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One of the knights of the Viscount Lagart, who was in a serious condition, has passed away.
The other one is also in a precarious condition, and it is said that he will not accompany the Viscount’s party, but continue his treatment in Waghkarch.
The body of the knight who drew his last breath will be taken with the other three who died and cremated near the residence of the Duke of Letburnes.
They will be burned, reduced to bones, crushed further, and returned to Lagart viscounty along with their belongings.
The reason for this is to prevent them from being revived as undead.
Every deceased knight lost his life in the course of fulfilling his role as a knight.
It is a final gesture to take care of the knights so that they do not fall into the path of evil.
The residence of Duke Letburnes is built in the center of a large garden.
The neatly trimmed plantings, arranged in a geometric pattern, together with the water moat, created a harmonious landscape.
Since it is a lord’s mansion, although there are guards present, it does not give the impression of being as stuffy as Count Grobrus’ mansion.
“It’s a beautiful mansion.” (Nyango)
“This is not just a beautiful mansion.” (Novak)
“Really?” (Nyango)
“Oh, if you can’t tell the difference, Nyango is still a long way off.” (Novak)
The knight of Duke Letburnes has come to support us, and I’m returning to the coachman’s seat from the top of the carriage.
“At first glance, the shrubbery here is just a shrubbery, but apparently there is a sturdy iron fence hidden inside. The placement of the shrubbery, the moat, the walkways, the pavilion… Everything has been calculated and reinforced. Apparently, it’s made to make it easy and difficult to attack.” (Novak)
Indeed, if you look closely, you can see what looks like a black fence among the plants.
It seems to have sharp thorns on it, and if you try to climb over them, you will be in a lot of pain.
If we proceeded along the pathway avoiding the plantings and moat, we would be a target for the pavilions scattered here and there.
A talented predator doesn’t hide its claws, but it hides a solid defense in a magnificent garden.
At first glance, the mansion looks very ordinary, but it seems that they are built with the same idea in mind.
For example, the eaves above the windows are said to be designed in such a way that if the support is broken and the bolt is dropped, the window will be blocked, instantly transforming the mansion into a fortress.
“Frederick, are you okay?” (Ahrens)
“Yes, I am safe, Ahrens. But I lost four of our knights. I didn’t expect such an attack.” (Frederick)
Ahrens, the head of the Letburnes family, who showed up to greet the guests, was apparently a close friend of Viscount Lagart.
He was a lionkin around the same age as Viscount Lagart and had the air of a man of royal blood.
“Could you please tell me the details? It seems that the Anti-noble Faction is rapidly turning into a mob. If we don’t alert the other nobles, the situation could shake up the country.” (Ahrens)
“Fortunately, many of the attackers were captured alive. I will bring them to the knights in the Royal Capital for interrogation.” (Frederick)
“Frederick, if you want to cremate the knights, you’ll have to leave the day after tomorrow. In the meantime, could you let my people interrogate them as well?” (Ahrens)
“That’s fine, but we still have to get him to the Royal Capital. Don’t be too rough with them.” (Frederick)
“I know. But that’s up to them…” (Ahrens)
The Viscount was smiling bitterly at Ahrens, who was grinning his smile like a ferocious beast.
The attackers, shackled and roped, were taken to the dungeons of the mansion.
While they were being unloaded from the carriage and made to walk, they were mercilessly beaten with riding whips by the knights.
The knights’ eyes were burning in anger at the murder of their fellow knights.
The black catkin is also taken down from the carriage and whipped and paced like the other attackers.
When he noticed me watching beside the magic carriage, he twisted his face and spat at me.
Since he is alive, we may be able to talk, but he may not want to talk.
He probably thinks quite differently than I do, and the difference in our positions is repulsive to him.
As I looked away from the black catkin, I felt something strange.
“Does that catkin have no tail?” (Novak)
“Yeah…” (Nyango)
Mr. Novak told me, and I noticed that the black catkin had no tail.
Either it was short to begin with, or… When I’m going to have my talk tonight, but maybe I shouldn’t mention the subject.
Before dinner, I was summoned by Viscount Lagart to meet Duke Letburnes.
I guess because he needs an explanation from me about how the ambush went down.
“I’m Nyango, a B-rank adventurer from Ibouro.” (Nyango)
“B-rank…?” (Ahrens)
When I introduced myself, both the duke and the bearkin knight in attendance looked doubtful, but the viscount smiled mischievously.
“Nyango’s rank is not false, and I can assure you that he is a man of ability worthy of his B-rank.” (Frederick)
“Oh, is that so…” (Ahrens)
He is acquainted with the viscount, so he is not a bad person, but I sense a similar atmosphere to Mr. Zeol and the guild master Cordobas.
When I told him the whole story of the attack, he naturally asked me to demonstrate my void magic.
I can’t possibly activate the magic gun’s magic circle indoors, so I’ll create a [Shield] instead.
“Huh, the air is definitely solid… I see, it seems to be strong too…” (Ahrens)
The duke touched the shield I had made as a sample, tapped it lightly with his fist, and then nodded to the bearkin knight.
