Chapter 35
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Detective Aron
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Detective Aron
“You refuse?”
Watching the three’s passionate reactions, I stroked my sideburns.
“Th-that’s right! What’s the big deal about some stupid silver spoon! I told you, I have a silver mirror!”
“I feel the same way. Besides, it’s not even a silver spoon, it’s a rusty one. If you saw it, you wouldn’t think anyone would steal it either!”
“To suspect me simply because I’m an outsider is utterly ridiculous.”
As they spoke one after another as if they were on the same side, I realized they were gravely mistaken about something.
“Did you think I was asking for permission?”
In the first place, if the guards wanted to, they could enter a commoner’s home at any time.
They didn’t even need to go through the process of asking like I did; they could just kick the door down, barge in, and tear the place apart.
If a commoner refused, they would be arrested under suspicion of either ‘plotting a rebellion’ or ‘heresy.’
It was only because Casedic was a relatively peaceful castle that things were this lenient. In other castles, it was common for guards to supplement their meager salaries with whatever they could find while ransacking commoners’ homes.
Although the church held sway and severely punished things like slavery and crime, commoners had no right to refuse a search.
*I must have been too much of a gentleman.*
Any other guard would have already been searching their houses. Or, they would have just arrested whichever one of the three they disliked the most.
“What is this… talking back to the Jojang? Jojang, I think these bastards have something to hide. Should we lock them all up? It’s usually scum like this who are heretics or rebels.”
Kel, even more incensed than I was, drew his sword and flew into a rage.
“N-no… that’s not what I meant…”
At Kel’s reaction, the buck-toothed woman who had been squawking just moments before trailed off, her eyes darting around nervously.
“Do you have an upside-down holy book or a red flag in your house? This is becoming a serious problem. But don’t you worry. I’m an honorary friar as well as a guard, so I can handle both.”
“No! Why would I have something like that! I… I’m a devout believer and I love the empire!”
“Me neither! I must have lost my mind for a moment. I’ll open the door for you right away, so please, calm your anger.”
“…Tsk.”
At my question, the goblin and the buck-toothed woman answered in much more pliant tones.
However, the pale-faced outsider still held his head high with a stiff neck.
*Looks like he has someone backing him up.*
I studied the pale man’s face carefully.
“W-well then, shall we go to my house first? Let’s go—I even have some cake I bought yesterday.”
The buck-toothed woman, her voice full of nasal charm, lightly brushed my forearm with her hand and started walking ahead.
She swayed her hips from side to side so vigorously it was like watching a duck waddle, and I suspected it was intentional.
“These bastards… the Jojang smiles at them once and they think they’re his friends. Such insolent scum…”
“Calm down.”
“But they’re talking back to you, Jojang. Have they lost their minds…”
I patted the furious Kel on the back and followed the woman.
“What are you doing! Hurry up and follow!”
I could hear Kel chewing out the other two behind me.
Most medieval commoner houses were essentially large single rooms, often without even a toilet.
There was no distinction between kitchen and bathroom; a pot for stew simmered in one corner, livestock were kept in another, and a chamber pot-like bucket for waste sat in a third.
It was an efficient layout where one could eat, sleep, and relieve oneself all in the same space.
The woman’s house was similar. However, it was sparsely furnished, with only a bed and a silver mirror standing forlornly.
I glanced at a white garment in the corner.
It was too large to be the woman’s.
“See? I told you I have a real silver mirror. A woman who owns a silver mirror wouldn’t steal, would she?”
The woman, now much gentler, spoke with her buck teeth hidden.
*She really does have one.*
It was a wonder that a silver mirror in a house where a woman lived alone hadn’t been stolen yet.
I went and stood before the smooth silver mirror.
Inside it, a handsome, manly man who anyone would give a thumbs-up to was grinning back at me.
When I gave him a thumbs-up, he followed suit.
*Good-looking guy.*
Just then, I noticed a familiar drawing in the bottom right corner of the silver mirror.
*Where have I seen that before…*
I thought for a moment, but nothing came to mind.
“Do you have a man?”
At that moment, Kel asked the woman.
“What? …No. I don’t.”
“Really? I smell one.”
“A man?”
