Ch.177Report on the Downfall of Charity (19)

# “I didn’t call you here to play games like this. I don’t have time for such idle talk.”

“Idle?” Vito tilted his head. He looked as if he’d heard something absurd.

“I thought you were a young man with good judgment, but you’re still young after all. I decide what we’ll discuss when we meet. Not you.

Mr. Iago. I don’t mean to disrespect you. No one in Venelucia could have turned the outer harbor upside down and retrieved a prisoner from the Ship of Fools.

Giuseppe Conlone? Of course he’s an important figure. Even the Doge doesn’t know how many people’s honor hangs in the balance because of that one man.

Not only Leonardo of the Charity, but the reputation of the Order is at stake too. A very passionate priest denounced that man, after all.

But, Leonardo. Giuseppe. Father Prolo who passionately denounced Giuseppe. They’re all Venelucians. Like it or not, these people are ‘my’ people. You are not.”

Vito’s expression was utterly solemn.

“And I am a master of the Stonemasons’ Guild who has sworn to dedicate my life to protecting Venelucia, as well as a member of the Venelucia Supreme Council.

Would you like to hear my perspective, Mr. Iago? In my eyes, you—yes, you sitting right there—appear to be the greatest threat to Venelucia.

Mr. Iago, I am not an idle person. You know that better than anyone. Yet I’m splitting my precious time to meet with you privately. So, answer me while I’m still willing to talk with you.”

“Why is that question so important to you?”

Kain made no attempt to hide his discomfort. But Vito remained unmoved.

“Why are you so reluctant to answer that question? You already know the answer. If you truly don’t know, I’m willing to tell you.”

“Because I don’t think it matters.”

“No. It does matter. Very, very, very much.” Vito wagged his finger.

“There’s only one reason you won’t speak. You don’t want to admit it. Why don’t you want to admit it? Because it hurts. Because you sympathized with the illusion Beatrice presented. You weren’t just a member of the Rose, but one of the few people who could truly connect with her.”

“That’s your opinion.”

“Of course I think as I please. I’m a Master. And I asked what you think, not what I want to explain. How did the people of Venelucia treat her?”

Kain lowered his gaze.

“They turned away and turned their backs on her. After her death, they mocked her enough to use her as firewood for the stake.”

“Then you must hate Venelucia and its citizens.”

To Vito’s question, Kain shook his head.

“No.”

“No. You say no. Why is that?”

The air in the room grew heavy. The sun, journeying across the sky toward noon, cast a single ray of light.

The casually thrown light stared blankly at Kain and Vito. Yet it remained beautiful. That’s how brilliance is. It reveals itself even when you try to hide it. Kain could no longer conceal it.

“Because I’ve changed.”

Kain raised his head to look at Vito. His face had become extremely serious and rigid, but his eyes were wavering. He seemed to be trying to hide his confusion.

Kain thought of her daughter, Bella. When she had childishly said she wanted to be like Beatrice, one part of his heart had felt numb and sorrowful. But he hadn’t been angry. It was painful, but not entirely sad.

At the time, he hadn’t known why. That’s why he had readily taught her how to protect herself.

Because,

“And because I know people will change too. I don’t resent or hate them. If her ideas were truly worthless, they would collapse like a sandcastle before the waves.

But if they were valuable, they would be more solid than any breakwater in Venelucia, and more sturdy than any foundation.

In that respect, she was like her father. In the sense that she loved Venelucia more than anything else in the world, only their methods of loving were very different. Just as that father and daughter loved and hated each other.”

It was a long time before Vito spoke.

“Niccolo Dandolo was a man who shouldn’t have died like that.”

Vito stood up. He stood by the window, looking out at Venelucia.

“What Niccolo asked of Leonardo of the Charity was to weaken his daughter’s influence.

He attacked the businesses of her sponsors to weaken their financial power, caused trouble at every meeting place so gatherings couldn’t be held, and harassed the families, relatives, and close ones of those who openly supported her.

That’s why those who had been friendly to her turned their backs. Leonardo’s subordinates were pirates at their core, so it wasn’t far from their usual business.”

Kain gripped his chair tightly.

Vito Mancini was right. That’s exactly how it had been. Sudden withdrawal of sponsorships, absence from gatherings, and increasing alienation day by day.

But he had never known there was such an issue behind it. Because Beatrice always attributed it to her own inadequacy.

