Harsh Justice and a Triumphant Arrival
At last we reached the fief and recaptured the castle with surprising ease. Though Lord Jobuit’s forces held the numerical advantage, an incompetent leader had no capable subordinates. When Dana unleashed her devastating magic and the knights charged with a ferocity that seemed capable of splitting heaven and earth, the terrified enemy soldiers fell like autumn leaves before finally throwing down their weapons and raising the white flag.
Luzen, now seated as lord, immediately convened a trial. He took the high seat in the audience chamber, the massive chair looming behind him, and began dispensing judgment.
“Bring the criminals in one by one!”
The maid who had slipped poison into the previous lord’s meals every day was sentenced to death by drawing and quartering. The maids and servants who had attended Lord Jobuit and Lady Langdal at close range all had their tongues torn out and their wrists severed. Every relative who had spurned Luzen in favor of Jobuit, along with those connected to his sister-in-law’s family, was rounded up and punished with a severity unmatched in living memory. Because they shared his blood, they represented future threats to the lordship; therefore, forgiveness and mercy were nonexistent. All received death sentences. Their lands and wealth were seized, their homes burned to the ground.
In the end, Luzen spared Jobuit’s only blood relative—the sole child of the brother he had genuinely loved and respected. Yet because half the blood in the boy’s veins came from his mother, Luzen ordered his testicles cut off and fed to the crows. His eyes were gouged out so he could never again be seduced by a woman’s naked form, after which he was sent to a temple to live out his days as a monk.
Lady Langdal, by contrast, was stripped completely naked and bound with ropes to a pole in the public square while a great crowd looked on. The executioner proclaimed her crimes in a booming voice, detailing each one with brutal clarity. The people, learning the truth and burning with rage, hurled vicious curses and stones at her. Later, her bruised and battered corpse was thrown to the pigs.
“Impressive…”
Watching Luzen dispense such decisive and merciless justice, I could only click my tongue in awe. The sight of him applying collective punishment even to the children and spouses of those relatives, executing them without hesitation to secure his position, struck me—a newly minted lord—with considerable shock.
“When I govern my own territory and similar situations arise… will I have to be this ruthless?”
It felt like I had received an unforgettable lesson from Luzen on what a truly strict lord looked like. In any case, I had learned something valuable once again.
We decided to stay one more night in Langdal territory. I received the full twenty thousand veni back from Luzen without deduction. In gratitude for our help in his revenge, he hosted a magnificent banquet in our honor. The following morning, he emerged with all his vassals to bid us a courteous farewell. He even showed thoughtful consideration by assigning two escort knights, wishing us a safe journey home.
During the parting words, his son Tristan Langdal wore a gloomy expression.
“Serve the Grand Lord with the readiness to lay down your life.”
“Yes…”
Luzen stroked his only son’s head, then turned to me.
“This boy will be Your Lordship’s shield from now on. Use him however you see fit.”
“Is Tristan your only son?”
“Yes. As I told you before, he is my sole heir.”
“What do you plan to do about a successor for the family in the future?”
“Well… I’m still considering it, but I may take a concubine and try for another son. My wife suffered a serious illness years ago and can bear no more children.”
I nodded and spoke firmly.
“When the day comes that you grow old and need an heir, I will send Tristan back to you. That is my promise.”
Luzen’s face filled with astonishment.
“Oh! Thank you, Grand Lord! If you would do that, my wife would be overjoyed!”
I patted the smiling man’s shoulder, then looked at Tristan with satisfaction.
“I’ll grant you leave from time to time. When that happens, you may visit your parents.”
“Is that true?”
Tristan’s eyes widened like saucers.
“Of course it is.”
“Hic… Thank you!”
The dark clouds that had shadowed his face cleared away. Tristan began packing his belongings with genuine enthusiasm. It seemed he now truly wanted to follow us.
After bidding Luzen farewell, we passed through the gates of Starwatch with the rest of the party. Roughly three days of travel remained until we reached Lanchester Castle. We pressed on with rising anticipation.
Lanchester Castle stood atop a green hill. It was a medium-sized fortress, easily half again as large as Starwatch. While everyone gazed at it in excitement, unable to close their mouths, the massive oak gates studded with iron spikes swung open. Ten knights came thundering out on horseback.
Their armor and cloaks bore the emblem of the Wittensbach Knight Order and the insignia of one of the nine units dispatched to the southern region. It was clear that one of those dispatched knight companies had been temporarily managing this lordless territory.
I recognized the unit commander; I had met him once in Nobern. Silver Tracker Priscilla, if I remembered correctly. When the six knights sent south had gathered in Nobern not long ago, we had only exchanged brief greetings without deeper conversation. I retained only a vague memory of the emblem of the unit she commanded.
