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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Heading to the Capital (3)
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5.
City Hall, located in the central part of the Tebe Autonomous Dominion.
With the tax audit period underway, meetings were being held day after day.
"The National Tax Service is really coming for us."
"Isn't that because they found evidence of you laundering money?"
"Were we the only ones? What about you!"
The shouts echoing through the conference room perfectly captured the atmosphere.
The representatives of the merchant guilds, the dominant powers in the Tebe Autonomous Dominion.
They had cast aside all pretense of decorum, pointing fingers and raising their voices at one another.
"Hah."
Grine, the 7th mayor of the Tebe Autonomous Dominion, let out a deep sigh as he watched them argue.
It had been a year since he was elected mayor.
He had seen this spectacle countless times, but he could never get used to it.
To think that these were the important figures leading this massive dominion was simply pathetic.
"Everyone, please be quiet…"
"Mr. Mayor, you must represent this city and punish these criminals!"
"What? Criminals? You think I don't have cards up my sleeve? Your guild has been supplying weapons to the southern kingdoms…"
"I told you, there are complicated circumstances behind that!"
"Tsk. To be bickering over your own interests in a place where city affairs should be discussed. Utterly undignified. Isn't that right, Mayor? I suggest you have these ruffians removed at once."
The situation was completely out of control.
The council members of noble birth were voicing their displeasure, while those of commoner origin ignored them and continued to fight.
The mayor's authority had vanished long ago.
The Mayor of the Tebe Autonomous Dominion.
In truth, the position was nothing but a gilded piece of trash.
While the mayor was responsible for managing the city, including public safety and disaster prevention, all major decisions related to finances and power were made by the council members put forth by the various factions residing in the city.
In short, he was just a figurehead.
'…A worthless position with immense responsibility but no real power. What was I thinking, taking this job!'
Just a few years ago, Grine had served as a minister in the Empire's Ministry of Finance.
When he had safely completed his two-year term and stepped down, people from the Tebe Council had come to him.
-Minister Grine? We've come to offer you the position of Mayor of Tebe.
Grine had accepted the offer.
He had desperately wanted to rest, but the sum they presented was too large to refuse.
'Back then, I had no idea it would be this bad…'
Tebe.
The second most developed city in the Empire after the capital, and the one that paid the most taxes.
A city where opportunity was available to all, regardless of status.
On the surface, it was an incredibly attractive city.
But the true face of the city, which he discovered after taking office, was…
"Tsk. This is why commoners are a problem."
"What did you just say? Ah, I see. You must feel inferior since our guild always beats you in the mana stone bids."
"...How dare you, commoner scum!"
It was nothing short of a dysfunctional mess.
Grine fumbled with the cigarettes in his pocket and shook his head.
'…Let it all go to hell.'
His term had two years left anyway.
When he first arrived, he'd had ambitions of properly developing the city, but not anymore.
He would just serve out his term, use the money to build a villa in a resort town in the south, and live out a comfortable retirement.
Just as Grine was losing himself in this happy fantasy, trying his best to ignore the chaos…
*CRASH.*
Someone violently threw open the conference room door and stormed inside. The council members paused their fighting and turned to look at the entrance.
A man stood there, his face pale as a sheet.
It was Grine's aide.
"M-Mr. Mayor."
Grine let out another heavy sigh and gestured with his hand.
"…What is it, Deon?"
"Urgent… Urgent news."
The aide quickly approached Grine and delivered the news in a low voice.
After hearing the 'urgent news,' Grine's expression hardened, and he remained silent for a long moment. Then, he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and casually placed one between his lips.
"Heh, bullshit."
"Uh… Mr. Mayor. We're in a meeting, you can't smoke…"
"Deon."
"Yes, Mr. Mayor."
"Shut up and light it for me."
As the aide lit his cigarette, Grine took a deep drag.
The council members' eyes widened at this side of the mayor they had never seen before.
He was a man who always followed the rules.
He had never once smoked indoors, especially not during a meeting. What was this sudden deviation?
'What on earth was that news?'
'What could have happened…?'
Unable to contain his curiosity, one of the council members cautiously asked the mayor.
"Mr. Mayor. Did something happen? Don't tell me it's related to the tax audit…"
Grine flashed a bright smile at the council member's question.
"The tax audit? To hell with it. Listen, Councilman Johnson. The damn tax audit is the least of our worries right now."
"…It's rather troubling for you to suddenly take this tone."
"Whether you're troubled or not is none of my concern."
"…Listen here, Mayor, aren't you being too rude? We are here representing the citizens of this city…"
"Right, the city… This damn city. I never should have come here. *Ssssss*."
Having finished one cigarette, Grine casually tossed it on the floor. He stamped out the ember with his shoe, then pulled out another and placed it in his mouth.
He smirked at the council members, who were about to erupt in displeasure, and spoke in a low voice.
"Five minutes ago, the train that departed from the Leston Duchy heading for the capital exploded. The passenger list included two direct members of the Leston ducal family. The grandsons of Grand Duke Leston, Leo Leston and Karron Leston. The exact extent of the damage has yet to be determined."
"Wh-what are you talking about?"
"What do you think?"
The aide lit Grine's new cigarette, and Grine inhaled the smoke deeply. He then answered in a quiet voice.
"It means we're all dead."
6.
*BEEEEEEP—!*
His ears were ringing, and his vision was blurry.