“Jojang, houses where men come and go have a different smell. I’m familiar with it, so I know.”
Kel answered, sniffing the air like a dog.
“A man! And so what if I do… is that a problem?!”
The woman, her face pale, retorted in her usual sharp tone.
As she said, it wasn’t a problem.
In this remote castle with little entertainment, relationships between men and women were a popular pastime for everyone.
*But her reaction is a bit strange.*
Despite her words, her voice sounded like someone caught doing something wrong.
*An affair?*
If it was an affair, that kind of reaction would make sense.
Anyone caught in adultery would have to walk through the castle naked, enduring all sorts of humiliation.
But the woman’s affair had nothing to do with the current case, so I paid it no mind.
“Here—have some of this…”
The woman, smiling awkwardly, offered me a piece of cake.
Most people being searched had something to hide, so they would try to win favor by offering some kind of souvenir.
And I was the type who always made sure to collect a souvenir wherever I went.
This was the greatest pleasure of a search.
I took the cake and put it in my mouth in one bite.
It wasn’t bad, but the cake the Inquisitor had given me was softer and more delicious.
“I don’t think it’s this woman. Let’s move on.”
The woman let out a visible sigh of relief.
“Next will be this way.”
I pointed at the outsider.
“…How much is that silver spoon worth? I’d rather just pay for it and be done with this.”
The man opened his mouth, his face scrunched up in a deep frown.
“How can you put a price on a silver spoon that’s been passed down for generations! …I should get at least 5 silvers for it!”
The old woman, who had just been shouting as if she’d never sell, immediately named a price.
Six silver spoons cost about 8 silvers, so it was a blatant rip-off.
The pale-faced man seemed to know it too, as he scowled.
Even so, his desire to escape the situation seemed greater, as he began to search his pockets.
*My deduction isn’t complete yet!*
I couldn’t let a deduction my honor was riding on end so anticlimactically.
“So you’re admitting your guilt?”
I asked sternly, my hand casually resting on the hilt of my sword.
“…Admitting my guilt?”
“Didn’t you just offer to pay? That is an admission of your guilt.”
“What kind of ridiculous nonsense is this…”
“Then do you have something you can’t let me see?”
I asked, staring him down.
“Enough! There’s no talking to you! I was only trying to avoid the hassle, so do as you please. I have nothing to hide.”
After chewing his lip for a moment, the pale man raised his voice and strode forward.
“Jojang, that bastard must be counting on something. His neck is so stiff. It’s going to break at this rate.”
I nodded at Kel’s words and followed the man.
“W-well then, 2 silvers… no, 1 silver…”
The old woman muttered behind us, but no one paid her any mind.
Inside the man’s house was a desk, something not usually found in a commoner’s home. Seeing the thick tomes stacked next to it, he was clearly an educated man.
I pulled one of them out and opened it.
“Don’t touch that so carelessly… Tsk, an illiterate oaf.”
The literacy rate in this era was extremely low, so the man’s reaction was understandable.
*‘If I only have your love, I could die for you at any moment…’ What is this, a novel?*
It was a romance novel filled with heart-wrenching stories.
Disgusted, I put the book back where I found it.
Next, I searched the desk and found a shabby-looking white bracelet tucked between the pages of a book twice as thick as the others.
It was a white bracelet, about the thickness of a finger, and so plain it was obviously cheap.
He had probably put it there and forgotten about it.
*A souvenir? I needed something white, anyway.*
I slipped the shabby bracelet, which he likely wouldn’t miss, onto my left forearm.
It seemed too small to fit, but when I forced it on, it was a perfect fit.
Pleased, I smiled, and my eyes met the pale man’s.
At the same time, it felt as if something had been placed on my shoulder, and my body staggered for a moment.
- How insolent. To dare direct such scattered power at this body… Gck-.
My tenant muttered something, but I was too disoriented to hear it.
“Jojang, are you alright?”
“Yeah, my shoulder’s just a little stiff.”
When I shook my head, the pressure on my shoulder vanished instantly. I rolled my neck to loosen it up.
The pale-faced man, now looking somehow uneasy, opened his mouth.
“…If you like it, you can have it.”