Beatrice. She only saw the bright side of people. She tried not to see the dark side. She only saw people’s potential and closed her eyes to their baseness.

Therefore, she had never prepared for how far her own father might go.

“But Beatrice’s death was unexpected. It’s true that Niccolo was furiously angry, and it’s also true that he grieved. But that wasn’t the reason for his death.”

“What exactly happened?”

Vito sighed.

“Money. It’s always about money. Niccolo had no money. Diverting the Fourth Crusade to attack the eastern part of the Empire was quite a good harvest and actually brought in a lot of money, but the rise of the Demon King was completely unexpected.

He borrowed from the southern kingdoms, subsidized other allied city expeditionary forces, and scraped together all the mercenary bands to dispatch to the Fifth Crusade, to the point where Niccolo had to dig into his personal funds.

As you know, even debts have priorities. First priority is foreign trade, second is trade with allied cities. The third priority would have been to pay debts within Venelucia, but since he had already spent all his money on dealings with allied cities, he couldn’t properly pay Leonardo of the Charity.”

Kain recalled that the two had argued. Not just once or twice, but quite a few times. Niccolo would have resented Leonardo for driving his daughter to her death, and Leonardo would have been angry at Niccolo for not paying him.

“…Niccolo had two ways to pay his debts. One was to borrow money in the name of the Supreme Council, even at the cost of reduced political influence.”

“But that didn’t happen.”

“I opposed it.”

Vito turned around. The middle-aged politician with his back to the light looked darker than ever.

“I knew it would put Niccolo in more trouble. We all thought the same. But I swear, I didn’t know that pirate would do such a thing.”

“What did Leonardo of the Charity do to Niccolo Dandolo?”

“The second way to pay his debts. Since his only blood relative had died, Niccolo had to rewrite his will. And that will contained details about the distribution of his property.

Excluding the flowery language, the first line began like this: ‘To be distributed to those to whom it should rightfully go.’

It meant to pay the debts first. And Niccolo signed that document. Then he was thrown.”

A ringing sound echoed in Kain’s ears. He clearly felt he had misheard something. ‘Thrown.’ Kain looked at Vito, thinking it must be a joke.

“You heard correctly.”

Vito was seeing right through Kain.

“Leonardo of the Charity threw Niccolo Dandolo from the top floor of the government building. He remembered the faces of everyone who came running at the scream, then had his subordinates threaten and intimidate them. That’s how he distorted the testimonies.”

“You knew.”

“I did.”

“Then why didn’t you punish him…”

“Well, why bother?”

Vito smiled faintly.

“If Niccolo had been assassinated, people would have been outraged. In a situation where sympathy and nostalgia for Beatrice still remained, if such a thing had happened, a second Rose movement might have erupted.

But if Niccolo had committed suicide, unable to bear the grief of losing his daughter, everyone could quietly mourn in sorrow. The survivors could carry on his will and continue to protect Venelucia.

And more importantly, there’s something else.”

“What?”

“If Niccolo had lived, the Empire would have invaded Venelucia. They wouldn’t have forgotten the hiring of the Fourth Crusade, the excommunicated crusade, to attack the eastern part of the Empire.

But Niccolo died. Thanks to that, the Empire and Venelucia could reconcile. It was Leonardo of the Charity who opened the channel for reconciliation.

Making peace with the heroes of the Empire, and somehow knowing how to fight together against the ‘Demon King,’ it could be a justification for improving relations.

After all, Venelucians are merchants. The more markets a merchant has, the better, right?

But…”

Vito’s eyes narrowed.

“That very Leonardo of the Charity suddenly announced his retirement, and at the same time, a remarkable figure appeared. With evidence that could bring down Leonardo of the Charity in one blow. Yes, that’s you.”

Vito almost blocked the window. Kain couldn’t understand why his voice was trembling slightly, why he was lightly clenching his fist. With his back to the light, he looked extremely anxious.

“It’s not difficult to test a young man like you. But it was also unavoidable. I needed to know why someone who turned the Venelucian outer harbor upside down wanted to meet me.

As I said earlier, I am one of the leaders of Venelucia, and I intend to dedicate my life to protecting this city.”

“Not to protect your power?”

“Without Venelucia, power would disappear too.”

It was concise and materialistic. But that made it relatable. Kain nodded. And smiled bitterly. But Vito wasn’t finished.

