Chapter Twenty-Seven and a Half: A Warning (Part 3) ~William’s POV

“—They are suspected of kidnapping children and women, mainly in the slums, both domestically and internationally. They would kidnap women as a means of debt repayment or sell children in impoverished rural areas.”

The knight’s voice resounded throughout the conference room, where tension quietly drift in the air.

I sat at a seat with a plate that read ‘Division Commander William Rutherford,’ and while listening to the briefing, I looked over the document.

After the arrest of high-ranking aristocratic officials the other day, only a measly few of their victims could be rescued. Fortunately, as they had only recently been captured, most of them were able to return safely to their parents.

Nevertheless, some of them had no place to return to, and three of the children, who seemed to have been kidnapped from some slums, were sent to an orphanage. Two of the women, who had no relatives, were being sheltered in a monastery.

“—Most children are purchased as laborers, but good-looking children and young girls are often used as sex slaves. Young and beautiful women would be stripped down to their undergarments and put up for auction. To participate, one is required to donate an exorbitant amount, and it seems to be a special event that only the extremely wealthy can join.”

“Where’s the auction held?”

The captain of the Knights of Verité and the captain of the Knights of Reichardt, who sat on the top seat, asked the knight. In response, the knight flipped through his documents, found the string of letters he was looking for, and looked up.

“According to our latest information, the auction was held in one of the collaborators’ mansions, and the locations would change depending on the time. Most of them appear to be the mansions of wealthy merchant families, but it seems like the other party is also quite wary of us after the recent arrest of Diplomat Klaus.”

“We should’ve let him roam free a little longer and arrest them all at once. As expected, capturing the Black Scorpion isn’t that simple.”

The knight commander let out a heavy sigh.

Not all villains were idiots.

Therefore, it was no exaggeration to say that an organization was defined by the intelligence of the people at the top. How they move their subordinates, who are their hands and feet, will greatly change the way their organization operates.

The crime syndicate called Black Scorpion was a huge organization that extended its influence not only in Cression but also several surrounding countries. They were responsible for all manners of crimes, such as human and drug trafficking. So far, we had gathered that some of their organizations were complicit in the recent human trafficking incident.

“May I speak?”

When I raised my hand, all eyes in the conference room turned towards me. The moderator called my name and gave me permission to speak. I stood up and looked at my entire surroundings. At last, I turned to Alphonse, who sat next to me. He nodded deeply.

“…My caretaker has obtained some interesting information. In the past six months, two viscountesses and a baroness who attended masquerade balls have gone missing.”

“I’ve never heard such a story before. If a noble lady went missing, there would have been an uproar. Since their families insisted on maintaining their silence, didn’t they just elope? It’s a common story at masquerade balls.”

Louise, the vice commander who sat next to the knight commander, skeptically raised his eyebrows.

“Based on our investigation, there’s almost no chance of that happening. The ladies could be said to be in their prime. One of the girls was 17 years old, while the remaining two were 18 years old. They also had a lot of close male friends. From what I’ve seen, all three of them were beautiful young ladies. Above all, they have one more thing in common.”

“What do they have in common?”

“Each family was saddled with massive debt.”

The conference room was thrown into an uproar. The knight commander and the vice commander glanced at each other.

“Be quiet please.”

The moderator had to repeat that several times before peace was restored in the room.

“Commander Rutherford, since this isn’t our jurisdiction but that of the House of Lords, have they been made aware?”

“Regardless of whether their daughters were taken away or sold to pay the debt, this is undoubtedly the worst scandal ever, and the three families were unable to report the disappearances to the House of Lords or to us, the Order of Knights.”

The knight commander furrowed his eyebrows, while the vice commander clutched his temple and sighed.

“…In other words, there may be other houses with similar circumstances.”

I fully agreed with the Vice Commander’s words.

Duke, Marquis, Margrave, Earl, Viscount, Baron, Baronet, Knight.