I nodded without hesitation.
*So it was a souvenir after all.*
I nodded, stroking the bracelet.
Indeed, searches were always enjoyable.
***
*This is why I didn’t want to come to the frontier…*
The pale-faced man… no, the mage Swalloytz of the White Magic Tower, clicked his tongue as he observed the unfolding situation.
This frontier castle, untouched by the hand of education, was the very pinnacle of ignorance and barbarism.
These people had no concept of a latrine and habitually flung their feces onto the streets.
It was an unimaginable act back in the capital where he was from.
When the middle-aged woman had grabbed him by the collar, it had been truly difficult to restrain himself. A commoner, daring to grab a mage of the White Magic Tower by the collar.
But he had been warned so sternly by the Magic Tower before leaving that he had gritted his teeth and endured it.
*‘The one beloved by mana…’*
It was surely a baseless rumor, but the Magic Tower wanted it investigated. That was why they had sent Swalloytz, whose research had recently been overturned one after another.
The Magic Tower had repeatedly warned him not to get caught under any circumstances, as the target was a noble’s daughter.
As much authority as the Magic Tower held, if their opponent was a noble of the empire, even a frontier baron was a difficult adversary.
The barbarism of the frontier continuously tested the little patience Swalloytz, who had followed an elite path his whole life, possessed.
The middle-aged woman who had grabbed his collar.
He had thought there could be no greater disrespect, but the guard captain who appeared next, looking like a vicious criminal, had easily surpassed her.
The man was the crystallization of barbarism, the personification of ignorance.
He had insisted on his absurd demands and eventually forced his way into Swalloytz’s house. Had he noticed something? Swalloytz circulated his mana, preparing to react at a moment’s notice.
Swalloytz flinched repeatedly at the rough hands rifling through his grimoires. Even knowing they were protected by identification magic, he couldn’t help but feel anxious.
Then, the moment the man found the bracelet and slipped it onto his arm as if it were his own, Swalloytz could no longer hold back.
*How dare he, that bracelet!*
His eyes seeing red, Swalloytz instinctively moved his mana and, in an instant, unleashed crystallized magic at the man.
*Damn it, this is going to be a pain.*
Only after seeing the magic hit the man did Swalloytz come to his senses, clicking his tongue.
Things had just become complicated in an instant.
*If I take care of the others too…*
As Swalloytz, having finished his rapid calculation, was about to chant another spell.
“Jojang, are you alright?”
The greasy-looking, rude man spoke.
“Ah, my shoulder’s just a little stiff.”
At the calm voice, he turned his head to see the man who should have been spitting blood and collapsing, standing perfectly fine.
Swalloytz’s mind raced.
No matter how lightly he had cast it, it was still magic unleashed by him, a mage of the White Magic Tower.
It wouldn’t have been strange for the man to be coughing up blood and collapsing, yet he acted as if he merely had a slight muscle ache.
As it was a simple spell, a knight could have neutralized it by raising their aura, but there was no way that man, a mere guard captain from the frontier, could wield aura.
He considered every possibility, but none of them made sense.
*One more time? No, it could cause problems.*
The man was a variable.
A very large, barbaric, and ignorant variable.
And as a mage, Swalloytz feared and loathed variables above all else.
*But the bracelet… No, my life is more important. Still, the bracelet… that thing is worth a fortune… Could he have recognized it? Is he testing me?*
The chain of thoughts that followed one another scattered the moment he met the man’s unexpectedly deep eyes.
No matter how precious and important that bracelet was, it wasn’t worth taking the risk.
Like a true mage, Swalloytz made a cold, rational judgment.
“If you like it, you can have it.”
“Thanks. You’re innocent too.”
At the man’s condescending tone, Swalloytz wept tears of blood inwardly.
Swalloytz truly, desperately hated this godforsaken frontier castle.
***
“Jojang, a white bracelet too… Are you planning to wear every color on your body?”
Kel asked, looking at the bracelet on my wrist with a fed-up expression.
“You’re next.”
I ignored him and pointed at the goblin.
*I wonder what kind of souvenir I’ll get this time.*
I smiled in satisfaction at the pressure on my left wrist and the lingering sweetness in my mouth.
