Chapter 71: No Mercy (4)

Alstain, who had been so confident before, could only panic as the situation began to spiral out of his control.

At that moment, Patrick strode toward him with firm steps.

“Do you not recognize my face? Well, I suppose it’s understandable — it has been twenty years since we last met.”

“W-what? Twenty years?”

“At that time, you came to the royal capital following your father for the Royal Assembly. Do you still not remember?”

Hearing the detailed question, Alstain thought deeply before finally recalling Patrick’s face.

“Y-you’re the chief butler of D-duke S-Saliann A-arenvatz’s household…”

“It’s been a while. I’m Patrick Waver, the chief butler. It seems you remember now.”

As Patrick introduced himself, cold sweat began to trickle down Alstain’s forehead.

“H-how is the chief butler…?”

“I now serve a new master. And if you’ve recognized who I am, you should also realize that certificate was not a fake.”

King Laskan Canel and the martial god Duke Saliann Arenvatz had once shared an extraordinarily close relationship.

After all, Duke Saliann’s daughter, Sierra, had become the queen.

Naturally, Patrick Waver was also well known for being on intimate terms with King Laskan himself.

In other words, Count Alstain had just offended someone he should never have touched.

“If the master you serve now is who I think…”

“Shh! If you utter that name aloud, I can’t guarantee what might happen next.”

Every noble knew that Patrick, once Duke Saliann Arenvatz’s chief butler, had later gone on to serve Prince Raion.

That meant Alstain had not only embezzled royal funds but also tarnished his honor.

If this reached the royal capital, even ten heads wouldn’t be enough to save him.

“M-my apologies. So please, I beg you…”

“There’s no need to apologize to me. You should apologize to him. And I believe you already know what you must do from here on.”

“I’ll restore everything to its original state. I swear it! I’ll personally make sure the issue with the Alqurey Trading Company is settled cleanly.”

It wasn’t Prince Raion that terrified Alstain — it was Duke Saliann Arenvatz, the Martial God and Raion’s maternal grandfather, and King Laskan Canel.

Meanwhile, Zolav, who had been confident of victory, found himself in utter disbelief.

The situation had suddenly taken a strange turn, and even Count Alstain, whom he thought was on his side, had turned against him.

“M-my lord! How could you do this to me! You promised you’d take care of everything!”

“Silence! None of this would’ve happened if you hadn’t set your greedy eyes on those goods! Seize that man at once, throw him in the dungeon, and arrest every last member of the Alqurey Trading Company!”

At Alstain’s command, the weary soldiers immediately grabbed Zolav by his thick arms and began to drag him away.

Then Patrick spoke up.

“Would you wait a moment, please?”

“W-what is it?”

“There is someone else who should deal with this man’s punishment. Would you entrust him to them instead?”

He was referring to the Eye of the Moon.

Selling off a client’s goods on his own would surely come with a heavy price.

As Zolav was being dragged away by the soldiers, Regina looked slightly bewildered.

“Understood. I’ll leave it to you then. Handle it as you wish.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

“Not at all. But you won’t… report this upward, will you?”

Alstain’s tone was extremely cautious.

At that, Patrick retrieved the certificate and stepped toward Regina.

“As long as something like this doesn’t happen again, there will be no reason for that. You have my word.”

“T-thank you.”

Only then did Alstain let out a long sigh of relief.

“We’ll take our leave now. And of course, as you know, the recovered funds should be handed to this lady here — my representative.”

“I’ll leave it in your care.”

Regina, who had quietly kept her silence, said that and left the lord’s mansion with Patrick — bringing along a dazed Zolav.

The three of them arrived at Blue Sunset and entered the establishment.

The moment they did, Zolav, who had been walking ahead silently, let out a chuckle.

“Keuk, keuk, keuk…”

“Why are you laughing?”

Regina looked puzzled by his sudden reaction.

“Do you think every branch of the Eye of the Moon is the same? This one’s full of men who swore loyalty to me.”

Srrrrng!

As soon as Zolav finished speaking, the men sitting at the tables stood up and drew their weapons.

They were Zolav’s loyal subordinates.

“This doesn’t seem to be going very well. Does the central branch have no countermeasure for this?”

If Patrick wanted to, he could easily resolve the situation — but if things got noisy here, it would only cause unnecessary trouble.

Regina, however, remained completely calm.

“Of course we do. Surely you didn’t think I came to Hasein alone?”

The moment she finished speaking, men in black attire burst in through the doors and windows all at once.

In sheer numbers, they far outmatched Zolav’s men.

“These people…”

“They’re the Black Moon, each one assigned directly under the Central Branch. Ah, and just so you know—if any of you move, you’ll die instantly.”

