Chapter 10: The Hanged Woman (Part 5)
The morning after we “executed” the non-existent Yuo Neville and safely completed our mission.
As I was being treated to a lavish breakfast, brimming with game meat, at a private house in the settlement, Cavalry Second Lieutenant Makaran arrived.
“Good morning, Lieutenant Fonkt-dono.”
He wasn’t accompanied by his subordinates; he was alone. It’s hard to imagine a platoon leader acting solo, so he probably had them waiting outside the settlement.
Second Lieutenant Krimine, ever considerate, smoothly excused herself. I gave a light nod, showing my gratitude for her thoughtfulness.
Then I smiled at Second Lieutenant Makaran.
“Is there something I can help you with, Second Lieutenant Makaran?”
“It’s about yesterday. I have a slight concern. If you have time, would you hear me out?”
“Of course. It might be difficult to talk here, so let’s take a walk in the nearby woods.”
Side by side, Makaran and I began to walk through the woods near the settlement.
“So, what is it that’s troubling you?”
“About that… By the way, what happened to that woman who was hanged?”
“We prepared an autopsy report and buried the body.”
“I see.”
Second Lieutenant Makaran fell silent.
After walking a few steps, he said, “Was this really for the best?”
“There’s no good or bad about it. It’s an imperial edict.”
I replied calmly. Of course, that was a lie, but revealing the truth was too dangerous.
However, Second Lieutenant Makaran still seemed unconvinced.
“Because of this incident, the lords and people of the Kavalaf Region will have likely strengthened their resentment towards the Imperial House. Considering the overall benefit to the Empire, I feel it wasn’t good.”
“We are soldiers. We swear loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor, and it is our duty to faithfully execute his orders. Personal judgments should only be voiced when requested.”
I haven’t sworn any loyalty at all, and I do things my own way, but I at least maintain appearances. It’s an obligation worth my salary.
At that, Second Lieutenant Makaran looked at me with a pained expression.
“As a nobleman, I frankly dislike commoners. They are lazy, don’t uphold order, selfish, and cunning.”
Commoners think the same way about nobles, you know.
But I kept that to myself.
“However, executing a young woman who merely made a direct appeal to her lord, no matter how you look at it, I think it’s going too far. She didn’t kill or steal anything, did she?”
“That’s right. The reason for her execution was solely rebellion against the Imperial House.”
The cases our battalion handles are mostly like this.
Since I remained unfazed, Second Lieutenant Makaran glared at me.
“Lieutenant-dono, you’re also from a commoner background, yet you don’t feel anything?”
From a commoner’s perspective, we’re not “the same,” but from a noble’s point of view, peasants from any region are probably equally “the same commoners.” This young master wouldn’t understand.
Seeing Second Lieutenant Makaran’s earnest expression, I decided to tread on slightly dangerous ground.
“Second Lieutenant Makaran. As a noble, to what do you swear your loyalty?”
“Eh? T-to His Majesty the Emperor, of course…”
“That’s a lie. Your harboring doubts about an imperial edict is because something different shines within your heart. What is it?”
I turned to face Makaran and swiftly approached him. Makaran retreated reflexively.
I moved even closer, cornering him against the trunk of a large tree.
“Answer me, Makaran. To what do you truly swear your loyalty? If you want to draw the truth from me, you must offer your own truth.”
Makaran’s eyes darted about in panic, but after much agonizing, he finally answered.
“I… I swear loyalty to the noble spirit of a knight! I do not wield a sword that would kill an unarmed woman!”
“Well said.”
I clapped Makaran on the shoulder, and then, while I was at it, I ruffled his blond hair.
“Then swear on your noble spirit as a knight. That you will not speak of what you are about to hear to anyone.”
“What do you mean? Lieutenant-dono, who exactly are you…?”
“Will you swear, or not?”
Makaran agonized with a boyish expression, but still, he answered.
“I swear. I swear it. Upon my sword, I will not reveal the secret.”
“Thank you, Makaran. Then I shall tell you.”
After making sure no one was around, I whispered in his ear.
“The person known as ‘Yuo Neville’ never existed from the start. Of course, no one was executed. Yesterday’s event was a sham.”
“Whaaat?!”
His voice is loud.
I brought my index finger to Makaran’s lips, silencing him for the time being.
“That woman is a loyal collaborator. At that time, we made it look like a hanging by suspending ropes from her shoulders and waist, not her neck. Of course, she’s alive, but since she was exposed in such a state, her identity cannot be revealed.”