“And I needed to understand why Leonardo made such a decision.”

“The decision to retire?”

“No.”

Vito’s face was contorted.

“Armed rebellion.”

Kain’s eyes widened.

“When news spread that the outer harbor had been attacked and the Ship of Fools was on fire, Leonardo moved immediately.

As you would know from Antonello, the noble families and major guilds of Venelucia entrust their security to his subordinates.

Of course, we know what he did to Niccolo, which is why we have loyal men like Antonello. But Leonardo’s business acumen is superior.”

“Treason?” Kain rose in surprise. But outside the window, there were no screams, no sounds of marching armies, not even smoke or soot.

“Leonardo has committed treason. A very quiet treason. He’s secretly attacking businesses, kidnapping people, and spiriting them away somewhere. Only the power holders he was assigned to protect. In my case, it’s my fifth daughter. Along with the dissolute cane maker she likes.”

“Hostages…”

Bella. Francesco. Their faces flashed through his mind.

“He sent an ultimatum to all power holders. The content was to appoint him as regent and grant him full authority. A temporary position that can impose emergency measures on Venelucia.

No one could respond to such a sudden event. He must have other sources of confidence to carry out such a bold act. But no one knew about it yet. Not until you contacted me.

Now you understand what that questioning meant.”

Kain understood. Now is the time when Venelucia could easily be destroyed. If he himself doesn’t cooperate. If he just disappears. Everything will fall into Leonardo’s hands.

If he wanted revenge, now would be the perfect time.

But all Kain feels is sorrow.

“Vito. You, even though your daughter has been kidnapped…”

Kain didn’t continue. The next words would have been conveyed sufficiently. How could you, even though your daughter has been kidnapped, endure all that, pretend to be at leisure, and have this conversation?

“Iago. As you can see, I am a shameless human being. I thought someday I would be judged for burying Niccolo’s death.

If God asks me to account for it, I have no intention of making excuses. Yes, I did it, I would say a hundred times, two hundred times.

And if asked why I did it, I would answer like this: It was for Venelucia. Likewise, I will not hand over Venelucia to that scoundrel. Because it’s not the right path for this country.

For the sake of this country, I don’t care how I appear.”

Through to the end, a slanting light came in over his shoulder. Vito’s face, therefore, looked distorted. The light flowing from his back illuminated his face strangely.

Fanaticism.

Vito was a fanatic.

Like Niccolo, like Beatrice, Vito too loves Venelucia in his own way.

To the extent that he can maintain his composure even when his family is taken hostage. To the extent that he can meet an unknown man without hesitation, trying to understand the man’s intentions even as his daughter’s life is in danger moment by moment.

It was a position he had to be in. Because he’s one of the leaders of Venelucia. It’s fitting for a tragicomedy, neither tragedy nor comedy. A position where one must sacrifice personal matters for what one believes is right.

What else can you call that but fanaticism?

“In the name of Vito Mancini, member of the Venelucia Supreme Council, I wish to hire you. Mr. Iago. I will take responsibility for everything you’ve done, so do as you wish. Will you accept?”

Was this also why he wouldn’t listen to Kain and only wanted to speak himself? Kain laughed desolately inside.

In the end, this is the kind of man Vito is. A person who needs to know that someone won’t cause harm before fully trusting them. He probably never intended to listen to what Kain had to say.

Because he only thinks of himself, and only believes his own opinion is for the benefit of Venelucia.

Kain thought it was a terrible irony.

In reality, he himself is an Imperial. Moreover, he was once an agent who came here to spread chaos in Venelucia.

Though he failed in his mission, the Empire gained something greater. Kain took away a sense of loss, but the Empire gained peace and prosperity.

And now, in the task of revealing the truth about Leonardo of the Charity, who brought prosperity to Venelucia and the Empire, in a destructive act that could undo everything until now, Venelucia has called upon Kain.

Kain thought it was a terribly bitter masquerade.

‘But.’

But if there isn’t even that mask. If even that carefully and painstakingly crafted mask is gone, how can a person live looking up at the sky with a bare face?

That’s why Kain said:

“I accept. On the condition that you don’t ask anything more about me.”

“Tell me what you want.”

Kain answered immediately.

“Alcohol.”

“Alcohol?”

“I need very strong alcohol.” Kain pointed at Giuseppe Conlone. “The kind that can jolt even someone lying as if dead back to life.”