Chapter 213 – The Play Of Baron Nam (40)
214. The Play of Baron Nam (40)
I judged the time was ripe and slowly walked out from behind the tree.
“I was just about to check, but you’ve come out on your own. You’re wearing a rather foolish-looking mask. Who are you?”
“……”
The middle-aged man with a scar on his face spoke, gripping his sword hilt. His hair was slicked back, and I had half my face covered with a mask that looked like it belonged at a masquerade.
I remained silent at his words, surveying the gruesome scene.
I had already heard from Bellic that a skilled individual would appear to deal with the Baron and Daren. But even knowing the course of events, I couldn’t help but flinch.
The bodies of the family’s men and Bellic were strewn about the forest.
Seeing it all made me feel strange.
It was, after all, the first time I had seen a dead body in this world. Moreover, I had been involved in the killings to some extent, so it would be odd to just ignore it. Of course, I thought they deserved to die. But… perhaps because the atmosphere had been too soft lately, seeing the corpses made my chest feel strangely tight and uneasy, bringing a kind of vitality and thrill I hadn’t felt before.
‘It’s a relief my personality hasn’t completely gone to shit.’
Actually, I should have shown them women being taken right in front of them… Well, let’s just think of it as sending them off cleanly with death instead. It’s not like I’m raising the women to be villains, and it would be a bit much to make them act all seductive in front of their lovers and then cut their throats. Besides, the men were cheating too, so it didn’t really feel like I was taking anything away.
Anyway, I had to stop the man in front of me now.
If I let him go, he would surely gather the mercenaries and try to deal with the women as well.
It was clear that the man was a swordsman under the Count of Bourbon.
I could easily deal with him using hypnotic suggestion, but there was something else I wanted to try first. That was why I had come with my face covered and a sword in hand. If things went wrong, I could always clap my hands then.
Shhh…
I gripped the sword I had been holding loosely.
When I first heard the story from Bellic, he had said that the man was clearly on a different level. So, how well could I hold my own against this mysterious man? Could I even win? Despite appearances, I had received quite a hardcore education from MacCallin.
I wasn’t fighting purely out of a desire to compete. I had heard many times that my patron deity, Louis, was being targeted by mid-level gods, and I knew that their proxies could come to lynch me soon. It was unrealistic to try to win against the proxies using divine power, so this kind of practice was necessary.
“It’s a shame, but I can’t let you go any further.”
I took a firm stance and began to circulate my energy. Divine power was most effective when fighting monsters, but it was a different story when used like a thick glove. Besides, my body was…
“A paladin? …Well, it doesn’t matter. There’s no way a proper one would be hiding their face.”
The man seemed to sense the overflowing divine power from me, tilting his head, and then drew his sword. Unlike his earlier arrogant posture, he didn’t let his guard down and slowly approached me.
He looked like he was going to deal with me quickly without being careless.
I could feel mana from his sword.
Clang!
“Hmph! …Hmm!”
As I matched his slashing motion, our blades clashed. Surprisingly, the man was pushed back slightly. This meant that my total energy was greater than his. It felt a bit unsettling to win with what seemed like a cheat character, but it was a body given to me for this purpose, so who cares?
The man thrust quickly several times, but he was no match for MacCallin. I couldn’t immediately counterattack after defending, but I managed to block his attacks and keep pushing him back.
“……”
The man quietly observed me, his eyes darting around as he sensed that a certain amount of divine power was still being maintained.
He slashed again. But unlike his previous attacks, this one felt clumsy.
“Hmph!”
Clang!
Just as I thought, he pulled his sword towards his chest from the slashing motion, then suddenly moved his left hand away… and lunged at me like a fencer. I was surprised and about to lose my balance, but he didn’t miss the opportunity, pressing me with intense killing intent and trying to kill me.
This man was holding his longsword like a fencing foil and thrusting like a madman.
‘What the… how can he change his attack type so freely? What kind of guy is this? Hmph!’
To put it bluntly, he was a goddamn expert, at least in actual combat.
Clang clang…!!
I barely managed to step back and defend, but I felt a genuine chill. He was releasing a sharp energy at the moment of the thrust, and if I had allowed even one hit, I would have been seriously injured. Honestly, I could quickly heal with the high-level healing I learned from the Saintess, but it was a bit of a wake-up call to be struggling in this place with my overpowered body.
