Chapter 206
Knock, knock, knock.
“Come in.”
It had been about a week since the hero party had departed. During this time, Raul had been diligently organizing various business endeavors, territory developments, and dealings with the player guilds and associations.
This was crucial to ensure that the deputies could smoothly manage the territory while he was away.
Tap.
Raul signed off on the last document and looked up at the visitor.
“It’s not time for the regular report. Is there any special news?”
Kane, with a curious smile on his face, stood at the desk.
“It’s about the special investigation team from the church that left recently.”
“Oh, them? What happened?”
“It seems they’ve caused quite a major incident.”
“Is that so? Come, let’s sit and talk.”
Raul moved to the sofa, and Kane began to relay the details. Raul showed a keen interest, curious about the impact of the ‘bombs’ he had planted.
A few days ago, a piece of ‘service’ information was delivered to the hero’s party through an informant. It contained information meticulously compiled by Raul.
This information detailed other ‘influential guilds’ and ‘rankers’ aside from the guilds allied with the First Knight Order.
‘Time sure flies.’
Almost half a year had passed since the Tower of Graduation was completed. Many had already surpassed level 50 and dispersed across Connect. Understandably, not all rankers and influential guilds had migrated to the First Territory.
Raul and his executives had filtered them, and many preferred to grow their influence in areas beyond the reach of the First Knight Order.
Among the places where such individuals gathered, Raul had highlighted several ‘specific’ locations in the information he passed.
For instance, within the Leslie Kingdom, one such territory was under the jurisdiction of the ‘Count of Skyler’.
In the Brennan Republic, it was a territory associated with the ‘Delamain Family’. The commonality was their unfavorable stance towards the Ashton household or the First Knight Order.
Moreover, these territories had grasped the value of players (outsiders) earlier than others due to their connections with Raul.
‘Which is why influential guilds settled there.’
It was an ironic twist. By actively utilizing players, Raul had indirectly led hostile territories to recruit players for their own benefit. This, of course, was partially intentional on Raul’s part.
If enemies were to be dealt with, it was more efficient and cleaner to handle them in one go. Among the ‘potentially hostile forces’ Raul pinpointed, the place chosen by the hero’s party was…
“Marquis McNeil will certainly have a tough time.”
The chosen territory was one under Marquis McNeil, who wielded significant power within the Ruben Kingdom. Specifically, it was the territory of Viscount Dennis de McNeil, the external affairs director for the Marquis.
Having suffered heavy losses in various territorial wars mobilized by players from the First Knight Order, the Marquis had since refrained from participating in territorial battles.
Viscount Dennis de McNeil’s strategy was to follow Raul’s example by recruiting ‘outsiders’. However, the ingrained noble perspective that viewed outsiders as mere mercenaries meant that their treatment was not particularly generous.
Still, being one of the major forces within the kingdom, the basic compensation differed significantly from smaller families.
“The guild that has currently settled there…”
“The Japanese Rakuen Guild and the American Drake Guild are the largest in scale.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Both guilds had been the main pillars of the great guild alliance in the previous life. They had snooped around here and there, except for the First Fief, and eventually chose to side with Count Melvin.
‘I’m sorry about this.’
Though Raul thought so inwardly, he was smiling outwardly.
“Anyway, for something to happen within just a week. This is quite something.”
“Aren’t there several impatient people?”
“Regardless, I didn’t expect such a mess.”
The outline of the incident was a bit complex. Mendez Castle, which the Order’s special investigation team had arrived at, was a typical Connect domain castle.
Taxes were nearly 60%, and with the gate incident, the young were conscripted, leaving the elderly, women, and children to farm.
Fortunately, there were many soldiers, so public security was stable, but the hygiene and living standards of the residents barely escaped being the worst.
It was an ordinary castle that could be found anywhere, but the problem was that the place where Kiera’s party had stayed just before was Raul’s Viscounty.
As soon as they entered the castle, they were met with beggars draped in rags hoping for alms, mothers carrying sick children upon hearing that a priest had arrived, and emaciated old people.
It might be a common scene, but how would it appear to the party who had already experienced the comparison with the First Viscounty?
While dealing with them, the day was entirely spent for the Saintess’s party, and the next day, something even bigger happened.
“Saintess, there’s a big problem. I’m worried there might be an epidemic in the slum.”
At Shimar’s report, after circling around the castle, they found corpses of people who had starved or died from illness rotting everywhere without any measures.
“What on earth is this lord doing? Can a castle be left like this?”
Eventually, another day was spent removing the corpses in the slum and doing the bare minimum cleanup. During this time, Viscount Dennis did nothing but neglect them.
Angrily, even Corellius, the investigation team started investigating Mendez Castle. However, nothing suspicious was easily found.
As expected, those who have experience in bad deeds know how to avoid getting caught. Such exploitation was so routine in this territory that there was no violation of national or continental law.
But then a problem arose during the investigation….
‘Well, should we say Viscount Dennis is unlucky or that it’s indeed the hero party’s doing?’
Saintess Kiera, while inspecting the castle, sensed ‘Black Magic’. It wasn’t for nothing that Raul called them walking disasters; things grew uncontrollable.
