Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Sir Is Like the Sun

Once Bruce was done, he reported to Robson.

He wasn’t sure what the nobles of Qimo Fortress would do, but he hoped Robson wouldn’t make an example of him.

Robson readily agreed.

Truth be told, Bruce Priest was in an unfortunate position. He was just a Priest, normally responsible for matters of health and daily life, but this time he’d been badly screwed over by this group of nobles.

After Bruce left, someone knocked on the door again. Robson opened it.

A box sat just outside the door. Robson opened it to find it filled with Gold Coins. He sneered.

’These guys really never learn their lesson.’ He believed Bruce Priest had made things perfectly clear, yet they still wanted to bribe their way out of this.

’It seems they won’t cough up what they’ve swallowed unless I make an example of them.’

Fighting back the pain in his heart, Robson threw the Gold Coins down from the upper floor.

He knew what was more important; this was nothing compared to the entire fortress’s military supplies.

Now, it was all up to Knight Commander Elon...

.....

The day passed quickly, and night soon fell.

In the great hall of Qimo Fortress, Magic Lamps illuminated every corner.

Nearly everyone who came to the banquet wore armor. This was a habit forged during the Frank Kingdom’s long wars. After all, no one ever knew when a battle might break out, so it was natural to always be prepared.

Unlike the reinforcements from Mold Fortress, every one of the nobles from Qimo Fortress wore a long face.

The price they had paid to bribe Robson was considerable, but the man had just thrown it down from the floor above....

Everyone was gaining a new appreciation for the gravity of the situation.

But the goods were already in their possession, and they were extremely reluctant to hand them over, especially since some had already been... used.

"Gentlemen, tonight we are here mainly to celebrate this glorious victory!

Ever since its founding by one of the Knight Kings, His Majesty Westland, our Frank Kingdom has guarded the frontier for the Human Race, keeping the Beastmen at bay.

This victory will mark a new Chapter for the Western Front! Let us raise a toast to Knight Commander Elon!" Robson smiled, raising his cup toward Knight Commander Elon.

Knight Commander Elon merely nodded. He neither picked up his own cup nor gestured for Robson to lower his, simply leaving him to hold it aloft.

Of course, Knight Commander Elon wasn’t deliberately putting Robson in a difficult position. This was all part of Robson’s own plan.

Robson had been exceedingly generous to these nobles from Mold Fortress, even giving them half of the previous spoils of war.

Robson had even gone so far as to attribute his earlier rescue to Valentino, effectively giving the credit away.

Since Robson was being so cooperative, Knight Commander Elon was happy to play his part in this little show.

Besides, it was a good chance to warn the nobles from Mold Fortress not to get too greedy. ’It’s a win-win situation, so why not?’

Robson and Elon knew the whole story, but the others did not.

In an instant, the cheerful atmosphere turned frigid.

The games of the nobility have, since ancient times, been about taking sides. On every occasion, people divide themselves into factions, and they are fiercely loyal to their chosen position.

If a noble went against their own class, they were either a true saint or a fool who didn’t understand their place.

And that was precisely the situation now. Robson had become the Commander-in-Chief of Qimo Fortress, making him, for all intents and purposes, its public face.

So how could the nobles of Qimo Fortress possibly feel good about their own leader being snubbed like this?

"Knight Commander, if we have been remiss in some way, I would ask that you please tell us plainly," Robson said, lowering his hand with a chuckle, though he couldn’t hide the awkwardness on his face.

"Hah. Robson, what was it you told me before we were garrisoned in the fortress?" Knight Commander Elon sneered.

"I already made the arrangements. Viscount Fuman? What is the meaning of this?" Robson feigned a moment of shock, then, as if in sudden realization, turned to question Viscount Fuman.

Viscount Fuman stepped forward, a pained expression on his face.

"It’s... Sir, it’s not that I’ve been dragging my feet, but there aren’t enough supplies in the storehouse," Viscount Fuman said miserably.

"No stores at all?" Robson asked in feigned astonishment.

