No Heaven for Traitors
Count Ernest's face was a volcano with magma spilling over the rim. Baron Horton watched the enraged count with a deathly pallor.
He was bound tight in rope. A throng of soldiers ringed him on every side. None of them understood what was unfolding, but every man among them could feel that something grave had taken place.
"What's going on? Why is Baron Horton like that?"
"No idea. It's been a long time since I've seen the Count wear a face like that. Looks like the Knight Commander committed some serious offense…"
"Damn it. The mood's already rotten, and now weird shit just keeps piling up."
The soldiers' murmurs carried on the air. Each of them was piecing the situation together in his own way. Of course, not a single one of them guessed that Baron Horton had committed treason.
Count Ernest jabbed a finger at Baron Horton and roared.
"Baron Horton! It sickens me that I raised a jackal like you! Damn it! How could you betray me!?"
"C-Count!? What are you saying? What on earth are you talking about? I swear I have never betrayed you! I don't understand any of this!"
At those words, Baron Melun, standing at Count Ernest's side, twisted his face into a grimace. The look he gave Baron Horton was the look a man gives a piece of garbage. His voice dripped with contempt.
"You coward! You're going to play innocent!? These knights here watched every last one of your crimes!"
"Baron Melun! It was you! You framed me, you bastard! I knew it! I'm innocent! Count! This is a frame-up! Baron Melun is framing me!"
"My lord. That man sold our army's operational maps to the Coulon territorial forces. These knights witnessed the act with their own eyes!"
Baron Melun and Baron Horton raised their voices at each other. The soldiers who overheard them began to stir, their faces turning grim.
"Betrayal? Don't tell me Baron Horton actually…"
"If it's the Knight Commander, he might've… His personality was always a bit like that."
"Even so, betrayal in the middle of a territorial war? Has he lost his mind? Wait — does that mean our army doesn't have a chance?"
"Could be. The commanders all say we're going to win, but who knows if that's a lie?"
The negative ripple that began with the two officers' shouting match spread through the entire territorial army. It was a virus with a vicious rate of infection.
"Aaaagh! What are you talking about! This is a frame-up! It's a frame-up!"
Baron Horton had no way of knowing how any of this had come to pass. He had gotten pleasantly drunk, taken a generous nap, and simply woken up. And now, suddenly, he was being branded a traitor.
But too many people had already watched his act of collusion — and most of them were knights. There was no hole left for him to crawl through.
"I didn't betray anyone! I'm innocent! This is all Baron Melun's frame-up!"
"There's a limit to shamelessness, and you've blown past it, saying that even now…! You aren't even worth a pest! My lord! This man must be executed on the spot under military law!"
"Of course! Ugh! This is how he repays the grace I showed him…! I will not forgive this! Soldiers, look well! Betrayal will not be tolerated. Even if the traitor is a noble… I will govern by the strict letter of military law! Carry it out!"
At Count Ernest's cry, a knight at his side drew his sword and stepped forward. He was one of the knights who had witnessed Baron Horton's act of betrayal. More precisely, he had witnessed the betrayal of me, disguised as Baron Horton.
"Aaaagh! This is a frame-up! I'm innocent! Uuugh! Captain! You know I'm innocent, don't you!? Tell the Count! This is all that wicked Baron Melun's frame-up!"
Still bound tight in rope, Baron Horton crawled toward me. It was a ridiculous sight, like a worm wriggling across the dirt. I nearly burst out laughing.
"Please, tell them I've been wronged! You were with me — you know the truth, don't you!? This is all that wicked Baron Melun's frame-up!"
I crouched down to meet the eyes of Baron Horton, who was on his knees pleading his innocence. Tears welled in his eyes. Looking at him, it seemed the terror of death was equal for everyone.
"Baron Horton…. Why would you commit such an act of betrayal? I believed in you…"
"Wh-what? You too…. You're in on it too! Damn it! Baron Melun! You… you sent this bastard to destroy me! You were in on it all along! Aaaagh!"
The last rope Baron Horton had clung to was a rotten one. I kicked away the man desperately stretching out his hand from the edge of the cliff.
I was the one who had created this situation in the first place. A fitting end for Baron Horton.
"I curse you! Baron Melun! Let's see how far you get after framing me…. I'll be watching from the heavens! I will curse you! You wicked devil!"
"Pathetic. I thought even you, as a noble, would at least keep a shred of dignity. I've seen that rotten, slavish nature of yours well enough. Fall into hell, traitor! There is no heaven allotted for a man who betrayed his own territory!"
Baron Melun sneered right back at the cursing Baron Horton. Remarkable nerve. Worthy of the ace of the Ernest Fief army.
Then again, Baron Horton's curse would probably come true. I would be the one to carry out his will and kill Baron Melun.
Don't take it too hard, Baron Horton. I'll make sure your revenge is served.
"By the Count's command, I will execute Baron Horton, traitor to the Ernest Fief army."
The knight raised his sword high.
"Aaaagh! It's not fair! I'm innocent! This is a miscarriage of justice! Count Ernest! I'll be watching to see how well you do after killing this Baron Horton on a frame-up! Aaaaagh!"
"You beast! Even a funeral would be a luxury for you! Your corpse will be scattered across Mount Aden as monster feed!"
Shhk!
The knight's blade cleanly severed Baron Horton's neck. The soldiers did not look away. They watched the spectacle with rapt attention. To them, an execution was a form of entertainment — and when the man on the block was their own superior, so much the better.
