I Give the Choices
I give the choices.
The chubby one and the haggard-looking one exchanged wary glances.
“They say he’s the baron. Is that true?”
“I don’t know his face for certain either. But doesn’t he look too young? He should at least be middle-aged. Could he be the eldest son?”
“I heard the eldest son left on a pilgrimage.”
“Ah, right.”
“And what kind of madman would dare impersonate a noble?”
That madman was standing right here.
“True enough. Well, nobles get proper care, I suppose. Still, you can’t hide the depth in a voice.”
“Come to think of it, I did hear he used to be a priest. Looking at the clerical robes, it might actually be him.”
The chubby one turned to me.
“Are you truly Baron Luminara?”
“I am.”
I answered in a solemn tone.
“How exactly should I prove it? Shall I drag my retainers out here and firmly establish my identity for you?”
“No, nothing so extreme as that…”
When I responded with complete confidence, they began to fall for it in earnest. Above all, there was no way these men would know a frontier baron in any detail.
At that moment Scriben, standing beside me, bowed his head.
“My lord, there is no need to waste time on such rude individuals. Allow me to speak with them while you go inside.”
I raised a hand lightly.
“No, that won’t be necessary. They appear to have business with me, so I shall speak with them myself.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Honestly, looking young is a nuisance.”
I clasped my hands behind my back, strode past the main gate, and planted myself firmly before them.
“So, what business do you have with me? I received no prior notice that anyone was coming.”
The chubby one replied.
“Ah, well, we procured women for various places throughout this territory, but the repayment date has passed and no money has come in. We would be grateful if you would settle that debt.”
“Women? I have never committed such a distasteful act.”
“Of course not. It was the residents of this place who asked us to procure the women. Here is the proof.”
He held out documents stamped with fingerprints.
As I looked them over, Scriben quietly explained from the side.
“Baron Skallen never procured the women under his own name. He threatened or co-opted the shopkeepers and funneled everything through them. Mindful of his reputation, he simply hid behind their names and paid the money.”
“A commission to the Dark Blood Gang, and wages to the prostitutes?”
“Yes.”
“Did the women know?”
“No. They wouldn’t even know that the people who offered them the work belonged to the Dark Blood Gang.”
I nodded.
“He really left a massive pile of shit behind.”
“Yes. An absolutely enormous pile.”
Or rather, wasn’t this actually fertilizer?
Originally I would have had to go hunting for the Dark Blood Gang myself. Thanks to this, they had come to me and made it easy to complete my plan.
It smelled, certainly, but when I thought of the harvest ahead I could accept it with good cheer.
“Have you already visited the shopkeepers who ordered the women?”
“We have, but most of the shops—and the women themselves—are already gone. The owners claim they simply cannot pay.”
Apparently Scriben had cleaned up the shops around the territory while I was away.
“That’s why we came to the baron. Pressing the residents further won’t get us the money, yet the sum is too large to simply write off.”
“I see.”
“So what will you do? If the baron does not resolve this, we will have no choice but to keep visiting the residents.”
Were these bastards seriously threatening a baron?
If you don’t pay in their place, we’ll keep harassing the people?
“Heh heh…”
A hollow laugh slipped out.
Had it been me, I would have slapped the bastard’s face then and there. But right now I was Baron Luminara.
I endured with the patience of a noble father.
“That will not do. Hmm, no, that simply will not do.”
“Then will the baron pay the money on their behalf?”
“For the sake of my people, I naturally must.”
“Ah, what a relief. Though the amount is rather substantial. It’s only a month’s worth, but the promised commission was quite large.”
“Hold on.”
As the chubby one began rummaging for the documents, I raised a hand to stop him.
“To be honest, this whole affair does not sit well with me. Therefore I would first like to speak with your leader.”
“Ah, there’s no need for that. Just deal with me—”
I tilted my head.
“Who are you supposed to be?”
“Pardon?”
“Judging by the fact that you’ve come merely to collect money, you don’t seem to hold a particularly high position. Who are you to make that judgment?”
“……”
“Escort me. To your leader.”
I straightened my back and stared them down in silence.
The chubby one’s eyebrows twitched with clear displeasure. After exchanging glances, he answered.
“Fine. Don’t come crying about it later.”
“Haha.”
I laughed lightly—then cracked him across the cheek. A crisp smack rang through the air.
The chubby one rubbed his stinging face and returned his head to its original position.
“What the hell—”
“Listen.”
I spoke with grave weight.
“Just because we are speaking alone, do you imagine yourself my equal? Merely looking at those insolent eyes of yours is extremely unpleasant.”
“……”
“Behave yourself while I’m still being polite. Understood?”
The chubby one clenched his teeth and his fists trembled.
“I would like an answer.”
“…Understood.”
“Good. Then let us depart.”
Just as I started toward the carriage—
“One moment, my lord.”
Bella, returning from the mansion, hurried to my side.
