Ch.179Report on the Downfall of Charity (21)

# Screams rise high into the sky, echoing through the alleys.

While not all Venelucians are sailors, ships are as familiar to them as bread and beds.

For such people, the sound of vessels colliding and splintering was utterly terrifying.

“Leonardo! You bastard!”

After a moment of shock, Master Vito was furious.

“How dare you defile our mother’s embrace!”

To Venelucians, the inner harbor is a warm homeland and sanctuary. It’s the home that embraces and comforts those who return with tattered sails and hearts after facing rough waves and storms.

Leonardo was throwing filth into that sacred place.

Some people screamed, having lost all reason; others stood dumbfounded; some collapsed as their legs gave way.

None of them could tear their eyes away.

Amidst the frozen crowd, Kain moved.

“Go.”

Vito glared at Kain as if he wanted to slap him. It must have been due to his uncontrollable anger. But Kain’s words were cold and dispassionate.

“Is standing here stupidly the way to protect Venelucia?”

Vito managed to speak only because of his lifelong experience as a politician.

Days when he had to do things he didn’t want to do, things he didn’t feel like doing, things completely contrary to his true feelings.

The momentum of time spent thinking and acting coldly, regardless of emotions, pushed him forward.

But that’s precisely why Vito couldn’t understand Kain.

How could he remain so calm when the inner harbor, beloved by all Venelucians, was being torn to shreds?

Reactions to shock and surprise can vary. But even they would normally be startled, if only for a moment, when disaster strikes. There should be at least a momentary hesitation.

But Kain wasn’t like that. He was colder than even himself, a politician.

“You.”

Suspicion crept into Vito’s voice. Realizing his mistake, Kain pressed his lips tightly together.

Kain knew how much Venelucians loved their inner harbor. A father’s back. A mother’s embrace…

But Kain was an outsider. He couldn’t completely share the same emotional connection as the Venelucians.

That’s why Kain couldn’t take their sense of loss as his own.

A person who remains composed while witnessing a sight that would leave any Venelucian stunned.

Yet someone knowledgeable about political affairs. Someone with enough outstanding strength and physical prowess to set fire to the outer harbor to divert attention and extract prisoners from the fools’ ship.

And someone who dares to send a provocative invitation to a member of the Supreme Council, yet is neither an official diplomat nor a merchant here on business.

There’s only a very specific type of person who could be all these things.

“You really aren’t from around here. Not a mercenary either. Your true identity is…”

Vito raised his finger to point at Kain.

Though his hand trembled, the tip remained steady.

Kain neither confirmed nor denied.

It wasn’t just because he had been absurdly exposed in such a situation, and to a Venelucian authority figure at that.

Surprisingly, he felt unburdened. It was as if something he’d been carrying on his back and shoulders had fallen away. The belated realization that what was bound to happen had finally come was just a bonus.

Along with a slight sense of letdown, like when you’ve been walking so long, focusing only on walking, only to realize you’d actually reached your destination long ago.

It was different from when Beatrice confronted him with his letter to the Empire. That was entirely his mistake with no room for excuse.

This was different. He had been caught off guard and read like an open book.

Because he had been blind.

Because his mind was completely filled with the thought of tracking Leonardo.

Time slowed down. The commotion outside seemed like another world. The smoke, fire, explosions, and screams were all blurred in the slowing time.

He could see firm resolve appearing on Vito’s face. Kain felt he could even discern exactly how the wrinkles on his face were changing.

He also saw Antonello and his subordinates, who had been in shock, and Vito’s guards approaching as they noticed the ominous atmosphere.

With just one finger-pointing gesture from Vito, everything would end.

The trembling of the hand stops. The Adam’s apple moves. Shock clears away, and firm resolve emerges.

Vito withdrew his finger. He lowered his arm with his palm open.

Like any grand nobleman, Vito wore several ornate rings. Two on the ring finger of his left hand.

A marriage ring with a delicate yet small jewel, and a large but worn and shiny ring.

Vito removed his wedding ring. Then he twisted off the crude ring, which didn’t come off easily, but he gritted his teeth and endured the pain until he finally removed it.

“This! Your Excellency…?”

Antonello widened his eyes. But Vito handed the heavy ring to Kain.

“This is the seal of the Stonemason Guild Master. Show it if anyone questions you, and they’ll back down.

Your actions are those of the Venelucian Supreme Council, and your words are the words of the Supreme Council, in the name of honor and faith.”

“In the name of honor and faith.”

Kain replied. He put the ring on his finger. It fit well without much discomfort.

“You must know this city well. Leonardo’s mansion is in the city center, but his headquarters where he trains his subordinates and stores equipment is near the northern part of the city. By the fountain with the mermaid statue.”

“I know it.”

Vito ordered his guard to provide a horse. Kain mounted it.

He also took a sturdy staff and a Venelucian cutlass. But he hadn’t yet gripped the reins. He looked at Vito questioningly.

“You told Antonello, didn’t you? That you trusted my eye for people. I just wanted to see what kind of man you were, but you turned out to be far more impudent than I thought.”

Vito smiled.

“Yet you still give me the ring?”

“A storm is coming. It’s time for rough ruffians to run wild. Who knows? Perhaps a hero will appear.”

“I don’t believe in heroes. Nor in heroic destinies.”

“One doesn’t become a hero by wanting to. It’s what others call you.

