Chapter 82: Count Corrode and Eight Knights

A few days after the ball ended.

Rondor Castle, which everyone thought would return to peace and quiet, had one person who had completely changed and was rampaging around.

For several days, he searched for a maid who didn’t even exist in the castle and relentlessly continued his swordsmanship training…

Vivian knew that the cause was that night, but she said nothing about it.

If his rage could be relieved even in that way, she was willing to leave him alone.

His most significant change was that he started going down to the city.

He was seen roaming the streets of Loctana with soldiers, carrying a huge two-handed sword on his back.

Kailo was fervently hunting witches.

Vivian also felt a chill at that strange coincidence.

After fighting with her, how did he start going around capturing witches here and there?

It was as if he was venting his resentment towards her in that manner.

***

“When someone suspicious is spotted, report it to me immediately. Understood?”

For several days, I went down to Loctana every day with soldiers, ransacking the territories.

I began the witch hunt in earnest.

The curse placed on me was so resentful that I couldn’t bear not to act.

Since I couldn’t hate Vivian, the curse felt even more disgusting.

Additionally, I now realized how dangerous witches truly are.

…Yeah, what did Vivian do wrong?

It’s the witch’s fault who made me love Vivian.

Considering the curse doesn’t disappear even after cutting off the head, it must have been something stubborn.

After all, she sacrificed her life to curse me, so she must have thought to do something like that.

Anyway, since the people of the territory feared me, I acted a bit more aggressively.

Kicking things here and there with my feet, grabbing and shaking the collars of suspicious people, and yelling a bit as I went around repeatedly.

My frustration was coming out in strange ways.

“If you don’t catch the witches, you all will suffer too. If you find someone suspicious, stab them first. I’ll make the judgment.”

Today as well, I grabbed a man’s collar and shook him as I spoke.

The man, with both arms raised, pleaded.

“Uh, I really don’t know…”

“…Ugh.”

Thud.

When I let go of his collar, he collapsed to the ground, probably losing strength.

Whispers like “bastard thug” spread here and there.

Behind me, Valon placed a hand on my shoulder, looking worried, and said.

“Kailo, why have you been like this lately…?”

I took a deep breath and gave only a formal answer.

“I was told by the Las Order to catch them. When they ask do something, I have to do it. Should I leave the witches alone?”

“No… It wasn’t like this before. What’s the sudden reason for trying to catch them?”

It would take too long to explain.

“…Just.”

So I evaded the reason.

Loctana has been bustling with people recently.

Vivian’s proposal to recruit talented individuals regardless of their origins fascinated many.

According to Kelsie’s plan to make the high roads safe, the routes to Loctana became much safer, reducing the burden of monster attacks.

As a result, even those living in the kingdom’s slums started flocking to Loctana.

Where people gather, gold coins flow.

Gold coins were gradually awakening the slumbering territories.

Commerce was activated, and businesses thrived.

As a clear light began to shine down, a definite darkness was also emerging.

As gold flowed more freely, the number of murderers increased.

As businesses sprang up, so did swindlers.

Merchants competed among themselves, factions arose, and with the formation of factions, crime organizations were also formed.

Though their numbers were not large yet and their actions not too threatening, problems were bound to arise later.

“Pickpocket!!”

There were also many boys running away desperately with red faces.

“What the hell, kid! Want to fight?”

“Hey, bring it on!!”

I also saw adults snatching pockets and throwing punches.

“I told you to behave!!”

There were even children who got scolded by their parents for doing so.

Though I had come down to Loctana nominally to catch witches, I was getting to know the lives of the people of the territory by encountering these incidents.

Suddenly, I remembered my promise with Vivian—the promise she made to return me to my hometown if I could be loved by them all.

Could this all have been part of her plan?

As the people of the territory increased, the number of people who needed to love me increased.

Logically, it was a wager I couldn’t win.

However, since I had decided to go home now, the worry about it was always on my mind.

I didn’t want to rely only on the princess’s promise.

How could I turn their hostility into goodwill?

…Still, for now, I decided to properly capture the witches.

“Kailo!”

Someone called from a distance.

I turned my head and saw Yanes’ group.

Yanes was escorting Kelsie and seemed to be here on some sort of business.

Seeing them like this, it was clear even to a blind man that Kelsie was a better choice than Brynden.

Perhaps it was because of her background, but she was fundamentally diligent.

We walked over to Yanes.

Kelsie, as if she knew I was approaching, stopped and greeted me.

“Lord Kailo, you’re here.”

I asked Yanes.

“What brings you here?”

“Lady Kelsie said she had something to do.”

Kelsie exclaimed in horror at Yanes’ words.

“No, ‘Lady’? Please don’t. I’m just…”

I cut Kelsie off.

“If you’re a servant of Vivian, stop putting yourself down. If you look insignificant, Vivian will look insignificant too.”