More than anything, I hated pain.
His movements were skilled, aiming for the outer edges while drawing rhythmic arcs, even when he seemed to be targeting vital points.
I had to recall MacCallin’s teachings as much as possible.
If I couldn’t avoid it, I shouldn’t stubbornly try to block it; I should just step back. Then, an opportunity came when he quickly dove low and tried to thrust at my upper body. Clearly, he was getting impatient as time passed, and he was putting a lot of power into a decisive attack.
Fortunately, it was a familiar route.
It was an attack I had often used against MacCallin when I was shorter to overcome the height difference. I also knew how MacCallin had blocked it.
I gripped the sword hilt tightly, explosively circulated my energy, and struck down hard and diagonally along the path of his rising sword, just as MacCallin had done.
Clang!
“Hmm!”
The man barely managed to hold onto his sword and maintain his balance, then quickly leaped back, fearing a counterattack.
“……………”
He quietly glanced at his own sword, the blade of which was chipped. The man’s sword was just an ordinary longsword. It was no wonder that it had been damaged after directly receiving my power. Of course, I couldn’t directly infuse the sword with energy, but my explosive physical enhancement would have resulted in tremendous kinetic energy.
More than that, the practical data was too terrifying…
The man picked up Bellic’s sword that was lying on the ground, then asked me, as if something had occurred to him.
“You don’t seem like someone who would be under that Baron… Whose orders are you following? Why aren’t you attacking aggressively?”
I was about to clap my hands and finish things up, but his sudden question made me think deeply.
If I chose my words carefully, I could end this easily without hypnosis.
I let out a cryptic remark.
“If one person can think of something, others can think the same thing. Don’t you think? Nothing ever happened.”
“……………I see. So that’s how it is.”
He immediately nodded in agreement to my words.
The man must have understood roughly.
He probably thought I was someone from the Allton Count’s family or another high-ranking noble.
Either way, if I didn’t stop here, I would inevitably make an enemy of some noble. This plan was supposed to be carried out in secret, so my saying this meant that things had already gone wrong. A bold person might try to make a deal regarding the Baron’s family here, but such political judgment was beyond a swordsman like him.
The man realized that things were going in the wrong direction and disappeared from my sight in an instant. I immediately headed towards the mansion.
As I walked, I let out a huge sigh of relief.
‘I managed to repel him somehow… He must be one of the strong ones, right? Please let him be…’
I had tried fighting him because I had the insurance of my divine power, but he was a very scary opponent.
But it’s a bit of a shame that no one knows I fought so well. Next time, I should fight where there’s an audience.
…………
…………
“P-please, don’t harm the Lady.”
“L-Lady, the Lady has done nothing wrong! Please…”
“Everyone…”
Baroness Trisha appeared before the villagers surrounding the mansion. She didn’t know where her husband and son had disappeared to. But she was trying to resolve this situation peacefully. And Trisha’s maids, who were fiercely loyal to her for her kindness, surrounded her.
-…Lady, please step aside! We only want to see the Baron!!
-What are you dawdling for? Let’s get rid of them!
-Y-you’re crazy?! Don’t you dare touch her.
Murmuring.
The mercenaries, faced with the unexpected situation of the family still being alive, tried to incite the villagers and massacre them all, but the villagers didn’t advance further. Instead, they even held the mercenaries back from moving.
Trisha, who had done so many good deeds behind the scenes, could not be the target of their anger. There were countless people who had unknowingly benefited from her kindness.
‘Damn it…! Why did things turn out like this? That man was supposed to take care of everything, and we were supposed to loot to our hearts’ content, wasn’t he?’
The mercenaries were feeling dejected.
‘If only we could cut that woman’s throat, we could get a good payout and finish this job…’
In the end, the mercenaries were just trying to make a living. They didn’t want to push things further, get their faces recognized, and then be abandoned later when things got out of hand. So, the situation remained at a standstill.
“Raul…! I told you to hide inside, why are you…”
Trisha’s eyes widened as she saw Raul, who had appeared by her side.
“I couldn’t just stand by and watch. I’ve learned a bit of swordsmanship, so I could protect you if necessary…”
“N-no! Don’t ever pick up a sword! We can resolve this peacefully.”
