Representative of the Goddesses 212

Chapter 212 – The Baron’S Game (39)

213. The Baron’s Game (39)

The Rosichester barony was already a powder keg.

It wouldn’t have been strange if a revolt had broken out due to the tyranny that had been going on for a while. If there was anything that was mitigating it, it was Trisha’s occasional acts of charity and the Berkeley family’s philanthropic activities.

However, even this support was often exploited in the middle, and it was obvious that most of those who were intercepting it were people working for the barony. The territory residents, who were barely making ends meet due to the levies, were already harboring deep-seated discontent and were secretly sharing the dangerous idea that the owner of this land needed to change.

But like all major events, a decisive justification was needed for things to happen.

The first was the death of the most prominent figure in the barony.

In the early morning, the body of this old notable was found in an alley by a woman. This old man, who was highly respected for his moral character, had previously refused the baron’s offer to be his treasurer. In addition, he had worked hard to improve welfare, becoming a spiritual pillar admired by others.

And now, such a respected elder was found lying in a corner of an alley.

Murmuring.

-Beryl… Did you see the baron’s son when he came down to the village last time? When he rented out the entire restaurant to meet his fiancée?
-I remember. The elder pleaded with him then, trying to meet that son. Since the baron wouldn’t meet him, he asked to meet him somehow, or if he could at least review the tax proposal later… Well, he was immediately brushed aside. Could it be?
-Yes! Those dirty bastards. What else could it be but that they got rid of him because he was an eyesore? It’s obvious!
-Shhh. Shhh…!! Keep your voice down.
-Damn it….

The second was a more realistic problem. As soon as morning came, notices were posted everywhere, drastically increasing the tax rate for the summer quarter.

-Are they asking us to pay even more?
-My family is barely managing to feed ourselves… *Sob sob.*
-Did you guys hear about the elder? I heard he was found in the morning…
-What, what are you saying?

Naturally, the territory residents could no longer stand idly by. They had crossed the line they were barely holding onto.

Some brave people, who had nothing more to lose, went to the baron’s gate first to protest, but the initial response was infuriating.

-What is it? Get lost! I told you to write down your requests!

Since their numbers were insignificant, the guards, as usual, drew their swords, threatened them, and chased them away. After this incident, various exaggerated rumors began to spread like wildfire. It was said that if you questioned the series of events, you would be stabbed or imprisoned… Of course, such exaggerated incitement was led by people from the Berkeley family disguised as commoners.

The baron’s head butler, who was shocked to realize this bizarre situation, was already too late to take action. Trying to put out the fire in a hurry might have looked like a pathetic excuse, but more than anything, the situation outside was so unusual that he couldn’t go out.

A revolt was already breaking out within the barony.

……………

“How long are you all going to endure this! At least bring something from your homes. Let’s storm in together!”

-Waaaah!!

‘Good. They’re gathering well, just like the head of the family said. Heh heh. This is quite fun, isn’t it? It’s like herding sheep.’

The mercenaries secretly hired by the Berkeley family, dressed in commoner clothes, were leading the people, encouraging others to join.

Initially, it was the lower classes and serfs, but soon even ordinary commoners joined the ranks, and the number of people participating in the popular uprising snowballed. Hundreds of territory residents were already following the disguised mercenaries. The mercenaries were carrying sharp sickles that were almost reminiscent of scythes, which some people found strange, but they soon followed them as if it didn’t matter.

The territory residents were uniting as one. (It’s a funny story, but it’s also partly due to the fact that they’ve all become physically close because of Raul’s suggestion.)

“Aaaah! Save me…!!”
“You damn bitches! You must have been having a great time with those bastards, huh?”
“Drag them all out!”

Daren’s and the baron’s women, adorned with all sorts of luxuries, were dragged out of their homes one by one, subjected to insults and finger-pointing. Of course, most of these were women and old people, while the energetic young men marched towards their final destination with farming tools and weapons.

…………

Brion, who was called the garrison commander among his subordinates, sighed deeply at the sight before him.

“Is this all there is?”

“Y-yes, Commander.”

Inside the barony, located on a gentle hill, they were gathering as many soldiers as possible. These were essentially private soldiers who acted as bodyguards so that the members of the barony could live in luxury, but even after scraping them all together, there were only a few dozen of them.

‘They want me to defend this place?’

Outnumbered, his plan was to block the main gate and hold out on the sophisticated white brick wall, which was too embarrassing to even call a fortress. However, thanks to the armory catching fire at a miraculous timing, more than half of the archers needed for the siege were naturally lost. Why would the armory suddenly catch fire? Brion wasn’t stupid. He had already realized that some force was involved, but he had no time to worry about that.

He had a fire on his feet, and the territory residents were already swarming up the hill.

‘Damn it. These guys have no combat experience, how am I supposed to hold out with this? It’ll be a miracle if they can even swing a sword properly. More importantly, where did the baron go? If he sent even a few escort knights, it would be something.’

The territory residents, who had arrived at the baron’s gate, glared at the soldiers aiming their bows from the low wall, grinding their teeth. Some of them still wanted to resolve the current situation through negotiation. After all, the march had slowed down and stopped at a certain point.

But if things continued to be so sluggish, it would be meaningless.

The disguised mercenaries exchanged glances and, as planned, strongly incited the people.