The knight at the front glanced at the Kether Mercenary Group flag planted on our wagon, then looked at me.
“State your identities.”
“I am Lord Richard, the new master of Lanchester. I have finally arrived after a long journey.”
When I produced my identity plaque from my coat and held it out, the lead knight raised his visor.
“Ah, we were informed in advance and have been awaiting Your Lordship’s arrival.”
“The journey took longer than expected.”
All the knights dismounted and knelt respectfully on one knee.
“We belong to the Storm Shield unit under Sir Priscilla. Until now, I and my men have been responsible for managing the lordless Lanchester Castle.”
The lead knight introduced himself as Fretan, Priscilla’s chief adjutant. His position was comparable to Sinclair’s within the Lion Heart unit.
“We will lead the way. You there—ride ahead at once and inform the chief of internal affairs.”
“Yes, sir.”
One of the knights from the rear rank quickly mounted and galloped toward the castle. The rest of us followed Fretan at a more leisurely pace, crossing the green fields and entering the castle proper.
Inside, citizens who had heard the news came pouring out and lined both sides of the main road. Some housewives still had flour dough on their hands from rushing straight out of their kitchens. Others were butchers with fresh blood staining their arms. Cheers echoed across the entire city.
“Long live the lord! Long live Lord Richard!”
“Welcome, My Lord!”
Every face glowed with joyful smiles. Some people shouted in celebration, then linked arms with their neighbors and danced short, spontaneous steps.
“The gods have sent us a magnificent lord!”
“He looks so exotic, yet incredibly handsome!”
“Young and dependable!”
The fervent welcome swelled my chest with emotion. Fretan, riding behind me, smiled and spoke.
“All of this belongs to you, My Lord.”
I swept my gaze across the scene from horseback and gave a small shrug. All of it was mine.
The party following slowly behind me seemed equally stunned by the citizens’ overwhelming enthusiasm. Some wore tense, frozen expressions; others looked openly smug; still others appeared simply dazed. Among them, Dana remained perfectly expressionless. Having experienced such receptions since childhood, she was no doubt quite used to it.
The lord’s residence was sturdy enough to be called a small castle in its own right. It consisted of three round towers of varying heights fused into a single structure. At the very top of the stone building fluttered a flag bearing the Kether Mercenary Group’s emblem—a painted woman. Whoever had thought to prepare it deserved praise; a pleased smile rose to my lips unbidden.
Yet upon closer inspection, the emblem was quite different from the original. It resembled the sea monster siren more than anything. They seemed to have imitated it based solely on secondhand rumors. Our Kether Mercenary Group’s true emblem depicted the goddess of war, not some oceanic beast.
“This building is Your Lordship’s official residence, the Sky Chamber. On a perfectly clear day, if you climb to the top you will be able to see the entire territory spread out before you.”
I listened to Fretan’s explanation as we passed through the arched stone entrance of the Sky Chamber. According to him, all the vassals who had served the executed former lord had either been dismissed or executed themselves. As a result, every necessary administrative position was currently vacant. For the time being, they were only managing the most urgent security and administrative duties.
Security fell under Fretan’s own responsibility, while administrative affairs were handled by a man named Olmati who held the title of chief of internal affairs.
“Olmati was hired by our Storm Shield unit to quickly assess the situation here. Since we scouted him personally, he has no ties to the previous lord and his record is clean. You may trust him without reservation.”
The moment we stepped through the stone doors, the waiting staff burst into cheers and applause. Though all official positions were vacant, the household servants had turned out in force: the butler, maids, male servants, head chef and kitchen assistants, stable master, gardeners, and all the others we would see regularly from now on.
“We are relieved you arrived safely!”
Olmati, the chief of internal affairs, approached with his young daughter and presented both Dana and me with generous bouquets. They were gifts for the lord and his lady. Olmati was a short, bald man with a belly as round as a pufferfish, giving him an oddly friendly appearance. He said he had many matters to report and humbly requested the honor of delivering his first briefing as soon as circumstances permitted.
“We need to unpack today, so let us keep the report brief for now.”
“I am delighted. Please follow me to the council chamber.”
I left Marcus, Pasvachio, and Unia in charge of unpacking the luggage and headed for the council chamber with Fretan and Olmati. The moment I sat in the head seat of the luxuriously carpeted room, Olmati thrust a stack of various documents toward me as though he had been waiting for this exact moment.
A sigh escaped me the instant I saw them. This was not what I had wanted. I had asked for a summarized report.
“What is all this?”
“These documents contain comprehensive data on the territory’s current state—population statistics of the residents, number of villages, military strength, economic conditions, agricultural output, and financial records. There are quite a few, aren’t there? Hehe.”