An ‘Imperial Hound’ branch nest in the castle’s basement was discovered by Shimar, leading to inevitable conflict.
“What should we do? Handling them by ourselves might be difficult.”
“How about asking the lord for help?”
At Shimar’s concern, Corellius mentioned the lord, but Kiera shook her head.
“Information will definitely leak. To completely catch them, we need to act before the lord catches wind.”
Viscount Dennis had already lost their trust. And the alternative was not far.
“How about asking the outsiders for help? Wasn’t that the reason we came here in the first place?”
Asher’s proposal was immediately accepted. And the two large guilds, Rakuen and Drake, that had settled in Mendez Castle, naturally agreed to the proposal.
It was a special quest from the hero’s party, and the reputation points for an empire-related quest were already famous for being enormous.
And so the “brawl” began.
*
“They say that the player guilds and regular players who participated in the attack on the Imperial Hound’s hideout were ‘annihilated’. Eventually, the investigation team had to finish it off.”
“Well, that’s to be expected.”
No matter how much the players had grown, they were still far from being able to face the empire’s cavalry and knights.
Especially if they encountered an empire armor user who had triggered the ‘Black Sacrifice’, it was clear that even the entire Purple Guild would be wiped out.
‘There’s still a long way to go. A long way indeed.’
Anyway, if matters had concluded there, it would have been neat, but things escalated when a certain document was found. It contained information about those suspected to be collaborators in Mendez Castle.
The investigation team demanded that Viscount Dennis hand them over, but the viscount had no intention of handing over his close associates and blood relatives.
“Ultimately, another battle broke out. The players, already having accepted the investigation team’s request, reluctantly fought against the lord’s troops, and it became total chaos with the intervention of the Paladins from nearby temples who had received a support request!”
Kane explained the situation in an excited and cheerful voice. In the end, the battle resulted in a victory for the hero’s party. While there might have been a difference in the number of troops, it was the qualitative aspect that determined the outcome.
Not the entire Marquis McNeil’s force, but just Viscount Dennis’s knights were no match for Expert-class Corellius the Paladin and the hero Asher.
“Currently, Mendez Castle is temporarily occupied by the Batar Order. Viscount Dennis and some knights have fled, but fortunately, the collaborators listed in the documents have been secured by the order.”
“A foolish choice.”
“Whom are you talking about?”
“Viscount Dennis. He must have underestimated the investigation team and the players. He thought he could manage the situation if he dealt with them first. But with things as they are, escaping won’t be easy for him.”
There was an unwritten rule among the nations of the Connect continent. They must unite to handle any matters related to the ‘Empire’ and must cooperate unconditionally with the Holy Order if ‘Black Magic’ appears.
No matter how much some nobles typically regarded the order with disdain, in these matters, they couldn’t utter a word against it. They could be branded as the ‘enemy of the entire continent’ if they made a mistake.
And since he actively obstructed the order’s operations in such a manner….
‘Not even Marquis McNeil would be able to protect him.’
Thus, Marquis McNeil would have to bear significant losses due to this incident. Whether they liked it or not, not only did their kin break the continent’s unwritten rule, but they also shed the blood of the order.
“I must say, it’s quite refreshing. And it reminds me once again why you’re the master.”
“Well, it was luck. Even I didn’t expect them to be this effective.”
Raul took a sip of tea with an unconcerned expression.
“Anyway, it’s really astonishing. Even though you mentioned it, they truly are incredible troublemakers. In just a week, they’ve demolished an entire barony.”
“Make sure that if we have any dealings with them in the future, our members are well informed to avoid them at all costs.”
“Of course.”
This incident provided Raul with triple benefits without lifting a finger. Not only did he deliver a blow to the McNeil Marquisate, which had been a thorn in his side, but he also erased an Imperial Hound branch.
Additionally, he dragged down two large guilds that could be considered potential enemies. It is said that those who participated in the battle from the Rakuen Guild and the Drake Guild received substantial rewards.
They were given considerable reputation with the order, special quest rewards, and a few spoils divided among them. However, the price they paid was too high for those rewards to be satisfying.
Firstly, most of their officers and regular guild members lost their lives more than twice.
Secondly, the Mendez Castle, which they had painstakingly secured over several months, was wrecked, causing them to lose reputation and their base.
Also, they made formidable enemies in both the McNeil Marquisate and the bothersome Imperial Hound. This effectively made it difficult for them to operate in the Ruben Kingdom for the foreseeable future.
‘By now, they must realize they stepped into a mess, but they can’t pull out.’
The two guilds likely won’t be able to refuse the investigation team’s future quests disguised as requests. To recover their losses, they will have to pursue quests with significant rewards, whether they like it or not.
‘In the end, they’ll suffer even more losses. These quests are beyond what they can handle right now.’
Raul was delighted, feeling satisfied without having to get directly involved. If things like this kept happening, even the grueling training with Caldenas would seem enjoyable.
However, Raul’s joy didn’t last long. Kane’s cheerful expression suddenly contorted as he sipped his tea.
“Master, it’s urgent. We’ve just received a report through the guild communication. …”
“……?”
“It seems something has happened at the barrier. Your second brother, Lawrence, has gone missing.”
“What!”
Raul’s face turned pale.
(To be continued)