“I will come as well.”
No matter how sharp Bella’s instincts were, responding this precisely should have been impossible.
I glanced behind her; Scriben gave a small nod.
Apparently he had briefly explained the situation to Bella as she left the mansion.
“Very well.”
“Yes, thank you.”
I looked away from Bella and back at the two rude men.
“You can drive a carriage, I assume?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s go.”
I climbed into the carriage we had arrived in. For now, at least, I would act the part of a dignified baron rather than a wastrel…
The haggard one drove the carriage while the chubby one sat facing me.
When I stared at him in silence, he fixed his gaze on the window.
Hmm?
Just then Bella handed me a slip of paper. The contents read:
Baron Skallen’s alias — Chameleon
So Baron Skallen had entrusted the money to the Dark Blood Gang under the name Chameleon.
He had been extraordinarily careful about concealing the funds. Thanks to that, the money would now become mine.
The carriage rolled onward in silence late into the night.
It only began to slow once we entered a forest.
“Where is this?”
The chubby one answered my question.
“We never stay in one place for long. Like nomads, we relocate when the time comes.”
“So you don’t leave unnecessary trails.”
“Yes.”
The carriage stopped. The chubby one opened the door and gestured.
“We have arrived, Baron. Please step down.”
“Indeed. Your manners have improved a notch.”
“Thank you.”
The moment I alighted, wooden houses set in the middle of the forest came into view. There were only a few—more like a small outpost than a village.
“Bella, stay and guard the carriage. I will meet them alone.”
“Yes, my lord. Please take care.”
Bella stood ramrod-straight in front of the carriage like a sheepdog watching over its flock.
Having noticed our arrival, the members of the Dark Blood Gang had already come outside.
Roughly ten of them. A few more had probably been sent out on assignments.
“What is this situation?”
A man with dark crimson hair asked. Judging by his solid musculature and the atmosphere around him, he was clearly the leader of the Dark Blood Gang.
“Ah, well, you see…”
The chubby one approached the leader and whispered. After listening, the leader looked at me.
“You are Baron Luminara?”
“I am.”
“You seem rather young for that.”
“I hear that often. I take it as another blessing from the Goddess.”
“Oh…?”
The man offered a light show of formality.
“A pleasure. I am Drak, leader of the Dark Blood Gang.”
“Ah, so you are the Dark Blood Gang.”
“You know of us?”
“Of course. An acquaintance of mine told me he was entrusting money to you.”
“Might I ask the name of this acquaintance?”
I answered casually.
“Chameleon.”
Drak’s pupils dilated slightly.
“That was the alias he used. You know it, I trust?”
“Of course. I never imagined the baron would be an associate of his.”
“Well, the man is extremely cautious. You lot have never even seen his face, have you?”
“Correct.”
“Just as I thought.”
I nodded.
“By the way, where exactly do you hide such large sums?”
“Why do you ask…?”
“Oh, I simply want to entrust some money to you myself. I need to hide a portion of the offerings I received.”
“Offerings?”
“Yes.”
I spoke without the slightest hesitation.
“Truthfully, the condition of my territory is not the best, so I plan to make up the shortfall with church offerings. But leaving them in the mansion would practically guarantee the Holy See finds out, wouldn’t it?”
“Ah, that is true.”
“Why? Am I far from the priest you imagined?”
“A little. I had heard the Luminara family was a devout house of Ella.”
Drak gave a short snort of laughter and shrugged.
“Well, it’s not as if I haven’t seen clergy like you before, so I’m used to it.”
“Haha, is that so. So how do you hide the money?”
“Usually we take over abandoned granaries or empty warehouses and dig a pit beneath them.”
“And when I want to retrieve it?”
“Before we hide it we give you a document. It contains the terms of our contract as well as the location of the warehouse.”
“You keep a copy yourselves, of course.”
“Yes. We cannot memorize every single one, so we store them carefully.”
He answered readily.
“But rest assured. We have never once lost a document or had one stolen.”
“I would hope not.”
I continued questioning him.
“Do you also kill people?”
Drak’s eyes suddenly grew deep.
“If required.”
“How many have you killed so far? Chameleon never mentioned that part to me. I can hardly hand work to someone whose skills I don’t know…”
“Around a hundred jobs. Depending on the target I handle it personally, but in those cases the fee rises considerably.”
I already knew a fair amount about the leader of the Dark Blood Gang.
Drak was a man who had shattered countless lives and futures with his spear. Among them, no doubt, were innocent nobles.
I had no idea how he died in my previous life, but in this one I felt certain I would find out.
“I see.”
I called back toward Bella.
“Deacon Bella, you heard all of that clearly?”
“Yes! I heard every word!”
“Excellent.”
I turned back to Drak. He wore a puzzled expression.
I declared it to him without the slightest shame.
“First of all, I will not be paying any money regarding the prostitutes. Naturally, neither will my residents.”
