Erika (1)
"Hey. Sell the soap to our territory first, won't you?"
"Hmm. I'll mention it."
Melania was currently meeting with the other dragons and discussing various matters. Alpha was mistaken in thinking that just because the dragons didn't actively participate in territorial meetings, they had no interest in the territories. Though they operated more like an idle game, even in idle games one still had to click the screen or spend accumulated resources. Moreover, if a territorial war broke out and they lost the territory they had been raising, they would have to submit to the opposing dragon for several years. When a territory was in danger, even the dragons who found everything bothersome would actively intervene. That was why, now that the Black Death had put every territory at risk, the dragons were struggling to solve their territories' problems. Ironically, the actual lords who should have been more invested than the dragons were completely ignorant of the issue.
"Hahaha. Isn't it because those lowly insects incurred the wrath of the gods? If it weren't divine punishment, the priests would have no reason not to heal them!"
Utterances like that had led to the widespread belief that the Black Death was a disease born from the lower classes angering the gods. There were even many lords who remained unaware that Bicken Territory had developed a way to prevent the plague by washing with soap… The dragons could only stamp their feet in frustration.
The dragons' gathering had been arranged under the pretext of holding a banquet like the human nobles, but in reality it was a desperate scramble to obtain soap from Melania. The soap produced in Bicken Territory was already in such short supply that it could barely meet demand even if sold only to neighboring territories.
Because of this, while Bicken Territory was in the middle of important meetings, Melania was attending the party. So what was the Melania currently in Bicken Territory? Simply a duplicate she had created. Though the duplicate could only follow simple commands, it was sufficient for displaying her dignity during the meeting.
'I've already given the warning.'
She had firmly warned Wellington not to interfere with Alpha's affairs any further, so there should be no problems. Surely nothing could happen while she was away.
"This is a statue carved from jade… If you could sell us some soap…"
Melania paid no mind to any worries and began enjoying the party as the other dragons showered her with gifts and sweet words. She had no idea what was happening back in her territory.
*
'I need to get rid of that Alpha bastard right now.'
Wellington was plotting Alpha's elimination.
—Melania has left the territory. A letter from Ignis, the dragon of Kerens Territory.
Thanks to that letter, Wellington had easily realized that the Melania currently in the territory was a fake. Wellington was a man who moved solely on his desire for revenge against Melania, even though he was the lord. He had deliberately lost to the lord of Kerens so that Melania would be forced to listen to Ignis. The greatest humiliation a human could inflict on a dragon was handing over one's territory. Wellington would also have to leave his territory after the defeat and live as an ordinary administrator, but at least he wouldn't be Melania. A defeated dragon had to obey the victor for two hundred years…!
For the sake of that revenge, he had to eliminate Alpha as quickly as possible. Because Alpha was unnecessarily competent, the territory was developing day by day. If things continued like this, the gap with Kerens Territory would grow so large that even if he wanted to lose on purpose, he wouldn't be able to.
"You've arrived."
"It's been a while, Baron Wellington."
"Thank you for coming, Countess Luimina."
This was the first step in bringing Alpha down. He was furious and couldn't stand putting in so much effort just for a mere Breeder, but he had no choice. Alpha's influence within the territory was already quite high, and from what he could gather, the daughters of prominent families—Helen Wagner, Elisa Soryu, Gemini Bais, and others—were on close terms with him. Helen Wagner and Gemini Bais could be ignored, but Elisa Soryu could not. After all, the Bicken family was originally a branch family under the Soryu family. They hadn't become vassals through territorial war; the Bicken family had split off from the Soryu family. That was why Melania didn't have to submit to the dragon of Soryu Territory, Refery.
Anyway, the best way to separate Elisa Soryu from Alpha's elimination plan was to summon her mother, Luimina Soryu, the head of the Soryu County that had originally sent her.
"So. You're saying my daughter has been bewitched by some Breeder and is teaching magic to those filthy commoners."
"Yes."
"I see."
But the claim was so absurd that Luimina didn't believe Wellington's words for a second. To her, it only looked like Wellington's petty jealousy. Why would her daughter, who lacked for nothing, fall for a Breeder—a savage summoned from another world—and teach magic to those insect-like commoners?
"I'll look into it a bit more carefully."
"Do as you wish."
Thus, Luimina decided to stay in the territory for a while and uncover the truth. It couldn't possibly be true. It was just Wellington making a fuss. Thinking that, she began asking about the most important reason she had come to Bicken Territory.
"By the way, is it true that the soap really has no effect?"
"Yes."
