Merchant Noble is out (2/3 chapters for today)
Post-War Settlement
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Tyr gathered the generals of the punitive force a few days after the castle had surrendered. The generals, who had been engrossed in the massacre and looting of the rebel force, grumbled but reluctantly came at the order of the supreme commander.
“Is everyone here?” (Tyr)
Tyr greeted each person politely. As the supreme commander, Tyr’s position was officially higher. However, he only became the supreme commander because the other noble families did not want to take responsibility, so, in practice, they were equals.
“First, I would like to thank the generals as the commander of the punitive force. Thanks to the efforts of the generals and the cooperation of the nobles behind them, we were able to suppress the rebellion safely. It is a great honor that we successfully accomplished our mission while many nobles had failed to suppress this rebellion.” (Tyr)
“Tyr-dono, you can express your thanks at any time. We are currently focused on hunting down the remaining rebels. In such a situation, could you please tell us why you have gathered us here?” (??)
One of the commanders voiced his dissatisfaction. Since they were essentially on equal footing, their true opinions came out quickly. If there was something to discuss, they wanted to get on with it.
“Then let’s get straight to the point.” (Tyr)
Tyr took a breath and adopted a serious expression.
“The young leader of the rebel force is missing. We must capture him, but where is he?” (Tyr)
“What?” (??)
The commanders all showed expressions of surprise. They hadn’t anticipated at all that the enemy leader would be missing.
“He’s not there?” (??)
One asked with a look of disbelief. Then, after a moment of silence, a flurry of blame-shifting began.
“Was that my responsibility?” (??)
“Your unit was the first to enter the castle!” (??)
“But you guys entered right after us!” (??)
“Maybe you were so absorbed in looting that you let him escape?” (??)
“What was that!?” (??)
It became noisy in an instant. Each commander was desperate to avoid being blamed. So, they were all trying hard to pass the blame onto someone else.
“Silence!” (Tyr)
Tyr shouted. Then, in the quieted room, he calmly asked,
“Did none of you see such a young man?” (??)
“The peasants who surrendered were all saying, ‘Our leader surrendered to the kingdom force’, so I thought he had already been captured by one of the units…” (??)
“I heard the same thing.” (??)
“So, did the peasants I captured.” (??)
Tyr asked all the commanders who had entered the castle, and they all said the same thing. That was only natural. It was the truth. Randal had been captured by Tyr, and that had prompted the peasants to surrender. However, in this room, that had to be framed as a lie by the peasants.
“And you believed them so easily. You could have reported it to me just once.” (Tyr)
When Tyr spoke with a slightly exasperated tone, the commanders hung their heads. Seeing this, the other generals must have thought it was their chance to shift the blame. They all criticized them at once.
“To be deceived by peasants, huh.” (??)
“I bet all you were thinking about was killing the peasants anyway.” (??)
“Shut up! Your unit, which was in charge of besieging the castle, has the same responsibility, doesn’t it?” (??)
As the argument between the commanders who had entered the castle first and the other generals seemed to begin again, Tyr raised his voice again to stop them.
“In any case!! Letting the mastermind escape is a tremendous blunder, gentlemen.” (Tyr)
Hearing his serious tone, the generals all became anxious at once.
“As the supreme commander, I bear the greatest responsibility, but you all won’t get away unscathed either.” (Tyr)
To save everyone’s face, Tyr claimed the responsibility was his, while subtly blaming the generals. Then, Tyr made a certain proposal, which was the main point of this meeting.
“Do you know what the leader of the rebel force looks like?” (Tyr)
“I know that he is a young man with blond hair. My unit has fought directly with him before, so there are soldiers who know his appearance.” (??)
“Then, let’s send a corpse of a peasant who looks like him to the royal capital instead. That will solve the problem.” (Tyr)
The generals were taken aback. They probably couldn’t understand what Tyr had just proposed.
A different kind of silence, unlike the heavy silence from earlier, took over the room. The expressions of those who finally caught up with what he meant changed to one of shock. In short, he was suggesting sending the corpse of a different person to deceive their lord, the kingdom.
“Are you suggesting we fake it?” (??)
“Only we, the punitive force, know this fact. Moreover, there are probably very few people who remember the appearance of the leader of the rebel force accurately. If we send the corpse of someone with blond hair who is close in age, this blunder will not be exposed.” (Tyr)
“But…” (??)
Naturally, the generals all made grim faces. That was to be expected. He was proposing they deceive the kingdom. If this deception were exposed, there would be no escaping the consequences. Not only themselves, but even their lords, the nobles, could easily be punished as “enemies of the kingdom”.
“Aren’t you sure about this yet!?” (Tyr)
At Tyr’s sudden loud voice, the hesitant commanders all flinched simultaneously.
“After all the effort to suppress the rebellion, how will you explain to your lords that you let the mastermind escape while you were preoccupied with looting!” (Tyr)
Tyr’s roar echoed through the room. For the commanders, who had been sent to suppress the rebellion by various nobles, the fact that they had let the mastermind escape was an irreparable blunder. To the commanders who were trying to look away from reality, Tyr confronted them with it.
“Without a doubt, the household crests will be tarnished. We will be laughed at throughout the kingdom. My Warden Household has only been noble for two generations after starting as merchants, so it doesn’t bother me that much. But what about you, who were dispatched from traditional noble households? If this fact comes to light, will you be able to continue living as you have in those noble houses?” (Tyr)
“…” (??)
The commanders groaned. What Tyr was saying was completely true. Then, one by one, they wavered at the sweet words Tyr offered.
“I will urgently search for someone with a similar build and appearance.” (??)
Someone said in a trembling voice. Hearing that voice, Tyr nodded with a broad smile.
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