Chapter 306
"Judess, or rather, Jacques-san."
"Nah, just Judess is fine."
"Alright then, Judess. Investigate this merchant guild. There's a ninety percent chance they're connected to Duke Boldorinde and the Evil God Cult."
I'm no stranger to analyzing information—I've done it both in my work and when verifying game mechanics. It's not a chore for me. In fact, I even enjoy it, almost like reading a mystery novel.
"Eh? But this place is one of the rare ones in the Hokushi territory that runs a legitimate business, isn't it?"
"But if Liberta-kun is pointing it out, that means there's something to it, right?"
"What do you mean?"
"Think about it. Do you really believe that Duke Boldorinde would leave evidence of his misdeeds in an obvious place? If it were me, I'd employ someone competent and skilled at managing evidence."
"Ah."
Among the information Judess and the others gathered, the merchant guild I found suspicious was an established one in the Hokushi territory, with a scale somewhere between mid-sized and major players. While the surrounding businesses engage in shady practices, this one appears to be run by honest merchants—conducting proper trade and using their own private forces to fend off harassment.
Having a long history means they've accumulated considerable business know-how, which allows them to sustain their store even with lower prices.
The store's appearance isn't lavish; it's not exactly plain, but simple, prioritizing product quality over flashy exteriors—the typical image of a reputable merchant.
"Sharia is right. Normally, you'd think they're just robust merchants with enough power to resist unreasonable noble demands and work hard for the citizens. In fact, there are several guilds like that besides this Otoba Merchant Guild."
However, this is Duke Boldorinde's backyard. Even if he doesn't resort to outright suppression, it raises the question of whether he'd allow such troublesome, honest merchants to survive and profit in his domain.
Adding to the information, it seems a merchant union has formed around this Otoba Merchant Guild, where they support each other and exchange goods.
"But this mutual aid society centered around the Otoba Guild... it just bothers me."
"Wouldn't you normally think they're just helping each other to do business locally?"
"I wouldn't."
If this were a less corrupt urban area, I might accept that explanation, but here, it makes me think it's all an act.
"For example, this document."
"This is...?"
"Right. It's about a small-scale guild in the mutual aid society. They're operating in a location where, if they weren't in the society, they'd surely be crushed or surrounded by other guilds doing dirty work and be starved out—yet they're fine. But look at this document."
"Ah, this guild and that guild are receiving the same product. But the supplier is... wait, was there even a guild like this?"
"That's an alias for the guild operating right in the middle here. This document, and this one too, say they're buying from a guild with the same name, but they're all guilds clustered closely around this small one."
Amidst all the guilds surrounded by shady rumors, a place perceived as safe and backed by the brand of 'trust' is unlikely to be suspected.
"And this document here?"
"It's the gate entry/exit log, right? Nothing strange about it, is there?"
"Look here, and here, look closely."
"This part? The date? Nothing weird, right?"
"You can tell the gate guards were slacking off, trying to fudge it carelessly. The vegetables they brought in are spring vegetables, not autumn ones."
"Ah."
"And over here, they're bringing in fish that can't be obtained in this region. If it were dried, I'd understand, but it's fresh. Fresh! No matter what, it would rot."
The items they're procuring are all disguised as daily necessities or food, but it feels odd that they can stably procure the same items year-round without break. Unless greenhouse cultivation or aquaculture technology were established, that is.
"My guess is they have a rotating cipher system, where the product name for this month is the code. Using out-of-season or impossible-to-import item names is probably a measure to avoid overlap with seasonal goods."
Whether such facilities are possible or not... well, given my city planning concepts, I can't say it's impossible. But personally, I doubt they could pull it off.
Therefore, these 'food items' must be code words for smuggled goods.
"Huh, I see."
"Someday, we'll be able to investigate these aspects too. Consider it a lesson."
"Understood.""Okay~"
I knew from the Duke Boldorinde Quest Strategy that this kind of cipher-related stuff would be necessary. That's precisely why I can focus on these details.
"Hm?"
After checking everything and thinking that investigating the Otoba Guild might reveal Duke Boldorinde's whereabouts, my eyes stopped on one report.
"What's up?""Nothing, it's this subjugation report.""Ah, that? We stole it from a noble's mansion."
Sharia, for whom cross-dressing had already become routine, came closer. I thought I caught a whiff of a pleasant scent, but I deliberately ignored that.
"Bandit subjugation record..."
At a glance, this document seems like a fabricated record meant to cover up absorbing bandits. It's just a report to the Royal Family, claiming they've fulfilled their duties.
But the scale of the bandits and the number of troops mobilized to deal with them are far larger than any other subjugation record.
"Why deploy such a large force? Is it fabricated? But submitting such a fake would only draw the Royal Family's attention... Wait, the reporting authority is Duke Boldorinde... The document's creation date is last year?"
That part felt strangely off, so I started checking the documents we took from the noble's mansion. Invoices, ledgers, receipts, sales contracts.
Because we took a whole pile, it looks messy, but you can learn a lot from the flow of money.