Sorry, Second Lieutenant Krimine. I’ll absolutely never reveal this part of the secret.
Second Lieutenant Makaran’s face had turned deathly pale.
Well, of course. We defied an imperial edict and faked an execution. If it were exposed, I’d be the one executed.
“Y-you… you’re lying, right?! Why would you do something like that…?”
“It’s impossible to execute someone who doesn’t exist in the first place. But then the imperial edict would never be fulfilled. If things continued as they were, someone would inevitably be punished. So I balanced the books.”
I replied thus, and released Makaran.
“Now, what will you do with this information? Report it to your cavalry company commander, perhaps?”
“Wait a minute, my head can’t keep up. Um, if I reported it, what would happen…?”
I informed Makaran, who had beads of sweat on his forehead.
“Lord Humazov and I would undoubtedly be executed. Our entire houses might be executed as well due to collective responsibility. Oh, right, our Battalion Commander would also be in danger. And of course, the officers who were present there would also be interrogated. On suspicion of collusion.”
“That’s plausible…”
Makaran nodded, but then voiced a question.
“Then why did you leak such a critical secret to me? There’s nothing to gain from it, is there?”
“Oh, is that all?”
I gave a wry smile.
“Because you swore loyalty not to the Emperor, but to your own justice. As a soldier, you’re a failure. Meaning?”
“Meaning?”
“You’re the same as me.”
With a dumbfounded expression, Makaran stared blankly at me. He’s quite an interesting fellow.
I turned my back to him and gave a wave of my hand.
“I’ve taken a liking to you. I hope we meet again somewhere, Makaran.”
＊ ＊
And now, I’m being persistently nagged by Second Lieutenant Krimine.
“I can’t believe it. Leaking classified information to an outsider.”
“My bad.”
“What will you do if something happens because of this?”
“My bad.”
I apologized for the time being, but of course, I wouldn’t do something like that without any thought.
“Don’t worry, Second Lieutenant. Even if he accuses me, no evidence will surface. The grave of ‘Yuo Neville’ properly exists, and a body is buried beneath it.”
Though it’s probably the body of an unidentified person who collapsed and died on the road.
In an era with much illness and murder, many people become corpses while traveling as peddlers or on pilgrimages. Unlike modern times, corpses are a familiar presence.
Within the entire Humazov territory, a suitable corpse could likely be found without much waiting.
What’s important is the “fact” that the execution was carried out and that many officers witnessed it.
“The residents of this settlement are composed of former servants of the Humazov family and their descendants. Because it’s a settlement with special treatment, exempt from land tax, they will protect secrets for the Humazov family with all their might.”
Unlike others, this is a settlement loyal to the lord. When peasants make unreasonable demands in a “Bride Dispute,” they apparently crush them with a “Bride Dispute” making completely opposite demands. Scary.
“The officers from the Second Division who witnessed the execution also wouldn’t say anything that would put themselves in a bad position. They will definitely answer, ‘It didn’t look like a sham.'”
“So if no evidence comes out, the accusation will be fruitless? You’re scary, Lieutenant-dono.”
Scary, right?
I chuckled inwardly like a villain, but then Second Lieutenant Krimine said something like this.
“By the way, Lieutenant-dono, are you the type who’s okay with guys as long as they’re blond?”
Huh?
“What… do you mean by that, Second Lieutenant Krimine?”
“Because just now, you were ruffling that cavalry second lieutenant’s head, weren’t you? You like blonds, right?”
Why would it mean that? That was male bonding!
“No, that’s not…”
“The Battalion Commander-dono is also blond, so I see, that’s what it was.”
To Second Lieutenant Krimine, who was jumping to her own conclusions, I hurriedly tried to explain.
“Stop with the weird interpretations. I don’t choose people based on their hair color.”
If I had to say, for anime characters, I like ones with blue or green hair.
But thinking about it carefully, they probably use those colors because black hair would make the screen look too heavy.
Does that mean I like black hair?
The moment I thought that, it slipped out of my mouth.
“But if I were allowed to choose, I might like women with black hair.”
“Eh?!”
Second Lieutenant Krimine stopped in her tracks. She’s trembling slightly. Like a washing machine during its spin cycle?
“L-Lieu… Lieutenant-dono… could that possibly mean…?!”
“No, it’s a misunderstanding. Don’t look at me like that.”
Because of this exchange, our departure for the return journey was considerably delayed.