Chapter 208: Fire Drips, Pantiles Get Wet with Dewdrops 2
*
Count Helcums, Fralle Dragger, tilted her head at the report from her retainer.
She was in the middle of averting her eyes from a mountain of problems while drinking her post-lunch Tea, so honestly, she wanted to yell at him not to interrupt, but she held back firmly.
It was because her retainer’s face showed such pathetic confusion.
Fralle reached for her hair, which was showing more white strands, only to remember it was tied up since she was currently working.
Reaching for her hair when confused was a habit of hers she’d tried to break since long ago, but couldn’t.
Suppressing the sigh that threatened to escape instead, Fralle spoke.
“So, you’re saying most of Loakum’s criminal organizations were completely wiped out in less than a day?”
“Not quite all, Your Excellency. Rather, all of the upper echelons.”
Doesn’t that effectively mean all of them? Fralle muttered inwardly, realizing she was more bewildered than she thought, given that she had just parroted the report back as a question.
What happened?
The first thing that came to mind was: Did Margrave Makikomarkrow’s Knights do something unnecessary?
She had reluctantly requested the dispatch of Knights from Margrave Makikomarkrow out of necessity, but perhaps that had been a mistake.
Fralle had intentionally made the town of Loakum a place where criminals could operate easily.
Anyone who governed would understand, whether they liked it or not.
No matter what you do, some people will fall through the cracks.
If they were nobles, there were plenty of ways to handle them – keep them on a short leash, assign them as mere figureheads.
But it wasn’t so simple with commoners.
Born as residents of a town protected by a Barrier, these were the types who still fell behind; they didn’t even have the resolve to become adventurers.
Inevitably, they ended up either dying in a ditch or becoming criminals, but the problem was that even among such dropouts, there were clever ones.
That made them extremely troublesome for a ruler.
Therefore, it was better to gather them in one place, making them somewhat easier to monitor and, if necessary, easier to “cull.”
For that reason, the town of Loakum within the Helcums Territory was governed in a way that attracted such criminals.
Some corruption and decay would occur, but that could be dealt with according to the logic of the nobility (us).
That was how Fralle had thought.
And it had been working well.
It was unpleasant to have criminals thriving right under her nose in her own capital, but she could tolerate that much.
The upper echelons of her own Knights Order knew this policy, so they generally wouldn’t touch the top organizations.
If the criminals got too carried away, that might be different, but even then, they would surely consult her first.
“I don’t understand. Whose work could this be?”
Whose work could it really be? Fralle pondered.
Did the Knights assigned to patrol the town go rogue?
No, impossible. Their numbers were minimal due to the Bandit Brigade incident, and they simply didn’t have the strength to crush everything in a single day.
Infighting among the criminals?
That’s wrong too. There was no victor, was there?
Then, did Margrave Makikomarkrow’s Knights really do it after all?
If it came down to who was capable, they were the most suspicious.
But would Knights from another territory crush another territory’s criminal organizations? And without permission?
…No, that man’s Knights might just do it.
Fralle pictured the face of Margrave Makikomarkrow, Comsas.
Deep strategist incarnate, Guardian of the Frontier, Steadfast Shield of the Orclaugh Kingdom.
Countless words praised that man.
Comsas Dortwil was famous for his profound foresight, but he had also been an adventurer in his youth and was known for his martial prowess.
Rumor had it that when a Blackened Dragon appeared in his territory, he declared he himself would lead the charge. That sounded just like him.
His rule was renowned for being just and fair; he cared for his people and was said to be harsh towards criminals who disturbed their peace.
There was no doubt his subordinates were also merciless towards criminals.
He’s the complete opposite kind of noble from me, Fralle thought.
It was terrifying to think that if things had gone slightly differently, he could have become her husband.
That possibility vanished when Fralle had to succeed as Count Helcums after her older brother died, but…
Fralle recalled it and felt irritated.
Even though she was in the position of having to ask him to break off the engagement, he was the one who “requested” the annulment.
It had been convenient for her, but feeling as if she had been rejected was humiliating.
From his perspective, he probably thought he was doing her a favor, creating a debt, but since that debt was never called upon, it just felt condescending and infuriating.
What’s more, after calling off the marriage with her, a daughter of a Marquis House, the person he ended up marrying was the daughter of a mere viscount house, which was even more infuriating.
“Um…”
Fralle looked up from her thoughts at her retainer’s anxious voice.
Thinking about that man had put her in a foul mood.
It was fine for her subordinates to fear her, but being feared unnecessarily was also troublesome.
Fralle prompted her retainer to continue with just her gaze.
“According to the ones who were captured…”
For some reason, the retainer hesitated.
“They said… they were attacked by the Masked Husband Lover.”
“Huh?”
Is this guy trying to tell a joke?
Should I execute him? Should I really execute him?
Meeting Fralle’s gaze, the retainer broke out in a cold sweat and raised his voice in a near shriek.
“They said their hideouts were attacked by a man calling himself the Masked Husband Lover!”
In her retainer’s voice, she saw fear, but also the loyalty that compelled him to speak despite it.
This wasn’t a joke.
Fralle felt a headache coming on.
It seemed there was some ridiculous person running around her capital city.
“This ‘Masked Husband Lover’… how many people are in his group?”
She didn’t know the reason, but if only the upper echelons were targeted, there had to be some intent behind it.
It likely wasn’t just some idiots overflowing with a sense of justice.
“Well… it was just one person, Your Excellency.”
Fralle took a deep breath, feeling the urge to execute her retainer on the spot.
“What did you say?”
“They say the Masked man was alone.”
Fralle averted her gaze from her retainer and looked out the office window.
Her brow furrowed intensely.
Eh? What is that?
Author’s Note
Thank you always for the comments, likes, stars, etc.
They are the source of the author’s motivation.
I defeated the death march!
I missed the Margrave so much, I couldn’t stand it!