In the Kingdom of Cression, those titles were officially recognized as nobility. However, the lowest two ranks, Baronet and Knight, were for one generation only, and unless one had achieved some kind of accomplishment, one shouldn’t hope to become a baron.

Moreover, some viscounts, barons, and earls had small territories, unlike high-ranking aristocrats, so it wasn’t uncommon for their families to fall into poverty due to a poor harvest.

Even so, almost no one gave up their titles. Everyone was desperately trying to protect their houses.

In the event of bad harvests or natural disasters, the royal family had established a system in which they granted aid, but most families refused to accept it. After all, to apply, a committee dispatched by the House of Lords will thoroughly investigate the extent of the damage, the cost of reconstruction, and the family’s assets, and many people didn’t like that. All of them probably had something to hide.

“…Do not let the House of Lords catch wind of this, lest they vandalize the scene. Search for houses in distress and thoroughly but discreetly investigate whether there are any other missing people. Do not forget to keep an eye on the merchants on the list.”

The knights’ responses were mixed and wild.

After that, we discussed detailed instructions to each division and future investigations. The meeting ended about an hour later than scheduled.

***

“Thank you for your hard work.”

In response to my friend’s remark, I waved my hand. Upon returning to my office, I sat down on the sofa.

Outside my window was already pitch black, and when I took out my pocket watch, it was already 7 o’clock. In that case, it was time to go back to Liliana and Cedric.

“Great work today. Enjoy.”

Frederick served tea at the right time, and I thanked him. He had added a bit of sugar, and the modest sweetness soothed my mind, which was tired from overuse.

“Mario, sorry to make you wait.”

“No worries. I thought it would take a long time anyway, so I tried to come up with a design for Lady Liliana. Here, look. What do you think? This one has an open back.”

Mario, who sat on the couch across from me, looked up from his sketch.

The sketch depicted a woman wearing a body-hugging dress. However, as he mentioned, the back was open all the way to the waist, making it a risqué dress.

“Denied. It’s not Liliana’s taste. She prefers something less revealing.”

I immediately turned it down. In terms of whether or not it would suit her, Liliana was gorgeous, so she would look stunning in anything.

Still, this one is no good.

Why do I have to show other men the back that even I have never seen?

Besides, Liliana would probably avoid anything revealing at all costs out of concern for her scar.

Thinking about how much Liliana was hurt today because of that damn old hag, I wanted to curse at my own helplessness.

Why couldn’t I have immediately covered her ears and silenced that old hag at that time?

No, I should’ve told her to hide in her room with Cedric. That way, she wouldn’t have to deal with those two…

—That way, she wouldn’t have to make that face.

At the words of the woman who was supposed to be her stepmother, her face lost color as she silently shed tears. She probably didn’t even realize that she was crying. She looked so hollow and sad at the time.

“…Are you okay? Will doesn’t look too good either.”

Mario seemed concerned.

Before I knew it, Alphonse was sitting next to him. They both stared at me with the same look on their faces. Caddock was waiting in the corner of the room.

“Liliana has always dreaded the day when her secret would be revealed to me.”

“A secret?”

Alphonse tilted his head.

“I’m talking about her scar.”

I tapped my left abdomen.

Because the two were secretly investigating Liliana’s incident, I told them that she was attacked and subsequently injured.

However, Liliana’s name was nowhere to be found in the investigation report. Instead, there was the name of the servant’s daughter and her relative. Moreover, it was only described as a minor injury. Nowhere did it mention that chemicals had been applied.

Perhaps, Count Eighton forcibly covered up Liliana’s involvement.

“After Liliana was injured by the bandit, she was doused with some kind of chemical, causing her skin to burn along with the wound. I only heard about it from Count Eighton and never witnessed it myself, so I don’t know how bad it is… Even Elsa, who was made aware of the existence of the scar by Liliana herself, never saw it.”

I could hear the two gasping.