Karron squeezed his eyes shut and forced them open.
The inside of the train car was a complete wreck. The positions of the chairs and the ceiling were reversed, suggesting the train had overturned.
'Body's fine.'
The train had derailed.
But he wasn't seriously injured, thanks to the defensive magic circle installed in the car, which had activated the moment the train overturned.
"Young Masters. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. What about Leo…"
"…I'm fine, too."
Hans, who had been joking around just moments before, now had a face devoid of any playfulness.
He drew his sword from its sheath and immediately established communication with the next car through a crystal orb.
"Situation report."
A reply came through the orb almost instantly.
-…Total of eleven. One seriously injured, two with minor injuries. The seriously injured is Dale. The rest are ready for combat.
-Th-this is Urhan. We have two dead in our car. Most are unconscious…
Although all cars were equipped with defensive magic circles, the servants had clearly suffered the most damage.
The fact that Urhan, a low-ranking servant, was the one responding indicated just how grave the situation was.
"Hans, have you confirmed our location?"
"We're approximately 10 kilometers west of Tebe's city center. I already sent word to the dominion before you woke up. By now… their forces should be on the move."
"What's their ETA?"
"Twenty minutes."
Moving with injured people was impossible.
Especially when dealing with lunatics who would go so far as to plant explosives on the railway, moving would be a suicide mission.
The railway was considered the Emperor's property.
Which meant…
'Treason.'
The worst of all crimes.
This had to be the work of people with nothing to lose.
*Vmmmmmm.*
Guillotine was still vibrating. The danger had not passed.
"Lord Karron, assailants are approaching. Twenty of them. Their forces include knight-level combatants."
Hans said to Karron in a hushed tone.
"Do you remember what I said before we departed? You two must survive, no matter what. We will buy you time."
"That's impossible."
Karron flatly rejected Hans's proposal.
Although Leo said he was fine, Karron could see that his condition was far from good.
The impact of the explosion had clearly injured his right leg.
He wouldn't be able to walk for long in that state. Especially not with pursuers on their tail.
In the end, there was only one option left.
"We're cornered."
These were people who would attack the Leston Ducal Family and commit treason to do it.
They were charging in with no regard for the consequences from the start, so running was essentially meaningless.
*Shinggg.*
Karron drew Guillotine from its sheath.
"…Karron. Don't you think it would be better if you escaped?"
"Brother, can you still fight?"
"Yeah."
"Then that's settled. Hans. Tell the squad members to remain inside the car and wait."
In a situation where the enemy's strength was unknown, it was best to wait.
Hans's judgment was the same as Karron's.
They held their breath and gripped their swords.
A moment later.
*Rustle.*
They began to hear movement from outside, and soon, a shadow appeared through the broken window.
In that instant, Karron unhesitatingly plunged Guillotine into the wall next to the window.
*SHLIIICK—!*
"Grrrk."
He felt the sensation of the blade slicing through flesh. When Karron pulled Guillotine out, a man in a mask collapsed in front of the window.
"Let's go."
"Yes, Lord Karron. Second squad, disembark!"
At Karron's command, Hans swung his sword, cleaving away an entire section of the car's wall.
The outside scenery was revealed.
A vast, open field.
A railway track damaged by the explosion.
And.
"There are more than I thought."
At a rough estimate, there were at least thirty of them—assailants in black masks.
Karron smirked at the sight of them.
As soon as Sabina left, things had started to get interesting.
"Lord Karron, stay behind me."
Hans and the knights of the second squad formed a protective formation around Karron and Leo.
It was the most basic formation for escorting VIPs.
Their opponents were no mere rabble.
As befitting madmen who would attack a train, each of them appeared to be at least a 3-star knight.
A 3-star knight might be looked down upon at the Azure Fortress, but it was the level where one was formally considered a knight.
"The one at the very back, he's a 6-star."
"Where in the world did these guys come from? Our family has so many enemies, I can't even begin to guess."
"Is this really the time to be wondering about that? You need to stay back."
"Hmm, I don't know. I don't think that's a very good idea."
While Karron and Hans were rapidly exchanging words, the man Hans had identified as a 6-star knight slowly walked forward.
A moment later, the man spoke in a magically altered voice.
"Karron Leston. If you cooperate peacefully, the lives of your knights and servants will be spared."
"Cooperate? Did you hear that, Hans? He wants us to cooperate."
"Drop your weapons and surrender. Our goal is not to kill you."
He had a rough idea of their objective. If their goal had been to kill him, they wouldn't have bothered sending someone to check the situation inside the car. They would have prepared to finish him off from a distance.
'Idiot.'
That man was, without a doubt, a moron.
An assailant who reveals his own objective?
No one but a complete amateur would make such a mistake. This meant he wasn't a professional at this sort of thing.
"Hans, listen carefully to what I'm about to say."
"What is it, Lord Karron?"
"I just realized something very important."
He was clearly about to say something insane.
Why? Because that youngest young master's mind was not normal.
Hans kept his eyes fixed on the enemy and listened intently to Karron.
"They want to capture me alive. And they have to do it within twenty minutes."
"…Isn't that obvious?"
"They've already committed treason; they can't afford to walk away with nothing, right? So, they can't kill me. On the other hand, what about me?"
*VWOOOOOM—!*
Guillotine, now saturated with Karron's mana, began to resonate fiercely. Karron grinned widely and said.
"I'm free to kill them as I please."