“Are you going to end it here? Let’s all go forward!”
“We came all this way to say we can’t live like this, and the result is that they’re pointing weapons at us!”

Numerical superiority gives people courage. Soon, the mercenaries shouted “Waaaah!” and charged, and the territory residents in the rear, as if hypnotized by the wave, followed them. Some were shot down by arrows, but this only further excited the people, who swarmed towards the wall like a tidal wave. As this stalemate continued for a while, cracks began to appear.

“C-commander! They’ve crossed the low wall over there!”
“What? Th-this is a disaster…!”

Letting hundreds of people in at once would make things difficult. Brion, leaving only a minimum number of people at the front, led his soldiers straight to their entry point.

“Drive them out at all costs!”

“Heh heh. We went through all this trouble to get in, we can’t do that. Hyaah!”
“Aaaah!”

The soldiers, who had almost no combat experience, were no match for the carefully selected mercenaries. As they began to cut down the soldiers with their skilled swordsmanship, the terrified soldiers threw down their weapons and surrendered before even ten of them had died.

‘Let’s quit.’

Seeing signs of being surrounded, Brion also quickly gave up and surrendered.

He hoped he could survive among the angry crowd.

-The baron must show himself before us immediately!!
-Drag out that son of his too!!
-Those who defiled my daughter!

The territory residents continued to climb the hill, and eventually surrounded the mansion and began a siege.

“W-what if they attack us too?”
“……Don’t worry! If we stay still, they won’t hurt us.”

The servants inside were trembling with fear. Some of the servants mustered the courage to peek out of the windows, and the number of people was countless.

It was clear at a glance that maintaining the status quo was impossible.

The territory residents continued to shout for the baron to come out, but there was no sign from the mansion, and they remained unresponsive. It was a foolish act, but of course, there was a reason.

That was because he was no longer inside the barony.

The back gate was wide open, more so than usual.

…………

…………

In any case, the fact that Brion had held out outside had definitely bought them some time. Seeing the momentum of the people rushing in, killing his own soldiers, Baron Rosichester could easily guess that this would not end peacefully, and so he chose to save his own life first.

As long as he had his head, he could fix things later.

Clop clop clop….

Four horses tried to run hard through the forest, but they had to slow down. The path was so bumpy and full of rocks that if the horses were injured, it would be the end.

The baron, holding the reins, looked up at the ridge behind him and immediately cursed.

“Those damned bastards!”

“B-but it’s a relief that we got out, Father.”

The baron, Daren, Belik, and Carsel, the new escort knight who had replaced Belik.

These four had barely managed to escape.

In other words, Trisha and Stella were not included in the group.

The situation had escalated so quickly that Belik had first taken the heir, Daren, who was nearby, but he said he had told others to take the women to another place. The baron felt a strange sense of incongruity at Belik’s quick actions, which were unlike his usual gangster-like behavior… But anyway, given the situation, he had no choice but to nod in agreement.

In the first place, the two of them didn’t even know how to ride a horse.
If they slowed down, they might be chased…

“…………”

The baron shut his mouth tightly.

“Father, where are we going?”

“Let’s go to Viscount Alfonso first. …Damn it. I’ll have to see that old man grinning. There will be a price, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll wipe out those bastards…?”

Having noticed something, the baron strangely cut off his words and stared at the spot.

“F-father, who is that…?”

“Who are you!”

Carsel shouted, drawing his sword on horseback.

The direction of the three men’s gaze was a man standing comfortably leaning against a tree with a sword beside him.

A middle-aged man with a scar on his face, wearing shabby commoner clothes, but exuding an extraordinary aura.

“Belik, what are you doing? Do you know him?”
“…………”

The situation changed quickly. Belik, after swallowing once, approached the man and tried to make contact. The man, who had been blinking silently, opened his mouth when Belik was right in front of him.

“Where are the women?”
“The situation was urgent, so I thought I should at least take the heir first. Isn’t that what’s important?”
“Haha… I see. That’s what happened.”

At Belik’s confident words, the man unconsciously raised the corners of his mouth.

“W-well then, I’ll be on my way.”

“Wait.”

“Why… Keuh!”

*Thwack.*

A long sword, drawn in an instant, pierced Belik, who was on horseback, as it shot upwards. Belik, who couldn’t react properly due to the speed that far exceeded his reaction time, fell off his horse with a fatal wound.

The man stabbed Belik’s heart once more to make sure, and he soon became a limp corpse.

“…………”
“…………”

“I didn’t think you’d be this stupid. I clearly told you to bring all the family members. I almost got into trouble.”

“Y-yah!!”

Carsel, realizing the difference in skill after seeing just one attack, was already kicking his horse as hard as he could to get away. In the first place, their relationship was not a proper master-servant one, but rather a mercenary one based on money. There was no real loyalty. The baron and Daren, who glared at him as if they would kill him, also tried to escape quickly, but the man was already right in front of them.

“…I don’t know who’s behind you, but if you join me now, I’ll give you twice the amount you’re getting! No, three times! Yes. If money isn’t enough, I can even create a position for you inside. I’ll definitely treat you well.”

Why do the greedy higher-ups always say such cliché lines?

The man chuckled.

“It’s a waste that the young lady even bothered to deal with the likes of you.”

He swung his sword.