Chapter 132: Too Much Attention
People in the County of Seres woke up to the tragic news of the Count’s passing. Word was going around that he was assassinated in the dead of the night by an unknown group of assailants.
This was shocking news as most people believed the aristocracy was untouchable. They held all the power, made decisions that affected the lives of everyone around.
Then, some decrees explicitly stated that harming a noble in any way was grounds for capital punishment. No one, no matter how powerful, was crazy enough to attempt taking the life of a noble.
Unless, of course, it was the work of a rival noble who wanted blood. In these cases, the underground forces were the ones hired to carry out such missions.
Even then, such missions were mostly undertaken during an outing of the said noble. It was very rare to hear a noble being assassinated in their own homes, as their mansions were built like fortresses.
Not even mentioning the level of security the nobles had, their mansions were also protected by sophisticated magic not known to the public.
Regardless of how this happened, someone or a group of people had managed to do the impossible, and the implications were as many expected.
All minor nobles and rich merchants who had some form of conflict with the Count made haste to prepare for a fight, some opting to leave the County before the emergency decree was passed.
Things were already dicey enough; they couldn’t afford to be caught in the middle of this.
The forces of the underworld knew they would be taking a lot of heat, possibly flushed out and exterminated. A lot of blood was bound to flow, and before that happened, many decided to lie low until the heat blew over.
The forces of the late Count spread out into all corners of the County, searching every nook and cranny of the lands. People were advised to stay indoors and not resist the knights.