The Money-Obssessed Archmage's Second Life As A Broke Duke-Chapter 78 - Pick A Side

Chapter Seventy Eight

"Hey! Did you hear the Lord's men?"

The town square was a sea of ragged cloaks and misted breath.

News of the attempted assassination had spread through the North like a wildfire in a dry forest.

Haah... Looks like Kaelen asked Hans to do that, huh.

People whispered, their voices a low hum of anxiety that vibrated against the walls of the ice houses.

"I did. There was an assassination attempt in the Duke's castle."

"An assassination?"

"They say the Baron himself tried to slit the Lord's throat while he slept!"

"I heard the Lord is barely clinging to life... look at the armor. He isn't even showing his face."

"Poor Lord... He must be sad after all that betrayal from his friend."

I stood atop the wooden platform that Garrow had arranged according to my orders, the borrowed plate mail heavy on my shoulders.

I didn't really care for the whispers. After all, I was the one who laid that bait. Beside me, four figures knelt, their hands bound in heavy iron.

Vische, his parents, and the director.

Vische was a mess. Snot and tears smeared his fat ass face as he looked out at the crowd, searching for a pity that wasn't there.

"Citizens of the North!" Kaelen's voice boomed, amplified by the silence that followed his shout. "Before you stands a man who broke the laws of hospitality and blood. Baron Vische attempted to take the life of Duke Veryon under the cover of darkness, escaping the dungeon through bribery. For treason and attempted murder, the penalty is death!"

A collective gasp rippled through the square. Panic flickered in the eyes of several men dressed as commoners near the back of the crowd.

Thirteen.

I didn't need a map. I could feel the way certain bodies tensed, the way hands drifted toward concealed daggers. They realized the plan had gone south. They thought I was dead and that's why the gates closed. But now, they were staring at the man who was supposed to be a corpse.

"I will be the one to carry out the sentence," I said, my voice echoing hollowly from behind the visor. "Watch! This is how I'll be dealing with traitors! So, think twice before you decide to betray me."

I stepped toward Vische. He looked up at me, his mouth hanging open. "Veryon, please... you're lying! Tell them you're lying! I never—"

"Quiet," I muttered, loud enough only for him to hear. "I'll make it fast, Vische. Goodbye."

I raised the executioner's blade. It was heavier than a standard sword, designed for a single, clean purpose.

Swing.

The dull thud of the blade hitting the wood was followed by a spray of crimson. The crowd went silent. Then, the screaming started not from the peasants, but from the front row of the onlookers. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Looks like they want to stir panic and use that to escape, huh.

"Now!" I barked.

Kaelen, Garrow, and Eatassh moved like shadows.

"Wait! What are you doing?" a man in a brown clothes screamed as Garrow's hand wrapped around his throat.

"He's killing the merchants!" someone yelled in panic. "The Lord has gone mad!"

"They're escaping! Stop them!"

The square devolved into chaos. Three men tried to bolt towards the woods, their movements too fluid, too trained for mere peasants who were starved until recently.

Looks like the fishing is going well.

"Sir Garrow, south! Sir Eatassh, towards east!" Kaelen roared, his sword already buried in the chest of a man who had tried to draw a crossbow from under his cloak.

[Objective: Kill All Of The Emperor's Men (4/13)]

I stepped off the platform, ignoring the headless body of the man Veryon once called a friend. My eyes were locked on a group of four men trying to blend into the panicked crowd near the well.

Looks like I have to interfere a bit as well.

I walked down the platform, slowly. My eyes scanning the crowd.

Clank. Clank.

"Move!" one of the rats hissed, shoving an old woman aside to clear a path.

Crunch!

I was faster. I swung the heavy executioner's blade in a horizontal arc. The steel whistled through the air, catching two of them across the midsection.

They collapsed, clutching at the stone ground, their blood mixing with the melting slush of the North.

[Objective: Kill All Of The Emperor's Men (6/13)]

7 more...

"He knows!" one of the survivors screamed, his face pale with realization. "The Lord knows about the Emperor! Send word—"

He didn't finish. Eatassh appeared behind him, a dagger findng the gap in the man's ribs.

The murmurs of the crowd shifted from confusion to terror.

"Why are they killing those men?"

"Look at their clothes... those aren't our people. Their clothes are too fine."

"Are those traitors who sided with Baron Vische and tried to kill the Lord!?"

I watched as Kaelen cornered the last three right at the beginning of the woods. They fought like cornered animals, but they were up against my SSS Rank Minion.

It's a fight whose outcome was already decided.

Squeltch.

The last man fell, his blood staining the snow a deep purple.

[Objective: Kill All Of The Emperor's Men (13/13)]

[Quest Complete!]

[Reward: CCTV Linked Watch (SS-Grade) has been sent to your inventory.]

I stood in the center of the square, the heavy blade dripping in my hand. The villagers had backed away, forming a wide circle of trembling bodies.

The silence that followed was heavier than the one before. The traitors were dead, the "assassin" was executed, and the Emperor's eyes in my fief had been plucked out.

Kaelen walked over, wiping his blade on a fallen man's cloak. He was breathing hard, his eyes searching mine.

"It's done, Master. All thirteen. The square is secure."

I looked at the bodies, then at the terrified faces of my people. I felt nothing. Just a nagging pressure in my temples.

"Clean this up," I said, sheathing the bloody blade. "And, execute those three too."

"Yes, Master. But..."

"But, what?"

Kaelen stepped closer.

"The people... they're scared. Should you not say something?"

I turned my back on them.

"Look carefully, citizens of my fief! This will be the ending for traitors! I am nice. But, not nice to the ones who stab my back. Pick your side wisely."

[Ping!]

[38,500 Trade Points Have Been Awarded!]