The knight, when signaled, checked the position of the shield with his hand, quickly moved away and drew his sword from his waist.
Gagin!
The bearkin knight’s eyes widened as his attack was bounced back from a sharp step that was similar to a quick slash.
“This level…” (Ahrens)
The Viscount, who had his arms folded, puffed out his chest with pride as the duke let out a cry of surprise.
Now that the strength of the Shield has been proven, it seems that my story up until that point has gained credibility.
After dinner, I was allowed to interview the black catkin who had carried out the attack, but with the added condition that the duke’s knight would be present.
Apparently, it is the duke’s family’s rule to have more than one person in charge of an interrogation in order to prevent any escape, but in reality, this was probably a measure to prevent me from being brainwashed.
The interview took place in the duke’s interrogation room.
The floor and walls were made of solid masonry, with iron doors at the entrances and exits, and iron bars on the small windows for light.
The room was about 10 tatami mats in size, and a sturdy-looking wooden chair was placed in the center, on which the black cat man, bound behind his back, was seated.
The size of the chair is large enough for even a large race individual, so at a glance, it appears as if a stuffed cat is placed there.
His clothes had been removed, and he was dressed in a pair of shorts, which was somewhat interesting.
However, as soon as we entered the room, the black catkin instantly turned his fangs up and distorted his face.
“What brought you here, you aristocrat’s lap cat!” (Catkin)
“I’m Nyango, a B-rank adventurer from Ibouro. What’s your name?” (Nyango)
“No, I don’t have a name to give you.” (Catkin)
“Are you so ashamed of your own actions that you can’t say your name?” (Nyango)
“What, are you telling me that our actions are wrong?” (Catkin)
“Is that why you can’t give your name?” (Nyango)
“Well… it’s Caballero.” (Catkin => Caballero)
Caballero was the same age as my older brother in Atsuka.
“Caballero, why did you try to kill Viscount Lagart?” (Nyango)
“Of course, because the poor are suffering because of the nobles!” (Caballero)
“Do you really think that when the nobles are gone, the poor will also be gone?” (Nyango)
“Of course not. If they don’t have to pay annual taxes, they will be much better off than they are now. The poor would not have to starve, they would not have to be cheated in the streets, and they would not have to be comforted! And you’re interfering with that, you aristocrat’s lap cat!” (Caballero)
I looked at Caballero, spitting and screaming, and felt more pity than hatred.
I can only imagine, but he must have followed the same… or even more miserable path as my brother Fawkes.
“Killing all the nobles won’t make the world a better place.” (Nyango)
“Hmpf, the nobles manipulate you, they’re probably paying you for your money and your food anyway.” (Caballero)
“That’s right, I’ve received requests through the guilds for being an escort.” (Nyango)
“Look, you paid pet cat.” (Caballero)
“Don’t you have to be paid for the work you do? I’m an adventurer, not a retainer of the viscount, so I’ve received requests from ranchers to subjugate monsters, and I’ve even caught rats in the grain storehouse.” (Nyango)
“Well, you’re still on the side of the nobles, aren’t you?” (Caballero)
“It’s a job I accepted.” (Nyango)
“Ah, yes, all the talented people look down on us like that. We’re doing our jobs, and we deserve to be paid… In this world, there’s no respect for talent or power. There are also a lot of people who are not fortunate enough to have a good place to work. You use these people as a stepping stone, do jobs that make easy money, and think that you are great, that you are amazing, that you are the chosen one. You probably even hate me!” (Caballero)
The open hostility from Caballero almost made me flinch for a moment, but if I let myself be overwhelmed at this point, I would be denying my own efforts up to this point.
“That’s right. I think it’s pretty amazing.” (Nyango)
“Heh, that’s why the lucky ones are…” (Caballero)
“Is the third son of a catkin tenant farmer in a rural village, given a void attribute blessed?” (Nyango)
“Huh…?” (Caballero)
“Well, it’s true that this world isn’t kind to us catkins. Still, depending on how we do things, we can live a normal life, and if we kill the nobles, the poor people will be saved… It’s so logical that it should work. But the world isn’t that simple.” (Nyango)
“You lucky…” (Caballero)
“What? What did you say I was blessed with? I’m not the smartest guy in the world either, but I don’t think you can get out of misery just by lamenting your own misery and dragging others down with you. If you kill the aristocracy, they will just be replaced by the rich below them. Won’t the poor just stay poor?” (Nyango)
The first meeting with Caballero ended with parallel lines of argument between the two sides.
T/N: I can sympathize with Caballero’s situation. He must have lived a pitiful and miserable life. Especially where he lived, ruled by that greedy piggy noble. However, I learned that when you are inside a hole, you cannot see the surface and you can only curse at the sky. You cannot live staying at that hole, so crawl out no matter how long it takes, and go to a place where you can find rope to pull your loved ones out of their holes.
So, don’t let others oppress you. If you cannot fight back, runaway and help others runaway. Without people they can prey on, the corpulent, slothful, greedy leeches will die from hunger. Die poli-*cough, cough*-parasites! Die! Nyahahaha!!!
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