They may have stumbled across that fact during the investigation, but I guess they didn’t expect me to talk.

I went on, staring at my hands, which were folded on my lap.

“Compared to the fact that I paid 3000 rills for her, I owe her so much more for her scar. She has suffered at the hands of her family. For nine whole years, they insulted her and made her feel worse about herself for having that scar, which even she found repulsive.

“I don’t know if she is aware of it, but whenever she feels anxious, her hand often goes to her scar… In fact, even when she’s really happy, she still touches it sometimes.

“Perhaps, she’s afraid of happiness because she had long given up and doesn’t have any expectations. She’s so unaccustomed to happiness, she’s afraid of losing it.  

“Liliana didn’t want me, of all people, to know. She didn’t want her husband, who finally smiled at her after losing his memory, to know. Before I lost my memory, I think I probably knew about her scars. Apparently, before we got married, Count Eighton had wanted me to marry his older daughter rather than the damaged one.

“She couldn’t bring herself to tell me because she was certain I’d despise her for it. And yet, that woman heartlessly said that in front of me and degraded her…”

The veins in my clenched fist were bulging.

Chivalry be damned, I regretted not punching her right there and then.

“To that woman and her daughter, Liliana is nothing but a slave. An outlet for their frustrations. A lesser being. Perhaps, they didn’t even see it as abuse.”

“…Will. I waited for you because I wanted to talk to you about the incident from nine years ago. I can assure you that Margaret was in the dark. However, the same can’t be said about Sandra. That woman is putting her heart and soul into tormenting Lady Liliana.”

I looked up at Mario’s quiet words.

As he stared straight at me, his gaze was dead serious and I gulped.

“The key to the incident that happened nine years ago was the birth of Lord Cedric.”

“…Cedric?”

“Indeed. That day, Count Eighton was on his way to drop off Liliana to Viscount Everett’s house. He was planning to give her up for adoption to Viscount Everett and his wife, but someone refused to allow that. Yes, it was none other than Sandra. Sandra wanted Lady Liliana to remain by her side so she could make her suffer forever. Hence why, that day, she tried to assassinate both her husband and stepdaughter in case they left her. After all, since Cedric was there, she didn’t have to worry about finding a successor.”

“Why does she detest Liliana so much…? Also, who did you ask?”

“The old butler of Allwyn. We assumed that the servants of Allwyn were also abusing Lady Liliana, but that wasn’t the case. They refused to acknowledge Sandra as their madam. For them, the only Countess of Eighton was Lady Catherine, the daughter of Viscount Everett. They pretended to be obedient and continued to protect Lady Liliana in secret. However, they were strictly forbidden against talking and helping her, much less give her something. Otherwise, Lady Liliana will be beaten by their master. In the end, they kept quiet and took care of her.”

“Wasn’t Cedric taken care of by the very same servants?”

“Isn’t it because he’s a true descendant of Count Eighton? Above all, Cedric looks just like his predecessor. Just like how those foolish parents only doted on Margaret because she resembled her mother; Ceddie, who looked just like their beloved predecessor, was also important to those servants. If he had resembled his mother, things would’ve been different.”

Alphonse had a point.

Mario nodded in affirmation and resumed the conversation.

“Going back to the story, the knights, who happened to be around, foiled her plan. …I don’t know what the situation was at the time, but maybe the chemicals were meant to be sprayed on the face.”

—No way.

Those words escaped me.

“For some reason, that woman was strangely fixated on Lady Liliana’s looks. She denied everything about Liliana’s appearance, which anyone could see was beautiful. Why do you think that?”

“It’s because Lily looks like her mother, right? Even though she was the one who snatched the count away from Lily’s mother… Hm? But Margaret is a bastard? Then why? For what reason does she despise Lily?”

“I don’t know, women are complicated. Do you have any clue?”

“I only dress like a woman for fun, but I’m a real man at heart. Anyway, be careful with Sandra. Now that you’ve taken Margaret away, I don’t know what she’ll do.”

