet...
Moments later, a returning soldier hung a flag atop the south gate watchtower, his face grim.
Waaaaah!
In an instant, cheers erupted from the forest, echoing into the night sky.
The flag was the Resistance's banner of defiance.
The signal promised for success now fluttered boldly overhead.
"N-No way! They actually did it?!"
"Boss! The gate's open! The south gate's wide open!"
Incredulous, Garet and the rebels alike couldn't contain their joy. Some collapsed on the spot, tears streaming.
Despite countless comrades sacrificing their lives, what they'd failed to achieve—this Alpha had done in one night, without a single loss.
'He really pulled off a miracle...'
She had no choice but to admit it now.
Gellpin's judgment, his choice. And above all, Johann's absurd power...
In case of trouble, the executives quietly herded the civilians back to base with some soldiers, then headed for the inner keep through the wide-open gate.
Up to then, knights and soldiers glared daggers at the rebels but made no move to attack or block them.
"Garet!"
"Henderson! Bix!"
Garet spotted Henderson and Bix already at the inner keep entrance and ran over joyfully.
"Why're you standing around like idiots? Why not go in?"
"The most important guy's not here yet."
That was when it happened.
"So you were waiting? I don't really care."
"Captain!"
"Former captain. You're squad leader now, Bix."
Gellpin arrived last, correcting Bix's enthusiastic greeting as he brushed past them.
The inner gate stood wide open, just like the outer one.
"Whoa~ So this is what a castle looks like inside..."
"These bastards really lived in luxury. Fuckin' hell."
The inner keep brimmed with lavish, exotic treasures, but to them, everything reeked of their blood and sweat—nothing enviable.
Thanks to Gellpin leading the way, the executives reached the lord's study without issue.
Knock knock.
"Come in."
Inside, Johann lounged in the lord's chair like he owned it, with Viscount Domos cowering on his knees beside him.
"You've truly done us a great service! Sir Alpha."
"Ah~ It was tough. Really, who else could've even dreamed of this? Right?"
The executives' lips curled into grins at Johann's brazen display—humility long sold off.
And rightly so. No one but Johann could've pulled this off.
But their smiles vanished the instant they saw Viscount Domos, pale with terror, furtively gauging their reactions.