Retribution 5
“Eh……” (Man)
Larushia’s ridiculous remarks made the squad leader utterly confused…
Da!
Dadada! (TN: Rumbling sfx)
Several clerks rushed out, splitting off to the left and right.
Of course, they went to the royal palace according to Larushia’s instructions.
“Ah! Wa, wait! Hey, waaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiit!!!” (Man)
The squad leader shouted frantically, but no one would be stupid enough to stop there.
“Go after them, seize them aaallll!!!” (Man)
He ordered his men to do so, but the clerks had already scattered far and wide, each taking a different route to the royal palace…… at full speed.
Even though they’re employees of the store, they’re quite physically fit from loading and unloading the shipments, carrying the goods into the warehouse, and so on.
No matter how many guards he had brought, it was unlikely that they could keep up with them running as fast as they could with their weapons and armor on.
Therefore, none of the guards wanted to run.
In the first place, even if they could catch up with them, they would be punished for seizing an ordinary citizen who had done nothing wrong. They were not willing to follow the instructions of their superior officer, who had already done something wrong and throw their lives away.
And the soldiers were united in their feelings toward their superior officer.
(((((… It’s already too late!)))))
Larushia, who did not seem to listen to the words of the squad leader at all, but only shouted out her own arguments, continued to impeach the guards as an established fact, deciding the guards’ reasons for their actions by herself.
……It was already a mess.
Then the guards thought.
The future of this squad leader has already been decided. Yeah, it has been decided.
This time, all of what he said here. And, of course, the wrongdoings that will be investigated and exposed later on.
In contrast, we have not said or done anything wrong here. We just followed the squad leader here at his orders.
We then objected to the clearly illegal order and refused to comply with it.
This may allow us to get away with it without being involved in the punishment of our superior who continued to act illegally, as we showed the dignity of a Guardsman by doing justice even at the risk of being punished……
The guards, who had been displeased for being dragged on such a disgusting job of trying to catch the obviously innocent victims, were inwardly relieved to have an unexpected “we protested” story to claim that they did.
=====
(Just as planned…)
I chuckled as I blended among the employees who were frozen in the corner.
Yeah, I was wearing a colored wig and a little makeup to change my skin color, and I was blending in with everyone else wearing the employee’s tailored clothes.
Of course, if push comes to shove, “Don’t you see this crest?” I’ll go out and protect Larushia.
If someone asked me why a daughter of a noble family dressed as an employee, I would simply say that I was allowed to do it as a social experience because it looked interesting. It’s a “common story of a noble’s daughter!” It’s just a noble’s daughter’s selfishness and pretending to be a commoner because she’s bored, and there would be no reason to doubt me.
To prove that I’m a nobleman, I could just say that my home country was far away and that they should check with the royal palace or a senior nobleman in the Vanell kingdom.
Well, if the owner of the Larushia Trade, which was currently the focus of royalty and nobility, can vouch for me, there would be no doubt about it.
……Anyway, if a commoner were to tell such a lie, everyone involved would be beheaded, their families would be destroyed, and their personal property would be confiscated for sure.
No, even an aristocrat can’t get away with it scot-free……
And conversely, of course, they knew what’ll happen to those who’d call me a liar and insult me, knowing that this was the case, i.e. The probability that Larushia and I were lying and fraudulently claiming the title was tremendously low. After all, I am the head of a noble family in another country and the supplier of the rumored “Viscount Yamano’s Specialty Products”……
That means no one would question or deny my status. Unless they’re stupid or suicidal……
The employees who ran to the palace were unstoppable, his subordinates disobeyed his orders, and a large number of the people of the royal city witnessed everything. And the cold eyes of the ever-growing crowd were on the squad leader.
In a way, if he could continue to forcibly arrest Larushia at this point, I would respect him…
……For stupidity and courage.
And of course, the squad leader was neither stupid nor courageous and left in a hurry with his men.
The subordinates also seemed to obediently obey the order to withdraw.
The employees who suddenly barged into the palace should not have been captured.
