Chapter 12
** Slave Knight**
Cliff’s target this time had been Beluman’s assets.
But as expected, things didn’t go entirely as he had hoped.
*‘Did he hide his wealth somewhere else?’*
He had managed to collect gold and silver coins.
But there wasn’t much. In the first place, such currency had little value in the Elimeas territory.
A territory cut off from the outside.
As such, bartering was more common than transactions using currency. Beluman’s wealth, too, was not in the goods he possessed but in the grain he held.
However, he didn’t have that much grain on hand.
*‘He must have hidden it.’*
Still, he was able to secure other things.
“……Are these the loan contracts he received from the territory’s people?”
The infamous loan contracts that had even turned people into slaves.
The more he examined them, the more outrageous they were.
*‘This is truly a world where human life is cheap.’*
People had sold themselves or their children for even lower prices than he had expected.
In the midst of this, it was surprising that a woman’s price was lower than a man’s. He had thought women, especially young ones capable of bearing children, would be more expensive.
“Ah, that’s when they’re being sold.”
“When they’re being sold?”
“Well… it’s because women require more investment. Their physical strength is weaker, so sometimes they die during long journeys.”
In other words, buy low, sell high.
Aren was the one explaining this.
Cliff took his eyes off the loan contract he was holding and looked at him.
“Beluman’s assets are thinner than I thought. Do you think he might have hidden any?”
“As far as this humble one knows, no.”
“……Is that so?”
Cliff nodded at those words.
He then turned his body.
“As I said, all the assets of the traitor Beluman are mine. If anything else is discovered, report it to me without omission and hand it over.”
“I shall do so.”
Aren answered as if it were only natural.
Cliff, as if believing that, left the place.
To be precise, he didn’t fully believe it.
“……Keep a close watch on him. There’s a high chance he’ll move somewhere.”
Aren had been Beluman’s guard.
Since he had always been by Beluman’s side, Cliff thought he might even lead them to Beluman’s secret storehouse.
He handed the loan contracts he had to Nigel.
“How shall we handle these?”
“It’s true that they owe debts. Release those who repay the principal. Those who cannot, take as slaves as agreed. They will become the property of our Elimeas family.”
“I will follow the Acting Lord’s orders.”
He deducted the extortionate interest.
Still, there might be those who couldn’t pay.
—
* * *
**<Lord’s Authority>**
**Content:** Now that you have proven yourself, the people trust and expect much from you. However, a ruler must make his people believe that he will protect them.
For now, the territory has only a shabby military force.
Bandits do not fear the territory’s guards, and the people do not trust them.
Change their perception and raise an army to display your lordly authority.
**Conditions:**
– Train 50 private soldiers
– Eliminate the criminal organization
**Rewards:**
– Lord experience: 50
– Territory experience: 100
Still visible when he closed his eyes.
*‘It means I haven’t fulfilled the quest conditions yet.’*
Cliff also considered that he hadn’t yet met the conditions. Still, the atmosphere of the territory had changed greatly.
Beluman, who had perhaps been an even greater object of fear in the territory.
He was dead and beheaded.
It was only for a day, but that was enough. Now everyone in the territory knew who the true master was.
Even Aren, who had newly taken control of Beluman’s organization, was busy groveling before Cliff.
“It’s finally becoming a real territory.”
“The newly arrived Acting Lord is truly an impressive person.”
“Even the soldiers’ eyes have changed.”
As planned, Cliff selected 50 of his own soldiers.
He then granted them uniforms and cloaks. The mere sight of them patrolling the territory made them objects of envy among the people.
It was clearly different from the earlier looks of disbelief.
Because he made them look not like simple soldiers, but rather like knights, just from their attire.
*‘Still, they look splendid at least in appearance.’*
They were that competitive, and their mere presence patrolling the territory created a strong crime deterrent.
Especially right after Beluman’s death.
And one of their assigned tasks.
“How is Aren?”
“So far, no suspicious signs. Just in case, we’ve observed not only Aren but also the lieutenants meeting with him, but there’s been nothing suspicious.”
“Hmm. Is that so?”
Perhaps he had been too sensitive.
*‘No. The fact that the quest isn’t completed yet… there must be a good reason.’*
Apart from Beluman’s gang, there was no other presumed criminal organization.
But several days had passed.
If they hadn’t found anything suspicious despite watching him all that time, it was a waste to use any more manpower.
“Good work. You no longer need to watch him.”
“Yes, Acting Lord.”
Cliff ordered the surveillance on Aren to stop.
Two days after Cliff stopped the surveillance.
*‘Damn. He really is a suspicious man.’*
Aren, who had been looking out the window, frowned.
