Chapter 199
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 199
Chapter Title: Aftermath and Accolades
At the long table on the conference hall's dais sat Gordon, the Captain of the Royal Guard, who was presiding over the meeting, along with Vice Commander Richard and Loan.
Commander Garcia was also present, of course, but due to the mechanical apparatus encasing his body, he had to be seated separately below the dais.
Loan felt a considerable sense of pride being seated among them as a member of this joint conference.
It was an honor far beyond what a mere Runner from the Union deserved.
He intentionally puffed out his chest, trying to appear dignified, but Sienna, watching from a distance, seemed to notice his thoughts and covered her mouth with her hand, letting out a small laugh.
Captain Gordon announced the start of the meeting in a loud voice.
He continued.
“Vice Commander Richard of the Union. Would you please present the results of your interrogation of the Ferrara nobles?”
At Gordon's request, Richard put on her glasses and reviewed the documents she had prepared.
A moment later, she called out the names of the heads of the Scala and Correr families, and the two men were brought forward in restraints before the dais.
Richard peered at them over her glasses, reconfirming their identities.
“The Scala and Correr families, who collaborated with Grave and maintained a close relationship with Lord Basini, were promised the acquisition of the late Duke of Ferrara's territory and a tripartite rule over Ferrara as compensation for their cooperation.”
As soon as Richard finished speaking.
“This has nothing to do with Grave! I was merely fulfilling my duty as the head of my house for its benefit!”
“We were deceived! If we had known of his dark intentions, why would we have followed him? Did you not see who it was that subdued him!”
The family heads protested, but a summary of the interrogations of their vassals and aides revealed they were already aware that Basini was a member of Nostra.
Richard systematically refuted their claims, citing the testimonies of others.
They shouted again, claiming it was slander and demanding proof, but when Garcia presented a document as evidence, they were rendered speechless.
It was a written agreement between them and Basini. It included a clause stating they would not interfere with Nostra's activities in the region.
Garcia berated them in a deliberately stern tone.
“Have you forgotten who murdered your own children? It was at the hands of Grave, who are no different from Basini. Knowing that, how could you do such a thing!”
No matter how tempted they were by wealth, it was an act incomprehensible to any normal person.
But their response was even more appalling.
“Children can be replaced! But the territory, the foundation of our house! The only thing that lasts is the land, the land!”
“Power is not so easily obtained! I only regret that I failed to seize the opportunity. I have no regrets about my actions!”
As if they had already accepted their deaths, Scala and Correr no longer argued or begged for mercy.
Instead, they screamed viciously, spewing out their true thoughts.
Nevertheless.
Captain Gordon proposed that they be imprisoned rather than immediately beheaded.
His reasoning was that while killing them would be simple, he feared it could become the seed of new conflict.
“We intend to employ methods such as stripping them of their titles, confiscating their assets, and sentencing them to indefinite hard labor, all within a scope that will not cause future repercussions.”
From the Union's perspective, it was somewhat difficult to understand, but not entirely unacceptable.
Even if the family heads' crimes were great, a sudden execution could bring chaos to those living in their territories.
“The stability of Ferrara is your top priority, Captain.”
Loan remarked quietly to Richard, who nodded with a smile.
“Next, we will discuss the disposition of Lord Basini, the root cause of this incident.”
Captain Gordon called Basini's name himself.
His wounds festering, Basini was a wretched sight as he was dragged before the dais.
From the audience, a mixture of nobles and commoners, a ceaseless stream of curses poured out.
Basini's guilt was made clear by the black box attached to Garcia's mechanical apparatus.
Loan personally reactivated the box, showing everyone the illusion he had witnessed.
Since Basini had already confessed in front of many people, there was no need for further evidence.
Beheading was the only fitting punishment.
This time, however, Captain Gordon entrusted his punishment to the Union.
This was due to an official request from the Union.
“There is much to uncover. Information about the Grave Alliance, how Luciano was turned into a mechanical device, the formation of Nostra, and a full accounting of Nostra's past crimes.”
The scope was too broad and the amount of information too vast to uncover with Aul's help alone.
The consensus was that it would be better to let him recover and then use advanced interrogation techniques at headquarters to extract answers.
Commander Garcia calmed the seething crowd by promising that they would not take Basini's crimes against Ferrara lightly, that they would deliver a punishment satisfactory to the people of the duchy, and that they would announce it to the world.
Captain Gordon expressed his gratitude for Garcia's consideration and then paused the meeting.
This was because Loan had requested that the next item on the agenda be discussed in private.
A short while later, after the audience gallery had been cleared, Gordon resumed the proceedings.
“This incident began with a large-scale spell intended to destroy the city. To achieve this, Grave erected structures throughout the city. We will now decide the fate of those who labored on them.”
Soon after, the laborers were brought in.
They were mostly ordinary people, identified by Loan during his interrogations the previous night.
All of them had been working on the reconstruction of the parliament building before being assigned to the tower construction, and none had any prior contact with Grave or Nostra.
Loan elaborated.
“Many were eliminated by Grave to silence them or died during the battle, so none of them possess key information. However, I was able to gather some useful circumstantial details.”
Loan proceeded to question the men lined up before them one by one.
“Achille of Felsina. You stated yesterday that you were working on the parliament reconstruction before participating in the construction of the monument. Where did the stones for the monument come from?”