Since Larushia ordered them to “go to the royal palace to inform the king”, they have been properly taught in advance how to act. What explanation to give if stopped by the gate guard, how loudly to make the noise, and how to explain to the other soldiers and civil servants who rushed to the scene, were all properly arranged…….
The fact that they dispersed and ran away when Larushia ordered them to do so was also a result of their prior education. Otherwise, they would not have been able to react like that on the spur of the moment.
And, of course, Larushia and I had already laid the groundwork on the royal court’s side.
No, even if I had not done so, if an employee of Larushia Trading, who was quite well-known, had told of the crisis and asked for help, the Lord would have been in a better position to help him. Moreover, if it was an illegal act by the guards in full view of the public, they should be able to send out soldiers to check the situation. If they were not careful, the guards that protect the security of the capital would lose credibility, which could lead to a major incident.
And of course, the Guards, the Royal Army, and the Royal Knights have a rivalry with each other, and apparently, they don’t get along very well, like fighting over women in the bars and being territorial.
……There were similar industries where the boundaries of the scope of work responsibilities were blurred.
Furthermore, the thoughts and interests of the respective upper echelons and the aristocrats in charge of the departments under their jurisdiction were intertwined……
Well, that’s why I say that if the employees of the Larushia Trade rushed in and asked for help, they would not be ignored. Even if there was no prior notification.
……And this time, the groundwork has been properly laid.
The upper echelons of the Guardsmen were at odds with the nobility, the senior officers of the Royal Knights, and the officers of the Royal Army.
Yeah, a visit (with a souvenir and information to their advantage) from a young girl merchant owner of “Larushia Trading, which exclusively sells liquor, fine foodstuffs, cosmetics, etc. from the Viscount Yamano’s territory, which rarely comes”, and her friend, the wholesale source, an exotic girl viscount. That would work nicely, wouldn’t it?……
That’s how I was able to meet a number of aristocrats, civil servants, high-ranking military officers, and royalty…… indeed, not His Majesty the King, but His Royal Highness the Prince, or Her Royal Highness the Princess, they’re somewhat much lower……. Yet rather too easy.
They’re not “idols you can meet anytime,” but “aristocrats and royalty you can meet easily”.
Therefore, if there’s a dispute in front of the gate, a person who’s in charge of the situation would be expected to come to the scene immediately.
Those who wield chintzy power should be put up against those who wield higher power.
Let it be widely publicized that whoever was in charge of the tiger was the one who was responsible for everything it does.
They think that they will not be held responsible for anything they do, so they can act like fools. If we make their names public and let them know that they will be held responsible for everything they do, they will instantly calm down.
……Well, of course, by that point it’s already too late.
And I will make sure to tell his superior what that guy did.
If his superior was also the same, then I’ll go to a higher ranking one.
And If that guy was also the same, then I’ll go to an even higher ranking one.
If I keep doing that, I may find a decent superior.
But if we don’t get anywhere, the next step would be to talk to the opposing faction…… of course, with the souvenir of preferential sales of Viscount Yamano’s products.
This time, I did not contact the upper echelons of the Guardsmen to prevent them from leaking information to the guards or taking other countermeasures in advance. We don’t know how deep the corruption had rooted.
It could possibly be corrupt all the way to the top or even to the nobility in charge.
Well, let’s see how the situation would be handled after this, and I’ll make a decision based on that.
Yeah, well, I can handle it!
=====
Author’s Note:
Announcement.
At the time of the release of this work, “Noukin” vol. 5, due to a mistake, we were not able to upload the bookstore bonus SS to the download site of each bookstore in time for the release date, so some readers who ordered the book were not able to receive the book. We are sorry for the inconvenience.
Therefore, we are pleased to announce that the SS will be posted on the web before the release of volume 6.
The upload date is Friday, June 18, and the upload location is the Kōdansha ranobe bunko no blog.
We hope that those who have bought volume 5 and other “Noukin” readers will be able to read it. (^^)/
=====
Comments