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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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Even though Allen had left the tent some time ago, after the meeting to discuss the aftermath of the battle, none of the vassals moved.
They stared blankly at the flickering campfire, contemplating their bleak futures.
Bolton was no exception. He stared down at the wine in his cup and murmured,
“Ha, I risked everything and invested so much, yet I’m not going to receive any plunder, let alone a share of the spoils. I had a bad feeling about this from the start… and look where we are now…”
“And that’s not all. Lord Segeric won’t treat us the same way once he learns about this. A decade of service, all for nothing. That outsider will take my place.”
The truth was a sharp knife, twisting in Bolton and the vassals’ hearts. One of them, unable to bear it any longer, raised his voice.
“Bolton! You’re better off than I am! I invested my entire family fortune in this expedition, yet I have nothing to show for it! I’ll be bankrupt if I return empty-handed!”
His outburst triggered a chorus of self-recrimination among the vassals, each trying to outdo the other in describing their dire situations.
“Ha, consider yourself lucky! I had to borrow money from my relatives to cover the expenses! Oh my god! How am I supposed to face them now?!”
“Sigh, I borrowed money from a merchant. A merchant! If they find out I’m penniless, those devils will try to take everything I own. Even my family name.”
Humans are weak in the face of adversity. They cannot endure without blaming someone else. Moreover, humans are infinitely forgiving of themselves.
“This is all your fault, Bolton!”
The blame subtly shifted, settling on Bolton.
Bolton slowly raised his head. The vassal who had been speaking flinched as he met Bolton’s dark, gloomy gaze, then, as if taking the flinch as an insult, raised his voice even further.
“Did I say anything wrong? You were the one who insisted on taking the right flank! We’re all ruined because of you! How are you going to take responsibility for this?!”
Bolton smiled grimly.
“Was it just my idea? You all agreed. And if you had any objections, you should have spoken up then! Blaming me now is nothing short of cowardly!”
“What? Cowardly? You shameless bastard, do you think words are enough?!”
Soon, the other vassals joined the argument.
“I agree that Lord Bolton bears a significant portion of the blame. After all, he was the one who proposed that plan that nearly got us all killed. Did you have some ulterior motive?”
The vassals believed that the only way to recoup their losses was to tear a piece from Bolton, whose family was the wealthiest among them.
“I told you it was a mistake.”
“And insisting on taking the right flank was also a mistake, I presume?”
“You bastard…!”
Despite the complex web of marriages and connections among them, the vassals didn’t hesitate to attack Bolton. His position as the leader of their faction, wielding considerable power, was crumbling.
He was about to lose everything. As this realization dawned on him, Bolton’s expression became strangely serene.
‘I have nothing left to lose, do I?’
A cornered rat will bite a cat. Bolton was no different.
“I have a plan to restore everything.”
The noisy tent fell silent. The vassals who had been pointing at Bolton lowered their hands.
“Hmm, and what would that be?”
“If we had enough troops, we could plunder Baron Debussy’s territory and recoup our losses.”
“That’s the problem. We don’t have the troops.”
“We can create them. We hire the guards protecting the merchants and prostitutes who followed us. While they’re not many, combined, they should be comparable to Allen’s forces.”
With the enemy forces routed, Baron Debussy’s territory was temporarily undefended. Even a ragtag group could attempt a plundering expedition if they had enough numbers.
“Oh, that’s a brilliant idea!”
The vassals who had been blaming Bolton now sang his praises. However, the amicable atmosphere didn’t last long.
“What? There are no mercenaries?”
The summoned merchants and brothel owners raised their voices in protest.
“We’re the ones who should be angry! Those mercenaries broke their contracts unilaterally, paying two or three times the penalty!”
“But why would they…?”
“Are you seriously asking that?!”
The merchants and brothel owners were furious. Bolton’s voice cut through the vassals’ confusion.
“Did the mercenaries switch sides and become soldiers?”
“Is there a traitor among us, someone so greedy that they would prioritize their own survival in this situation?”
“There’s no one like that among us. No one.”
“Surely not…”
Bolton stared towards Allen’s tent, his face crumpled like a piece of paper.
“That bastard Allen must have gotten to them first.”
He was right. While they hadn’t participated in the battle, the mercenaries had witnessed Allen’s prowess and leadership. They had also heard rumors that Baron Debussy’s territory was undefended.
Becoming soldiers offered them a chance to plunder riches far exceeding the penalties for breaking their contracts. Moreover, there was practically no risk involved, so it was a tempting offer.
The merchants and brothel owners spoke again,
“We’re at our wit’s end! We paid a fortune for those prisoners, but we don’t have enough mercenaries to guard them! If they revolt, we’ll be lucky to escape with our lives, let alone our money! This is a scam! A fraud!”
The merchants and brothel owners stormed off after venting their frustrations at the vassals.
The atmosphere in the tent grew even more oppressive. Bolton gritted his teeth as he felt the renewed wave of resentment directed at him.
‘So, you want to play this game until the end?’
Bolton believed that this, too, was part of Allen’s scheme. Therefore, he decided to unveil the plan he had been contemplating.
“There’s only one way for us to survive now.”
Bolton’s voice was low, but it carried enough weight to command everyone’s attention.
