Ch.175Report on the Downfall of Charity (17)

“Tell me what the mercenaries are doing here, speak!”

However, the mercenary didn’t answer. It didn’t seem to be due to suspicion of Kain. Well, it would be difficult to readily explain why they were aboard a prisoner ship manufacturing evil drugs.

No, rather, the mercenaries were fidgeting. The milk was already spilled. Not only had they failed to complete Leonardo’s mission, but a major disaster had occurred.

To prevent further damage, then what?

The mercenaries, having made their decision, swung their weapons at Kain. They must have judged it advantageous to kill the unknown Venelucian officer in the confusion and escape.

But they had hesitated too long. Kain flexed his arm and used the man whose collar he’d grabbed as a shield.

With a crack and gurgle, blood spurted from the man’s back. Kain threw the dying mercenary toward them and drew his cutlass from its scabbard.

The mercenaries charged as if they had nothing to lose. But the boat was narrow and the surroundings chaotic. It was difficult for more than two people to charge at once.

Kain showed no more mercy. He swung his cutlass with full force. Cut for cut, thrust for thrust, he met aggression with aggression.

The mercenaries were bewildered. This wasn’t Venelucian swordsmanship. The basics were to smoothly deflect incoming attacks, defend, and then counterattack.

This style of swordsmanship worked well on a rocking ship.

After all, on a ship, everyone struggles with balance, and if my stance remains firm, my opponent will naturally falter.

That’s also why Venelucians maintain evasion and defense while keeping good balance.

But Kain’s attack was completely Imperial style. A tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye. He wasn’t afraid of his stance becoming disrupted.

Rather, as if it were natural, he leaped forward, dodged sideways, and cut downward.

Whenever his sword was blocked, Kain swung it more fiercely, and whenever someone tried to stab him, he stabbed back faster.

It was a rough, wild style. It was difficult to inflict fatal wounds at once. However, the mercenaries’ bodies accumulated more and more wounds.

“Over there! Who are those men?”

The Venelucian navy had spotted the boat. To their eyes, it would look like a naval officer fighting multiple enemies in a sword battle. Realizing they were mistaken, the mercenaries threw themselves into the sea.

“Hey, you bastards!”

The fallen mercenary captain called out, clutching his throat. A mercenary who was about to jump overboard reached for his waist.

Kain quickly hid behind the mast, but the mercenary’s throwing dagger flew not at him but toward the captain.

The dagger pierced the captain’s throat. The mercenary tried to throw at Giuseppe too, but as the Venelucian naval ship began firing arrows, he simply jumped into the sea.

Kain shouted and raised his cutlass high, waving it. As light reflected off the blade, the ship stopped firing.

“Throw a rope! We need a tow!”

A small boat appeared beside the ship, full of Venelucian sailors searching for survivors. They threw a rope. After Kain skillfully tied it, the boat began spinning around.

With a command, the sailors rowed vigorously. Without a moment’s rest, Kain examined Giuseppe’s wound. Fortunately, it wasn’t deep, but it was long and blood continued to flow.

Moreover, Giuseppe himself was intoxicated with asas. He couldn’t regain consciousness and mumbled, mixing words and sobs like a drunk person.

Finally, the boat reached the inner harbor. With the sailors’ help, Kain pulled Giuseppe onto the dock. Medics applied medicine and wrapped bandages.

“He’s unconscious. Do you have any alcohol?”

At Kain’s request, a soldier brought liquor. It was strong alcohol diluted with water, used to pour into the mouth to help someone regain consciousness. Kain almost snatched the leather flask.

“I’ll take care of this. Go tend to the patients!”

The soldier quickly ran off. While Kain poured the liquor into Giuseppe’s mouth, he deliberately spilled some on his clothes and sprinkled some on his head and shoulders.

Once Giuseppe’s body smelled sufficiently of alcohol, Kain sprinkled some on his own clothes. He threw away the empty flask and helped Giuseppe up.

“Ugh, phew.”

Giuseppe exhaled painfully.

“Pull yourself together. If you want to live, you need to walk.”

Kain kept whispering. When soldiers approached, he urged them to move quickly. The soldiers passed by, muttering curses under their breath after hearing the officer’s scolding.

Eventually, the two left the chaotic inner harbor and entered the street.

The streets had scattered pedestrians. Unlike the Empire, the United Kingdom had no specific curfew hours. There were people who worked at night.

Therefore, they didn’t regard Kain and Giuseppe with suspicion. Smelling of alcohol and staggering together, they looked like drunkards. Whenever someone remarked, “You should drink less,” Kain would nod and wave his hand dismissively.

After walking for quite some time, Kain reached his destination. The smell of blood from Giuseppe could no longer be concealed. Kain himself was breathing heavily.

“Who goes there?”

Antonello’s subordinates appeared at both ends of the alley. Relieved to have safely reached the area under his control, Kain staggered. But he managed to maintain his balance and set Giuseppe down on the ground.

Only then did Kain turn toward the subordinates.

“Get Antonello.”

“Who are you? And who’s that?”

Someone raised their back high. Kain approached the subordinate with his hand on his sword hilt. After staring intently at his face, he tilted his head.

“What are you doing?”

“I’ve memorized your face,” Kain replied.