Likewise, there’s no such thing as a hero’s destiny. Being in the right place at the right time, doing the right thing—that’s what makes a hero.

And when the time comes, we all go to our graves. You and I both. So now, I’ll go do what I must.”

“Then I’ll go look for the innocent.”

“I’ll mobilize the army. Let’s meet again alive.”

“Let’s meet alive.”

Kain gripped the reins. He turned the horse’s head and galloped through the streets of Venelucia.

* * * * *

The streets were covered with fire and screams. Looting and arson broke out everywhere.

Mercenaries, guards, and brave citizens were fighting back, but they couldn’t match the coordinated efforts of Leonardo’s group.

That wasn’t all. Many roads were blocked by carts and wagons that had appeared from nowhere. All of them were roads connected to guard buildings or outposts.

While the soldiers were in disarray, vagrants and thugs from the streets grew even bolder.

Explosions could be heard from the inner harbor. The fools’ ship was burning.

From behind, Leonardo’s sailing ship and large merchant vessels pushing the prison ship kept throwing oil barrels and shooting fire arrows.

The Venelucian navy wasn’t idle either. They brought out all their ships, even those under repair.

Like setting a counter-fire to stop a wildfire, the navy and brave citizens also tried to block the wave of ships with ships. That would be better than letting the dock be completely destroyed.

Leonardo’s group’s movements weren’t spontaneous. They had been meticulously prepared long ago.

They were agile and organized, as if everyone had a schedule in hand.

It was an orderly, intentional chaos.

‘They attacked the families and businesses of the powerful, made absurd demands to give up the position of magistrate to create confusion, and then did this.’

It was probably to prevent the Supreme Council from having time to respond.

‘But why?’

Why create such chaos and deception? Venelucia is not an easy city to conquer. It’s a city that has stubbornly survived the massive threat of the Empire and the small but significant threats from competing cities.

Citizens had gathered in large numbers. The guards hadn’t received specific orders yet, but they moved in an orderly fashion under the command of their leaders and commanders.

Was it just to escape alone? No. That would be too elaborate. There would have been many quieter ways to disappear, especially for someone with Leonardo’s reputation.

But now it looked like deliberately poking a beehive. Provoking people and going against order.

However, this wouldn’t be enough to overturn Venelucia. Unless it was meant to shock them.

‘Think. I need to think. There must be a reason why Leonardo pressured Giuseppe last night.

What complication did last night’s events cause? What variable did it create in what seemed like a perfect plan?

Why did he need so much asas herb?’

The downfall of Hans and Roberta would have reached Leonardo’s ears.

Sometimes he himself had sailed to the Empire. So Leonardo’s chosen path was to process more asas herb.

Originally, raw materials would have come to Venelucia through trade routes, been processed, and then flowed back to the Empire.

But Venelucians seem completely unaware of asas.

Even native Antonello reacted as if it were unfamiliar, and when Niccolo died, they only mentioned “a disgusting smell of herbs” at the scene.

‘Unprocessed materials would have flowed in from the north and west along trade routes.

‘All that herb flowing in from the north and west along trade routes. All that herb processed here and flowing back into the Empire.

But with Hans gone, there’s no one to receive the goods. So, the unsold quantity must still be in Venelucia.

‘To burn herbs, you need fire. To spread smoke, you need wind to help.

But lighting a fire in an open field wouldn’t have such a great effect.

If a strong gust of wind came, that smoke coming from the outer harbor would be pushed away in an instant…’

Kain stopped his horse. The herb, fire, and wind were all there. The wave of burning ships now carried black smoke. The wind was blowing from the sea toward the city.

And the narrow alleys of the city were packed with tightly gathered people. All armed. All with their vigilance at its peak.

Kain rode to the nearest barricade. He flashed Vito’s seal.

“In the name of the Supreme Council, I command you!”

Citizens and guards looked at Kain in surprise. Kain shouted urgently.

“Get into the nearest house and block the gaps with wet cloth so smoke can’t seep in!”

“What are you saying, sir?”

A soldier looked up at Kain with anxious eyes. Kain pointed toward the dock.

“That smoke contains poison! It’s smoke from burning poisonous herbs! Leonardo is trying to poison you all! Hurry and take shelter!”

At Kain’s cry, a squad leader came to his senses. He quickly gave orders to his subordinates. Residents swiftly opened their doors.

“Those who can ride, spread my message! By order of the Supreme Council! Stay away from the smoke! Don’t breathe the smoke!”

Guards on horseback galloped away with a “Yah!” Others beat the stone walls of the city with iron clubs. Clear warning sounds of “clang, clang” spread.

“Stay away from the smoke! Stay away from the smoke! By order of the Supreme Council, avoid the smoke!”

Guards on the other side took up the message. They too shouted while beating the walls. People could be seen evacuating quickly.

More guards rode through the city on horseback. As the smoke extended its deadly reach, the people of Venelucia scattered in all directions like dispersing ants.

Leonardo wasn’t trying to escape. He probably never even considered it.

What he truly wanted was to make people fight each other, spread anxiety, gather them armed, and then spread asas herb smoke through the alleys of Venelucia to achieve what he was plotting:

Domination.

Leonardo was trying to devour Venelucia.

Kain rode again. Not toward Leonardo’s headquarters, but toward the Doge’s Palace. Because someone who wants to become the ruler of the city would sit on that throne.

He rode, and rode, and rode. Before the massive wave of smoke swept everything away.