Episode 8. Rebellion (2)

“Th-That, Knight-nim. That person says if he has something to say, he should come up here himself.”

This bastard?

The knight in the blue helmet, whose name I still don’t know, was more arrogant than I thought. It was an unscheduled visit, and a noble had come all the way to the inn, but a mere commoner was telling a noble to come to him.

“Did you tell him it’s an event of the Yulstein Family?”

“Yes, I did. But he insisted that unless I show him at least the Family’s crest to verify it’s real, he won’t meet…”

What grounds does he have to be so stiff? I was about to take out the brooch with the Yulstein Family crest, but I realized I hadn’t received it yet in this regression. I was considering showing him the Mountberne Family crest instead, but I decided to just go up myself.

“Guide me.”

“Yes, yes!”

As soon as I tossed him a silver coin, the innkeeper, who had been bristling at the orders of a noble who wouldn’t even bring him money, started guiding me obsequiously. As I climbed the stairs to the top floor, where the relatively high-end rooms were, I organized what I knew about the knight in the blue helmet.

His name is unknown. Judging by his appearance, he’s estimated to be in his mid to late thirties. He defeated me in a tournament in the past and disappeared after taking the prize money. Monica used to berate me, saying I was a loser who couldn’t even win in a rigged game. Fortunately, that’s not the case this time.

After he was the runner-up in the tournament two days ago, I looked for him, and he was staying at an inn in the territory. Judging by the fact that he didn’t reveal his family, he seems to be from a commoner background, but he has the arrogance to order nobles around. Before the regression, he was found dead in a mountain in the territory, which caused trouble. I was framed for taking petty revenge for not winning the tournament, and the Yulstein Family was branded as ignorant and petty bastards. Looking at his behavior now, it seemed like he had been stabbed and abandoned after acting like this to another noble.

Knock knock-

The innkeeper, standing in front of the room door, knocks loudly.

“Hey, the knight of the Yulstein Family has come to see you in person!”

The smoothly oiled door opened slightly. Through the crack, brown eyes looking out met mine. The eyes, which had been trembling anxiously, widened as soon as they saw me, and the door opened wide like those eyes.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Knight-nim!”

What is going on?

I looked at the knight in the blue helmet, who introduced himself as Jack, sitting in the only chair in the room. He had a complex expression mixed with anxiety and relief. Jack emphasized that it was an important matter, so I sent the innkeeper away and had Johnson guard the door. I told him to prevent anyone from approaching, as the soundproofing didn’t seem very good.

“You know how rude this situation is, right?”

“That is…”

“I haven’t allowed you to answer yet.”

This isn’t my style, but I felt like I needed to be firm this time. Moderate pressure and tension are good friends for getting people to tell the truth. Also, I’m a bit annoyed that I had to come all the way up here.

“Making a noble take the trouble to come here, and speaking first without being asked.”

Originally, it’s not my style to control subordinates by paying attention to every little thing like this.

“If that ‘important information’ you’re talking about doesn’t meet my standards, you’ll have to pay the price for your rudeness. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

“Speak.”

His answer is loud. He must be that confident. And the answer that followed exceeded my expectations.

“It’s a rebellion.”

The expression ‘timely’ is really fitting for this situation. Just when I needed evidence to stop Baron Enicson’s rebellion, a witness appeared in a timely manner. Originally, I was going to save his life and use him in a helpful way, but having this high-level information was an unexpected gain.

“Can you take responsibility for your words?”

“Yes! I swear to God that there is not a single lie in what I have said!”

“What are the descriptions of the insurrectionists? Do you know who they are?”

“I can’t say for sure because I only heard their voices from outside the room. However, it’s clear that the content was related to a rebellion. I also remember their voices.”

“If you didn’t see them, it’s useless… No. I have someone in mind.”

The evidence is uncertain? I can make it certain.

“From now on, you overheard Baron Enicson plotting a rebellion.”