“Then… just make me one promise.”
“I promise to bash your head in if you don’t open this door right now.”
Kel, still fuming, immediately spat out harsh words.
“W-wait! It’s not a difficult request! Aron, couldn’t you come in alone? You alone are enough to prove my innocence, aren’t you?”
“This bastard is trying to pull something on the Jojang.”
“What could I possibly do to harm Aron? Huh? The others aren’t necessary, are they?”
“That’s true.”
I nodded at the goblin’s desperate plea.
After all, I was the brains of this operation.
There was no need for the others to see.
However, a detective always needs an assistant, so I decided to take Kel with me.
The woman and the pale man, having been declared innocent, showed little interest and returned to their respective homes.
Shaking off the old woman who tried to follow, I trailed behind the goblin.
“Two layers of doors. And unusually large.”
At my words, the goblin nodded, looked around, and then opened the door.
I casually placed my hand on the hilt of my sword and positioned Kel behind me.
The first thing I saw was a wide pile of straw spread across the floor.
Some people used straw as a bed, but they didn’t cover the entire floor with it.
I tilted my head, examining the interior, when…
“Fuck.”
“Crazy bastard.”
I couldn’t hold back the curses that rose in my throat.
“Hee-hee-hing-.”
In the center of the room stood a pony with exceptionally long eyelashes.
Of course, that in itself wasn’t unusual.
It wasn’t uncommon for people to live with their livestock to protect their assets.
The problem, however, was that the horse was wearing clothes.
A skirt that clearly belonged to a woman.
Beneath it, the horse’s long tail swayed back and forth.
“Sharberte—did I come home too late today?”
The goblin, with a warm and bright smile that didn’t suit him, gently stroked the horse’s muzzle and then…
“A crazy horse-fucker.”
“Uh… Jojang, let’s get out of here for now.”
I nodded at Kel’s words and quickly exited the house.
“Oh, if you leave so suddenly, Sharberte will be disappointed! You’re the first guest in our home, at least have some hay stew…”
The goblin bastard followed us out, and I kicked him. The kicked man rolled on the ground, and Shar… whatever its name was, licked his face with its long tongue.
Horrified, I went outside.
By the time I got out, the sun was already setting.
It was time to head home.
We quickly made our way back to the headquarters.
“Uh… that guy is a famous horse breeder in Casedic Castle, and they say his skills are exceptional… um…”
Kel muttered quietly before his voice trailed off.
I gave a small nod.
With that level of affection, he was sure to be the most outstanding horse breeder there was.
After all, he was a horse lover like no other.
After giving a brief report to the Daejang, Kel said he missed Rosa and disappeared.
*But I feel like I’ve forgotten something…*
I scratched my head at the strange feeling, but then shook my head.
*It’s probably nothing important.*
Satisfied with a rather eventful day, I headed for my quarters.
***
Gelheim of House Penereu wanted to return to his original post at Bolt Castle, but the order to return had not yet come.
“Tsk—how much longer do I have to stay in this tiny castle…”
“I heard Sir Ben is here as well, assigned to guard the young lady.”
“To think that Sir Ben is guarding some woman… It’s ridiculous.”
Recently, they had been filling the vacancies in the Casedic Outer Wall Guard, and the soldiers’ complaints had reached a boiling point.
They were being forced to stand guard on the outer wall in Casedic, a duty they hadn’t even performed back at Bolt Castle, so it was only natural for them to complain.
To make matters worse, they had to work alongside the ignorant Outer Wall Guards, leading to constant minor conflicts.
Gelheim hadn’t been there, but he heard there had been a fight with the Outer Wall Guard just yesterday.
Of course, the trained soldiers had won.
They kept bragging about it.
*Well, it’s not like I’m in a position to talk…*
Funnily enough, after being beaten up by that man named Aron, Gelheim’s perspective on the world had changed slightly.
He comforted himself by thinking he had met his lifelong rival, but it was closer to physical therapy.
“Gelheim? Why are you so quiet? When you first came, you looked ready to kill someone. And that vicious-looking guy, too-.”
“…It’s an order, so what can we do? And the person in question is a noble, so we have to obey.”