At Regina’s cold tone, Zolav’s subordinates didn’t dare move recklessly.

They too had heard rumors about the Central Branch members known as the Black Moon.

“Guh…! W-what is this…!”

Feeling his situation overturn completely once again, Zolav dropped to his knees.

Thud―!

“It seems everything’s been wrapped up.”

“Thanks to you. I didn’t expect you’d have such a certificate.”

“It’s all thanks to my master’s foresight.”

Patrick had received that certificate from King Laskan when they met.

Of course, it had been at Prince Raion’s instruction—he told Patrick to get it just in case of an unforeseen situation.

Now, that precaution had finally proven its worth.

“I’d like to meet him myself someday.”

“I’m sure that day will come. And as for this place, I trust the Eye of the Moon will take care of everything cleanly.”

“The lord won’t be able to pull any tricks in this situation. And until the next branch leader is chosen, I’ll take direct charge, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

Regina’s answer made Patrick look a bit surprised.

“Personally, you say? I see the Central Branch must be doing quite well.”

“This happened in a branch within the Canel Kingdom, so I must take direct responsibility.”

“I think I now understand why you were chosen as the Central Branch Leader.”

At Patrick’s slightly sheepish remark, Regina deliberately laughed brightly.

“Hohoho! Is that a compliment?”

“Of course, it is. How could I dare say anything disrespectful to a lady?”

“Thank you. Then, Patrick, are you heading back to Kanas now?”

At her question, Patrick didn’t hesitate.

“Of course. By the way, is the Eye of the Moon not planning to set up a branch in Kanas?”

The profits earned from selling Raion’s goods had been delivered to the Eye of the Moon in Filat Village.

Patrick needed to collect them and return to Kanas. Naturally, the sheer weight of the funds was a concern.

“As a matter of fact, we are planning to establish one there.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“With the tremendous commission fees we receive from you, it’s only natural. In fact, I’m sorry it’s taken longer than expected.”

Until recently, the situation in Kanas had been too unstable for the Eye of the Moon to see the need for a branch there.

But things had changed completely.

Now that their primary client resided in Kanas, the organization needed to make proper arrangements.

Of course, Regina was one of the few who knew that Patrick’s master was none other than Prince Raion, currently staying in Kanas.

“Thank you. I’ll be counting on you then.”

“As soon as we finish cleaning up matters here, we’ll begin setting up the branch there.”

“Understood. Then I’ll take my leave. I just hope my master doesn’t cause any trouble while I’m away.”

“Let’s meet again next time.”

Without any lingering hesitation, Patrick departed.

At that very moment, Raion was in his room drafting future plans when he suddenly sneezed.

“Achoo―! Why is my nose so itchy all of a sudden?”

Monica, who had been pouring tea for him, asked worriedly,

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“The master? I don’t think that’s the case.”

Beside them, Jade waved his hand dismissively.

“And what are you doing here? Have you finished all your training for today?”

“I finished earlier and came to rest. After all, I am your guard knight, am I not?”

Raion gave him a pointed look, half in irritation.

“How’s the soldiers’ training going? Are they keeping up?”

“The knights are doing fine for now, but the soldiers… if they go into battle like this, they’ll die easily. They lack real combat experience.”

He wasn’t wrong.

But Raion had already thought of a solution for that.

“Once Patrick returns, we’ll divide the knights and soldiers and head out for the second subjugation.”

“We already swept through the whole area—where else are we going?”

“The north.”

At Raion’s reply, Jade tried recalling any possible hunting grounds in the northern area.

“Don’t tell me you mean the Sea Serpent Nest?”

“That’s right.”

Unlike Sellios, that region consisted of five small clustered islands.

It was home to far more Sea Serpents than the number Raion had defeated in the ocean before.

“That’s an extremely dangerous place. And it’s at sea—there’s a real risk of casualties.”

Jade was normally obedient, but this time was different.

They had no naval troops, and the dangers of the area meant it was reckless to take unseasoned soldiers there.

“How do you know that without even trying?”

“It’s obvious without trying.”

“Then the knights will just have to put in some extra effort.”

“…Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

At Jade’s question, Raion showed a faintly sly grin.

Seeing that, Monica quietly muttered,

“You’re making the same face as when you trained Sir Jade before, Your Highness.”

At the same time, cold sweat trickled down Jade’s temple, a mix of anxiety and dread washing over him.

“C-come on… surely not, right?”

Raion feigned innocence at Jade’s uneasy tone.

“What are you talking about?”

“What I think you’re planning.”

“Really? And what exactly are you thinking?”

Just from Raion’s evasive answer, Jade felt certain his uneasy hunch had hit the mark.

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