“I will. I have no choice but to send an escort to the mansion for a while…”

“In that case, shall I come to visit? Lily can talk to Ariel. I’m sure my mother will be eager to join in.”

“I wager 10.000 rill that Lady Liliana will faint.”

Mario said with a straight face.

“…Your Highness, as he says, my wife is a very sensitive person. If she suddenly met a princess from the royal family, she would collapse from shock.”

“…I guess you’re right. Good thing I didn’t mention a word of it today. Otherwise, those two would’ve been attacked.”

Her Royal Highness the Queen and Princess both have extremely personalities, so I’m grateful he kept his mouth shut, as I’m sure they’d relentlessly attempt to approach her.

“Don’t stay in the mansion tonight, it’s dangerous. Please stay at my outhouse in town until everything settles down.”

“Is it the one in the back alley? I used to sneak out there a lot when I was in the academy.”

It was a two-story house with a small garden in a downtown area. The house was small and minimalistic, enough for a family of four to settle in comfortably. The area itself was safe and was about 30 minutes away by horse from the knights.

“I agree. The duke and Sandra won’t know if you stay there.”

“I think it’s better than going back to the mansion. Tell them that you’re going to take a break and enjoy the life of a commoner for a while. The escort won’t be a knight, but someone I know.”

“That’s a good idea, but I’ll discuss it with Frederick and the others first. Liliana isn’t good at adapting to new environments, so I don’t want to push her too hard. Ceddie is also a bit shaken, so it might be better to stay in a familiar mansion.”

“It’s up to you. However, Mario and I will spare no effort in cooperating, so please rely on us as much as possible.”

“I will, thank you. I think I’ll head back tonight. I’ll take the documents home first thing in the morning…”

“Of course, of course, I’ll work with Mario on the paperwork, so stay by their side today.”

“Huh? Who cares about paperwo—mmggh!”

Caddock held Mario’s head with his right hand and covered his mouth with his left hand, making him nod yes. I stood up boldly. Opportunities shouldn’t be missed. Frederick was already fully prepared and handed me my cloak.

“I’m so grateful to have excellent and generous friends. I leave the rest to you, Al, Mario.”

I donned my cloak and headed for the exit.

“Say hello to Lily and Ceddie for me!”

“Mmmmmggghhgmgmghgh—!”

“Of course, my friends! Thank you!”

I left the office with such a theatrical remark.

I could hear Mario protesting behind the closed door.

“—This is why I refuse to be near him!”

However, I pretended not to hear him and scurried home with Frederick.

***

POV: Duke Fuchsberger

“…She ran away?”

I looked up from my documents to see James bursting into my office, looking a bit impatient.

“On the way from the Marquis’ house to ours, there was an accident between two horse-drawn carriages, and it seems that Lady Sandra disappeared during that time. Witnesses said that they saw two men and a woman, believed to be Lady Sandra, getting into a carriage parked nearby.”

I put down my fountain pen, threw myself against the backrest, and sighed.

I thought she ran into a roadblock, but who would’ve thought that she escaped?

Smiling wryly, I reached into the drawers, fished for some notepapers, and ran a fountain pen through it.

After I was done writing, I slid it into an envelope as James handed me a red candle. I took it, tilting it over the mouth of the envelope. Then, I pressed the ring on my middle finger, which bore the crest of the Fuchsberger family, and sealed it.

I handed James the letter.

“Deliver this warning to William as soon as possible. He’s probably still in the conference room. In the meantime, you can use the dog to sniff out Sandra’s whereabouts.”

“Understood.”

James left the room, tucking the letter into his pocket.

I took off my reading glasses, set them aside, and let out another sigh.

“What a troublesome cat. I can’t believe it would cause so much trouble to its owner… I’m starting to prefer dogs.”

I whispered, quietly closing my eyes.

Within the darkness, I could see her red lips arching gracefully into a smile.

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