She saw the sword hilt that Raul was subtly holding and frantically stopped him.
‘Absolutely not…!’
Raul, absolutely.
He must not be harmed under any circumstances.
All of Trisha’s senses were on high alert.
It was close to the instinctive movement of a female trying to protect her precious male.
The scarred man, who had been watching the villagers’ stalemate from a distance, shook his head and approached the mercenaries. The mercenaries, recognizing his presence, lowered their voices and asked him anxiously.
-What the hell is going on?
-The plan went wrong, so you guys should get out of here. Goodbye…
-W-what? You son of a bitch…!
Then, someone’s shout was heard.
“…Hah hah! Baron…! In the forest, the Baron’s body has been found! And his son too…!!”
Murmuring.
The villagers were instantly thrown into a panic.
Since they hadn’t come out, everyone had vaguely expected that they had run away. But who on earth had killed the family’s men?
This was beyond the point of being salvageable.
-W-we don’t know anything about this! We, we all came up here…
-It’s true! Please, spare us. Lady…!!
The villagers immediately dropped their weapons and began to beg.
‘Dead… you say?’
Trisha’s body stiffened without her realizing it.
Stella was hiding well in the mansion, but…
The sudden news of the death of her own son and husband.
“………………. ……. …………….”
No one knew what she was thinking.
“Lady…? A-are you alright?”
Trisha, who had been quietly blinking, quickly closed her eyes and turned her head away from the people, as if she had realized something when Raul looked at her. It was only a fleeting moment of thought, so the villagers didn’t notice anything strange and could only see her grief-stricken appearance.
They didn’t have time to think of anything strange in the first place.
Their lives depended on their current attitude.
The mercenaries, letting out deep sighs, had already slipped away.
……………
Originally, according to Bourbon’s plan, after massacring the family, the priests they had bought off would secretly push the Berkeley family and get a puppet, but…
Because the two women of the family had survived, the plan quickly fell apart.
‘Could other nobles have been involved…? Damn it! I’m going to get caught in the crossfire for no reason. Drente, that bastard, clearly said there would be no danger…! More importantly, what should I do? Calmly and naturally… Yes, let’s act naturally.’
The head of the Berkeley family, letting out a huge sigh, had no choice but to keep his mouth shut as if nothing had happened, and expressed his condolences and willingness to cooperate regarding the Baron’s family and this series of events. He absolutely could not let the secret leak out.
Of course, if the other noble who was involved revealed the truth, it would all be for nothing.
The head of the family felt his blood run cold.
After that, Trisha had to meet with the dispatched local officials and the nobles who had intertwined interests, and talk non-stop.
Even if the management of the territory had been a mess, it was an act of challenging the authority of a noble. If things went wrong, this impure wave could spread to the neighboring areas. There were even radical and extreme discussions about the treatment of the villagers, but Trisha tried to persuade them and resolve the situation peacefully. However, when that became impossible, she tried to narrow the scope of the problem as much as possible.
Now that this had happened, there was no way to avoid a bloodbath.
Whenever there was an uprising, looters would always appear, and they tried to rape the maids scattered around the Baron’s estate or forcibly seize their property.
In the end, a dozen of those extremists were considered the main instigators and were immediately beheaded.
The official, shocked by the disastrous tax rate, fixed the finances and left. Trisha tried to release a large amount of wealth to the villagers to show leniency, but such attempts were blocked by the surrounding nobles. Only a few had been beheaded, and if they were to come out too submissive, they might think they could rise up again. This was, in a way, natural. Of course, if she gradually increased her charitable activities, there would be no problem.
Finally, the nobles subtly coaxed Trisha.
-How can such a beautiful woman endure this tragedy alone… Please, feel free to ask for help from our Baron’s family anytime. We will help you as much as we can.
-It’s such a pitiful thing. I feel a strong sympathy for you. I, I really do?
-Think about the marriage proposal. If you accept, I will treat you with all my heart.
A beautiful widow with immense wealth.
Naturally, many nobles tried to take advantage of her weakened heart and get close to her.
But of course.
“……Please, leave me alone for now. I have a lot to think about…”
Trisha maintained her grief-stricken demeanor and rejected all their proposals.
She, the new owner, had already set her sights on someone.