The moment he said this, Bruce Priest seemed to realize what was happening. The other nobles of Qimo Fortress hung their heads in shame, wishing they could find a hole to crawl into.

"Hah! I can understand not wanting to contribute, but what are you trying to say now? That there are no supplies in the storehouse? Don’t tell me you managed to consume all the military provisions in just a few days?" Knight Commander Elon asked, feigning shock.

"If that’s the case, I might as well tell you that His Majesty has been keeping a very close eye on these matters lately.

Those two important figures from the Royal Capital are here specifically for this purpose.

"Sir," he said, addressing Robson. "If there are parasites in the army, it’s best to weed them out early. As it happens, I must return tomorrow to make my report. I, Elon, would be more than happy to lend a hand now."

His words caused an immediate uproar.

The men from Mold Fortress were fine; they had all heard similar rumors before, more or less. But the nobles of Qimo Fortress were in deep trouble.

They had been without a leader for days, facing the Beastmen, and their channels of information were poor. They hadn’t heard a single word about this.

The hearts of the Qimo Fortress nobles began to pound. In unison, they all turned their gazes to Robson.

This lord had already refused their enormous bribe, had a good reputation, and had no prior connection to any of the nobles of Qimo Fortress.

The nobles of Qimo Fortress were all regretting their actions. ’The lord clearly warned us back then,’ they thought, ’why didn’t we listen?’

’Now it’s too late to return the goods even if we wanted to.’

Robson had no obligation to take the fall for them. Not only would it anger Knight Commander Elon, but it might also attract the attention of the two figures from the Royal Capital. The risk far outweighed any potential reward.

’Their only hope was that the inspection wouldn’t be too thorough. Otherwise, their political careers might be finished.’

Robson looked at the gloomy faces of the noble lords and knew the time had come. ’If I let this act go on any longer,’ he thought, ’they’ll see right through it.’

’After all, I can’t actually arrest them. If I handed them over, I’d have Valentino to answer to.’ 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"Knight Commander Elon! I admit that I have been remiss today, but that is no excuse for you to slander my colleagues!

The internal affairs of Qimo Fortress will be handled internally. If you do not have a direct order from the Earl, I must ask you to retract your statement," Robson said, his voice brimming with righteous indignation.

’Based on the experience from his past life, the fastest way to become a group’s recognized leader was to be brave enough to take the fall for them.’

’As long as they weren’t hopeless idiots, people would remember a favor like that. When he needed something done in the future, they would do their best to accomplish it.’

And just as he expected, the moment Robson spoke, a light seemed to return to the eyes of the Qimo Fortress nobles. They looked at Robson as if he were the sun.

They didn’t know the inside story, so they had no idea this was all a political performance, staged simply to make them return what they had embezzled.

In the eyes of the Qimo nobles, Robson was shielding them all.

Before this, Robson had no connection to any of them, yet now he was willing to defy a Knight Commander of a Knight Order for the good of the group.

What a gesture of goodwill!

As long as Robson withstood the pressure from Elon, they would have a chance to fix this. Account books could be cooked; as long as the physical inventory matched and the numbers could be explained away, there would be no problem.

"Hmph! You don’t know what’s good for you. We’ll see how you feel when the imperial envoy arrives. You’ll regret this then." Knight Commander Elon snorted coldly and turned to leave the hall.

The people in the hall looked at one another. In the end, the reinforcements from Mold followed him out of the great hall.

All that remained were a stony-faced Robson, standing in the center of the room, and the embarrassed nobles of Qimo Fortress.

"Um, Sir..."

Everyone looked at Robson standing in the middle. The celebration had turned into a farce, and anyone could imagine the anger and embarrassment he must be feeling.

And the root cause of that embarrassment was them—their greed.

Finally, Robson sighed, set down his cup, and left the hall, leaving the rest to Viscount Fuman.

"The lord notified you before. Are you happy now? See how this has blown up?

I advise certain people to use this time to return what you took, and quickly. Otherwise, when even the lord can no longer hold them off, we’ll all be finished!" Viscount Fuman said coldly.