“Haha, strange. Did you get beat up somewhere? For the great Gelheim to be this quiet…”
“Beat up! What are you talking about!”
“Ahem… Alright. It was a joke, why are you getting so worked up?”
Gelheim belatedly realized his reaction was too excessive and blushed.
*Still, it’s a relief the other person is tight-lipped.*
If a rumor had gotten out, how would he ever show his face…
“Hey, you. Aren’t you going to greet us?”
“Ah—good day.”
The soldiers, unable to sit still, had already grabbed a passing man and started picking a fight. Seeing the leather armor, he seemed to be one of the Outer Wall Guards, and Gelheim flinched involuntarily.
They looked just like a bunch of thugs, surrounding one person, shoving him, and cursing.
“Let’s go. I want to get back and rest.”
“Look at that dumb expression… Ah, alright, I get it. Gelheim, you’ve been really strange lately.”
*To think I used to be like that… How embarrassing.*
Gelheim shook his head slightly and walked on ahead.
He just wanted to finish his work and find a quiet place to rest where no one was around.
As Gelheim walked ahead, he spotted something and froze.
*Why… is that bastard here…*
The man was the Jojang of the Casedic Outer Wall Guard, so it was plausible to run into him on the way to the Outer Wall Guard headquarters.
But to meet him now, of all times.
The colorful… even with a white bracelet added to his arm, the vicious-looking man was walking along, calmly drinking a beer.
Although, his face was scrunched up as if something unpleasant had happened…
*No, is that just how his face normally looks?*
Gelheim thought that might be the case.
“Haha, did you see that guy’s face earlier? And he calls himself a guard. How pathetic.”
“He looked like he was about to piss his pants!”
The high-spirited soldiers, their eyes blazing as they looked for someone else to pick a fight with.
And in front of them, the colorful Outer Wall Guard Jojang, walking along nonchalantly, drinking a beer.
*Ah… no…!*
Gelheim could see what was about to happen playing out in his mind.
“I think we took a wrong turn. That way seems right. Let’s go back!”
“What are you talking about? We walk this way every day. This guy is really strange today.”
“Did you hit your head or something?”
Another soldier grabbed Gelheim’s shoulder as he tried to hastily leave the area.
And then, as if by fate, it happened.
“Huh? Isn’t that big guy the one from that time? The one who smacked Gelheim on the back of the head!”
“Where… You’re right! Even that clown-like, bizarre outfit! It’s him! Who else would wear such a grotesque getup?”
“But that guy isn’t greeting us either? He attacks us from behind like a coward and now he’s ignoring us? The nerve.”
“Don’t you worry, Gelheim. I’ll be sure to teach that ignorant oaf a lesson.”
That’s not what I’m worried about…
Gelheim forced down the words that had come to the tip of his tongue and spoke.
“I’m fine. How about we go for a beer? It’s my treat today!”
“Beer! Great! Then we can all go together after we get our revenge. We can make that ignorant oaf dance on the side. Haha!”
It was no use. They weren’t listening.
Gelheim barely suppressed the urge to scream.
How in the world were they going to win against that brute clad head to toe in ignorantly thick iron?
Of course, he himself had once been the same, but Gelheim simply couldn't understand their bravado.
He looked back and forth between the man and the soldiers, and then he realized.
The problem was the bizarre color scheme of the armor the man was wearing.
The colorful paint made the massive iron plates look like toys, and the large man look like a clown.
It was causing his opponents to let their guard down.
“You there. Why don’t you greet us when you see us? You’re probably too ignorant to know any better…”
Soon, the soldiers, grinning as if they were having the time of their lives, surrounded the man.
*No. This could be a chance. If they get beaten up too, then I won’t have to suffer alone… But if word gets back to the Daejang or the Lord later, things could get out of hand…*
His mind in turmoil, Gelheim scratched his head vigorously.
It was out of his hands now, anyway.
The man was so large that his face was visible over the heads of the soldiers surrounding him.
He was smiling.
At that, Gelheim trembled slightly.
Remembering the time he had been on inspection duty with the man, Gelheim took a few silver coins from his pouch.
This should be enough for their lives.
Then, just in case, he took out one more.