The Count's Plight
"Cough! Cough!" Count Holstead spat blood, staining the white blanket red. It was obvious his body wasn't in any normal state. Whatever illness plagued him, he looked like he might not last another day. His fingertips were blackened, and his eyes were hollow—treatment seemed nearly impossible.
"He probably has some chronic condition... looks hard to treat... poor guy at such a young age... I bet that's what you're thinking right now."
"How did you..."
"I'm pretty used to that kind of look. It's better than the disgusted stares wondering if the disease is contagious, at least."
Hit right where it hurt, he couldn't muster a single reply. I'd gone and pitied him on my own, making a mistake that wasn't like me at all. I knew better than anyone how shitty and unpleasant that kind of pitying gaze could feel. If it were some clueless brat, maybe, but this wasn't the sort of thing the head of the Confucian sect should be doing.
"My apologies. I seem to have committed an unintended rudeness. I bow my head in sincere apology."
"There's no need for that, Sir Werner." Count Holstead coughed up more blood onto the blanket. Whoa, is this a ketchup factory or what...
"I'm used to looks like that by now... and it's a trivial story anyway. What's important is the matter of my territory."
"Yes... so is it really true that the Black Round Table has infiltrated this territory?"
"Yes. The source is reliable... and I've personally verified the information. The Black Round Table members you repelled at the party have hidden themselves in this territory."
Back then, that incident had been wrapped up as simple treason by the arrested nobles... but since he's close to the crown prince, maybe he could get that kind of intel? And to obtain information even from the crown prince... he must be trusted quite a bit.
"But you said you verified it personally... how exactly did you confirm it?"
If he'd faced them directly, he wouldn't have come out unscathed. Besides, someone without both legs wasn't the type to escape from them on mana alone.
"Before I verified it myself... I could still walk on two legs. And I had quite a few escort knights with me. Will that... be sufficient evidence?"
Why the hell am I like this today? Did I catch it from that bastard Hoon? Without meaning to, I kept jabbing at his sore spots.
"Don't worry about it. My body's always been weak, so I didn't walk much anyway."
"I see. And I heard there are other problems as well."
"Yes... I'm not sure if it's connected to the Black Round Table, but the miners' union has been acting strangely lately."
"...The miners' union, you say?"
"Yes. As you know, this territory's specialty is iron ore and various other minerals. That's why a large portion of the residents work in related fields, and most of them are miners. They formed the miners' union for their mutual benefit."
They formed a union in this era? At this rate, we might end up with Defias Brotherhood season two. Or it could become the spark of a new revolution.
"Why would you allow such a union to..."
"Why did I permit it, you ask? Because at first, I thought it would serve as a shield to protect them. I believed it was an organization created by the powerless to defend themselves."
"You said 'at first'..."
"In the beginning, they demanded improvements in working conditions and realistic wage increases... but not anymore."
I had a rough idea of where this was going.
"Since there's a labor shortage, they demanded that the upper class, middle class, and lower class all work in three shifts... and they even demanded wages equal to those of noble retainers... they kept making outrageous demands."
"What kind of crazy bastards..."
"Well, even if the three-shift demand was unreasonable given the labor shortage, increasing the workforce was possible. Equal pay with noble retainers was impossible, but I did raise their wages by thirty percent. After all, their working conditions really were poor."
Wow, at this rate he's the best boss ever.
"You met all those conditions, so why are their movements still suspicious?"
"Once I accepted those conditions, they started pushing even more unreasonable demands. They wanted one house per miner, coverage for their children's tuition fees..."
"Don't tell me you accepted all of that?"
"Partially. But in the end, they made a demand I absolutely could not accept."
"What was it?"
"...It was to marry my younger sister to their union leader. The leader is forty-three, and my sister is only sixteen."
Damn, give them an inch and they turn into complete bastards. There really wasn't a single wrong word among the ancestors' sayings. Keep showing kindness and they lose all sense of proportion and start acting up.
"I refused firmly. No, I was so angry that I beat the messenger who brought the proposal and sent him back... I still regret that part."
I was more surprised he hadn't executed the guy. If someone spouted that kind of bullshit, getting their head chopped off wouldn't be strange, right? Even the most benevolent ruler would tear them limb from limb for saying something like that.
"After that, they all went on strike. They demanded an enormous amount of money for treatment costs and forced the marriage between my sister and the union leader."
"What kind of fucking bastards are these?"
"Money, I could give. But my sister... I didn't want to drag her into this. However, as the strike dragged on, problems began to arise within the territory."
"Problems, you say?"
"...Didn't I mention that most of the residents work in the mining industry? It's not just the miners. When the supply of raw materials stopped, the territory's economy fell into chaos."
Count Holstead continued speaking while coughing up blood.
"I had no choice but to hire other miners to continue the excavation. But the miners' union killed all of them. The culprits are in prison... but they were all young, just kids. The reason is obvious."
Clearly, the union leadership had carried out the work, while the young miners had volunteered to take the blame. I could roughly picture the structure. Organizations like that had been everywhere in the place I used to live.
"Then my sister said she would get married. I tried to stop her, but her will was strong, so I took her to the meeting place."
"Then that meeting..."
"That was where I was able to finish the 'verification.' But how they appeared at a meeting with the miners' union is still a mystery. What benefit could they possibly gain from this... so I'm also curious whether they're connected to the miners' union as well."
That much was certain. There was no reason for the Black Round Table to interfere in an agreement between a remote noble and a miners' union. Even if their goals were unclear, at least one thing was certain—they didn't meddle in small matters like this.
"Yes, I understand. I'll look into it myself."
"I leave it in your capable hands. And if there's anything inconvenient, please tell the butler."
"There's nothing particularly inconvenient."
Except for the fact that there were plenty of rooms but only two we could actually use.
"Ah... would you mind not entering any rooms besides the guest rooms, my room, and the dining hall? There are rooms storing important items..."
"Yes, I understand."
Was he hiding something strange? It was suspicious, but this was Count Holstead's home. I wasn't so uncultured as to break the rules set by the homeowner in someone else's house.
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As I followed the butler back to my room, I decided to ask the questions I'd been holding back. The ones I had considered asking Count Holstead but ultimately swallowed. I'd already unintentionally touched his reverse scales multiple times today, and I was afraid of provoking him again.
"Um... where is Count Holstead's younger sister?"
I hadn't seen the sister who supposedly attended the meeting with him even once. Normally, when guests arrived, unless they were seriously ill, they would come out to greet them.
"That story... please don't mention it in front of the master. The clothes he wore to the funeral haven't even dried yet."
"...I see."
"She was such a bright person. But that damn union leader..."
Ah, since the Black Round Table had to remain secret, it must have been made known that she was killed by the union leader.
"Don't worry too much. I've come to resolve everything."
"Yes... I sincerely hope you will."
I suppose I need to take this matter seriously. Eliminating those bastards is precisely the duty of me, the head of the Confucian sect, Werner Alton. Great power comes with great responsibility. With the divine authority of Confucianism and my innate magical talent, I had the obligation to wipe out that trash. And above all, in my hands was the magic book Enoch, which proved that my justice was right.
God the Father, please help me kill those Defias Brotherhood-like bastards.