“Yes? Who is that…”

“Come on, is it possible not to know Baron Enicson. Anyway, know it that way, and when you meet the Lord later, you can say that you confirmed Baron Enicson’s rebellion plot, as I said.”

“Wouldn’t that be perjury in front of the Lord?”

“Perjury, anyone would think I’m making you commit perjury. This isn’t perjury. It’s just a reasonable inference based on the information I obtained separately and your testimony.”

“Inference, it’s an inference.”

“That’s right, Jack. While we’re at it, you can also check who’s staying in the next room. If what you said is true, a murder also happened, so we should check the crime scene and call the innkeeper.”

I had Johnson call the innkeeper again. The innkeeper was reluctant to open the room door and tell me who the guest was, but he had no choice but to listen when I kept asking. After having Johnson record it, I opened the door and went into the next room. There was a faint smell of blood, so I opened the closet and found a corpse of someone I didn’t know.

“I-I’ll call the guards right away!”

The innkeeper screamed and ran outside. With this circumstantial evidence, I thought I could persuade Monica.

“Your assumptions are excessive.”

Monica dismissed my story in a word.

“You can’t impose such a heavy charge as treason based on such circumstantial evidence, Sir Edward. I’m already in a situation where I need to secure the support of my vassals, so what will happen to my position if I dismiss a Baron’s Family with such crude evidence?”

“A murder occurred, and there’s even a witness who says it was due to silencing. I think this is enough to at least suspect, even if it’s not solid evidence.”

“Well, I don’t feel that way at all.”

She’s very logical today. Monica, who constantly suspects and uproots anything that could be a threat to her, was suddenly giving logical reasons and completely denying my suspicions.

“Of course, the murder is a very important matter. That’s right.”

Monica, who was speaking while looking at me, turned her cold gaze to Jack, who was standing next to me as a witness.

“But you, can you be sure that the people you overheard were from the Enicson Baron Family?”

“Yes! That’s right!”

“But you clearly said you didn’t see their faces. Is a wandering knight who hasn’t been in our territory for long claiming to be able to distinguish people from a noble family just by their voices?”

“Th-That is…”

“Think carefully. Sir Edward, who is standing next to you, is a noble, so it’s okay, but you may have to take all the responsibility if you make a mistake. The Enicson Baron Family can charge you with insulting a noble, and you’ll have nothing to say.”

“…Now that I think about it again, I’m not sure I can say for sure…”

He’s being swayed so easily by Monica’s wordplay. I brought him as a witness in a hurry to use him right away, but it seems like it was not a good choice.

“See, Sir Edward. He changes his words as easily as flipping his hand with such simple persuasion and pressure. You’re going to attack a titled noble based on trusting such a person?”

At Monica’s gesture, Jack went outside. When only the two of us were left, Monica’s words became shorter.

“Do you have some kind of grudge against Baron Enicson?”

“I’m not doing this out of personal feelings.”

There’s not much time left. As I remember, it didn’t even take a week from the tournament to the rebellion. Finding new evidence now was too remote. I need to do something helpful to have a say. Ah, I had this.

“It’s certain that Baron Enicson will start a rebellion. At least we should keep him in check so that he can’t act recklessly.”

“I can’t do that without any justification, can I?”

“Here, the name of the person who stayed in the room where the murder occurred is written on this paper.”

I hand over the paper that Johnson had written on.

“He must be someone related to Baron Enicson. He’s also the most likely suspect, and even if he’s not, we can tie him down if we demand that he come out as a witness.”

Monica looks at me with her usual expressionless face.

“Investigation and trial are the Lord’s authority. Interfering with such things one by one is an act of overreach.”

“As a knight of the Yulstein Family…”

“If you’re a knight, just follow the Lord’s words. Don’t try to argue. It’s the same even if we get married. Don’t try to meddle presumptuously.”

Cold words pour out. I feel once again, anew, that she is Monica.

“It means don’t cross the line.”