“…Yes.”

Kelsie’s closed eyes fluttered.

Then, nodding her head, she said.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Kelsie and I felt no awkwardness in our conversation.

It had been quite some time since she had also started residing in the castle.

Of course, that didn’t mean we were on good terms.

Kelsie’s father was also a victim of the war, she said.

Naturally, she didn’t have a very positive attitude towards me either.

…I guess this meant I had to win over even someone like her.

Vivian had made a really absurd bet.

“Alright, good work then.”

I turned to Kelsie and Yanes and said that.

***

“Lady Vivian?”

“…Yes?”

Vivian blinked her eyes at the voice calling out to her.

In front of her was Kelsie, who was blind, and her attendant.

“…Are you listening?”

Kelsie, who couldn’t see, seemed to be told something by her attendant.

For example, ‘Lady Vivian seems to be a bit distracted’, something like that.

“I was just thinking about something else.”

Vivian admitted easily.

Without realizing it, she was thinking about Kailo again.

Recently, he had been wandering around the city and they hadn’t been able to meet very often.

They had eaten together, but that was all.

They didn’t have the usual trivial conversations or make eye contact.

It was another long cold war.

The reason was valid, but…

And the longer this cold war lasted, the more Vivian felt an odd emptiness in her chest.

“So, what were you saying?”

Vivian asked back.

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts of Kailo.

Now was not the time to think about Kailo.

Now was the time to manage the territory.

As she had felt at the ball, she needed power.

The feeling of powerlessness when she had lost Kailo to the princess had become her nightmare.

She never wanted that to happen again.

The Duchess of Rondor would only bow her head to the king.

She had no intention of losing to a prince or princess.

In fact, even if he became king, she wanted enough power to be able to check him in a way.

“…Yes. I’ll say it again. As you know, a new wave is coming over to Loctana, and there’s a trading company causing problems. At first, I thought they were trying to establish themselves in Loctana by taking losses, but… that wasn’t the case.”

“What do you mean?”

“A trading company is causing harm to Loctana… maliciously. They’re preventing Loctana from developing. They’re selling goods at lower prices than their original value in the market to crush competing companies and monopolize the market, and sometimes even resort to violence.”

“Citizens may be happy to get goods at a lower price for now, but if this company destroys other companies and takes over Loctana’s market, it will be impossible to turn back. That company will manipulate Loctana’s economy as they please.”

“Then get rid of them. Don’t let them set foot in this land.”

“That… might not be the choice I should make…”

Vivian raised an eyebrow in question and waited.

Of course, Kelsie, who couldn’t see this, replied appropriately to the continued silence.

“…The name of the trading company is the Corrode Trading Company. I heard that Count Corrode is backing them…”

“If we drive them out, won’t we get entangled in a political issue, Lady Vivian?”

Count Corrode.

Vivian recalled the face of the middle-aged man.

It was fortunate that Kelsie hadn’t acted first in this situation.

Vivian knew she needed to drive out his merchant group, but she had to choose her actions carefully.

Perhaps he was using this as bait, trying to provoke a fight with her.

Maybe he was using the merchants as a pretext for aggression, to gain a justification.

If anyone asked if Vivian had the strength to oppose Count Corrode right now… even Vivian wasn’t sure.

She might not be pushed back by physical force.

However, that was only if all the knights’ orders followed Vivian.

If the First Order turned to follow Baelor, things could become difficult.

“…Haa.”

The fight had begun.

Vivian didn’t know Count Corrode’s ultimate goal, but he had started his attack.

This was the first time he’d launched such a clear attack.

Perhaps it was because Brynden, his helper, was no longer by her side.

Maybe he had stopped probing and finally decided to act.

“…He was an enemy after all.”

Vivian muttered.

Deep down, she knew Corrode was a problem, but the feeling was quite different when it was actually unfolding before her eyes.

She felt more tense, more afraid.

Vivian sighed and pulled out a piece of stationery.

She had to talk before taking action.

She decided to call Count Corrode to the Rondor Castle and resolve what could be resolved.

-Knock knock knock.

‘Lady Vivian…! Lady Vivian…!’

A dignified knock, and a slightly urgent voice.

If there was anyone who maintained their dignity even in the most chaotic situations, it was Lady Linne.

“Come in, Master.”

Vivian let Lady Linne into the room, taken aback by her unusually urgent voice.

As soon as the door opened, the entire castle could be heard buzzing.

The commoner retainers, the new soldiers, Vivian’s guards, the maids.

The whole castle felt like it had just faced some shocking truth.

“…What is it?”

Vivian frowned and asked.

Kelsie and her aide also focused on Lady Linne’s voice.

Lady Linne, who had been about to speak, finally said,

“The Undefeated Knight… has fallen.”