The Black Death was a headache even in Soryu Territory. Yet there supposedly existed an item that could prevent such a disease. She didn't particularly care about commoners dying, but she couldn't ignore the fact that a neighboring territory—moreover, a vassal family—had produced something that could prevent the plague. Especially when large amounts of money were flowing into that vassal family's territory because of it. In that situation, Wellington's claim that the soap was useless naturally caught her interest. Even commoners wouldn't refuse to buy the cheap soap sold in Bicken Territory just because purchase was banned. If their lives were at stake, those insects would bare their teeth even before nobles. But if there was evidence, it would be different.
"Where is that evidence, Baron Wellington?"
"The evidence is right here. Bring them in!"
"Yes."
Leona, suppressing her killing intent, brought in three men at Wellington's command. Karl, Johnson, and Hanson. Three thieves. The very men Alpha had used to advertise the soap's effectiveness.
"Now then. Tell us in detail what Alpha made you do."
"Y-Yes!"
The thieves, their faces covered in wounds as if they had been tortured, began explaining in detail what Alpha had made them do. From how Alpha had released them and deliberately made them steal from houses where the Black Death was spreading, then forced them to wash with soap every day, to how he made them spread rumors that washing with soap would prevent the plague. They began explaining as thoroughly as possible in order to survive.
Creak.
Watching the thieves, Leona clenched her fists so tightly it looked as though she might draw her sword at any moment.
"Knight Commander. Calm yourself. Killing those who spoke the truth would be beneath a noble's dignity."
Wellington thought her reaction was simply Leona's anger at having been deceived by Alpha all this time. It was only natural for Wellington, who didn't know about the subjugation mark. The two had met in secret without others knowing, and until Alpha donated a large sum of money to the knight order, they hadn't appeared to be on good terms. Even now they both acted indifferent on the surface, so Wellington believed Leona hated Alpha for handing her that defeat.
'How dare these bastards stab Alpha in the back?'
Of course, her fury was actually directed at the thieves for trying to sell out Alpha to save themselves, but Wellington had no way of knowing that.
"That's how he spread those false rumors. And if you look at this statistical chart, you can clearly see that the infection rate decreased significantly after soap was distributed in large quantities."
"I see."
Luimina tilted her head. He had brought the thieves to prove Alpha was lying, yet this chart clearly suggested the soap had been effective.
"However, I believe it wasn't because of the soap."
"Why is that?"
"As you can see, the infection rate itself had been continuously declining. Then it dropped noticeably right around the time soap was distributed."
"Doesn't that noticeable drop indicate that the soap was effective?"
"I see it differently. Look here. This is the population distribution map our administrator obtained."
Wellington pulled out a chart showing graphs of population numbers and infection rates by district in the city.
"As you can see, areas with fewer people have lower infection rates."
That was obvious. Areas with fewer people were originally where the wealthy and nobles lived. The Black Death, which spread through filth and rats, couldn't possibly spread widely there. Moreover, these people immediately spent large sums on treatment the moment someone contracted the plague, so transmission itself was minimal. Wellington ignored all of that and explained it solely through statistics.
"Areas with more people have higher infection rates. And the more people die from the Black Death, the lower the infection rate becomes. Then, when the population suddenly decreases at a certain point, it shows a drop similar to when soap was used! In other words, the timing when soap was used was merely a coincidence, and the infection rate naturally fell as the population decreased due to the Black Death!"
Wellington's words, which ignored causality and interpreted everything solely through numbers, seemed plausible at first glance.
"Oh my. I see."
But whether Wellington's words were true or not didn't matter to Luimina. What mattered was that there was evidence suggesting the soap had no effect against the Black Death. Now she had a legitimate reason to ban soap purchases.
"How was it?"
"They say he certainly has ability."
After listening to Wellington's long speech about the soap, Luimina sat in the splendid room assigned to her and received a report from Airen, her knight and Sword Master. While she had been talking with Wellington, Airen had been gathering information by wandering around the territory. Though she hadn't met Alpha directly, he seemed to be regarded as quite popular and capable within the territory. Among the commoners, at least.
"But the nobles dislike him very much. It seems he's also made enemies of the mages."
The evaluation among the nobles was truly the worst.
"And… it seems the young lady really is teaching magic to those commoners."
"What? No, no. That can't be right. My daughter is educating commoners?"
Luimina grabbed the back of her neck and collapsed onto the bed. The fatigue from the carriage ride hit her all at once.
"Yes. She must have been paid a lot. An amount she couldn't refuse…"
There was still time. Luimina planned to stay for a few days and find out why her daughter had to do such a thing.
*
"Right now, that Wellington bastard is trying to harm Master."
"Is that so."
After hearing Leona's report that had revealed Wellington's entire plan, I nodded. I turned my steps toward the room where Erika was. From now on, it was a race against time. Wellington and I. Whoever finished preparing first would be able to sink their teeth into the other. To prepare for that, I needed to bring Erika over to my side.