"Ah, ah, so that's it? They're doing that kind of thing?"
Once I understood what I was seeing, I started scratching my head vigorously.
"Hey, don't just figure it out by yourself. Explain it so we can understand too."
As I was comprehending it alone, Judess pestered me to explain it more clearly. Looking over, Sharia beside him was nodding with an adorable reaction.
"From these documents, it's clear this noble is connected to the Evil God Cult, right?"
So, to explain it understandably to these two, I first gathered the necessary documents.
Rustling through, I found several documents and laid them out.
"Whoa, slave trading.""What's the status of slavery in this country again?""It's in a grey area, leaning heavily towards black. Doing it without permission is a capital offense, yeah."
Slavery exists in this world, but it's exclusively for criminals like bandits. It's a form of penal servitude—people sent as labor for physically demanding jobs like mining, road construction, and land reclamation.
You need state permission even to hold slaves, and moreover, only the upper classes who handle judiciary matters or those with permission from His Majesty the King are eligible.
However, that's strictly for holding; permission for buying and selling is a different matter.
Basically, on this continent, the handling of slaves isn't such that after a court sentences someone to slavery, they are directly entrusted to a local noble. Instead, ownership is first granted to the central royal family.
Since they are judged by national law, the flow is that the state holds the ownership rights.
However, transporting slaves to the royal capital each time is troublesome, so a system developed: they send documents stating 'these people have been enslaved for this crime,' the royal capital reviews it, issues permission, and decides the assignment destination.
"In that case?""If we just send these documents to the Royal Family, this noble won't escape having his entire clan hanged. In terms of evidentiary value, handing over these documents and letting the Royal investigation team in would settle it. It reeks of illegality, and we can't assume the family doesn't know, so we'll send these along with our other资料 without mercy."
This will further expose Duke Boldorinde's lack of supervisory ability, bringing us a step closer to stripping him of his status.
Including the noble from these documents, they're engaging in pretty dark deals with parties they shouldn't be dealing with. They might be preparing to destroy evidence right now, but even if there are no slaves present, it would still be problematic.
"Send them to whom?""An acquaintance who's a noble.""Is that... alright?""They're a hostile noble, so I guarantee they won't show any mercy.""Ah—, that's tough."
Buying and selling is原则上 forbidden. Exceptions technically exist but are practically impossible. It's at a level where it might be done through unspoken understanding, but if it surfaces, it's completely 'out.'
And once evidence emerges, it's completely 'out,' meaning about four of Duke Boldorinde's subordinate noble houses will face dissolution.
Judess, having been a noble himself, knows the fate that awaits a house whose weaknesses are grasped by a hostile noble. He shrugs his shoulders with a wry smile, thinking, '(With a crime that serious,) it's a relief.'
"Let's get back on track. The counterpart in this slave trade is disguised, but it's undoubtedly sending slaves to the Evil God Cult.""That means...""Right. It's beyond redemption."
And the slaves' destination is the Evil God Cult, with transactions involving about 100 people at a time.
"Shouldn't we act before the Royal Family gets involved? There might be slaves we can save now.""Plus, we might be able to recruit some.""Since they can't be bound by a God's Contract, only physical restraint is possible. Conversely, for those bound by a God's Contract due to crimes, we can leave them be. Let's save as many as we can and make arrangements for supplies and protection."
Hearing the reality of the situation, the emotion drains from Judess and Sharia's faces.
Letting people be enslaved for crimes they didn't commit is unforgivable.I agree on that point too. It's probably better to disseminate this damning information around here to further weaken their position.
Formal slaves should have a God-sanctioned contract applied to them, so labeling them as heinous criminals isn't an issue.
Ahh, the nobles of this country really are a bunch of scumbags, aren't they?
"Can we do it?""We'll do it. Fortunately, I have an idea for a refuge, though it might get a bit cramped."
But if we can sever Duke Boldorinde's limbs here, let's actively cut them off.
"And let's crush the guilds on this list too. They're the ones sending support supplies to the Evil God Cult. Ah, but leave the Otoba Guild to me; I'll handle crushing them, so don't touch it."
While we're at it, let's have Duke Edelgard kick the King's butt into action and ensure this matter is properly judged by royal authority.
To threaten him with 'You know what'll happen if you don't act, right?' we'll make sure to attach this evidence properly.
With this, we can cut off about 80% of Duke Boldorinde's funding sources.But before we drive him out of his domain, we need to find Duke Boldorinde's location.
That bandit subjugation report earlier—the circumstances describe deploying troops to subdue large-scale bandits attacking a village. And it says one village was wiped out due to the bandit attack.
It's almost like an act to drive people away from that area. I recognize this move.
It's the same maneuver Duke Boldorinde employs when creating a hideout. A merchant couldn't pull this off.
But if His Grace the Duke acted openly, it would draw attention. So he probably had a subordinate noble do it.
We've found a clue.The Otoba Guild holds the confirmation.
Well then, shall we begin the snake hunt?