“I’ll tell Antonello later. The man with the big mole next to his nose and messy beard didn’t relay my message, so you missed the opportunity to become a big shot.”

A subordinate who had witnessed Kain and Antonello’s conversation before nodded. A swift subordinate disappeared into the darkness.

Not long after, Antonello appeared on horseback. Both the horse and the man looked extremely tired.

“Iago? What on earth is this about in the middle of the night? And who is this friend?”

“Antonello,” Kain caught his breath. “Don’t you want to become a big shot?”

“A big shot?” Antonello asked, surprised. “Of course I do. But why?”

“Then you need to treat and hide this man. If he dies, everything is over.”

“What exactly is going on?”

Antonello dismounted. He seemed to sense that the situation was unusual. Kain whispered secretly.

“Can you trust your subordinates around you?”

“I stationed trustworthy ones for the night. Why?”

“Because this can’t reach Leonardo’s ears.”

Antonello turned around. He gave orders to find a doctor as quickly as possible and various other instructions. He led Kain and Giuseppe into a hideout.

Mercenaries resting in the safe house looked at them with surprised eyes, but Antonello went up the stairs and opened the door to the upper floor.

It was a small room where one could rest simply. Kain and Antonello laid Giuseppe on the bed. Only then could Kain sit in a chair and rest.

“Alright. I’ve called for a doctor. But he won’t come right away. Let me light a lamp.”

Antonello rolled up his sleeves himself. He lifted Giuseppe’s clothes and, despite wincing at the stench, applied medicine to the wound and fixed the bandages with blood on his hands.

Kain assisted him from the side. Until then, Giuseppe remained unconscious, intoxicated by drugs and alcohol.

“So, what about Leonardo?”

“He won’t be able to retire peacefully. The plan has gone awry. Did you see the fire outside the outer harbor?”

“I saw it on my way here. The city was in chaos. What on earth happened while everyone was sleeping?”

Kain didn’t answer. Antonello blinked.

“Don’t tell me it was you?”

“Leonardo will flee rather than retire. They were doing filthy things on the ship of fools. And it’s certain that the Venelucian navy was somewhat involved.

So, his mercenary group will also fragment and split. Conversely, they might band together and commit atrocities. Either way, Venelucia will fall into chaos.

But you’re prepared to take advantage of this chaos, aren’t you?”

“That’s an odd way to compliment, but yes. I truly appreciate you recognizing my true worth, Iago. I didn’t know you had such discernment.”

Antonello’s words were clearly sarcastic. Kain responded with an equally arrogant expression.

“Unfortunately, I don’t hold you in such high regard.”

“Oh, really? Then why did you come here?”

“I trusted the judgment of the Stonemason Guild Master who chose you.”

Antonello burst into laughter, bending at the waist.

“Ha. Ha. Right. Right. That’s an amusing answer. I like it—not clumsy flattery. Good. I am prepared to take advantage. Are you proposing a deal?”

“Of course. The condition is bringing the Stonemason Guild Master here.”

“That seems a bit difficult,” Antonello frowned.

“No. That person must come here in person. Not only will it raise your status, but this man here cannot go outside.”

“Who is he?”

“Giuseppe Conlone. He was a former Venelucian official, and whether he fell into a conspiracy or walked into a spider’s web on his own, I’m not sure yet, but he manufactured and even supervised toxic substances used by northern and western heretics on the ship of fools.

The one who ordered it appears to be Leonardo. So, guarantee my safety and his, and bring the Stonemason Guild Master.”

Antonello had already rushed out.

* * * * *

Before lunchtime, many people came and went.

The doctor, who had been practically dragged in the middle of the night, completed his treatment admirably.

He said that while it wasn’t life-threatening, the wound was long and rough, and above all, the body itself was in such a mess that recovery would take a long time.

“Where on earth did you fish this person from?”

He even complained.

“His eyes are yellow, and his gums have almost melted away. I’m not sure if he can properly digest soup. Good heavens, his stomach is even hard. He must have an internal infection.”

“Will he survive?” Kain asked.

The doctor replied while packing his medical bag.

“If he wants to live the life of a maggot rather than a human, he might stay alive.”

In the morning, a woman with an eye patch entered. She was visibly tense. Antonello’s female subordinates treated her respectfully but firmly.

“Is this Giuseppe Conlone?”

The subordinates removed the eye patch. The woman stared intently at Giuseppe’s cleanly shaved face and nodded hastily.

“Y-yes, it’s him. He’s gained a lot of weight since he worked at the office, but it’s definitely Giuseppe. Yes, it’s him.”

She seemed to have worked with Giuseppe as well. A mercenary who followed her handed over a heavy money pouch.

The woman took the pouch, voluntarily put on the eye patch, and was escorted out.

The room was empty again. Giuseppe was in a deep sleep. Kain dozed off slightly, but had no time to rest as Antonello opened the door and entered.

He looked tired too, but seemed pleased, perhaps because he thought he had landed a big deal.

“You’re thorough.”

“I have to live up to expectations, don’t I?”

“What about the Stonemason Guild Master?”

The answer to the question came quickly. Outside the window, horses neighed.

A plain carriage stopped. A middle-aged man with graying hair and a straight posture stepped out.

It was the Stonemason Guild Master.