Although he had already confirmed this through Aul, it was necessary to share the information with everyone.
This was not simply about punishment; it was crucial for establishing future countermeasures and plans.
“I only stacked the stones. I didn't know it was going to be a tower. By the time they were smoothing the surface, I was already off the job...”
The man named Achille, his face covered in a coarse, patchy beard, was terrified.
Loan's tone softened slightly.
“I know. Just tell me the source of the stones.”
“...I heard they were brought from Versa.”
“You're just a laborer. How could you have known that?”
“I overheard the supervisors talking amongst themselves. I guess they didn't pay us much mind, thinking we were just ignorant, powerless grunts.”
“Go on.”
“They said some merchant association in Versa transported the stones, but I don't remember the name.”
This was a detail he hadn't been able to uncover even with Aul's help the previous night.
“What else did you hear?”
“I didn't hear anything else specific... but it was a strange worksite, anyway.”
“What was strange about it?”
“Whenever I tried to work, I'd get irritated for no reason and feel uneasy. I even fought with the men next to me. The supervisors started giving us short shifts and making us rotate because things like that kept happening.”
It must have been the side effects of the dark manastones.
Loan knew better than anyone how dark mana could corrupt people's minds.
That must be why they had the laborers work for limited periods.
The same was true for those who went underground to build the tower.
Loan turned to another terrified laborer.
“Nino of Ravenna. You testified that you went down into the sewers to build the tower. From Grave's perspective, that was a highly secretive task. Why would they entrust such a job to an ordinary person like you?”
With deeply anxious eyes, Nino began to speak, his tone pleading.
“I worked at the northern reservoir. At first, there were many other laborers besides me. But among them, the supervisors and a few others were dressed in clean suits and shirts, not like workers at all.”
“Not the kind of attire for working underground.”
“Exactly. Sure enough, they went underground for a bit and then threw a fit, saying they couldn't work in a place like that. Spoiled brats.”
The ones in shirts must have been Nostra.
Because they were reluctant to go underground and refused to do work that involved sweat and dust, the job was left to the common laborers.
“You must have been short-handed.”
“Building a tower in a running sewer, it's a strange thing. We had to build dams and all sorts of other things—it was a lot of work. And they wanted us to work in shifts, so we needed more people. The pay was decent, so I brought in a few more guys myself. Is that a crime, too?”
“Captain Gordon will be the judge of that. You just need to tell the truth. Did you see or hear anything else?”
“Later, some pretty woman came to see how well we'd built it. She told us to strike it with our tools to see how sturdy it was. I was so nervous my heart was pounding.”
“And was it sturdy?”
“It was covered in scratches, but otherwise fine. Still, they said there might be repairs needed, so they locked us up in some building and wouldn't let us out. A day or two passed like that, and then suddenly it got noisy outside, and, uh...”
Nino glanced furtively toward the Royal Guards.
He meant that they were the ones who had stormed in.
“Yes. That will be all. This concludes the interrogation.”
The laborers' punishment was left to Captain Gordon.
Taking into account that they were put to work without knowing the full story and were unable to report anything suspicious due to being isolated after the job, the Captain sentenced them to penal labor.
The sentence meant they were to rebuild the city, damaged by this incident, with their own hands.
After the laborers bowed their heads and left the conference hall, Loan spoke to Captain Gordon and his superiors.
“Based on the information we've gathered so far, the merchant association that supplied and delivered the dark manastones appears to be in Versa. As it happens, I am acquainted with a family from the Versa region and also have contacts with a local merchant association, so I believe I can obtain information easily.”
He had, in effect, just announced his own trip to Versa to investigate.
Sienna cut in with a look of disbelief.
“Sienna of the Faith Division. I will go with Loan to Versa to investigate the dark manastones further.”
It was a natural progression.
Loan answered with a smile, and Sienna found herself smiling back without realizing it.
Richard relaxed her stiff posture and spoke.
“So, is that the end of the meeting?”
Captain Gordon replied.
“The meeting and the punishments are concluded, but the rewards for distinguished service remain.”
He then turned to Loan and continued.
“It is a shame to see you leave so suddenly. Your contributions to Ferrara and Felsina have been immense, Sir Loan.”
“...”
“And though it was for a short time, did your handsome face not brighten up this grim situation? Just looking at you relieved my fatigue, haha.”
With that, Gordon rose from his seat and approached Loan.
The two men naturally looked at each other's chests.
In terms of sheer number, Gordon had overwhelmingly more, but the value of the badges Loan possessed was beyond comparison.
“It seems the family you're acquainted with in Versa is the Albre family.”
“Yes, that's correct.”
“My knowledge may be limited, but I know what those badges symbolize. And that's why I'm disappointed. Only our Ferrara is missing.”
He couldn't understand why the captain would be disappointed.
However, his words filled Loan with the expectation that something good was about to follow.
And indeed.
“I received this when I was appointed Captain of the Royal Guard by the Duke of Ferrara.”
Captain Gordon removed a badge from his own chest and handed it to Loan.
“It is the symbol of a commander, granting the right and authority to command the forces of Ferrara.”
“Why are you giving this to me...?”
“The power it represents is already gone, but please accept it as a symbolic gesture. I will lend you my strength when you need it.”
It was a token of representation that even the Grafton royal family would have to acknowledge.