“…What?”
“Furthermore, I will not entrust any money to you either. I would rather leave it with a passing ant than give a single copper to fools like you.”
A vein bulged at Drak’s temple.
“Have you lost your mind, Baron? What exactly are you trying to pull?”
“Baron?”
I tilted my head. Then I released the vocal alteration I had been using and returned my voice to normal.
“Do I still look like a baron to you?”
Where before the voice had been deep and weighty, it now cut sharp and clear.
Ripples spread through the eyes of the others.
“Th-the voice…!”
Their reaction drew a laugh from me.
“Ahaha, you actually fell for it? How does this face look middle-aged? My father has far more wrinkles and white hair than this, you dog bastards!”
“……”
Drak’s eyes sharpened.
“Who the hell are you?”
“If you’re that curious, teaching you is a priest’s duty.”
I continued as though I had just remembered something.
“But come to think of it, I already told you my identity a moment ago. Are you thick in the head?”
Drak chewed over my words for a second before asking.
“Don’t tell me you’re the eldest son of Baron Luminara?”
“Did you sell off the proper form of address for my father along with your character? The moment money’s off the table your true nature comes right out.”
“Right… I thought something felt off no matter how I looked at it.”
“What good does thinking do? That’s exactly why you’re thick-headed.”
Drak ground his teeth, then spoke.
“Listen, young master. Have you completely lost your mind?”
“My mind is always gone. I keep wondering if it can go any further than this…”
“Hahaha.”
Drak gave a light laugh and made a proposal.
“Young master. I don’t know what you were thinking coming all the way here, but from now on I’ll give you the choices. First—”
“You bastard!!”
I roared, cutting him off.
“I give the choices.”
“……”
“First option: hand over every last bit of your property and get the hell out. Second option: kill me—an Inquisitor—and then move on like the nomads you are.”
Drak snorted.
“Since when did a wastrel eldest son become an Inquisitor? If you’re planning to impersonate one again, give it up.”
Of course they wouldn’t know I had become an Inquisitor.
The Dark Blood Gang wasn’t large in scale; they simply excelled in many areas.
“Believe it or not, that’s your freedom. And making you pay the price for that choice is my freedom. So what’s your answer?”
“……”
Drak quietly gripped his spear, and the others raised their weapons.
I nodded in satisfaction.
“I thought as much. From the beginning you only ever had one choice. That’s how you’ve lived all along.”
I had never intended to let them go in the first place.
Left alone, they would continue to prey on people, and the stench of filthy blood would cling to my nose forever.
“Fall into hell.”
I drew my sword and lowered my stance.
The blade of Joy coiled around the sword. Since cutting them down one by one would be a bother, I condensed the wind even further along the edge.
“……”
At the ominous presence, they faltered.
Ordinarily wind is gentle—chasing away heat or drying laundry—but when angered it can sweep away everything around it.
Yet my wind is different.
My wind is never gentle to enemies; madness always dwells within it, and it exists only to cut every foe to pieces.
There is neither reason nor need to show these men mercy.
Therefore the only thing my wind can give them is death.
A crescent of pure force rose into the air. Along that sword-stroke, a savage wind steeped in holy power tore outward in a frenzy.
Shhhrrraaaak!!
A mad wind no human power could block crashed over the enemies like a tidal wave.
Screams erupted from every direction as bodies were slashed apart at random.
The chubby one who had dared show my father such disrespect, the silent carriage driver—both were swallowed by the gale.
“……”
Before long, silence settled over the forest.
If one strained one’s ears, one might almost hear the moonlight flowing, yet unfortunately one living man still remained.
“Khuhk!”
Of the entire Dark Blood Gang, only Drak survived, coughing up blood.
He somehow remained on his feet, but patches of skin had been flayed away; he looked ready to die at any moment.
“Sword aura… at that young age…”
Sword aura—the technique by which knights release mana or holy power.
There are knights who can wrap mana around a blade, but those who can truly wield sword aura are rare.
It demands both vast reserves and the most delicate control of power.
Mad Wind shared the same principle as sword aura, yet the wind attribute within it shredded enemies without restraint.
I was impressed.
“To survive that… you really are tenacious.”
“……”
“Cockroach bastard. Insolent thick-headed bastard. Filthy bastard who only ever chooses evil deeds. You— I’ll finish you myself—”
At that moment Drak’s eyes rolled back and he collapsed backward with a thud.
Seeing it, I clicked my tongue.
“He’s dead.”
So what exactly killed him?
Was it being caught in the Mad Wind, or did he ascend to heaven while listening to my insults?
Well, it was none of my concern, so I paid them no further attention and moved on.
“Deacon Bella, find Chameleon’s documents.”
“Yes, Inquisitor!”
Avoiding the filthy blood of the Dark Blood Gang, we set out to locate the money Chameleon had hidden.