He had constantly felt eyes watching him. He hid it somewhat, but soldiers were always nearby.
He had changed his clothes and done his best, but he was the head of the territory’s only organization. Did they think he wouldn’t recognize the soldiers’ faces?
“But it’s fine now.”
He relaxed.
The observing soldiers had all disappeared.
After behaving quietly for another day, he rose.
But having confirmed that the surveillance was completely gone, there was no need to delay further. He began to move together with his trusted men beside him.
“Whew. It’s been a while since I took this path.”
“Quiet. Even if the watchers are gone, it won’t do us any good if we run into the night patrols.”
“Heh heh. Don’t worry. We’ve already memorized the patrol routes of the territory’s guards.”
That was the first thing they had done while groveling before the lord.
Checking the soldiers’ patrol routes.
So they could slip out of the village unnoticed, like now. Not having a fence around the village was a fortunate thing in this situation.
*‘Then let’s move.’*
Aren began to move quickly.
A mountain lodge located about two hours northwest of the village, reached by climbing a mountain.
This was his destination.
“Phew.”
Aren, with a tense face, let out a sigh.
People thought Beluman’s blade was his hired swords from outside.
And that wasn’t entirely wrong.
*‘But the real one is different.’*
Beluman had valued his wealth more than his own life.
Perhaps that was why he had built this lodge in a place where Shadow Wolves might appear at any time. And he had hired a man to guard it.
Woosh.
Woosh.
As they got closer, the sound of something cutting through the air was heard.
And gradually, they could see.
A man, shirtless, swinging a sword in the clearing in front of the lodge.
A long-haired man with a body covered in scars and muscles. He must have sensed their presence, yet he focused on swinging his sword.
“I’ve come to tell you that you have a new master.”
Halt.
Only then did the man stop moving.
He turned to look at Aren.
Those grayish eyes held no discernible emotion.
*‘No matter how many times I see those eyes, I can’t get used to them.’*
Eyes like an abyss.
Those eyes were looking at him.
This man was the greatest asset Beluman had possessed. If this man had guarded Beluman instead of the lodge, Beluman might not have died so easily.
Because this man was far stronger than a few hired mercenaries.
“……What happened to the previous master?”
“He was executed for committing treason against the lord.”
Aren did not mention that he himself had killed Beluman.
It wasn’t that Beluman and this man had a good relationship, but he didn’t know.
The man might refuse to obey his master’s killer. Of course, the man’s will no longer mattered in their master-servant relationship.
Because a man branded once with a slave crest could not escape his master.
*‘I’ve already taken his slave contract and dripped my blood on it. From now on, that man is also my slave. And… although I don’t know for sure, that man is probably stronger than the lord.’*
A fact he could know because he had faced both Cliff and him.
Aren was certain the man was stronger than Cliff. He might be weaker than outside knights, but within this territory, no one could defeat this man.
The man raised the corner of his mouth.
“……Is that so. So my master is dead.”
“Didn’t you hear me? Your master is now me…”
“Do you know something?”
The man cut off Aren’s words and suddenly asked a question.
Their eyes met.
And Aren was flustered. Somehow, the man’s eyes were different from before.
“People think that when a new master drips blood on the scroll, the slave contract changes. But that’s not true. If it were that easy, ownership of a branded slave could be taken away too easily.”
“What……?”
Aren’s expression hardened.
The man continued.
“So this is the situation. I’m saying that the contract between me and my previous master, Beluman, hasn’t ended yet. And furthermore…”
The man’s gaze toward Aren changed.
“I’ve never liked you.”
That was the end.
Aren could no longer think. He merely felt a bizarre sensation.
An indescribable feeling.
Because he had never before experienced his upper and lower body separating.
Thwack.
A fountain of blood erupted.
The man was now standing where Aren had been. Catching Aren’s blood on himself, he thought.
“Hmm. It’s been a while since I’ve felt the sensation of cutting someone. More importantly, now that the previous master is dead, what should I do?”
He had suddenly become masterless.
But it was a shame.
Even so, a slave crest once branded cannot be erased arbitrarily.
*‘Personally, just living here forever wouldn’t be so bad…’*
The problem was that there was no food in the mountain.
This lodge had a fair amount of provisions, but eventually they would run out.
Then his gaze fixed on one direction.
*‘That person over there… is that fool’s watcher? Probably someone sent by the lord.’*
The man soon let out a small laugh.
“If my master was executed for treason, then all his assets belong to the lord. It seems my new master will be the lord of this place.”
Those who had the qualifications of a knight but became slaves.
Or those who became slaves but learned the skills of a knight.
They were called Slave Knights.
The man, Theobald, was also a Slave Knight.