“We plunder the manors and merchants supporting Lord Ailgar, along with anyone offering them support.”
Bolton resurrected the plan that had been discarded due to its fatal flaw. The vassals stared at him, wide-eyed.
“D-Do you think Sir Allen will allow that?”
“Allow it? Since when did we need an outsider’s permission?”
“The problem is that we’ll lose our heads to the Baron! It’s like burning down the house to get rid of a flea!”
“What if there’s a way to solve both problems at once?”
Bolton’s sinister tone was so chilling it felt like an invisible hand tightening around their throats.
Gulp.
The vassals held their breath, waiting for his next words. Bolton studied their faces, then spoke slowly,
“We frame him for everything.”
“!!!”
The vassals’ eyes widened. It was a bold, ruthless plan. Bolton continued, unfazed,
“He’s an outsider, after all. How difficult would it be to frame him if we all coordinate our stories?”
“But what about now? If he finds out about the plundering, he’ll try to kill us. Even without framing him, he’ll know he can’t escape responsibility as commander.”
Bolton grinned cruelly.
“Then we just kill him, don’t we?”
“What…! We saw his and his squire’s skills! And what about the twenty elite mercenaries still with him? We’re no match for them.”
“Do we really need to dirty our own hands?”
“What…?”
“If we release Powell Osborne, he’ll take care of it for us.”
It was a scheme to borrow a knife to kill, framing Allen for plundering their allies and then using the enemy to eliminate him. The vassals fell silent, their eyes darting nervously.
Bolton continued,
“If everything goes according to plan, we can kill him and ruin his reputation. We can also divide the spoils of war amongst ourselves.”
“But what if Sir Allen abandons the expedition and starts searching for the escaped prisoner? If he captures him again, we’re finished.”
“Hmph, do you think he’ll waste time like that when there’s a land flowing with milk and honey ripe for the taking? Moreover, the Baron’s reinforcements will arrive much sooner because of the escaped prisoner.”
“…!”
Humans can be surprisingly resourceful in times of crisis. Bolton was thinking more clearly than usual.
The vassals, seeing the potential for success, began to murmur amongst themselves. Bolton drove the final nail in the coffin.
“We have nothing left to lose, do we? Wouldn’t it be wiser to try something, rather than sit here and wait for our demise? What do you think?”
“You’re right. We might as well fight back.”
“I’m in!”
“Me too! Me too!”
Bolton smiled cruelly as the vassals, one by one, agreed to his plan. He knew that if they succeeded, he would not only recoup his losses but also strengthen his control over the vassals.
Just before dawn the next day, Bolton and the vassals, having bribed the guards watching the prisoners, helped Powell Osborne escape. And Allen was watching.
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“So it was true.”
How could one trust the words of rivals who had been at each other’s throats just moments before? This could be another one of Bolton’s schemes. I needed confirmation, and I had just received it.
The young man who had introduced himself as Muel, second only to Bolton in influence among the vassals, pointed at the departing Powell Osborne.
“We can’t let him escape! He’s a witness to Bolton and his cohorts’ treachery!”
“Don’t worry. Fiore will capture him.”
Powell Osborne was Fiore’s prisoner, and she wasn’t one to let her prize slip away so easily.
I continued,
“More importantly, what should we do now?”
This was a test. If he proved to be a valuable asset, I would keep him by my side. Otherwise, I would simply pay him and end our association.
Muel understood this. After catching his breath, he answered carefully,
“We must wait.”
“Wait? You’re saying I should just stand by and watch while he plunders our territory and frames me for it?”
I deliberately frowned and spoke in a threatening tone. Muel, his face paling under the pressure, hurriedly replied,
“Because Bolton is right. You are an outsider, and Bolton has plenty of connections in the political arena. Apprehending him without concrete evidence will only lead to a counterattack.”
“What about Powell Osborne’s testimony?”
“It’ll be dismissed as a ploy to sow discord.”
Not bad for an opportunist. Muel breathed a sigh of relief as he saw my smile.
However, the test had only just begun.
“And then?”
“Then? Ah, well, we gather the victims, compare their accounts, and collect evidence. Irrefutable evidence that Bolton and his followers can’t deny.”
“Hmm.”
I wasn’t satisfied with his answer. Even if Bolton overreached, I wouldn’t gain much. It was another confirmation that Segeric’s faction lacked capable individuals.
“Did I miss something?”
Muel, sensing my disappointment, bowed his head.
I shook my head.
“Act like you’re one of them, so as not to arouse suspicion. However, leave a trail, a secret mark that will allow the victims to identify their attackers. Send me a messenger once the plundering is over. Can you do that?”
Defense wasn’t my style. He had to pay for trying to frame and kill me. A price far greater than death.
“Consider it done.”
Muel would do his best to redeem himself. I patted his shoulder and said,
“If you complete this mission successfully, you will be suitably rewarded. Once the traitors are eliminated, their positions will need to be filled.”
As Bolton had said, I was an outsider. I had no one to fill the void once the traitors were gone.
Muel, as the second-in-command, would be different. He must have joined me hoping for such an outcome.
I decided to accept him. I would need more people as my power grew. While I wasn’t impressed with his abilities, at least he was perceptive.
Muel bowed his head even lower.
“You won’t be disappointed.”
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Thanks Teot!