Baron Horton's head sailed through the air. Even in the instant his neck was cut, he could not close his eyes for the sheer injustice of it. He had every right to feel wronged.
"You all saw that clearly, I trust? No one will be forgiven for betrayal. Baron Melun!"
"Yes, my lord!"
"Put that head on a pike in the center of the camp! Tear the body to shreds and scatter it on the mountain! Baron Horton will not have so much as a bone buried in the earth!"
"It shall be done!"
"Inform every soldier of his death! Let them all see clearly the severity of military law!"
"It shall be done!"
Baron Melun collected Baron Horton's head. Horton's eyes were still glaring at him. Even in death, the obsession had not faded.
That's one taken care of.
After Baron Horton's execution, the follow-up measures began. The most important thing the Ernest Fief army needed to determine was how much military intelligence he had sold to the Coulon territorial forces.
Baron Melun chose me as the officer in charge of the investigation. Among the staff, I had been closest to Baron Horton, and I was also the one who had reported the incident — there was no one better suited for the job.
I seized Mason Elper, Baron Horton's adjutant. Elper was a woman Horton had brought along as a fucktoy, so she held no real authority whatsoever. That was enough to spare her a death sentence, but as the adjutant of a traitor, she could not escape a severe punishment either.
Under military law, she was to be sentenced to slavery.
I detained her under the pretext of investigating the information Baron Horton had sold. Baron Melun personally assigned me the task of interrogating her.
"I… I don't know anything. I really only came along to attend Baron Horton."
"Attend him? Then you must know exactly what he was doing."
"I… I didn't attend to any of his official duties at all."
"What? Then what exactly did you attend to?"
"My job was to pour Baron Horton's drinks and sing for him. It's the truth! I'm a stupid woman — I don't know how to do anything else. I swear I had no idea the Baron had committed treason. Please believe me!"
Elper slammed her forehead into the dirt. If she failed to prove her innocence here, she could still be put to death. So she threw away every last scrap of pride and flung herself down before me, clutching at my feet as she begged.
"It's the truth! I really never committed any kind of betrayal."
"Hmph. Hard to believe. You, Baron Horton's closest attendant, had no involvement in the treason. And you were at his side the whole time without helping with a single bit of his work?"
"Yes. I was a girl who worked in a tavern to begin with. I caught Baron Horton's eye and was brought here."
"I was told you were a nobleman's daughter."
"Our house fell when my mother was still alive. I was raised like a commoner from the start. I can't even read. Captain, please, I beg you to believe me."
"Hmph. So you took no part in the act of betrayal whatsoever, and all you did was attend Baron Horton at night. That's the gist of it?"
It was a bit of a shame that she'd been Horton's used fucktoy, but it hardly mattered. I was going to consume this girl the way you eat junk food anyway. A virgin would have been nice, but I wasn't some virgin-chaser who only went after untouched girls.
"Th-that's… I didn't attend him at night."
An unexpected answer came from Elper's lips.
"What? You mean you never had sex with Baron Horton?"
"No…. I never had relations with Baron Horton at all. The thing is…. Baron Horton suffered from erectile dysfunction."
A shocking revelation. That bastard Horton had been impotent. Looking at that arrogant face and that attitude, you'd have thought he'd fucked a hundred women at least.
Thinking about it now, what I'd done to Horton might have been a little excessive. The guy couldn't even get it up — I should have at least killed him a bit more nicely. Thanks to me, Horton had gone to his grave still being humiliated.
At any rate, Horton's impotence was good news for me. Did that mean I might get to break in something fresh?
"So, are you a virgin?"
I asked her point-blank.
"I… I'm not a virgin. I had a man I used to see…. W-we're broken up now. And even though I'm not a virgin, I haven't had relations that many times!"
The only path left for her to survive was to cling to me. She swayed her hips at me as she spoke.
"If you spare my life, I will devote my loyalty to you, Captain! Please, I beg you to believe me!"
"Devoting your loyalty — does that mean offering me your body and your heart, both?"
"O-of course! I belong to you now, Captain!"
She went so far as to press her lips to my boot. The sight of it made my cock spring straight up. This was a play with some real destructive power.
"Well, fine. I'll believe you for now. But I'm not entirely convinced yet. The more you prove your innocence with that body of yours, the better your chances of surviving. Remember that."
I gave her ass a few blatant pats as I spoke. Far from pulling away, she pressed her hips even harder into my hand. She seemed like a pretty serviceable fucktoy. She knew exactly what she needed to do.
"The interrogation isn't over, but you must be tireded in your own way. You may withdraw for now. I'm a bit tired myself — I should rest."
"Y-yes! Thank you!"
"Ah, one more thing. I don't imagine you would, but don't even think about running. Whenever that impulse hits you, take a look at Baron Horton's head on the pike outside and it'll pass. Remember this well: if you run, your guilt is confirmed."
"I'll keep that in mind!"
With that, Elper withdrew. I left the camp to proceed with the next piece of business. I told the sentries I was going out for the investigation. I headed to where Luna and Sera were waiting.
"Here, Young Master Derick's clothes and hair."
Luna had brought the clothes and hair I had asked for. I stowed the hair in my inventory and put the clothes on at once.
"Good. We're short on time, so we move fast."
I disguised myself as Derick.